When we first arrived in Korea, my mom asked what I needed in a care package.
Besides oatmeal and medicine and EVERY OTHER WESTERN FOOD YOU CAN THINK OF, I also requested something for the kiddies.
I wanted to have a CD with kids songs to teach the little ones.
Little did I know that in the end, I would be the one who was enjoying them as well.
She sent me a couple but my favourite is the Raffi CD. Being a good Canadian, I grew up on the stuff. And if playing with little kids all day doesn't actually make you feel like a kid again, listening to the songs of your youth will do the trick.
And so, I often have the Raffi CD on in the background when the kids are doing writing or coloring, just to have ENGLISH IN THE FACE for the duration of the class.
It also allows me to sing along.
And it was only today when I realised that maybe that wasn't such a good thing.
Because there I was, sitting at the front of the class, quietly singing along, putting in some actions to one of the funner songs on the CD when it happened.
About four children looked up at me, looked up in what I assumed was enjoyment and awe at the sound of the english tones, coupled with my fantastic actions.
They seemed mesmerized. So much so that after about 3 lines, one of the girls couldn't remember how to praise me in English.
She said something in Korean. And then I looked at her friend, to help me decifer exactly what she was trying to say.
He seemed up to the challenge, pleased he would get to communicate with me, looked up at the ceiling, paused before he pointed to the CD player and said,
"Teacher, finish."
And with that he turned his nose up at what was clearly not only an annoying sound but a frustrating distraction from peace and quiet in the classroom.
The rest of the children nodded, as if there heads were going to pop off in agreement with their friends that the 'noise' coming from the CD player AND the teacher was just too much to bear.
Tough crowd.
But the teacher's always right. Which is why Raffi AND I continued singing for the rest of the class.
Power not going to my head. No. NOT. AT. ALL.
Besides oatmeal and medicine and EVERY OTHER WESTERN FOOD YOU CAN THINK OF, I also requested something for the kiddies.
I wanted to have a CD with kids songs to teach the little ones.
Little did I know that in the end, I would be the one who was enjoying them as well.
She sent me a couple but my favourite is the Raffi CD. Being a good Canadian, I grew up on the stuff. And if playing with little kids all day doesn't actually make you feel like a kid again, listening to the songs of your youth will do the trick.
And so, I often have the Raffi CD on in the background when the kids are doing writing or coloring, just to have ENGLISH IN THE FACE for the duration of the class.
It also allows me to sing along.
And it was only today when I realised that maybe that wasn't such a good thing.
Because there I was, sitting at the front of the class, quietly singing along, putting in some actions to one of the funner songs on the CD when it happened.
About four children looked up at me, looked up in what I assumed was enjoyment and awe at the sound of the english tones, coupled with my fantastic actions.
They seemed mesmerized. So much so that after about 3 lines, one of the girls couldn't remember how to praise me in English.
She said something in Korean. And then I looked at her friend, to help me decifer exactly what she was trying to say.
He seemed up to the challenge, pleased he would get to communicate with me, looked up at the ceiling, paused before he pointed to the CD player and said,
"Teacher, finish."
And with that he turned his nose up at what was clearly not only an annoying sound but a frustrating distraction from peace and quiet in the classroom.
The rest of the children nodded, as if there heads were going to pop off in agreement with their friends that the 'noise' coming from the CD player AND the teacher was just too much to bear.
Tough crowd.
But the teacher's always right. Which is why Raffi AND I continued singing for the rest of the class.
Power not going to my head. No. NOT. AT. ALL.
Comments
What a shame. Nevertheless, I am learning something from these blogs. I'm learning that if I do decide to go to Korea to teach, I will make respect for my students my number one priority and I will not gossip about Koreans and their way of life on my blog.