July
I'm really bad at posting on this. I guess life just isn't all that exciting!
I've developed a great new way to keep some of my younger classes in line. At first I was saying the whole class gets 10 stamps if they can be good, and they lose them gradually as kids talk, etc. That worked... for a couple of classes. But then they stopped caring, and it wasn't worth it to anyone, really. So instead, I break them into teams. The teams change a bit every time, and they get weird nicknames (colors, foods, and animals so far). They gain and lose points depending on their behavior and performance, and at the end, the team with the most points gets 3-5 stamps, depending on the day. They keep each other in line much better in teams, and I can issue random little challenges to keep them awake and even the score when I need to. It's pretty fun, and the kids really get into it. Yay!
So my most senior foreign coworker's last day is Friday. We're not close friends or anything, but she's funny to talk with in the teachers' room, and I'll miss her. After that, I'll be the top foreigner at work. She' having a goodbye dinner/bar night tonight, but I don't think I really want to go. None of our other coworkers are, so I don't really feel obligated. The new teacher came last week, and has to stay in 'quarantine' until Wednesday. It pretty much sucks for her, especially because this is her first time out of America, and we can't do any more than call and Facebook her. And she has a crazy-stalker mom, who I think will only add to her homesickness. Gah...
The big event of last week was a Costco opening. I went to visit it with my Korean posse on Saturday afternoon, and it was a fun experience. I got some cheese, bagels, and crackers. Mmm! I saw a lot of other stuff, but it's a long bus ride home, and I didn't want to carry too much. Perhaps another time.
I have a swarm of ninja mosquitoes in my room, which I hate. I have about 8 bites on one hand/forearm. They're little and weird, and at first I thought they were a strange disease or rash. I'm still not completely convinced that they're not. Gaaaaaah.
I'm getting bored with clicking Pokemon eggs. I've started another story instead, and I'm pleased with that.
My classes were all really, amazingly good today. Especially the kids who are usually really bad. I was pleased! Tomorrow will probably not be as good, but I can hope! It's incredible how much better I feel about life (and Korea) when the kids are good.
So the other day I called camp, and someone gave me an idea... even a suggestion, that I think I might just act on. I could do it! I won't say much about it, but it would be pretty amazing. I'm newly motivated.
Yesterday I spent a long hour hammering a massive glacier out of my refrigerator. But I also got the door to close well, for the first time since I moved in, so hopefully the ice age won't advance again for quite a while. And I freed up a load of space on my computer. It's got free space in the GB range, rather than the MB range.
Japan next week! I'm super excited!!!! :) I probably won't post again until after that, but you can be sure I'll have some stories and pictures!
That's all.
I've developed a great new way to keep some of my younger classes in line. At first I was saying the whole class gets 10 stamps if they can be good, and they lose them gradually as kids talk, etc. That worked... for a couple of classes. But then they stopped caring, and it wasn't worth it to anyone, really. So instead, I break them into teams. The teams change a bit every time, and they get weird nicknames (colors, foods, and animals so far). They gain and lose points depending on their behavior and performance, and at the end, the team with the most points gets 3-5 stamps, depending on the day. They keep each other in line much better in teams, and I can issue random little challenges to keep them awake and even the score when I need to. It's pretty fun, and the kids really get into it. Yay!
So my most senior foreign coworker's last day is Friday. We're not close friends or anything, but she's funny to talk with in the teachers' room, and I'll miss her. After that, I'll be the top foreigner at work. She' having a goodbye dinner/bar night tonight, but I don't think I really want to go. None of our other coworkers are, so I don't really feel obligated. The new teacher came last week, and has to stay in 'quarantine' until Wednesday. It pretty much sucks for her, especially because this is her first time out of America, and we can't do any more than call and Facebook her. And she has a crazy-stalker mom, who I think will only add to her homesickness. Gah...
The big event of last week was a Costco opening. I went to visit it with my Korean posse on Saturday afternoon, and it was a fun experience. I got some cheese, bagels, and crackers. Mmm! I saw a lot of other stuff, but it's a long bus ride home, and I didn't want to carry too much. Perhaps another time.
I have a swarm of ninja mosquitoes in my room, which I hate. I have about 8 bites on one hand/forearm. They're little and weird, and at first I thought they were a strange disease or rash. I'm still not completely convinced that they're not. Gaaaaaah.
I'm getting bored with clicking Pokemon eggs. I've started another story instead, and I'm pleased with that.
My classes were all really, amazingly good today. Especially the kids who are usually really bad. I was pleased! Tomorrow will probably not be as good, but I can hope! It's incredible how much better I feel about life (and Korea) when the kids are good.
So the other day I called camp, and someone gave me an idea... even a suggestion, that I think I might just act on. I could do it! I won't say much about it, but it would be pretty amazing. I'm newly motivated.
Yesterday I spent a long hour hammering a massive glacier out of my refrigerator. But I also got the door to close well, for the first time since I moved in, so hopefully the ice age won't advance again for quite a while. And I freed up a load of space on my computer. It's got free space in the GB range, rather than the MB range.
Japan next week! I'm super excited!!!! :) I probably won't post again until after that, but you can be sure I'll have some stories and pictures!
That's all.