8:30 AM: Walked out on the school's porch to find Shotputter-Jinseong sitting on some kid. But the kid was almost as big as him and when I asked how he was, he didn't look upset, so I'm going to assume that this is Jinseong horsing around with friends, not Jinseong bullying people.
With Jinseong, I saw Giant-Shion. Yesterday, he didn't come to class for his 3rd-grade speaking test, so I had to fill in the lowest grade for him. I asked him in Korean why he didn't come to class yesterday, and he said he was playing sports. *sigh* I really wish Shion would try harder, but I don't know what's going on with him.
Saw Acapella-Hyunho in the hallway and gave him a hug. He's a 1st-grader and a tiny child, and he always greets me sweetly in English. Yesterday, he saw my cross necklace and said, "Teacher! You go church?" I said yes, and he said he goes to church, too.
I haven't mentioned my church much yet, but I've found a great English-speaking place about a hour hour away by train, and on Sunday, I got there by myself for the first timeout of three visits. I got turned around in the subway, but it went okay. Next week, I should be having lunch with the praise and worship team, so hopefully I'll get to meet more like-minded people--I've already met several lovely families, plus other grade-school teachers and college professors.
Sunday, the message was about being vulnerable for Jesus, about being willing to open yourself up and give to him. It absolutely convicted me, because I often want to just stop giving to the tough kids. But I don't think that the impulse to withdraw and ignore tough people is godly at all. The Lord never stops giving to me, and I shouldn't stop giving back to him or giving to others.
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10:40AM 1-1, 1-2 B was great. Co-Teacher wasn't there for the first 20 minutes. They're a rowdy bunch, but I managed to get them interested in Scattergories. And they went loopy over the bomb game. I think threats of bodily harm were exchanged at one point. We had a fun time.
2-3, 2-4 A was good.
I had to confiscate Hyun's playing cards because while the boys can run free in afterschool, there's got to be a limit in regular class, and KBR-Teacher wasn't there to help me regulate them. They had fun, though.
BY was my scorekeeper for the game, and when I asked if he had any magic tricks today, he said, "Well, if you really want to see more, I suppose I can show them to you next week..." And suddenly he's the benevolent entertainer, bestowing magic upon the masses at his leisure.
And Tall-Yoonjae struck up a conversation with me! Of all things. I sat down to get my computer in order and he asked if I knew the song "The Fox." I said I did, and he said it was very funny and interesting and the he doesn't sing it, but he likes listening to his friends singing it at noraebang. What a sweet kid. I'm not used to the students trying to start actual conversations with me.
Although yesterday on the walk home from school, I had a great talk with Saturday-Jeongmin. From the school gates to the bus stop, we discussed Halloween traditions and how hard it is to carve pumpkins. He said he tried to carve a pumpkin just once in his life, and it was so arduous, he slept for 13 hours afterward. I asked him how he was doing and he said this:
"I'm doing fine, but...it's Tuesday. People say that Monday is bad, but I think that Tuesday is more bad because it's three days until weekend. But tomorrow will be Wednesday, and Wednesday's not as bad."
Why so adorable, Saturday-Jeongmin? I feel like I'm missing out on so many delightful things the boys might say because I don't have enough of their language to really hear them speak their minds, as Jeongmin can do in English.
11 hours of sleep and still sleepy. One more class, then I can rally myself over lunch.
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1 PM Definitely feeling better after lunch! It was very filling and I'm more energized.
2-9, 2-10 started out rough, but got better. Mr. B wasn't there with me in the beginning and only 4 boys wanted to participate. They weren't bad boys, but it's kind of draining to conduct a class for so few. But after Mr. B stepped in for two minutes, they got into it.
In there: Sweet-Afterschool-Jinseop, Sangwoo and Seulbin
(smart guys), Tall-Roundface-Minchan, Braces-Donghyuk, Tan-Frontrow-Byeonghyuk.
The new names I got were Minchan, a big kid who never participates but did today, Donghyuk, a boy with not just braces but silver tooth fillings who always looks like he's hurting, and Byeonghyuk, a smart boy who sits in the front and talks nicely. After class, I saw Minchan in the hallway, and said, "Hello, Minchan!" He gave me the widest smile, and I don't think I've seen him smile before.
After lunch, my C-class boys were playing outside and I leaned out the window to ask if they wanted to play cards, but they said they couldn't because they actually hadn't gotten their lunch yet. Which kids get to eat when is strictly regulated because our cafeteria can't hold them all at once. Oddly enough, BY was hanging out with the C-boys...maybe they're in the same numbered-class and that's how he knows them.
Saw Saturday-Jeongmin and told him I was think about an art project for Saturday class. He said, "I think that's good. Though what to you think about making candy?" Ooh, good idea Jeongminnie. Maybe for the following Saturday class. Saturday-Jeongmin was standing next to Baby-Hyo in the lunch line, and I like the idea of them hanging out.
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1:30 PM Played a few rounds of UNO with one of my favorite 3rd-graders, Yeonghyo, and his two friends Jinhwan and Inhak. Every time I'd send a bad card his way, Yeonghyo would whine "Teacherrrrr...." It was fun. And O-Teacher was nice enough to let us use her room to sit and play. The 3rd-graders tend to get into trouble when they just have free time to roam, so I was glad that this time they were in a safe place, doing something friendly.
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3:20 PM 3-1, 3-2's speaking test went pretty well. They, at least, prepared for it, unlike yesterday's boys. And only one kid failed! And nobody cried! It was lovely. They kept shuffling out into the hall, despite all best intentions to keep them inside, away from the speaking-test area.
The class jjang came outside to sit behind me while others others talked to me, and to play with my hair stealthily, so I wouldn't notice. My hair is attached at the root, kids. I know you're touching it. I handed him more hair and said it was okay to do, whereupon the whole enterprise lost that ooh-I'm-doing-something-I-shouldn't flair and became pretty dull.
We had ten minutes left after all the speaking tests, so I played UNO with them, which is one of the best bonding activities ever. We had a great time and We-Are-The-World-Dongyeong, the class loudmouth, had the time of his life and requested that we play next week, too. Dongyeong got that particular mental nickname because every week in class, he requests that I play the Youtube lyrics video for the song "We Are the World". Of all things.
Piano-Jaehyung came by to ask me to come to class, though we didn't have time to play UNO. We played our cups game and chilled for 5 minutes.
C-class-Minwoo was looking really down. I tried to ask him what was wrong, but our collective language abilities weren't enough to suss it out.
Seongwonie was really upset that we had no time for UNO, and he looked like he was about to cry. He has a big scrape on his chin, which I hope came from falling in PE, but I doubt it.
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6 PM: Afterschool was fine. Seongmo was splitting up a pastry he had brought to class and he broke some off for me, "Teacher...here!" Oh, it was so sweet. I haven't had a student give me food yet, other than Byeonghyun's coffee can.
We tried some new card games and I played the movie Peter Pan for them, skipping some parts because I forgot how racially insensitive the portrayal of the indians was. Seongmo and Jinseop insisted on calling the main characters "Pizza Pan" and "Captain Chicken," and as soon as Peter appeared on screen, another kid pointed to the screen and said, "Taehoonie!" See, I'm not the only one who sees Peter Pan when they look at Taehoon. Also, Byeonghyun showed up wearing a Bruno-Mars-style fedora.
On the walk home from school I was greeted by A-class Minwoo, he of the pony-fish sounds. I told him I liked his shoes and he replied, "Oh, they're trash," with a smile. Ten seconds later, I could see why he might say such a thing because Minwoo's father picked him up in what appeared to be a Benz. A BENZ.
Also on the way home, C-Class Minwoo said, "Hi teacher." I stopped him on his bike to give him candy, because I had meant to give him some earlier when he looked so sad. Near home, I heard, "Teacher, teacher, teacher!" From behind me and turned to see Taekyeong, Byeongmin, and Keundeok, all from afterschool, happily waving.
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