Making Work Fun . . .

This week has been particularly challenging. The temperatures here in Minnesota have hovered around 0 degrees with wind chills of up to 25 below. Each morning as I watch the weather forecast, I feel like calling in sick simply because I don't want to face the reality of the wind blasting coldness. I am fighting an ongoing struggle to stay positive and joyful about my job and the tasks that go along with it, specifically, walking little people to and from different buildings with scarves whipping their faces, hats blowing off, stinging winds assaulting us all.

I feel about ready to break. We use a countdown system so students know how much time they have left to get ready. We use singing, chants, and still, everyday before walking outside, it feels like a small battle, a battle that happens three times a day. But this week I have also learned not to take myself so seriously. In those moments when the children just will not put on their winter things to go outside, I take a deep breath, even leave the room. "They are five years' old" I tell myself. "It's not a big deal."  Next, I focus on helping one student at a time.

I have also discovered that if I can turn the more difficult tasks into a fun game, the task becomes more manageable, enjoyable even. One place where I have started to use this strategy is in the lunchroom. Right before we leave to head back to the other building, I supervise the line of Kindergarten students until they are all in the line ready to go. Previously, the students would lean against the wall and then lose their balance and fall on one another, much like cascading dominoes. It was quite frustrating and yelling at them did not help. Then one day, I had an epiphany: "What if I gave them all a task they could do that would distract them?" So I started playing "Do what I Do" also known as "Follow the Leader" with them. This game is simple. If I touch my knees, they have to touch their knees. If I tap my head, they tap their head. And so on. The game was an immediate success!

The following day, the game was also a success. The third day, I decided to spice it up a bit. Instead of playing "Do what I Do" we sang "If you're happy and you know it." This also worked fairly well, although was not quite as controlled or quiet as the "Do what I Do" game. Either way, it makes me happy that I no longer have to dread this moment in the lunchroom where I previously felt perpetual annoyance at the students. Furthermore, they love it, and they are being safe.

Now, if only I could find a similar solution for the sub-zero weather we are having. Maybe on days where the temperature is below zero, I buy fancy coffee on my way to work. Now there's a thought! At this point, any little perk in these cold Winter days is greatly appreciated, necessary even.

Running Club

This semester, I have started volunteering with our school's after school running club. Running club is open to all of the students, Kindergarten to 8th grade, and meets 3 times a week. I am one of the coaches or teachers that goes with the middle school students on the "Community Run" a distance that is anywhere from 2.5 to 3.5 miles. Most days, I really enjoy running with these students, encouraging them to keep going, sweating it out right beside them. Today was not one of those days.

We were missing several coaches today so our groups were combined. The community runners and middle distance runners were put into one group. We ran a new route I had never been on before and didn't feel very comfortable with. The distance we were running was alongside a walking trail that runs parallel to the light rail. Since the run was not very long, we were going to do the trail two times. As I neared the ending of the sidewalk the first time, I started to yell at some of the faster runners to turn around and do it again. Much to my annoyance, they kept running back to the Brian Coyle Center, our starting place.

After the other 2 coaches arrived, I let them know that I was going to go recruit the runners that had ditched out on the second part of the run. I busted my tail over to the Brian Coyle Center only to see about 4 of the guys bolt toward the building. Once inside, they congregated in the boys bathroom. Great. There was not much I could do, but as they started to make their way out of their bathroom, I had a few angry words for them. "We are not finished with our run. I'm going to be talking to Coach Weber." Coach Weber is in charge of running club. She also happens to be the boys' soccer coach. Every Thursday after running club, these same guys have a soccer game that they feel pretty passionate about. As soon as I mentioned I was going to be talking to her, they were scared.

A couple of the boys offered, "Can we run extra?"
"Yeah you can run extra, but I'm still going to let her know what happened here."
They must have realized how upset I was, and they all made their way back out to the track to do the last lap.

As I followed the boys back to the main track so they could finish the run, I was thankful that at least they were going to do the run. But I was still miffed. Sometimes I feel that because I am short or have a high voice or smile a lot, people don't take my word for what it is. It's frustrating. Furthermore, since running club is a privilege, and we are responsible for the student's safety, I knew that if I didn't address the boys' defiance and disrespect, they would likely just do the same thing at the next practice.

As Coach Weber talked to the boys, at first they denied it. I told them I had a hard time believing that they didn't know what to they were supposed to do when as soon as they saw me running towards them they all bolted inside to the Brian Coyle Center.

And then, slowly, one at a time, the truth dripped out as the boys confessed.
"Yeah, I heard her," said one student.
"Wait, I think I did something wrong. I heard her" said another student.
"Thank you Abdullahi for being honest. Now, what do you need to do to make it right" asked Coach Weber.
"Say I'm sorry. I'm sorry Mrs. T."
"That's okay. Just listen right away the next time" I responded as I shook his hand.

A couple more conversations happened like this until we were down to the last student. This was the first student that had  run off to the Brian Coyle Center in the first place. He is also the fastest student and somewhat of a leader among the other guys.

He stood there with his arms crossed looking annoyed. The Coach called him on his bad attitude and posture. Finally, he switched his approach and before I knew what was happening, this student had made his apology and given me a sweaty hug.

I had forgotten what it is like to work with Middle Schoolers, but joining them for running club has been a vivid reminder.

Best Party Yet

Probably one of the best parties I have thrown to date was back in 2010, Hengyang China.  The occassion was Halloween. Since a lot of the students had heard about Halloween but had misconceptions about it, I decided to throw a fun, not scary, Halloween party.

  

 

 I encouraged the students to dress up in costumes and told them we were going to eat candy, bob for apples, and play a game. I was so impressed with how creative the students were at coming up with their costumes. Most of the hats and headpieces these students wore were made by themselves from construction paper.

 

As most parties go in China, the night was not complete without some freestyle karaoke. One of my more outspoken students serenaded us with a couple of popular hits. (I am trying to figure out how to upload the video here.)  Listening to her sweet voice makes me lonesome for China and my students.

T

An Endearing Email

Last Thursday, I received this email from a good friend and former student of mine in China; I was touched. I also find it so interesting and admirable how students will memorize full chunks of English sayings and use them (mostly) correctly.

Dear p, how are you these days?
Today is the first day of China's lunar year. Happy new year. I remembered that last year you sent me the scarf as my birthday gift,and I missed the cookies. You are 30 now,right? There is a saying ,"30 is turning in people's life, because people will get more mature physically and mentally ."Is that true?

I wish I could find a job in the new year,and hope the job is related to English.I f it is not,it's also ok.what's your plan in 2012? 2012 is a new beginning,not the end of the world.

Life is short ,we will meet many people.Some people are just passers-by ,some are the return.I think u r the latter to me although you are on the other side of the earth.
I have taken some art portaits. Here is the one.

Students and Spoons

This past Thursday, one class of Freshman students came to my apartment for a last "office time" of sorts. Some of them brought a few vegetables and cooked up a couple dishes, the rest of us just played games. There is something really endearing that a group of 19 year old students is content to play Bingo and Spoons for an hour and a half. I don't think students in the states would that easily be pacified with these two simple games. On the contrary, these students were really pumped to learn some new games and didn't seem phased at all by the relatively simple concepts of both games; it was fun to see their excitement.

These girls were in the semi-finals for spoons. I couldn't help but point out that they were all also local Hengyang students. It just goes to show the spicy spirit of the local Hengyang people. (They also laughed when I pointed this out.)

Sometime during the crowded chaos, a girl student came up to me: "Ms. Strasser, something very bad happened." I immediately know that something in my outdated apartment has broken. She continues sheepishly, "The curtain in the bathroom is broken."
"It's okay," I reassure her. But in my head, I'm thinking "Oh crap. Who is going to help me fix the curtain. How will I shower without a curtain in the bathroom? Why did she have to mess with the curtain to use the toilet" and so on.
But, then I realize my good fortune to have the 3 guys in the class also present at this time.
"Ken, if I give you a hammer, can you help me fix the curtain" I ask the tallest guy student.
"Okay, sure." he eagerly agrees. And off he and the other two boy students go to fix the curtain. About 3 minutes later, they happily report the problem is solved; the curtain is fixed. Warm fuzzy feelings towards students restored.

Summertime

True or False

True or False:

1. As long as you are a responsible teacher and teach in a way that challenges and interests students, they will be motivated to learn and appreciate your class.

(Answer below)

The other morning, I walked into class only to hear a class of freshman students moan. Yes, moan out loud for me and the walls to hear.

“Good morning. Nice to see you too. Have you prepared for today’s class?” (They were to prepare an English corner.)

They look at me with blank stares and no one responds. Finally, the monitor of the class responds, “We didn’t know what to do so we didn’t prepare anything.”

“No one has anything prepared?” I ask incredulously.

More shaking of heads and shifting uncomfortably in their seats.

“Okay” I respond. “Then you will all get a 0 for the assignment and we’ll study next week’s lesson. Open your books to page 112.”(Side-note: I also woke up this morning with a terrible cough. I nearly hacked a lung out during the night while I was sleeping and had a tone of voice that was one octave lower than normal.)

Luckily, I kept my cool and was even relatively prepared to teach the next week’s lesson since I was teaching it that afternoon too. However, at the end of the class, I gave these students a mini lecture (enhanced by the fact that I sounded like I was dying) about how they needed to take the class more seriously and show respect by not moaning when their teacher walked into the room. “We have 6 weeks left, so I expect you to improve your attitude in this class.”

After class, about 5 students rushed outfollowing me to tell me they were sorry that some students had moaned in the class and they told me to take some medicine for my cough and get more rest. (Culture side note: I’ve heard that in China, an open apology is not so common. Instead, people will use some round-about way to try and make it up to the person they have wronged. In my head, I told myself that the students “concern” for my cold was their way of apologizing.)

What a timely reminder to me that teachers, no matter how much they try to motivate, to be innovative, and to challenge students, simply might not receive the appreciation or even respect they think they deserve. If you want a glamorous job, don’t be a teacher; be a locksmith.

The answer is False.

Random quotes

Last week, several of my friends and students asked and said some interesting things. Here's a list:

Neighbor A: "I like your hair; how did you make it?"

Friend B: "Can I go to the church if it 's that time of the month for me?"

From some student speeches:

"Tears were on the way. . . "

" I knew having a good soak would be my best option."

"I was weary of myself but then I met him... do you know who? (pause) My friend, reading books."

(photo of me and former student; she's now in Beijing)

Egg Drop Photos

This past week in class, I used my team-mate Amber's lesson plan called the "egg drop." The purpose of this lesson is to let students relax a little and work on problem solving skills. The task is for students to develop a contraption to protect an uncooked egg from an 8 story fall. The groups were incredibly creative and most of them worked well together.

Here are some words from one group: "Although we were inefficient at first, we didn't give up."
My favorite invention was called "The Nest." They used wire, covered with straw to create a cushion similar to a nest. Then, they lined the nest with styrofoam and wrapped the whole thing with plastic bags an a shower cap.

TEM-4 and the Cinema

Tomorrow, we are showing an English movie, Cheaper by the Dozen, for our sophomore students to celebrate the completion of their TEM-4 exam. Originally, we had planned to have a big party for all our students, but since together we teach about 800 students, it just wasn't practical.

If you think of it in the next 24 hours or so..lift up our students. This exam is a big deal for them; they get two chances to pass it, this year and next year. If they don't pass it, they can't technically graduate from the University. Most of the students have been sacrificing what little extra time they have to stay in the library and prepare for this test. As I was heading to class today, one student said "the end of the world is tomorrow" (referring to the test). That's how much of an intense reality this test is for students. So, hopefully they will be able to have a right attitude about this test and if things don't go well, we also hope they feel comfortable enough to talk with us.
On an unrelated note, 2 weeks ago, I went to the cinema in Hengyang with my friend. We saw an English movie called "War in Los Angeles" or something like that. It was about aliens attacking the world. I wouldn't actually choose to ever watch this movie on my own volition, but my friend said she heard it was good, and I just went with the flow.

Then, my friend took me to a spa. Sounds nice, huh?
Actually, it was a big awkward. My friend said we should have a shower before the "spa". Okay, no problem except the workers (2 or 3 young girls) were just hanging out in our room as we were supposed to undress and put on a robe to go have a shower. Yeah, I was reminded of shower time after PE class all over again. The shower was nice though and in its own private room. They they massaged our faces for a bit and put some type of mask on us. The mask made our faces whiter...do you notice? I decided I don't love masks...especially when they cover up your eyes. After the "spa" experience, I let my friend put eye make-up on me. It was a bit thick, but I think she enjoyed it. It was about 10:00 when we finished these two activities; then we had dinner.

Class picnic

Last week Monday, I went on a class picnic with some students. (Number8 on To Do List.) Unlike most of the things on my To Do list which I have really enjoyed, the picnic with students was not one of them. I'm not sure why, but it didn't help when on the walk to the park, one of the more amiable, ambitious students told me that some of the classmates were hesitant to invite me because they just wanted to "relax" and they didn't want to have some pressure. Hmm, awesome. After learning this, I became a bit paranoid about which students I talked to, not wanting to put some "pressure" on the students who just wanted to relax.





Going on a "picnic" in China is quite different than going on one in America. In America, we chose convenient foods that can be prepared ahead of time and easily stored and transported. In China, they basically prepare the same dishes as they would if they were cooking at home, but cooking the food takes twice as long because they don't have the convenience of a kitchen with an electric stove.

We left for the picnic at about 10:30 from the back of the school gate, walked 20 minutes and started setting up. At 12:30, I had to leave to take the bus to the new campus. The food was not ready by then, but I did get to taste one piece of grilled eggplant and one stick of grilled chicken. As I mentioned before, class picnic? A bit low on the list.

Student Gifts.

Students give some very interesting gifts to their foreign teacher for Christmas. Last year, the highlights of the gifts were a huge, overstuffed bear and some plastic high-heeled boots stuffed with orgami paper stars. This year, the highlights are as follows:

This gift was from a sophomore class. The gift itself is excellent in practicality. It's a box of Dove Chocolates, an apple (peace) and a silver drink container that will keep your tea or coffee hot.
This Michael Jackson pen holder was a gift from an individual student. She watched very expectantly as I opened it, and gave me a big smile when I pulled it out of the box. Yeah, I have no words to describe my thoughts on this one.

This gift came as a set. It looks like a little animal purse, but it's actually a carrier for an electric water heater bag to keep your hands warm. I have yet to use the "carrier."
And of course, this is the most common gift to give in China, the apple. In Chinese, the apple is called "ping guo" 苹果 which has a similar first character as the word for peace "ping an" 平安。In Chinese, the word for Christmas Eve is also "ping an ye" (Peaceful night). So, when people give you an apple on Christmas Eve, they are wishing you to have peace in the New Year.

Photos from week

(It's not every year I have a silver tinsel tree. A couple of friends helped me to decorate it.)

(More KTV or karaoke with students)


(Some dishes at a local restaurant. Notice the variety of vegetables and the oil pooling at the bottom.)

(Freshman students practicing an English song for the upcoming Christmas "party" at school.)

(Students heading to class in the English building.)

Positive Hocus Pocus Thinking

It's popular for students to cling to trite positive sayings. I try to smile whenever I receive one or see it written on their classroom walls, but unfortunately, it does little to encourage this realist.
Here's a few that I've noticed this week.
In a text message to encourage me in my Chinese standardized test:
"Let your uniqueness shine through! If you think you can win, you win!"
(Does uniqueness shine through multiple choice tests? )

On the wall of the student's classroom:
"Never give up. Never lose hope.
Always have faith. It allows you cope.
Trying times will pass, as they always do.
Just have patience, your dreams will come true.
So put a smile on."
(For a lot of our students, their dream is to make a lot of money and travel overseas to teach. Will this really come true for the majority of them? Hmm.)

Or, the most common saying that makes me gag...."Happy, happy, happy everyday."
Hopefully in the natural course of the day, we do experience moments of happiness, but this should not be the purpose we strive for in our lives. If I truly wanted to be happy in China, I don't think I would leave my apartment, but would rather prefer to sit around eating chocolate, writing, reading, skyping, and watching episodes of Friends and Lie to Me. Of course, this too would lose it's charm and I would soon have to find new ways to pacify my selfish nature, but thankfully as followers, we don't follow the happiness mantra.