"And you'll show up for work with a smile"

Well, my first official week of teaching has been over for a couple days now. And it's back to SLP tomorrow. I have mixed feelings. Monday was horrendous and I was at my breaking point. I was so close to telling Sarah (the director of teachers) that I couldn't do this. Kim, the teacher who I replaced, emailed me the homework sheets for the month of August, but I couldn't open some of them. The classes are pretty structured, so the students (and some of the parents) were freaked out that they didn't get a homework sheet on Monday even though I told them they would get one the next day. I was just really stressed out with the lack of homework sheets and spelling test words. I knew Darcie was in the same boat so that made me feel a little better. I feel like I spent all my time worrying about paperwork so I didn't have any time to come up with supplementary worksheets to spice things up a bit. Things got better as the week progressed, though.

My first two classes are summer school classes. I have a phonics class and then a reading comprehension class. My phonics class is a nightmare so I need to spend a couple hours today figuring out ways to get them excited again. Hajun, one of the boys in my phonics class, is raising hell and hitting another little boy, Andrew, who is adorable, polite, and quiet. Oh, and Hajun keeps breaking the points off of kids' pencils. It's just really too much. Andrew's mom called the other day to see if he could be put into a different class, but there is no other phonics class, unfortunately. Andrew loses sleep at night because he's afraid to go to school. I keep an eye on them when they're in class, but they have two 5-minute breaks in the morning and that's when the fighting happens. And then there is Tess and Christina--two girls who are a little older and act like they're bored to death no matter what we're doing. That class is over on August 22nd...and I am counting down the days at this point.

My other morning class is reading comprehension. They're great for the most part. They always do their homework and they always study for spelling tests, etc. On Friday I was talking to them while they were lined up getting ready to leave for the day. One of them noticed how long my toes are, and I heard a chorus of "Wow." And then they each had to measure one of my toes with their fingers. It was pretty funny. :)

My kindergarten class is fun. I NEED that class in the middle of the day to keep me sane. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday are language arts days. Wednesday is science and Friday is art. The only problem I ever have with that class is Sarah who is extremely bossy with the other kids. They all think my ear piercings are craaaaazy.

Then I have the higher-level kids in the afternoon: Hi Kids 1, 2, and 4. A boy in my HK 1 class gave me my first gift. He handed me a cooked cob of corn. It wasn't wrapped up in anything and it was still hot. Here is my corn in the midst of my school books. I appreciate the randomness of it.



Most of my Hi Kids classes are really small and that makes it kind of difficult. It's hard to come up with games for one or two students and sometimes I'm stuck with one student and I feel bad making him or her reading an entire story and answer every single question.

Anyway, I'm sure this week will be better...because it HAS to. I'll keep you posted. I'll be in better contact with everyone once I have an internet connection in my apartment. Apparently I can't get it until I receive my alien registration card which should be this week or next week.

I haven't had any cool Seoul experiences this week. I'm at work from 9 am to 7:30 pm. I'm barely functioning when I get home. I'm looking forward to summer school being done and then I'll just have the kindergarten and Hi Kids classes in the afternoons. There is a river right by my apartment building and I'm going to buy a cheap bicycle with my first paycheck and go for bike rides whenever I have time.

Ok, I don't have anything else to write! I love and miss you all!