I teach therefore I am... mental

They like to choose English names...

My teacher's day gifts! (I got some yummy sushi too)

Break time = drawing on the board time for Brian and Kay

Shelly and Brian clowning around in English Club

Today is Teacher's Day in Korea and when I arrived at school it dawned on me: somewhere in these past five months I became a teacher. Now this should seem obvious, after all, I came here to teach. When you leave for Korea, however, you think about the flight, you worry about how you will fit in, if you'll like the food and the people, if you'll be lonely, and how difficult the language is. The one thing you don't think about is the very thing you are coming to do. At least that's how it went for me.

_

I've always loved kids and worked with kids, but this is something new entirely. I find myself talking about class control when I'm out for a beer. I smile on my walk to work. I hear "Teacher! Teacher!" in my sleep. I enjoy writing "teacher" instead of "student" under occupation when I am filling out immigration forms. I hope I'm good enough, funny enough, strong enough, and patient enough. After believing I'd never be content in any occupation, I find myself happy, I find myself caring.

_

I have no control over any of my classes. I am the world's biggest pushover and it's got to stop. I spend my days yelling over thirty screaming voices. I beg, plead, bribe, and threaten to no avail. "Game Teacher! Game!" It's the only thing that shuts them up.

_

I choose favorites. Sometimes it's just because they are so cute I want to pinch their cheeks. Others crack me up with their dead on impressions of the characters on our CD-ROM. I have a student who named himself "baby dog" and another who wrote "Brittany" on the back of his name tag, which he shows when only I (and not my co teacher) can see. The third grader who runs to me and hugs me every time she sees me is a clear favorite, as are all my English Club students. I love the fifth grade boys who act so tough, but then crumple up and cry at the slightest incident and remind you that they're still little boys. And I'm endlessly amused by the sixth grade girls who have made it their life missions to teach me Korean pop culture and the Korean language in rapid, excited, impossible to follow lessons.

_

Sometimes I want to kill my students. I imagine that they are giving me premature wrinkles and I get very bitter. They always want candy from me... and stickers. I am a candy and sticker machine with a good accent. Luckily, they are funny kids. Laughing makes the exasperation fade. Talking about animals, I asked my kids, "Do you like pigs?" "No, " a student replied and when I asked why he said, "Influenza." The kid can barely answer the question "How are you?" but somehow managed that. And today when I asked "How's the weather?" a student raised his hand and said, "The sun is very angry today!"

_

Best of all. Being the only foreign teacher in the school gives me rock star status. All the kids want to use their English so they are always yelling and waving to me outside of class. It makes me look cool in front of the other teachers.

_

So, Teacher's Day has been a good day. The moms brought me a pot of flowers and some sushi in the afternoon. My kids made me Teacher's Day cards. I'll end this post with some of the messages. You can tell by their perfect English how great a teacher I am...

Hello! Brittany! My name is so hyun. I like English study. It's very fun. Brittany, your like English and English study. I'm very English study. I love you. Goodbye.

_

Brittany, Hello Teacher! I'm Seo Young. Do you know what day is it today? Today is teacher's day so I prepared some present. It's a flower It made of paper. Teacher! I love you forever

_

hello, Brittany. My name is shin-hyun-ji. Today is teacher's day. Today is happy day. Congratulation! Brittany Have a nice weekend!!

_

Hello Brittany. Do you know today is teacher's day? Teacher is very kind. Good afternoon dye!

To. hee soung sheen

_

Hello!! Brittany? My name is Ji won Jung. Brittany, I like English. English is very fun. I love Brittany!! See you later!

_

Ho brittany teacher... Hello teacher, I'm choi seo young. Always, I feel very thank you. Happy teacher day to you and never hate you. I <3>