Ohhh Thursdays...

Thursdays are my tough days. I have to teach from 9-4pm, with a lunch in the middle, usually my cat-nap time to re-energize. The class after lunch is my worse class of the week, most of my classes are slightly chaotic, but the Thursday after lunch bunch is especially difficult. One week I was so frustrated I made them do every single exercise in the book, and if you saw the book you would know it is punishment. After this "punishment class" a particularly outspoken student approached me to complain. To sum it up he told me my lessons were boring and if I engaged the students I wouldn't have this problem. I responded that the class does not deserve to play games if they refuse to pay attention.

This week the other half of their class was acting up so badly that the other foreign teacher left class. A student from their class ran to find me to tell me, and I immediately told her to go back to class. I walked back into my classroom to find all of my students smashed up on the window trying to eavesdrop, all begging to tell me why the teacher left. Here is how the conversation played out:

Me: "Here's the deal kids, everyone hates teaching you because you are a bad class. You don't listen to anything I say, or do any of the activities. From here on out we can write papers and I will grade them." I looked at some of their faces and saw some looked a little sad. So I said "I don't mean to say you are bad people but you are a bad class."

Then to my surprise that outspoken kid chimed in and said "Don't be sorry, you are just honest. No Chinese teacher in math, or any other class would say anything about our behavior."

That one tiny statement redeemed that kid from my wrath. After class I was so stressed out the other teacher and I got our hair washed. Weird, I know, but they massage your head for 10 mins and then style it. Its pretty amazing.

And on a brighter note, this one girl loves me, so we took a picture. Her name is Christine and she sings me songs from "The Phantom of the Opera" after class. (The one next to me).