Life and School

This week we had a special performance to attend that the 5th and 6th graders put together for the school and their parents. There were many dances, songs, and skits that were very well done, including songs from The Sound of Music. They had memorized all of their lines and dance moves, and even though most of it was in Chinese, it was very enjoyable to watch. They were decked out in costumes and stage make-up, even the boys had on bright pink lipstick and they didn’t seem to think anything of it!
Many of the higher level students are beginning to prepare for an English competition where they will be giving speeches and will be judged on their English. This week I have been able to work more one on one with these students and help them prepare. They will be asked a question about how they feel they have grown and changed during their life. The answer that struck me the most and brings so much insight into this culture was from my student “Rachel” as she talks about how she is becoming more responsible and independent and that she longs to one day give back to her parents what they parents have given her. Even at the age of 10, this is what many Chinese students looking into their future would count as success. It is expected that after University and getting a job, you will live with your parents, sometimes even if you are married, to take care of them as they have worked very hard for the opportunities that have come in your life. Family is greatly valued here and you see it even just in walking down the street, as grandparents are pushing their grandchild in a stroller, most likely because the parents are working to provide for both generations.
This is also a very collective society, which does not work well when I give out a test and my students think it is a “group test.” I have tried to emphasize and model “keep your eyes on your own paper” but some students still think it is ok to look around for answers. I have been consistent in taking points off for cheating and I am trying to use it to promote character in my class such as honesty and integrity.
I am realizing more and more that life and school here very much merge together. When the students spend more time at school than they do at home with their parents, their teachers and classmates become their family. I just love being able to give my students hugs throughout the week and their excitement always remains the same when they see me!
It is hard to believe but midterm exams will be going on next week, which means a whole other week of schedule changes that just keep this school year interesting and unpredictable!

Meat On a Stick and Divine Appointments

The highlight of school this week was getting to go on a field trip! We got to go to a park near the mountains on the outskirts of Beijing. It was a beautiful day to be outside and the kids had a blast. There were many team building and “field day” types of activities. They did everything from having to work together to get all of their classmates over a 10ft wall, to picking up ping pong balls with chopsticks and having to race across a field without losing it and drop it in a bucket. It was fun to cheer the students on and have a day to just spend time with them. The most interesting part of the day was lunch time. As we spread out for a picnic, all the kids got out their snacks- it was like Halloween, only Chinese style. In my opinion, dried packaged meat on a stick and seaweed are not exactly treats. The kids were running around trading their food with each other and putting all kinds of food up to my mouth to try. Needless to say, I was glad I packed a good old peanut butter and jelly! I think it was definitely a day of bonding for me and for the students.
Another highlight this week was getting to go observe some English classes at a local University in Beijing that some other ELIC teachers teach at. We are encouraged to do this to see how it is different and what it would be like, so since our Fridays are just office hours we got permission to go on this special trip! Renmin University is one of the best University’s in China and it felt so good to be back on a college campus…I’m still kind of mourning the fact that I am no longer a college student! The campus was beautiful and had everything you could ever need, including two grocery stores, a cell phone store, and many restaurants in addition to their dining halls. The students in the class we observed were preparing for their midterm assignment which is going to be giving a speech. I got to talk with a few students about their ideas and give them some feedback. I was so impressed with the depth of their speeches, maybe even more because I am really only use to being able to teach basic vocabulary to my ten year old students! One student’s speech title was “A Walk in Autumn.” She was using the metaphor of how the leaves in autumn change colors and then slowly wither away and die, to talking about our lives and humanity. This led to a really great discussion about the meaning of life and our purpose here on earth. I respect these students so much, as I cannot imagine having to give a speech in Chinese! It was a really fun and encouraging day to connect with students there, including two girls I had met on the train ride I took to Taiyuan a few weeks ago! I walked into the class we were going to be observing and knew I recognized one of the students and then realized we had sat across from each other on the train. Of all the people in Beijing for me to sit across from on that train ride, and of all the classes I could have attended on that campus! I had actually gotten the other girls phone number so I called her once I got to campus and we were able to meet up for lunch. I am so thankful for the Divine appointments and opportunities that arose over this weekend.

Stop and Go

It is hard to believe it is already October and we have already had two major holidays and breaks from school. As much as it has been nice to have the days off, it has been difficult to get into a routine in my personal life as well as in the classroom. Students are beginning to settle back into campus tonight and we will work this weekend and a full week next week. It will be a long stretch until our next break when the American teachers get a couple of days of for Thanksgiving, but I am ready for routine!
I took full advantage of having our week long break for National Day this past week. Our team got to travel to the city of Taiyuan, about a 3 hour fast train ride, west of Beijing, to visit another team of teachers their that we became friends with at training. We were so thankful for their hospitality and encouragement. We ate very well during the trip, everything from homemade oatmeal banana chocolate chip pancakes, to fajitas with homemade tortillas. I guess that's the thing here in China- we don't have a lot of access to Western food, so you have to be creative and make everything from scratch which makes it that much more delicious to eat! It was great to see another part of China, as Beijing has been my only experience thus far. The train ride allowed us to pass through many beautiful mountainous areas where I saw rice farmers and small villages, and then we arrived in Taiyuan, a booming and growing city that had a lot of charm and a smaller town feel than Beijing, but it was still rather large. We went shopping and to large park that was full of families and fun activities for the holiday. We definitely noticed more attention and stares, as it is not as common for the people their to see foreigners as it is in Beijing. I even got pulled into two Chinese family photos! I'm sure I will be on their wall or in a frame in their homes for years to come. The attention is kind of nice for a little while, but I am thankful my everyday living is not like that.
I am starting a new unit tomorrow that will be about weekend activities. This includes teaching many verbs and I found a "Verb Rap" that I can't wait to have the students learn!I feel a little more prepared to begin teaching this new unit as I have made it through teaching the first one, but I still am learning new techniques to practice vocabulary, choosing activities that have the students speaking the majority of my short 40 mins. with them, and building relationships with them through the language barrier. More teaching updates to come...

Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps

This week has been full of unexpected schedule changes. At this point, I should just be expecting them and I am sure that soon I will simply not be phased by them. We found out at the beginning of the week that we would have 5 days off of school this coming week because of Mid-Autumn festival. This is an important holiday in Chinese culture when families get together, share a meal, and eat mooncakes, a traditional dessert, special to this holiday. Apparently this is the first year they have taken so many days off for it. However, we also learned that making up school and work days on the weekends is not off limits here, so we will have to work this Saturday and next Saturday to make up for it. It has been a long work week but I am so thankful for the holiday next week.
This has been an encouraging week of teaching. I am beginning to see my students flourish in the routines and procedures I have put in place. I am learning how to manage a Chinese classroom and have implemented new strategies this week that have allowed me to feel more confident and in control of the class and their behavior. My students need a lot of extrinsic motivation, which in the 4th grade means giving them stickers and when they get 5 stickers, they get a bigger prize (candy and pencils galore!). I struggle with my belief that rewarding a student for everything they do is actually more harmful than good, but I feel like I am slowly but surely figuring out the balance between my teaching philosophy and that of the Chinese teachers.
One fun lesson we did this week was about animals. The students were learning the words hippo, elephant, giraffe, snake, lion, and monkey. We sang a song I remembered learning at summer camp as a kid, “Let me see your snake face…what’s that you say? I said let me see your snake face…what’s that you say? I said…ooh aah aah aah ooh aah aah aah ooh aah aah aah ooh (doing motion for that animal)” The motions and singing help the students with the vocabulary and I have heard them singing the song outside of class…it’s truly wonderful to know learning is taking place!
I also started teaching an activity class that will be once a week for an hour and a half. It is for 4th-6th graders who tested highly in their English skills. Two of my teammates and I get to teach it together and we have made it into a theatre class. This means I get to teach dance to the kids! In fact we are teaching them the song and dance “We’re All in This Together” from High School Musical. We are also working on some skits and hope to put together a little show by the end of the semester for them to perform for parents and the school. One of my 4th grade students in the class has become fond of getting to have me as his teacher for two classes now. He says in his Chinese-English accent “Ms. Katie, I love you. I want you to be my wife.”
Well, how my days off will be spent is still up in the air. One of my Chinese co-teachers had invited me to go home with her a couple of times and asked me again this week. She is from Inner Mongolia and it would be such a cool opportunity to get to know her outside of school and to see more of China. However, train tickets are proving to be hard to come by with the holiday next week so it may not work out. If the trip doesn’t happen, I will be perfectly fine resting and doing some sightseeing in Beijing. I still haven’t seen even half of this city! “Perhaps” is a word that is often used here, so perhaps I will go to Inner Mongolia on Monday…probably the most spontaneous thing I have ever said! Until next time…

First full week!

 I have officially been in China for one month now, teaching for one and a half weeks.  So much has been packed into this time that it seems impossible that it has only been four weeks, but I’m thankful to have this Saturday off and take some time to process all that is going on!  The autumn season is upon the city of Beijing, lifting the grey smog, and allowing a beautiful blue sky and cooler temperatures in.  For the month of September, I am focusing on Sleeping, Eating, Pr., and Teaching and I’m learning that these basics are enough for now!  I am continuing to adjust to teaching English as a foreign language, getting to know my students, and getting to know my Chinese co-workers.  Sometimes I expect for relationships to develop faster and to be successful in the things I do on the first try, but I have to remember I am a new teacher, I am in a new culture, and there is a language barrier that requires even more patience!  

I need to provide my students activities and lessons that allow for oral language production, as I am a native speaker and they can have great benefit in learning how to communicate with me and each other.  Coming up with games and activities that give them the most practice is still difficult at this point as I am getting to know the varying levels of English amongst my students within each class.  Some things this week I thought would be good activities failed, some miserably, but I am learning.  I am use to teaching one class of about 25 students and getting to be with them all day.  Teaching four classes of about 32 students and trying to fit everything we need to cover into 40 minutes is challenging to say the least.  I know that when my students can’t understand me, they begin to tune out and that is when the talking and other discipline problems begin.  I totally get that- I sometimes tune out when we’re in a meeting where they are only speaking in Chinese.  Why bother to listen and pay attention if the person talking is making no sense to you?  Ironically enough, my students and I are going through the same thing, in a way, just in reverse. I need to be better at transitioning between activities and engaging the students so there is less time for them to easily get distracted.   Although the language barrier is frustrating at times, I am intrigued by how we were created with different languages and tongues and I’m thankful for the opportunity to get to learn Chinese while I am here. However, there are many ways my students communicate with me beyond language.  There is not a lack of feeling loved and appreciated as their teacher.  As soon as I walk in to set up for the class they immediately come to say “hello teacher!” and to give hugs.  They also want to touch everything I bring in with me and help set things up. 

I have also been getting to know my two Chinese co-teachers who also teach these students English throughout the week.  They took me out to dinner at a local restaurant here this week and it was nice to be out of the school environment and ask about their lives outside of being a teacher.  They work very hard and are very busy all the time.  That particular night, they had to return to teach another class that evening and one of the teachers lives an hour away from the school.  I live right on campus and have fewer classes than they do so I feel a bit spoiled.  Although we all speak English, there is still a communication barrier and I’m not sure they always understand what I mean so I have to be patient in asking the same question in a variety of ways and being ok with misunderstandings.  In the Chinese culture, if you are the one inviting someone out to a meal, they will pay.  There is no splitting the bill.  It felt weird to let her pay for my meal, but she replied “This is the Chinese way.”  I look forward to cooking an American meal for them and having them over to my apartment.

Friday was also Teacher’s Day in China.  Students bring gifts to show their appreciation for their teachers and it is made rather a big deal compared to The States.  The school had a banquet dinner at a hotel last night to celebrate.  There were over 200 teachers there from the primary, middle, and high school.  Many speeches were given by administrators, performances including singing and dancing (my team performed “Lean on Me” as a last minute request), and toasts were given at individual tables (you always want to have something in your glass at a Chinese banquet so you are ready for toasts!).  It was a very nice event and new experience for all of the foreign teachers!

First Days of Teaching

     I've decided this blog will be dedicated to my experiences, challenges, and joys of my first year of teaching.  When I began my degree of Elementary Education at USC, little did I know I would be here in Beijing leading 4th grade Chinese students to learn English during my first year of teaching.  When you are a teacher you must be flexible, and my time in China thus far us been stretching me in that more than ever before. 

     The first day of school across the whole country is September 1st.  I did not find out what grade I was teaching until August 28th.  Because I am a planner and I love knowing details, this was the first of many circumstances of ambiguity I have encountered in my short time at the school.  I feel like I must be prepared for anything at anytime which can be unsettling but exciting at the same time.  For example, as we were getting ready for the first day of school, doing last minute lesson plans and anticipating meeting our students for the first time, we (my team of American teachers) were told we needed to be taken to a foreign health clinic to have some tests done instead of teaching on the first day of school.  Even though we had all had the required medical tests before leaving The States, apparently the country needs their own records.  I awoke that morning hearing the chants of Chinese children beginning at 6:30am, as the students were walking from their dorms to the school's opening ceremonies right outside my window before being whisked away to the clinic (the clinic was an interesting experience in itself as we had to go from room to room for different things such as blood work, an ultrasound, and even "surgery"- some things just don't translate correctly, and it was quite the joke that they were going to take one of our organs).  When we returned from the clinic, we ate lunch in the school cafeteria with our Chinese co-teachers.  My teacher says, "Katie, there is a schedule change.  You will teach this afternoon."  I was not completely confident in my lesson yet so I was a little nervous about this sudden news.  This is when the idea that "nothing is as it seems in China" worked to my advantage because within the next hour, as I ran up to my office to practice my lesson, my schedule changed again three different times within that 60 minutes and it turned out that I did not have to teach. 

     My first day of teaching ended up being today, and what a busy day it was.  I taught all four of my classes back to back (thankfully my schedule is only like this on Thursdays) and each class went differently.  The students are so excited to have a foreign teacher.  Even walking down the hallway I feel like a celebrity as students from all classes and grades will say, "Hello teacher!"  My plan was to get to each class early to discretely set up my materials, but as soon as they saw me come in, they began talking to me and wanting to see what was in my bag.  My students are very helpful and full of energy which was great but also hard to manage at times.  My Chinese teachers say students are very hyper and talkative because the school year has just begun but that they will settle down within a couple of weeks.  My greatest moments of the day were definitely the students' wonderful smiles and excitement.  However, managing a classroom in an Eastern vs. Western context and learning what is culturally appropriate is a new and ongoing challenge I'm sure I will be faced with throughout the year, especially in these first few weeks. 

     I hope to be faithful to document the funny stories, breakthrough moments, and everyday life of being a first year teacher...each day is truly an adventure!