word.
today was pretty epic. but that’s
not where we’ll start this post, oh no… we need to go back to tuesday to really
have a clear idea of how good this week has been. i’m purposely avoiding monday
because it wasn't fun. not even a little bit.
but i’m not talking about the bad
because it doesn't register with me, it’s all about the good here. oh yes!
tuesday
ok. so. tuesday is when i teach
at “favourite school” aka “the happiest most fulfilling place i’ve ever worked.
ever.” =) i found out that my classes were cancelled which made me sad. but…
the classes were cancelled for their undokai
(sports day festival thing) and i got to go. * result *
there were games and races and
children using other children as bridges. i pretended that there was lava (i do
live on the side of a volcano so this isn’t hugely unimaginable) and all but
one of the children were immune to the lava. so they made a wee bridge for that
one kid. these kids are troopers and they make me smile a lot.
i was on the white team and i helped
secure a win in one of the events: we were throwing beanbags into a basket atop
a pole. my height made up for my general sporting incompetence and lack of
hand-eye coordination.
the undokai wrapped up with lunch on the grass with two schools (“favourite
school” and it’s Junior High School counterpart). * satisfied *
wednesday
i taught at “second favourite
school”. in 12 different languages.
15 minutes of my lesson was in
english.
then about 10 minutes of french.
then 10 minutes of mangled russian.
then greek, welsh, italian,
portuguese, german, korean, chinese, spanish and some japanese for good
measure.
it went over well. =)
thursday aka today
today i was almost late. i
slithered under the pole and made it just in time. lesson learned: go to bed
earlier and get up earlier. instant no lateness. =)
taught some classes. they didn't
bomb but they could have gone better. these classes are reaching the end of a
section in the curriculum which leads me to think they’re getting a bit bored with
repeating, reusing and regurgitating the same sets of vocabulary. had two free
periods before lunch where i was planning to revise for the test i had later in
the day (more on this later…) but no, there was to be no revision for me…
the free periods were there for a
special reason: this school (it hasn’t really warranted a nickname yet but i
think it’ll eventually get one…) had some special guests! oh yes, i was treated
to a brass band performance. they were really good. however, i was to earn this
amazing little treat…
the leader of the brass group
(there were two trumpets, a french horn, a trombone, a tuba and a drummer) was
engaging the children in a little bit of witty banter, from which i gleaned (it
was all in japanese of course): japanese people don’t really have the glottal
stop needed to make “ch” noises like in loch. which makes singing Frere Jacques a little difficult. he had
the kids attempting to make “ccccchhhh” noises with little success.
it gets interesting when one of
my japanese teachers decides to tell the guy that i’m scottish and speak french
– two of the languages/dialects
which make extensive use of “cccchhh”.
i may have ended up on-stage,
leading an entire elementary school in a what i’d like to think was a rousing
rendition of Frere Jacques in french…
as my wee granny would say: “it
could only happen to you gavin…” =D
the japanese teachers and i were
then hauled up on stage to perform the actions to a japanese version of
“DoReMi” from Sound of Music. i
belted out the song in english, much to the amusement of everyone.
a good day? you betcha!
it doesn't end there however.
off to “mountain school II” i go,
to continue the adventure.
i mentioned a test earlier. i’ve
been studying hiragana whenever i can during my free time at school – which has
piqued the interest of any japanese person who happens to wander past my desk.
“mountain school II” have taken a keen interest in my advancement, to the point
that they’ve been quizzing me and getting me to complete worksheets etc. super
sweet of them, to take an interest like that. today had been designated as the
day where i should have fully completed my learning and revision and they felt
i should be ready to be tested on all 46 hiragana.
i get to “mountain school II” and
teach. lesson goes really well, kids smiling. none of them died of boredom, one
came close to choking from overexcitement. all good.
lesson over, i head back to the
teachers room only to be grabbed and dragged into an empty classroom with one
wee desk in it (“mountain school II” have more students than “mountain school
I” but they still have a lot of empty rooms). on this solitary wee desk is a
test paper and a pencil.
20 minutes later…
i’m back in the teachers room, kyotou-sensei (vice-principal of the
school) is rabidly marking my test paper, my palms are sweaty. this test is
basically for five year olds. i’m a 25 year old with two degrees… the
embarrassment would be visible from space if i cocked this up.
100%
i am showered with gifts (in the
form of approx. 30 little cakes) and presented with a certificate they made on
the computer. my certificate is on the wall in the teachers room, a testament
to the fact that when i’ve just been sitting at a desk i’ve been doing
something productive.
only friday left in the week,
unsure of how it’ll go. i haven’t taught at this school a great deal and it’s
weird not to have a feel for the classes or the teachers yet. it’s also
frustrating that i’ve been doing my self-introduction lesson after being here
for a few months. things will improve once i get into the swing of things, i’m
sure of it…
i’ll leave you with some lyrics
which have been floating in my head for the past few weeks (temporarily knocked
out of my head by the Sound of Music
medley today…):
It was the winter of '86, all the fields had
frozen over
So we moved to Arizona to save our only son
And now he's turned into a man, though he
thinks just like his mother
He believes we're all just lovers, he sees
hope in everyone
And even though she moved away, we always get
calls from our daughter
She has eyes just like her father's, they are
blue when skies are gray
And just like him she never stops, never takes
the day for granted
Works for everything that's handed to her,
never once complained*
these lyrics make me think of my
family. i don’t know why. i get a wee lump in my throat when i listen to the
song, a good lump though. missing things and missing people is healthy, i’m
enjoying it.
absence makes the heart grow fonder…
*the song is “the gambler” by
fun. listen to it.
