My first class of 2nd-graders was amazing. I was with H-Sol Teacher, and the boys in 2-7, 2-8 actually responded! They said words! I had to be realllly patient with them, but once I stopped being mentally huffy and wanting to rush through, they actually had time to formulate some answers to the game.
I was quite happy. And they were quite happy. I gained a new favorite--English-Hyunseo who says he actually enjoys English. He was very clever and I liked him.
And that was nothing compared to Governor Yunho and crew. My favorite little flirt and his co-horts were hilarious in both their drawings and their commentary on the drawings. Yunho insisted he should win a prize because his comic was "Neomu utgyeoyo" or "incredibly funny" and therefore should be dubbed the best. Him and Gicheol and Taehoon and Hyunshik were a barrel of laughs and I loved talking to them.
In 3rd grade, the boys were funny and amazing, and Yeongjoon really shone. He figured out some answers before Byeonghyun, which was really stunning. He sat in the front row with Byeonghyun and BY and informed me that they were the "A-line". The best students were in the front this time.
We had a nice class. KBR was great with the kids, though she told me that she's getting tireder and tireder of the actual doing of teaching lately. I told her that I know the feeling, though I also said I had a really good morning with my 2nd-graders.
Beautiful Face-Yoonjae's hair is going gray. The other kids are trying to pull it out, strand by strand. He's fifteen. I didn't know hair went gray that early.
Minhwe came by to get his chocolate. We chatted about his morning and he was a delight, as always. Can't believe I didn't notice Minhwe last year. He's such a precious soul.
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2 PM: Yeah-iss, last class o' 2nd-graders before lunch went pretty well. NG-Teacher offered me a mike at one point and I said I was okay, then after a few minutes he set it up for me anyway. So I used it. He knows better than me on some issues. The game worked much better today with a little patience.
I met Yeongsu and Jonghoon in this class, adding them to the list of my boys. They were noisy, but I connected with several of them and it went well. Seongkyu is a real card and Giwoong is a total brain, who answered a million questions. It was a good time.
Then after lunch I went walking with H-Sol Teacher, which was very pleasant. She's a wonderful person and we get along well. She complimented my Korean ability, which made me happy.
I went to Lunchtime Games and spent a lot of time talking to Hyo, who thinks his weekend plans will be ruined by rain. Eungyo talked to me some also--he's quite loveable.
Soonhyuk and Governor Yunho came by for chocolate and we had a nice discussion. It'll be funny to me if the boys end up learning the past tense of English simply because I keep asking them what they did yesterday.
S-Teacher says that 1st grade classroom number 9 voted me the prettiest teacher in school. But my boys Hyunseo, Byeongil and Doyeong are in there, so I know they put it a good word for me.
Leader Jaehoon stopped to tell me that he used the colored folding paper I'd given him for his birthday and made cranes out of it. Sweet baby.
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4:30 PM Last class o' 1st-graders was so nuts, I made them all put their heads down on their desks for half a minute. We had fun after that--they'd just escalated so far, I did not bring them down to zero before we could proceed. And they did great after that.
Little Jeongmook in the front row can't go 3 minutes without flirting. Grabbing my hand, saying "I love you", writing "I LOVE YOU" in all caps on his Bingo paper, saying "hug me please" in Korean--the flow of affection is nonstop from this one. He kicked it up a notch, too, adding, "Teacher. First kiss when? WHEN WAS. Who was it. WHO????" Translator-Jongmin joined in the questioning and I told them to mind their own business in Korean. But we ended up with a good class overall and several of them won chocolate.
At lunchtime when H-Sol and I went walking outside the school gates, we were swarmed by a bunch of students hoping to accompany us outside and thus gain freedom. C-Yoonseok offered my his arm to escort me outside. He said to everyone else in English, "Teacher's friend. I am teacher-friend." I accepted his arm for a few seconds, before leaving him at the gate with Seungah and the rest.
Walked home part of the way with BY. We talked about how he sounds different in Korean than in English--his voice is much higher and quirkier in English. Turns out he speaks higher in English because his friends in America responded better to higher pitches than to lower ones. I feel like if he kept his English voice at the same register as his Korean voice, he'd get less teasing from the other kids. So I'm thinking about how to introduce that idea to him without seeming like I'm insulting him.
Weekend's here! Which means volunteering at the orphanage, lesson planning, and going to a board game cafe in Seoul! Next week shall be lovely.
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