First week back

First week back to school was all in all good. I love that feeling of greeting kids after a longish holiday. They've all grown so much!

So I'm back in the rhythm of things and had the best idea for my afternoon class: fake money!

Heres how it works: Each class I stick the kids names on the board. If during class they are behaving super duper or if they blurt out something in awesome english, they collect a dollar. The kids can save these dollars in little ABC wallets and can later buy something from the store. I'll keep a photo inventory and price list of different prizes up on the board so kids can decide what they want to buy with the money they earn. Genius!

I think this will work really well with some of the misbehaved boys that are bound to take my class. I have a following of the loudest, wildest boys from each class who can't wait to start afternoon English...sigh...

<update> The kids love the money system! Here's a pic of the English store I bring out once every 2 weeks:

Anyway, I'm really proud of my newest creation: a hand bound notebook I'm going to use for keeping track of recipes!

here's a link to the tutorial I used to make it: Bookbinding-Tutorial

And had to share this photo. Its a dead gecko that popped out of shirt we brought back from Thailand. Poor thing. 

Well, thats all for today. I'm going for run. I'm saying it to the world (yes the whole world follows my blog) so that I actually get my booty out there and do it.

Cheers ;)

New Semester

Getting ready for the new semester, today was full of tedious tasks like organizing a library...in another language. I can read a bit of Korean, but definite brain overload trying to get hundreds of Korean books in order. Well, finished in under 5 hours and the school is officially ready for all those little terrors to come pouring in tomorrow.

One of the highlights of the day: The school has finally been repainted! I've been fighting the temptation to skip down the hall like a little girl. :)

 Here are a few pictures of my work space and my little closet:

My messy desk wedged in between the fridge and the wall.

English material room where my desk is. I don't know what it is about this place but I love it in my closet :)

Another small accomplishment of the day: Made a new phonics game called 'Pirate Ship':

How to Make and Play Pirate Ship:

1. What you need: Three cardboard ships with sails (made with cardboard, paper and long tooth picks), a game board with various sized islands (big ones worth one point, smaller ones two), laminated gold chips, letters written on hard card with a fold so they can be taped upright. 
2. The set up: Tape a letter onto each island and set each ship at a different corner of the board.
3. How to play: The kids have one shot to try to blow their ship onto an island. If they land on an island they have to think of a word that starts with the letter on that island. If they get it right they collect coins for the amount on the island. 

 And while on the pirate theme, here is my secret to keeping even the wildest of classes in check:

The Treasure Box:

Seriously, the treasure box is probably one of the most awesome ways to motivate kids. One of my favorite things about teaching in China is the abundance of little this and thats for a penny! Collecting little things here and there is a new favorite hobby of mine.

Well, Im going to leave it here. Hope some of this was useful!

YT

Hi everyone!

Hi blogging world! I'm relatively new to this world, having followed only a few blogs and let alone writing one.  But I thought I'd give this a shot. What I want this blog to be is a space where I can share my experiences working in Shanghai, China as an ESL teacher and all the crazy, silly, sad and funny things that happen at work and in this crazy city.

So heres a break down of the basic info about my life:

The City: Shanghai

So here I am on the 100th floor of the World Financial tower in Shanghai.

My boyfriend and I came to Shanghai almost randomly. We met in Korea and were looking to spend some more time in Asia and Shanghai had opportunities for both of us. When we first moved here I had really mixed feelings about the city. No doubt about it, Shanghai is a big culture shock coming from the west. But two years later, we've acclimated quite well and I love Shanghai and all it has to offer!

The Job: ESL Teacher at Shanghai Angel's (Korean) Kindergarten

Love my job! I work with kids ages 4 and 5 (Korean age 5 and 6). I teach five different classes ranging from 6-13 kids, so small and cozy. In Korean schools kids call all teachers, SunSangNim or "Teacher", so this was translated into my name at school, "YeaEun Teacher".

So a quick intro to what my blogging aims are :) 

I would love you read other blogs about teaching English abroad. Are you doing the same thing? 

I'm looking forward to sharing my thoughts, feelings and ideas with ya'll!