Thursday, 24 May 2012

three day feast of words


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. 

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