Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Kimchi dumplings?


Did you know there were kimchi dumplings? Yes, they exist and are delicious.






Time to participate kiddies

These colored ice cream sticks have increased class participation by 1000%.

I pick one person per class to go around and have other students pick out the sticks. Whatever numbers are picked, that student has to stand up and either read or recite whatever textbook info we are learning. It helps a lot. I can get more than half of the students to speak English during every class. It also keeps them on their toes. Whoever gets chosen to walk around the room and have the other students pick sticks, feels very powerful, at least during the class time.

Footnote: always count your sticks after every class. LOL. My slick students STOLE their numbers near the end of the semester and I did not know it until after the semester was over.
What can I say?

My rugrats are SMART!




Shadow leaves


The fall season here creates amazing shadows.



Beautiful sunsets


There are always amazing sunsets right outside my window.





Blackface in elementary textbooks?

These are images that are on the CD for the textbook we used this semester.
Also, the map does not show any people in Africa, only animals.
Is there any wonder the adults here find blackface so funny when the elementary books show this?


Hmmmmnnnn...






Phone booth fun


These beautiful things are disappearing!





Hello 2015!!! I welcome you with HOPE. Happy New Year!!!


Walking into my future...


Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Hair play

My 5th grade students at my Thursday travel school love to touch (and braid) my Senegal twists.

I love that they have warmed up to me.



Saturday, October 18, 2014

Hike anyone? Hey, wait up!

My second (Thursday) school had a hiking trip scheduled and I asked to go with them for the first time. I showed up almost late with jeans on. They looked at me as if I was a space alien, wearing jeans to a hike, lol. Even the smallest student was geared up in the most expensive mountain climbing outfit including walking sticks. Hiking clothes can cost around one thousand US dollars. It is serious business to hike here.

Before the hike, the six grade class expressed concern for our safety.  Wasn't that sweet?

Well, after about an hour, the other english teacher and I were both sweating buckets. We were not even able to keep up with the 1st graders! Those little kids left us in their dust! All we saw was the back of their little itty bitty heads. Luckily for us, after the second hour, one of the sixth grade boys was unable to complete the climb. He was overheated and vomited three times and reluctantly had to turn back. Being the good teachers we were, we heroically offered to bring him back down the mountain so the others could proceed without us.


It was a huge sacrifice but we were BOTH VERY happy to make it, lol.