Bump, Set, Spike

My first couple of weeks on the job have certainly been eventful; moreso than I would have thought to begin with. With all the introduction powerpoints out of the way, I could finally begin real teaching.

I have found my students at my main school to be far more energetic and out going than the ones at my travel school. That is not to say that they are not both great batches of students. Anytime I am walking through the lunch rooms, I constantly hear "Emma Teacher!" from my students at both schools. This is obviously what it feels like to be a celebrity. I even had a student approach me at a bus stop afterschool. She yanked on my jacket sleeve with the biggest smile , said "hi", and then continued to look over at me as she crossed the street. This is what I have missed about teaching while being at the center. As a crazy sidenote, I realized after having my first class with my 6th graders at my travel school that I had already taught several of them. Throughout my 3 classes, there were several faces I recognized even though I had not yet had them in my class. It was not until the 3rd class (after wanting to lose my mind because I KNEW I had seen their faces before) that I realized the school had to come to the center last semester, and I had, in fact, taught them before. I could not say if they recognized me or not, but it was such a weird coincidence.

5th and 3rd grade at my main school are some of my favorite classes because the students are excited to learn and super out going. Any game we play is always a blast for both the students and myself. I played a country guessing game with my 5th graders this past week. One student would come to the front, facing away from the screen, and would guess the country based on hints from their teammates. The country projected was the U.S., and one of the first clues shouted out was Trump. In another class (same country), a student yelled "shotgun" while holding up a finger gun. It is so nice to see how beautifully my country is portrayed to Korea. I did laugh at both answers though; they were certainly creative answers. I also played a game with my 4th graders from my travel school where they had action cards and would ask one another how they felt. One type of card was considered lucky, and you would, therefore, win at the end if you had the card. Being kids, they decided to try and hoard the card so no one else could have it. Completely ruins the purpose of the game since they are supposed to practice their English, but it was fun to watch them run away from their classmates so as not to be asked a question.

5th graders at my main school

4th graders at my travel school

Also, I have somehow gotten myself roped into playing volleyball once a week. I have never been an athletic person to begin with. I hate sweating and any form of physical activity that does not result in something fun (i.e. hiking towards a pretty view or running to the kitchen for a sweet treat). The last time I played volleyball was probably the 6th grade, and I do not remember being particularly skilled. Nevertheless, I found myself standing in the gym at 2:30pm on Wednesday afternoon praying one of my co-teachers would walk through the door. At last, my 4th grade co walked in, and I felt a little more at peace. There were only 9 of us teachers there that afternoon, so we played 8 vs. 1. I was luckily placed in the back left corner where the ball was barely ever thrown. Of course, the first time the ball was passed to me I watched it bounce onto the floor right in front of me. I made not one move to try to hit it back over. I was nicely reminded that I am supposed to bump the ball when it comes towards me. Real face palm moment there for me. I managed to pick my pride off the floor and hit a few balls over the net. I felt like a real player with all the Koreans running over to me and telling me good job.

This only lasted about 15 minutes before I was told I had to serve. I surmised this when the main coach pointed at me, yelled 영어 (literally means English), and pointed to the other side of the net. Now as someone who barely played volleyball back in the day and could occasionally bump the ball in a straight line, I sure as heck could not serve the ball. No way, no how. Yet I stood there on the other side hoping to not completely make a fool of myself, and make a fool of myself I did. I was on the far back line, tossing the ball into the air with the aim to send it over the net... it went into the net. So I tried again... went directly to the right, almost in a 90 degree angle (I think it's impressive how far off to the side I could manage to hit the ball). I was then told I could move up to the middle of the court. I could feel how red my face was, but I wanted to be a team player and at least hit one ball over the net. Ignoring the pity in the eyes of the teachers, I managed to hit my first ball over the net. Yes, I internally patted myself on the back. Feeling a little more encouraged, I served the ball and it immediately veered to the right. Tried again... straight into the net. The coach was finally so disappointed in my lack of abilities that he allowed me to end my serving session early. I quickly ran to my usual spot on the other side and was met with lots of thumbs up and the much appreciated "good try". We played one last game against the coach and then called it a day. I was informed I am a good volleyball player (I have no idea who they were watching during the practice because it surely could not have been me), and I promised I would be back the next week.

Spoiler: The following week I served the ball 4 times over the net and managed to improve my bumping skills with some 1 on 1 practice. There was a larger group the second time around, and I found myself having quite a bit of fun. It also helped they actually used my name this time around instead of just calling me "English" all the time. There were some very supportive older teachers who always made sure to tell me I was doing a good job or high five me after a play. Who cares that they're 40 years older than me and about 40 times better at volleyball?

Overall, I am thoroughly enjoying my time at school. The amount of I love you's I receive is certainly a bonus. The school lunches are also absolutely spectacular. Small sidenote, I went on a hike this past weekend and I am so ready for spring to finally hit Busan!

Spring is in the air