Today was my first time teaching ever. Some of us are trained teachers so this was only
somewhat different, but for me it was completely new. I had a wonderful time though. Erica and I taught colors and shapes to first
graders and body parts to fifth graders.
We taught the kids the American children's song "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" and they loved
it! I was so glad that they liked it and
the teachers seemed to enjoy it as well.
The teachers have been very nice and accommodating to us. In fact,
everyone we have met here has been very nice.
The hardest part about teaching for me was the amount of kids (the
average class size here is 50-60 students) and the language barrier.
I think we have successfully broken the ice. After our introduction yesterday many
students were afraid to approach us, but today many students came up to us
today even to just say hello. They seem
to be very curious about us, excited that we are here, and eager to
show us what English they know. It feels
weird to have the student "wai" us, but maybe I’ll get used to it. Wai is a greeting in Thailand where you bow
slightly with your hands in a prayer position in front of your mouth. As we are considered teachers here all the students wai to us. I am still learning all the nuances to
waiing, but I love all the cultural things we are learning. We have a very curious and willing group so I
am sure we will learn a lot about the Thai people and their culture while we
are here.
No comments:
Post a Comment