Day 6- One of those Days

So today was a great day, walked into the school at exactly 10am with my fellow colleagues and a iced latte in hand that one of the other foreign teachers so kindly purchased for me :).  Today was the first day that I felt completely comfortable with my fellow foreign teachers.  I was very excited because I felt like I was finally starting to make friends and not just be the needy cling-on new teacher with all the questions.  So today teaching the Kindergarteners was a complete joy, I love the little kids...sometimes they do get moody, however they are always excited as soon as I show some energy (which luckily for me, isn't too difficult).  

Today I felt I had great success with one of the kids who never participates, he read and spoke in my class and ACTUALLY drew a picture which I was very excited about.  Apparently he is one of the kids who gets in trouble all the time for sitting in class and refusing to do anything but with some coaxing and encouragement I was able to get him to participate.  After eating lunch (which was super good today, I ate PORK!!! It was fantastic and I finally had some vegetables! Oh how I have missed them) all of the teachers and their homeroom classes went to the room that we use as a "gym" and I found out the homeroom teachers are supposed to put together a song with their classes and they all compete to see whose is the best.  Sadly I had only sang one song with my kids, "Do your ears hang low"...it wasn't a complete fail but it was also not the greatest.  I think they had fun though, which is the important part right? :P (I have to keep remembering to have that mentality since I am finding that the attitude I see a lot here is to be the BEST at everything).  Do you think I should let them in on the secret that no one is perfect and being the best at EVERYTHING is impossible? ...After much thought, I think I will leave that job to someone else who is NOT teaching their children :P.

So after the Kindergarten kids left, I was to teach 5 classes and all of them went well except for one.  Today was the first class that I had to work through a workbook with them and I can honestly say some of the things that were being asked in this book I had never even heard of.  I was teaching the kids all of these things that  I thought was right, only to realize after class that I was completely wrong...the word I was reading was not what it actually meant.  I felt pretty guilty about it and am praying no parents looked at the book and knew what the words were because one thing I have learned today: Korean parents are SERIOUS about their children's education, even in Kindergarten.

 Today I got a complaint that I might not know how to teach certain aspects of their curriculum from a parent whose child is in my homeroom Kindergarten class.  What I taught was correct but my student did not understand it and I took it pretty personal when I was corrected and asked if other teachers should sit in on my class.  As I reflect on that interaction now, I think it would be a great experience to have others sit in on my class and help me to be the best teacher I can.  It is only my 1st week and there are many things I don't know, I need to be humble, especially when working in a BRAND NEW country, let alone a teaching position I have never had before.  I need to take it one day at a time, today is not the only time I will mess up and make a complete fool out of myself and I need to be aware of that. 

Not only did I have a complaint but I found out that instead of getting paid July 10th as I thought, I would have to wait till AUGUST 10th!! AHHH how will I survive? Luckily my director is pretty awesome and said she would help me out if I needed it.  Note to anyone reading this and thinking of coming to Korea, bring more than 500$, you will need it.  Everything is so fast paced her and there is so much you will want to do for your first few months here but DO NOT GIVE IN...you will have to wait a long while till you get paid. 

Most of the negative information I discovered was at the end of my day which did put a damper on my walk home, but after talking about it with another foreign teacher, she told me it was normal and things will happen all the time that we do not expect.  Who knew Korean parents were so intense? Oh yah...I DID! ahha

I am so ready for the weekend, I need time to take it all in and start planning out my new teaching life! They keep telling me not to take my papers home and to rest but I think I will need to take some things home and look them over before I teach, it's all about trial and error right?  I was thrown in as soon as I got here and it will take time for me to figure out my teaching strategy and how I will do certain classes the way that benefits all the children involved. 

I just keep needing to remind myself that everyone has one of these days...tomorrow is a new day with new mistakes, new lessons and a new outlook.  Yay to a new sun rise!