The internet in the apartment is finally set up! Hurray!
This first week of teaching has been beyond stressful. I can't even describe to you the amount of pressure and stress the first week of class brings.
On saturday, we had our final day of Orientation. Right now, I can't even remember being at orientation--it seems so long ago. Our final CIEE excusion was to Tian Zi Fang. This section of Shanghai is very famous for the art and quality shops. I'll include some pictures tomorrow, because the area was quite beautiful. We had our farewell dinner and karaoke party to say goodbye to the fellow teachers and most all of us parted either Saturday or Sunday.
Orientation at New Beat was overwhelming. The schedule they gave us said we would be finished around 5:30, but we didn't leave until around 7:00 or 8:00. Not wholly unexpected, but after the sheer amount of information New Beat gave us, most all of us wanted to get out of there.
My first day of teaching... Oh boy. Nothing really could've prepared me for teaching ESL to kindergarteners. My TEFL certification was helpful, but not applicable. If it wasn't for the Chinese facilitator (Jacqui) I would've been lost. I did not make any kids cry on my first day (Which is very uncommon), though I did have quite a few new babies in my beginning class who did not speak any english. They don't even have english names yet. I teach 9 classes everyday. My morning classes are all 2.5-3 year olds and 3-4 year olds and my afternoon classes are all 5-6 year olds. It is completely baffling to me to teach English to a 2.5 year old. But, man, they are adorable. They get very excited when we sing songs with jumping or goofy animal noises. Unlike most New Beat english teachers, I stay at the same school all day long and teach the same students every day. And most my classes are 20 or 25 minutes long. Even though I only actually teach in the classroom for 17 hours a week, I leave for my school at 7:45 and do not get back until 4:30.
The English of my 5-6 year olds is impressive. Some of them speak with clarity and they are able to think and make sentences on their own in English. Some of these students have an outside English tutor, which is probably why they are so impressive. When I was introducing myself to one child, he said back (with no accent and very clear), "Hello Cheryl! My name is ___. It's nice to meet you. How are you?" You would never have guessed his native language was Chinese. The kindergarten itself is awesome. The facilities are really great. All the kids wash their hands and get their tonsels and temperature checked before entering. Generally, they are pretty well behaved. Though I am sure if their Chinese teachers left the room, they would be much louder. My class right before lunch is pretty rambuctious though. Most the classes have the heat on, but my office (I even have my own desktop computer!) is very cold. My feet get numb during the break each day. I will take pictures after the kids grow more used to me. Some of them are very friendly and outgoing, but there are many who are shy as well.
Some of the kids have very interesting English names such as: Lion, Shining, Maynard, Yoyo, Yolanda. There are many named Roger, Dora, Eric, Cissy/Cisi/Sissi. I only have one Nemo, though. Many other teachers have many, many Nemos.
Mostly, I am just exhausted. Kindergarten is a lot of singing/dancing/playing. Between all that and jet lag, I can't wait for my first day off. My hour nap last night turned into 13 hours of sleep.
This first week of teaching has been beyond stressful. I can't even describe to you the amount of pressure and stress the first week of class brings.
On saturday, we had our final day of Orientation. Right now, I can't even remember being at orientation--it seems so long ago. Our final CIEE excusion was to Tian Zi Fang. This section of Shanghai is very famous for the art and quality shops. I'll include some pictures tomorrow, because the area was quite beautiful. We had our farewell dinner and karaoke party to say goodbye to the fellow teachers and most all of us parted either Saturday or Sunday.
Orientation at New Beat was overwhelming. The schedule they gave us said we would be finished around 5:30, but we didn't leave until around 7:00 or 8:00. Not wholly unexpected, but after the sheer amount of information New Beat gave us, most all of us wanted to get out of there.
My first day of teaching... Oh boy. Nothing really could've prepared me for teaching ESL to kindergarteners. My TEFL certification was helpful, but not applicable. If it wasn't for the Chinese facilitator (Jacqui) I would've been lost. I did not make any kids cry on my first day (Which is very uncommon), though I did have quite a few new babies in my beginning class who did not speak any english. They don't even have english names yet. I teach 9 classes everyday. My morning classes are all 2.5-3 year olds and 3-4 year olds and my afternoon classes are all 5-6 year olds. It is completely baffling to me to teach English to a 2.5 year old. But, man, they are adorable. They get very excited when we sing songs with jumping or goofy animal noises. Unlike most New Beat english teachers, I stay at the same school all day long and teach the same students every day. And most my classes are 20 or 25 minutes long. Even though I only actually teach in the classroom for 17 hours a week, I leave for my school at 7:45 and do not get back until 4:30.
The English of my 5-6 year olds is impressive. Some of them speak with clarity and they are able to think and make sentences on their own in English. Some of these students have an outside English tutor, which is probably why they are so impressive. When I was introducing myself to one child, he said back (with no accent and very clear), "Hello Cheryl! My name is ___. It's nice to meet you. How are you?" You would never have guessed his native language was Chinese. The kindergarten itself is awesome. The facilities are really great. All the kids wash their hands and get their tonsels and temperature checked before entering. Generally, they are pretty well behaved. Though I am sure if their Chinese teachers left the room, they would be much louder. My class right before lunch is pretty rambuctious though. Most the classes have the heat on, but my office (I even have my own desktop computer!) is very cold. My feet get numb during the break each day. I will take pictures after the kids grow more used to me. Some of them are very friendly and outgoing, but there are many who are shy as well.
Some of the kids have very interesting English names such as: Lion, Shining, Maynard, Yoyo, Yolanda. There are many named Roger, Dora, Eric, Cissy/Cisi/Sissi. I only have one Nemo, though. Many other teachers have many, many Nemos.
Mostly, I am just exhausted. Kindergarten is a lot of singing/dancing/playing. Between all that and jet lag, I can't wait for my first day off. My hour nap last night turned into 13 hours of sleep.
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