this is a long one....

During the day I have a lot of thoughts about what I would like to say about my teaching experiences, but by the time I get home my mind is too numb to recall those things. Tonight though, I have a little extra time so I am going to try.

I have so much fun with my kindergarten class. My co-teacher and I spend a lot of time laughing at them. They get in big trouble with our Taiwanese co-teacher for saying things like poo-poo, and bum-bum. She always tells us that so and so is in time out because they said a potty word, and the kid is just sitting there in a chair sulking. I forget what it was like to be a kid, when saying poo-poo was so terrible. Oh how things change! So it always makes me laugh, and Teacher Angela says I am so bad for laughing, but she laughs too. It really is funny. But seriously, a good part of my day is spend laughing AT my students. There was a really great moment a few weeks ago when we were playing musical chairs (the kids go BERSERK about that game) and it had been a really long week, I had't found anything humorous in a few days. I remember I was sitting there with my chin resting on the shelf in our classroom as I kept pushing "play" and "pause" on the cd player. Well the kids were running, and then I stopped the music and two kids went for the same seat, bounced off of each other, and landed with a thud on the floor. This event triggered something in my brain, I knew I needed to react to what I had just seen, and I looked up and made eye contact with Glenn and we both started laughing uncontrollably. I had to walk away and put my head down on my desk, I was crying with laughter--the kind that sort of makes you miserable because you just can't stop, the kind that makes you feel like a Cabbage Patch kid because your face is stuck in a laugh (Leah and Ashley, you know what I mean!!!). The best part is that you can laugh this way at three year olds, and they have no idea. They continue to be clueless. When I think back about it, it wasn't even that funny, but it was perfect for that moment in time.

Our students get in little tiffs too a lot, they fight over a lego or who is going to be "Teacher's Helper" for the day. It's incredible how angry they get then forget about it within seconds. A couple of days ago two of the kids were playing "alligators", and one of them ended up with a huge bite mark on his "bum-bum." Teacher Angela held him over her lap with his bottom out and an ice pack on it--it was so pitiful! How do you not laugh??!! Anyway, we don't play that game anymore. Another thing I have noticed, is that you can't take care of 8 three year olds for 8 hours a day and keep total control of them that whole time. You cannot, no matter how hard you try, keep perfect tabs on them. It's just not going to happen. That's why kids get bitten, and punched in the eye. It's especially hard when they speak Chinese. Glenn and I cannot summon the sort of fear and reverence that Teacher Angela can. But we can say that we are about to hit them or cut their hair and they smile and think we are telling them they are cute. Jokes on them! So we get away with saying a lot of things to amuse ourselves that we couldn't with English speaking kids.

Between lessons and activities, we usually get our students to look at books quietly. This helps them get used to reading books the way we do--from left to right. They do the opposite here. Anyway, this book reading thing is such a pain because it simply never works. It's amazing how quickly books turn into weapons to stab each other with and hit each other with, or to use as sleds. One day I was preparing my next lesson and looked up to see that all the kids were seated in a perfect line looking at their books, and not a PEEP was coming out of them. I went to get Glenn to see the magic that was taking place in our classroom, and he started looking around suspiciously and said "This is so weird, I wonder if a natural disaster is about to happen." It was really cool, and only lasted that one brief moment, I wonder if it will ever happen again...

Another problem with these kids, is that they are sick all of the time. I have finally trained them to cover their mouths when they cough and sneeze. After two weeks of almost constant time outs if they didnt, they have finally picked up the habit. I also give them tissues to put in their pocket every few hours so they don't just let their snot drip everywhere. I had to wipe some really thick green snot off the floor, and gagged. I literally gagged and almost threw up right there in the middle of class. It's incredible, and so disturbing, how much snot I see every single day. I did not know when I came here that it would be part of my job to blow their noses.

More news: we are teaching our class to sing Feliz Navidad for the upcoming Christmas pageant. They are doing well, but so far have only picked up the first line, which sounds more like "Fur-eees Nobby-Duck." Good grief. I guess it's really impressive that they are even doing that, and luckily we still have another 5 weeks to practice the song 20 times a day!! WhooHoo!! It's going to be funny though, and I got especially excited when I found a box of maracas in a cupboard:) All of the teachers are doing a drum routine for the pageant as well. This means that we all stand up with a huge drum in front of us and do this series of beats--authentic aboriginal style. Man is that going to be EMBARASSING. I will most definitely get a video of that one. I never thought I would be playing a huge drum in front of hundreds of people.

I do realize I am very lucky, because my job is so much fun. Our students have improved so so much since I first got here. We get a lot of thank you's from their parents as well saying that they are so impressed with how much they have learned. This is encouraging and exciting! They do learn so quickly, it's amazing.

One last kindergarted story, and this is the main reason why I like teaching... One day I was at my desk finishing up some preparations for class, and I was running a bit late and was a little flustered. Ryan (a cute kid with a big head who looks like Yoda) came up to me and started tapping me saying "Teacher. Teacher. TEACHER. TEACHER!!!" and finally I said "WHAT DO YOU WAAAAAAAANT???!!!" and he looked at me and smiled and said "Teacher Bethany, I love you!" This little thing made my eyes sting, and I picked him up and held him for a few minutes. Preparing for class didn't really seem so important. Gosh, that about killed me.

My elementary class is also fun these days. We have so much fun! They are all about 10 or 11 years old, and really self concious about the whole boy/girl/cootie thing, so I rip into them as much as possible and they secretly love it. They like me apparantly, even though I get mad at them somtimes, because they bring me donuts and candy and pictures they drew for me. They also say "Teacher's so funny" a few times a day. Even when I'm not trying to be, so that's strange. But I really like them. It's great to have power over them, and so satisfying to send them to the office. For a sort of anti-authority person like myself, it's funny that I get such a kick out of it. But their Chinese teachers hit them and punish them, so I'm not so bad compared to that, and they appreciate it. When it was time for their mid-terms, I was so nervous for them. They didn't do so well on the practice exam, so I was really worried. Parents take grades SO seriously here and they freak if their kid doesn't get perfect marks. I deal with multiple phone calls every day from parents that demand the most ridiculous things, and wonder why their kid isn't doing well. It's very taxing. But they are so smart, SO smart. The other day I had a really deep discussion with two of my students about Harry Potter. Only later did I realize what a lame-o I am for having book discussions with 10 year olds. But I can admit it. I like Harry Potter ok?

Overall, teaching has been great. I am so glad I decided to do it. Even though I get really homesick and overwhelmed somtimes, it all fades away at school when I get to spend time with these precious kids. And like Jack Handey said "The face of a child can say so much, especially the mouth part of the face."

On a non-teaching note, I am starting to feel a sense of actual permanence or stability in life. And this of course makes me feel like I should be leaving soon;) I have a cell phone, two pets, a scooter, a bank account, I'm on the National Health Insurance, I have a resident visa, I have joined the Gaelic team, I am traveling from and BACK to this place, I have a local cafe, I have a ROUTINE, I see the same people every day when I go running at the track, and Emily and I have a lot of couple friends (which is sometimes weird, but always enjoyable). So this is what it's like to live somewhere, I had forgotten.

So here I am in Taiwan, how strange is that? I miss loads of people back home and can't wait to see all of you!