So, I'm in Thailand now. I'm sitting at my desk at the Rattanankosinsomphod Bangkhunthian School. Or RST. It's my first day as an English teacher here and so far so good. Despite my long hours (7:15 am - 4:30 pm), I'm only actually teaching three 55 minute classes today. I teach four classes each day except for Mondays. The rest of the time is spent sitting at my desk, getting lunch, or maybe walking around the campus a bit. I'm sure as the semester goes on I'll have to be at my desk more so students can come to me if they have questions or need help. I'm going to tryyyyy to not be on the internet as much, as that would be a real waste of time. Getting ahead on lesson plans, practicing Thai, interacting with students, and reading sound like better ways to spend my time. I might have to start using the SelfControl MacBook app (it blacklists certain websites for a set amount of time). Though maybe this all means that I'll actually start writing here once again!
I taught my first class at 9:05, and I'm about to leave for my second (at 12:45). The first class had 38 students, grade 10. They were pretty decent! I did an introduction activity so they could learn about me and I can see their basic grammatical abilities as well as how confident they are to speak. They're really adorable and I loved them! My biggest complaint was the noise level, but it's hard to control a class of 38 students, especially when I don't know how strict their other/previous teachers are. My class asked me what kind of music I like, and I ended up telling them that I sing. At the end of class I said if no one was talking by the time I counted to three, then I would sing the American national anthem. I did. They loved it. I sang again for my third class and they too erupted in applause.
I have 19 classes each week, which you may have figured out by my numbers in the previous paragraph. I teach year 7 and year 10 fundamentals. Each class only meets once a week. I'm a little nervous for this for a couple of reasons. Firstly, how are they supposed to learn and practice English if they only have 55 minutes of combined instruction and practice each week? I need to somehow get them practicing outside class. I would love to find them pen pals in the US.... Secondly, I'm hoping I don't get bored teaching the same thing over and over and over again each week. I also feel bad for Monday's classes, they're kind of the lesson plan guinea pigs. By the time I get to Friday I bet I'll have them down pretty solid.
I just finished teaching my third and final class of the day. Yikes. The students are sweet and lively, but the levels are kind of mixed and the classes are so big. I do, however, feel lots of love from them and that feels nice.
Ooh there's a marching band here! And a cheerleading team! I want to get involved in both!! I'll talk to my coordinator, Willy, and see how we can get the ball rolling with that. I think that'd really enrich my experience here.
Okay this is a really long post. Oops. I guess that happens.
I taught my first class at 9:05, and I'm about to leave for my second (at 12:45). The first class had 38 students, grade 10. They were pretty decent! I did an introduction activity so they could learn about me and I can see their basic grammatical abilities as well as how confident they are to speak. They're really adorable and I loved them! My biggest complaint was the noise level, but it's hard to control a class of 38 students, especially when I don't know how strict their other/previous teachers are. My class asked me what kind of music I like, and I ended up telling them that I sing. At the end of class I said if no one was talking by the time I counted to three, then I would sing the American national anthem. I did. They loved it. I sang again for my third class and they too erupted in applause.
I have 19 classes each week, which you may have figured out by my numbers in the previous paragraph. I teach year 7 and year 10 fundamentals. Each class only meets once a week. I'm a little nervous for this for a couple of reasons. Firstly, how are they supposed to learn and practice English if they only have 55 minutes of combined instruction and practice each week? I need to somehow get them practicing outside class. I would love to find them pen pals in the US.... Secondly, I'm hoping I don't get bored teaching the same thing over and over and over again each week. I also feel bad for Monday's classes, they're kind of the lesson plan guinea pigs. By the time I get to Friday I bet I'll have them down pretty solid.
I just finished teaching my third and final class of the day. Yikes. The students are sweet and lively, but the levels are kind of mixed and the classes are so big. I do, however, feel lots of love from them and that feels nice.
Ooh there's a marching band here! And a cheerleading team! I want to get involved in both!! I'll talk to my coordinator, Willy, and see how we can get the ball rolling with that. I think that'd really enrich my experience here.
As for my living situation, my apartment is really nice. It'd be nicer if it had a kitchen, though. I bought a blender and an electric kettle so that'll have to do for now. I don't quite have the budget for a hotplate or toaster oven just yet. I'm shocked at how hard it is to be a vegetarian here. One of the precepts of Buddhism is "don't kill." Oddly enough, this translates usually to "don't eat anything that someone has killed specifically for you." So if it was killed for anyone in general to it, it's fair game (pardon the pun). It's even the Vegetarian Festival and I'm still seeing a LOT of meat and not a whole lot of anything else. Luckily my coordinator is also a vegetarian and he'll help point me in the right direction. So far I've been eating a lot of fruit and noodles whenever I can find some without meat.
I have some pictures of my apartment but they're from when I just moved in. It looks a lot more homey now :) I have plates and mugs in the display cabinet, speakers on my desk (definitely wasn't surviving long without a subwoofer and decent sound...) and little postcards and such on the walls.
Oh hey! Send me a postcard!!! I want to decorate my walls with them. My address is:
Jemma Stember-Young
Apt #801
51 Soi Rama II Soi 69 Yak 3 Samaedam
Bangkhunthian, Bangkok 10150
Thailand
Apt #801
51 Soi Rama II Soi 69 Yak 3 Samaedam
Bangkhunthian, Bangkok 10150
Thailand
Okay this is a really long post. Oops. I guess that happens.
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