Lost in translation

It's getting warmer. The weather is finally starting to turn towards the better and I couldn't be happier about it. I've been told repeatedly that I came to Korea at the worst possible time--at the very beginning of winter. The only Korea I know is a bitter cold one, so I'm especially thrilled about the upcoming season. All accounts point toward the spring being extremely beautiful, both climate-wise and scenery-wise. What does this mean to you, you ask? Pictures of cherry blossoms, and festivals will certainly happen and I will also be more motivated to get out and do something.

In the meantime, I'd like to introduce my new class. They are as big a pain in the butt as they are cute, which as you can see from the picture is considerate. From the back left, clockwise we have Sally, Henry (back of his head), Lina, Sophia, Jayden (back of head), Rocky, Rosa, Calvin, Isabel, and Andrew. Oh my goodness, is this ever chaotic!! There are only two kids in the class with any reading ability and their ability to comprehend English is minimal at best. Perhaps I would do alright with a liason, someone who can understand Korean and keep them in line--no such luck. It's just me and the kids, who hardly understand a word I say. I only have these tykes twice a week, but they sap the entire week's resevoir of energy.

I've been on the same page for the last two weeks and probably won't move for a while. What's the sense of going through the book if noone can read it? We have a phonetics lesson every class where I drill vowels and vowel-sounds. Every class I go from A to J, writing three letter words like "bat", "cat", and "jab" on the board, and having them repeat. When they finally get a grasp of this, I'll move on to three letter words with the letter "e" in the middle. Oh boy, oh boy.

We've also been working on simple commands, like "look up", "draw a circle", and "point to the desk". Every time I say "close your book", little Andrew packs his books in his bag and stands by the door. I'll say: "Andrew, we have twenty minutes left! Go back to your seat.", which he hears as: "ooh bloddal dong, ark brack snaggle bog." At least, I might as well be saying that. Last week Andrew said something to me in Korean and gave a slow, deep, reverent bow, which floored me. It may have been the cutest thing I've ever seen. Often the kids will say "Teacher! Teacher!", and when I approach them they whisper something Korean in my hear. I respond by saying: "I have no idea what you just said.", which is like saying "penk algo ism haft nanny". Makes about as much sense to them.

While it is a challenge, I like the idea of having a blank (and I mean freakin' BLANK) slate. I know that sooner or later my phonics lessons will begin to stick and they'll begin reading and speaking. I'll also know that whatever they do pick up will be largely my doing. So when they do learn (and hell or high water, they will) to read, it will be especially gratifying.