what teaching has taught me so far....

It's almost my 4 month anniversary in Seoul which is crazy to think I've been here for that long! Anyways tomorrow is my last teaching day for the year and Sunday I leave for my Thailand/Malaysia/Singapore adventure and I could not be more excited to be traveling. Not only is Seoul freezing but the travel bug has not let me go so getting away will be a much needed refresher. The past 2 weeks have not been easy times to teach with Christmas and holidays stuff happening its just been insane. On top of that there was Christmas shopping and my birthday and our silly sunday or working....like I said I need this break! Anyways I am utterly exhausted and have yet to sleep a full night this week. Mostly I can't stop thinking about all the things I have to do OR what I am forgetting to pack. All this changes sunday morning when I leave and I don't have anything to think about but what's right infront of me for 2 whole weeks...amazing!!

Anyways today while my kids were doing crafts I realized that the past 4 months have really flown by and that soon enough it'll be 8 months and then 12 and I'll be going home but before I get ahead of myself with thinking I really spent the most of one of my classes pondering me as a teacher. I don't know if I'm a good teacher, I hope I am, but I have days where I just feel like I have no idea what I'm doing and says where I feel like I'm not getting anywhere but most of the time I have fun days where I love my kids and am so happy with my job and where I am.

I've learned alot the past few months about the amazing things that teaching allows you to do and how there are so many reasons why I have one million times more respect for those who choose to devote their lives to teaching. Ok so that was the deep part of my message but the next part is going to be a little silly because the things I love about teaching are probably not the most important things:

• Remember when you were young and having a really good sticker collection and being able to colour completely in the lines was the coolest thing ever....well that's cool again when you teach younger kids. Being able to colour well and having lots of colourful and fun stickers makes you a good teacher. The same goes for being able to complete a wordsearch quicker then anyone(about the only thing I'm good at) and having candy...all these things will make you a popular teacher no matter what you're saying :)
• There are times when I get really tired...ok well this happens often actually, and I have zero energy for my mental 3 year olds right in the morning in my Moms and Tots class. Then when I walk in the door and they all come running for you saying "teacher teacher" there's really no better feeling. The youngest ones are the easiest and the most difficult to win over, either they like you or they don't! For the longest time I didn't think I was good with little kids but really all the want is to play, to see you smile and to be loved and really that's what anyone wants right! They are so simple, they cry over everything, they're invincible to pain, they judge you based on how good you can make a craft or how well you know a song, and they follow you around wanting to know what you're doing all the time...without even noticing you have kids grabbing for your hands and wanting to hug you first, I never knew I was so popular. My point is that kids are kids and they don't need much from you but your love and attention...they go back to the basics :)
• With my younger kids again, or the ones just starting to learn english, you practice the simple things like colours, numbers, letters and shapes. These things are simple to us but for someone else is a beginning step and you have no idea how great it feels when someone finally gets it. Seeing that click, that moment when they repeat something and then remember it, when they say it without your help or even when they say it without you even having to ask. Its amazing how spongy kids are and they really absorb everything, they don't necessarily hold onto it for that long, but they get it at first and those moments no matter how short are truly amazing ones for a teacher.
  

• As a teacher the smallest things excite you like a student finally being able to write their own name or getting new supplies for your class...its silly but its true! When we find a really good worksheet, activity or exercise its like the best day ever and this news must be shared with everyone.

There are few jobs in the world where you actually get to make a difference in so many ways and some of them might seem trivial or small but in the bigger picture they're important. It's these little differences, these small changes, that make teaching such an amazing job and it gives me such a wonderful feeling to know that every once in awhile I'm actually doing something good. I have the utmost respect for teachers...like my fiends Jenn, Taryn and Rexy, they were all made for this job and I couldn't not think of anyone else I'd trust my kids to.

So here's to 4 amazing months of teaching and to many many more in Seoul!!!

janey xo

i never thought i would see the day...

when I would say that I hate shopping AHHHHHHH!!!

Ok well maybe that's a little drastic so I take it back a little but seriously, shopping in Seoul has become quite the challenge. Since I have been here I have bought maybe 5 shirts, a pair of boots but everything else has been buying presents for other people which seems to go rather successfully but shopping for me, not so much. I know I stand out, I'm different, I get it but here I feel like a freak of nature! Most shopping in Seoul is boutique and indivudual stores which I love...Koreans dress so trendy and have such a cool style. So naturally my North American dressed self looks awkward in these stores but I do my best to blend in. When I find something I like that I won't look silly in the next problem is the size which is where I go wrong. First of all I have a chest so everything is tight around the back and front and everywhere! My arms are too long and shirts are too short and and and. Well that's just shirts...then there's bottoms. Skirts are too short for my tall self, pants are too short, pants don't fit my waist because again I have hips and a butt ugh and then the shoes...I apparently have ogre feet and my size is the largest you can find here, I'm only an 8. So I'm not really that tall, Koreans are also pretty tall and have long legs and so we're not drastically different but still...I'm a freak!
The only reason I'm annoyed is because like I said, Koreans have such a cool style that I wish I could mimic it....if only I was like my friend Taryn and could just wear anything and look amazing! so jealous!! Shopping has started stressing me out, just like packing does, and I hate that soooo I am going to make a very conscious effort to learn how to love it here so maybe I'll actually blend in a little more :) It will be my new years resolution to be more trendy and more like Taryn!!

Things that are popular to wear in Korea:

• short shorts and short skirts (even in the winter)
• leggings/tights/knee socks
• heels of all shapes and sizes and colours....makes me wish i could wear heels more often!
• puffy jackets for the winter, or blazers for anytime
• big long baggy sweaters with mickey mouse or the name of an American university on it
• baseball hats again with the name of an American university
• mupple outfits (ie. matching couple outfits)
• Converse and New Balance old school shoes
• slouchy hats and big tuques