Work Events
At my school we are expected to teach 44 lessons to each class over the course of the school year: 40 regular lessons, 3 event lessons, and one yearly test lesson. The regular lessons are somewhat standardized. We all teach from the same textbooks and so have the same vocab and grammar targets to teach, though we are allowed to teach the targets in any manner we choose. The event lessons, which feature Easter, Halloween, and Christmas respectively, are free-for-alls. The students are encouraged to bring friends and just relax and have fun.
The test lesson, however, is a pretty regulated affair. We all have to teach it on the same exact days, we have to keep all of the tests in-house so there is no cheating, and we have to cover ALL of the English text in our classrooms. Let me tell you, this is no easy task. When the teacher coordinator was explaining this to all of us, he suggested we cover our walls with black garbage bags. But being surrounded by walls covered in cheap black plastic all day is too icky for me and my feminine sensibilities, so I opted to buy X-mas wrapping paper at the 100 yen shop instead and cover my walls with some holiday cheer. The managers and moms LOVED it, so I'm happy.
One really interesting thing for me is to see my students in testing situations. I normally only quiz them at the end of each class on the vocab and phonics we learned that day or, for a review lesson, over a unit of 4 lessons. I made sure to go through the entire year's vocabulary with each class last week so they would have a better chance to do well on their tests. Still, I was pretty wary of the ability of my younger kids to sit through their 40-minute lessons doing nothing but a test when many of them can't keep focused for more than a minute or two at a time. Eesh.
My first class today was just such a class. I have one girl (a 3-year-old, of course) who has ants in her pants constantly. She loves to be goofy and her mom doesn't really bother going over the materials with her at home. (That is, singing the ABC song and things like that.) Anyway, I was pretty worried about how this girl was going to act, but she did really well! I was shocked. She of course got antsy toward the end but c'mon, it was a lot to ask of her. I let her color for a few minutes and she was OK. After she left, the manager told me that the little girl was super excited because she got to use a pencil, which her mom normally doesn't let her have. I guess she's a big girl now! So cute! XD
Anyway, it cracks me up to be on the other end of the testing for once. It wasn't so long ago that I was dreading going into my one-on-one conversation tests, and now it's my turn to call my student out one by one and hear them groan. It's hilarious, really. I even had one mom tell me that her daughter was very nervous. I couldn't believe it. I told her not to worry, because no one's going to see the test but me. And really, I'm a very non-judgmental teacher. When my kids do well, I praise them, and when they do badly, I encourage them.
At any rate, next week is the Christmas event lessons so it will be nice to let the kids relax and not worry about their tests. It will also be a good excuse for me to belt out as many Christmas carols as possible and eat a Christmas cake or two. B) Working with kids definitely isn't all bad.
The test lesson, however, is a pretty regulated affair. We all have to teach it on the same exact days, we have to keep all of the tests in-house so there is no cheating, and we have to cover ALL of the English text in our classrooms. Let me tell you, this is no easy task. When the teacher coordinator was explaining this to all of us, he suggested we cover our walls with black garbage bags. But being surrounded by walls covered in cheap black plastic all day is too icky for me and my feminine sensibilities, so I opted to buy X-mas wrapping paper at the 100 yen shop instead and cover my walls with some holiday cheer. The managers and moms LOVED it, so I'm happy.
One really interesting thing for me is to see my students in testing situations. I normally only quiz them at the end of each class on the vocab and phonics we learned that day or, for a review lesson, over a unit of 4 lessons. I made sure to go through the entire year's vocabulary with each class last week so they would have a better chance to do well on their tests. Still, I was pretty wary of the ability of my younger kids to sit through their 40-minute lessons doing nothing but a test when many of them can't keep focused for more than a minute or two at a time. Eesh.
My first class today was just such a class. I have one girl (a 3-year-old, of course) who has ants in her pants constantly. She loves to be goofy and her mom doesn't really bother going over the materials with her at home. (That is, singing the ABC song and things like that.) Anyway, I was pretty worried about how this girl was going to act, but she did really well! I was shocked. She of course got antsy toward the end but c'mon, it was a lot to ask of her. I let her color for a few minutes and she was OK. After she left, the manager told me that the little girl was super excited because she got to use a pencil, which her mom normally doesn't let her have. I guess she's a big girl now! So cute! XD
Anyway, it cracks me up to be on the other end of the testing for once. It wasn't so long ago that I was dreading going into my one-on-one conversation tests, and now it's my turn to call my student out one by one and hear them groan. It's hilarious, really. I even had one mom tell me that her daughter was very nervous. I couldn't believe it. I told her not to worry, because no one's going to see the test but me. And really, I'm a very non-judgmental teacher. When my kids do well, I praise them, and when they do badly, I encourage them.
At any rate, next week is the Christmas event lessons so it will be nice to let the kids relax and not worry about their tests. It will also be a good excuse for me to belt out as many Christmas carols as possible and eat a Christmas cake or two. B) Working with kids definitely isn't all bad.