2 PM: School was good today.
It's rainy and cool, so I love the atmosphere and mood, but I'm not loving what the rain does to my hair. I've had the best conversations about weather today, both with the other teachers and with the kids. People can really wax poetic about their relative feelings toward rainy days.
YS-Teacher doesn't like rainy days because they give a depressing feeling. Mr. B doesn't like them because the kids can't play outside, therefore they stay in and make noise and violence.
My two 2nd-grade classes went okay. It was a little dull in class, but my new strategy for speaking practice worked pretty well. They boys were way more interested in practicing when they knew they'd have to try to mentally fill in the blanks on a projection with words missing. And the shuriken paper-star-making went decently. There was the usual mix of disinterested kids who didn't want to make one, but most of them were following the instructional video and really trying.
And with a minimum of throwing the stars at each other! Of course, they are meant to be thrown and I knew they'd do some of it, but I was pleased that they mostly waited until class was over. I had a lot of fun with the guys--they made me laugh a lot, and I got good work out of Woohyuk and Gunwoo, who usually sleep.
-----------------------------
9:30 PM Whole day was good. My 3rd-grade class didn't meet so the kids could study for their exam, but my 1st-grade did. Unfortunately, something went weird with the video player, so the boys watched "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" with zero sound, Korean subtitles and me translating in English. Which sounds like a logistical nightmare, but which was actually pretty grand.
Between me and the kids, we kept up a pretty interesting dialogue about the characters, their motivations, their relationships, and what the boys predicted would happen next. It was really, really enjoyable and the boys all wanted their "free hug" at the end of class. My Monday 1st-graders have gotten spoiled for hugs because now they expect them every time, but I'm so happy about it because they're all so precious.
I wore loose pants today, sort of a palazzo-pajama-genie style that's pretty popular in America. I bought them at H&M, a European store in Seoul, so it's a "foreign" brand, but the reactions I got to it were hilarious. Apparently, this style of pants is strictly for grandmothers in Korea.
I never expected such boring black pants to be a subject of conversation, but KBR asked where I got them, my lunch co-ordinator started a minute-long commentary on them, and our principal pointed them out and asked the lunch co-ordinator to ask where I'd gotten them. All in a spirit of goodwill--everyone seemed surprised/amused by my fashion choice.
The kids were also either delighted (1st-graders) or prepared to tease me mercilessly about them (3rd-graders). Youngmin had a million miles of witty pants-commentary to offer. A good time was had by all. And I'm never wearing those pants again.
Yoonjae told me today that he was sad because his homeroom teacher promised him something, then broke the promise. I didn't know what it was about, but Yoonjae just wanted to talk about his problems.
BY doesn't want to go to high school. He wants to self-study, then enter college. I wish he could--it might do him a world of good to get some self-direction in his studies instead of being lumped into a herd.
Jeongmin told me something interesting after lunch. I had given him the good news today--that I'd signed a contract for another year. I told him I'd be here until he was a 3rd-grader. He said this was excellent because it meant that he and I would exit the school at roughly the same time
The interesting bit was, he told me that he had been worried that I'd leave this year, and if I had done so, he would have probably transferred to a different (much better) middle school a mile away from here. I asked what his parents thought about him transferring, and he said they supported it if he wanted to leave. I told him not to stay if he wanted to go to a better place--that he should transfer out in any case, if it meant a better opportunity for him.
He said no, he wants to stay. Because even though the students here are trouble (his words), the teachers are all great and there are always opportunities to talk to the teachers. I do hope that the issue is more complex and he's not staying at a less-than-ideal place just because of me. But in any case, I'm glad to have my boy around for another year.
Saw Byeonghyun while I was standing on the front porch. He joked that my pants were "so attractive," then was forced to acknowledge the fact we were being hollered at by a few dozen 1st-graders who were watching us from a high window. They were shouting "I love you" and throwing heart signs with their hands, ending in a sort of group-wide swoon when I waved back. "I guess they really like you," Byeonghyun commented. It's always funny when the big guys, who are 10 shades of cool, observe the 1st-grade babies being squishy little lumps of feelings and enthusiasm.
Lunchtime Games were good today, though 13 of them wanted to play a card game designed for 9. Afro-Jiwoong continues to be grand. Subin continues to be a cute little duck, bent on infuriating the other kids. Hyunho was only medium-angry at other kids, and all of us were glad to be together.
Question Time is getting good. Minjoon wondered if I'd ever eaten snails, thanks to our dalpaengi conversations from last week. Twin-Seungho wondered about my favorite poem, so I googled it and read "Fire and Ice" to an audience of six 3rd-graders. I've been putting the boys' trail mix in little Easter-themed cups my mom sent. They love it.
---------------------------------------
