Day 411: Steerin' The Wheel

Man, I love teaching Grade Six! It rocks big time!

My Grade 6ers are such a joy to teach, they really are a treat. I teach the very young and the very very energetic and demanding Grade 2's and 3's for the first part of the afternoon, so when I walk into Grade 6 and they're all mature and super smart and pretty much fluent in English and eager to learn and chat and share ideas, I just breathe this huge sigh of relief. For the Grade 2's and 3's I gotta rule the class with an iron fist, and keep discipline firm in order to keep things on track and moving forward. It takes a lot of effort and patience to keep those kids interested and focused, especially since I teach Level 5 and 6 (the bottom levels) of Third Grade right before.

But when I'm in Grade Six it's like I've only got one finger on the steering wheel and I'm just barely glancing forward at the road as we cruise along. The subject material is really quite advanced, so we get to read and discuss about a wide variety of interesting topics, like politics and history, other cultures and nations, science and geography. They're incredibly bright kids, and we go off on some really cool tangents sometimes with our conversations. I can talk to them about nearly anything and I don't have to slow down my speaking or choose a really basic vocabulary. The kids just get it. And they're always eager to tell me their thoughts and opinions and what it's like to be a 12-year old in Korea. They're also at the age where puberty is just starting so they're all curious (yet still horrified) by the opposite sex, and there's always a sassy banter going on between the boys and the girls. It's a lot of fun.

It's a great way to end my Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule, and I really feel like I'm bonding with those kids. I'm gonna miss 'em a lot when I'm gone!