Teaching English
My “Darling” Students
Today we were playing a trivia game and for fun, some of the questions were about me. One of the questions they chose was “What is my favorite movie?” I knew that they had no clue, so I gave them a hint. “It’s a movie that came out when I was a kid. I’ve loved … Continue reading
The Anatomy of Singing a Chinese Song
For our yearly traditional Christmas party, I decided to give my students a big surprise. You see, I have been teaching 2 classes for the past 2 and a half years. Ever since they were freshman (they are now juniors) I have taught them one or two subjects every semester. But next semester they have … Continue reading
Snow Day!
As I live in Southern China winter temps hover around freezing, but snow is rare. Our winters are more dreary, freezing cold, damp days then the clear, crisp days I’m accustomed to back in America. And right now my New Hampshire hometown has gotten pummeled with snow. More than 2 feet in the past couple … Continue reading
Making Noodles and Dumplings: A Photo Essay
One of my new classes invited me to their dumpling party to celebrate the New Years. Eating dumplings and noodles is tradition to bring luck to the new year. As students don’t have a kitchen at their disposal they rented one to use at a nearby restaurant. It was my first time to have full … Continue reading
Best. Final Exam. Ever.
I think tests are meaningless. Students cram right before (or make a cheat sheet) and the minute the exam is over, the promptly forget just about everything they learned. But I’m a teacher and need to play in the system that requires final exams. But instead of a test, I always try to make my … Continue reading
Happy Turkey Day
Most of the American teachers here didn’t even realize Thanksgiving was at hand (“When is it again?” asked one America…last night) but thanks to my culture class I’ve been on the ball with holidays as my students are interested in learning the traditions of western holidays. Aside from the history of Thanksgiving I shared some … Continue reading
The Bunny Ate Your Homework…..
At the end of writing class one of the boys wasn’t finished and asked if he could take it home and give it to me the next day. I agreed. But instead of giving it to me, he gave it to another foreign teacher who told me to get it from him that night. When … Continue reading
Top 10 Most Influential People in China (Times 2)
In my speaking class, I did a Top 10 Most Influential People list. I started with a list of the top 10 from a magazine, which listed mostly Americans (such as Steve Jobs, Oprah, and Mark Zuckerberg amongst others.) Then I asked them, in small groups, to come up with their own Top 10 lists … Continue reading
The More Things Change…
I’ve been a bit lax on my blog recently, but that’s not because I’ve been bored. Quite the opposite in fact. This semester began 3 weeks ago, and despite having a 4-day weekend, things have been non-stop crazy. I’ve been at this school for 3 years already, so you would think everything would be boring … Continue reading
