A Frustrating 40 Minutes

Well, nobody likes Mondays right, though my day as a whole was pretty good. Every morning I go and have tea with one of the first grade classes, which has turned in to one of my favorite parts of the day. First of all, who doesn't love cookies and tea in the morning? Second, these kids are adorable! They are six years old and they wear the cutest uniforms in the whole world (one of these days I will take a picture and then finally post some pics on my blog). But the kids all say hi to me when I walk in, and the saying hi lasts for like the first five minutes I'm in there. Then they all want to show me what they are working on, so I walk around and check everything out, throwing out a lot of "san bain's!" (good job!) Then when I leave the chorus of "goodbye," "biarte," "bye bye," "see you tomorrow," "margash olsetla biarte" etc. I say everything in English and Mongolian... maybe when these first graders get to fourth grade and have their first English class they will be way ahead of the curve! haha

Next was my 7b class, who most all the time have pretty excellent behavior. I have a ton of fun teaching this class. They cheer when I come in to teach, and we joke throughout most of class. If I do something they don't like, for example writing a bunch of new words on the board and saying "ok, write these down." Some of the boys will right away say, "teacher mo!" (bad teacher!) ~No worries they are only kidding, so to this I pretend to start crying and they immediately take it back and yell, "teacher san!!!" (good teacher) The point though is that I do feel like this class might be learning some English because I can actually get and keep their attention, and most of them write everything I ask them to and participate well. Their good behavior also allows me to plan more fun lessons. Last week when we were learning words related to crime, don't judge the material, I didn't write the books! But in groups I had them acting out the different new vocabulary words: burglary, pickpocketing, shoplifting, etc. and it was a lot of fun. Soooo I leave this class and go to my 7g.... Right at the start I have like ten kids asking to go outside and go to the bathroom... so I tell some of the girls to go, as the boys go and don't come back for 30 minutes. I write the date on the board, as I do every class at the beginning, and as usual the same 10 or so students are writing it along with me. I feel bad for this group because through the chaos of the class they are trying so hard to concentrate and hear (and throw me f'ing bone I think) but it is nearly impossible. So I write the date and do my lap around the room, 3/4 of the kids aren't writing the date because they are coloring other stuff (today I just took the stuff away), they don't have their notebook (I tell them get other paper, I don't care what paper they use), they don't have a pen (what do you use for all your other classes??), or they just continue doing what they are doing like they have no idea why I'm standing there. So then I always get this feeling of, ok, these few kids aren't going to write even if I get their notebook out for them and wait until they start writing (just to get me to go away) so I think... get back up to the front of the room and teach for those kids that genuinly want to learn. So I do. But as much as I say in Mongolian for them to be quiet please, and listen please, and look please... all of those students that are not doing any of those things are being too loud for the ones that are to even hear me, so I lap it again. A group of boys had clustered in the back of the room, and had started to fight -they were playing though, not really fighting, more like wrestling how they do. One of the twins was getting the little garbage can to take out, and water bottles to go fill (seems nice right, but so not something he is supposed to be doing during English class). Other boys I walk by and tell to get out their notebook just continue to draw in their English book and have none of the notes taken. Another desk with two students is just sitting there with nothing out, which they never do, this is no surprise. Then a handful of others are drawing; English notebook nowhere in sight.

So a lot of days there comes a point where I guess I just kind of give up, and I kinda just wait for things to calm enough that enough students can hear me so I can continue. Today I guess though I was less patient or just more annoyed. I left the room to go find a counterpart so she would yell at them. I'm not about to scream and yell in English, as I think I would have a classroom full of kids laughing at their crazy teacher that nobody can understand. The frustrating thing though is when Tamir and I came back the kids are all back in their seats, sitting quietly, as they were afraid of who I was going to bring back with me. Then kids who have done no work throughout the whole class are all pointing fingers at each other for "who was being bad." Then my counterpart leaves me alone again and the chaos resumes. It makes for a very long 40 minutes.

I guess you could say I don't know what to do with this class. It is very frustrating for me as a teacher because I know I can do better, but I don't know what to do. And I feel like if I spoke their language, or if they spoke mine, I could get some kind of a better understanding so that we could accomplish things during class. Though I guess thinking that way isn't going to get me anywhere, as no time soon are either of us going to speak the others language well enough to make that happen.... It is also so frustrating to me too because I don't like when teachers blame students for things that I think the teacher could have avoided all together if the teacher would have done a better job. Like with behavior management things; it bothers me when teachers blame students for not paying attention or something like that, and I'm seeing their lesson and thinking, you're not giving them anything to pay attention to! So I am trying to keep myself in check by always thinking if I were a student would this be interesting? But so far with this class it doesn't seem to matter. So many days I've come in with different manipulative things I've made or fun word games planned, only to leave discouraged because obviously such activities wouldn't go well with this class, why did I waste that time planning them?

Well that's enough about 7g for one day I think. This past weekend was good, did a lot of ger work. Chopped a lot of wood so I don't have to do that during the work week. Then I actually went by foot for the first time to get water from the well. When I have gone before it was in Tamir's Husband's truck, which is easy enough. He was not around though, actually in UB getting surgery (he is ok, no worries) so we had to go without the vehicle. Batzorig, Bagi, and I took our water jugs in metal carts and pushed/pulled them the mile or so to the well (in the freezing cold mind you). Then the way back was a little slower going now being full of water! The whole thing was kind of a funny adventure for me being the first time, and knowing I probably won't have to get water that way many more times ever. But what a serious pain in the butt for people that have no vehicle, or even if you do, just the fact that you have to travel far away to get water that will only last you a little bit before you have to do it all again. The irony of it to as I was on my way to and from getting the water, was knowing when I got home I needed to use it to wash my clothes by hand (another hour or two of manual labor).... All the ger work though is a piece of cake compared to teaching 7g.

The Holidays in Mongolia

Happy 2010 from Mongolia! Not trying to brag too much, but I was actually hanging out in year 2010 like 12 hours before all of you! haha Mongolians celebrate the New Year big time, though not many actually celebrate Christmas, though most knew a little about it. It seemed like all my students and others in Batsumer thought that we called what they call New Years, Christmas; I explained that Christmas is on December 25 and New Years is another, seperate holiday on December 31. My students were adorable on Christmas; they made such a point to celebrate the day for me. Mongolians don't celebrate Christmas (or at least in my Soum none did) so I just went into work as usual on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I had my seventh grade classes on Christmas day and they came and got me, tied a scarf around my eyes and brought me into the classroom. Then they threw confetti they made on me and sang the Christmas songs that we had done the previous classes. They had bought fruits and cookies and candies for me so they instructed me to sit and eat, as they all stared smiling at me.... It was quite odd, considering they are never quiet and just paying attention to me like that when I am trying to teach them. But this time all attention was awkwardly on me eating. They had also decorated the chalkboard with all kinds of Christmas pictures they drew, and paper flowers they had made. The funny thing was that they glued this stuff to the chalkboard... so went to leave all the kids scraped away at the chalkboard to try and get all the pictures off to give to me... In my head I was thinking, which one of you thought glue was the best way to go?! It was really, really sweet of them though, and it made my day. Then a group of teachers threw a little Christmas party for me at night. The director toasted, saying this was the first Christmas celebrated at the school in Batsumer, and that we will celbrate again next year. The teachers had all kinds of foods and drinks and we sang songs and danced. It was fun and again, so nice that they all did that so that I could celebrate my holiday.

New Years Eve day was craziness at school. It is kind of like when we would have Christmas parties and things at school in America, but times 10. Each classroom had music blasting and all kinds of food, champagne, cakes, candies, etc. It was a blast, but also kind of funny that each classroom had turned into like a disco club in the middle of the day. And the students kept wanting me to dance, which I'm like wow this is insanely awkward! ~I did it anyway. But you know, usually I like to dance when I'm out with my friends at a dance club or somewhere that it is dark and everyone is dancing... not when 40 9th graders are staring at my every dance move (no doubt thinking, ohhhhh so this is how Americans dance...)! The kids are all awesome though; they are such good hosts, every classroom I went in they insisted I sit and eat cake and dance and just hang out, which as a teacher, it is always nice to feel like students want to be around you. The night before Batsumbers teachers and other workers from the Police Station, Government Building, Kindergarten, and Hospital all celebrated New Years at the culture center. Same type of deal, lots of food, drinks, dancing, singing, etc. A lot of women wore prom-type dresses to the event, and men in suites. I don't have such attire with me here in Mongolia (and I was so close to bringing that old prom dress, crown and those heals too...) so I, as usual, stood out a bit in my sweater and black pants. Though last time I was in UB I did purchase some black boots with a little heal, so I fit in a bit more wearing those! Zulaa my supervisor said I should go around and wish the head government guys a Happy New Year, which I was like, um please come with me! So we went over to their table, and I wished them a Happy New Year. The three of them were so nice and very interested all about me (in a cute older men type of way). They said that they are going to introduce me to many rich, big Mongolian men so that I can pick on to marry. I said sure, why not!

The other day in class my 11th graders started asking me just random questions at the end. Then this group of boys were like, "teacher come on!" and I was like, no, no, it's, "teacher come here" ~teacher come on sounds like something completely different than "come here" I think! So they had written a note (they are all like deathly afraid of speaking in English, but can write pretty well) and it said, "Do you have a husband?" I said, no. Then in about a minute, "Teacher come here!" The note says... "When will you get a husband?" I said, I don't know! A minute later, "American or Mongolian husband?" Me, I don't know! A minute later they write, "Mongolian." I write, "Who??" They respond by writing some famous Mongolian wrestler. To which I was pretty pumped, as they could have been like, oh that drunk guy out there in the street or something, but to give me an olympic wrestler.... not too shabby! But I did ask them if he is good looking, because let's face it, I need that! And they assurred me, "Teacher he is beautiful." Done deal, sorry mom, marrying this wrestler.

Other than the all the craziness of the holidays not too much is new. School is still good, it is busy, and classes can at times still be very frustrating. Still have that wondering if my kids are learning any English from me. Though when I work with them in smaller groups, like when I have clubs with each grade of students and when I work with the kids that will participate in the English Olympics in the Spring, I do feel like I am actually accomplishing something. The other main thing I need to get going is to consistently work with the other English teachers. We have in theory been doing this all year, but week by week it is hard to make actually happen when so much other stuff is going on. That I think though is the key to my being here being truely sustainable; if I can help the other English teachers language improve, then in theory all the students English will also improve. Other random funny thing... The other day in my seventh grade class (of course) some boys were trying to pierce their ears with dull pencils. Which I have already told them, "No, No, No! -you need something sharper and your ear to be colder, so do it after class out in the snow!" But they are persistent, so anyways, I have a group of boys practically crying, ear bleeding during class as I'm trying to teach about the Past Simple Tense. Needless to say, I don't think they could say, "My ear bled during English class today."