So for all intensive purposes, I am in retreat right now. That said, in order to keep living here without worrying about how I'm going to fund the retreat, I have kept the twenty-three old as my student. I've started teaching her an hour and a half everyday and we're learning computers as well as English.
The good news is, I'll continue to update this blog sporadically, the bad news is, now I have to figure out how to teach someone how to use the computer!!! (Actually, that's not really bad news at all, just a new challenge, as is continuing to find resources for her to practice reading and writing.) But a little challenge never hurt anyone, and I'm actually very much looking forward to continuing teaching her.
I've really enjoyed our time together so far, and it's been very rewarding to see her improve so much in such a short time. In just three months, she's gone from not knowing the sounds of the letters to being able to form complete sentences and read complex stories. Hopefully, I can stay ahead of her and continue to find new things for us to do!
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
What to do when teaching a five year old....
So last Friday was the last class I had with the five year old and here is a list of things that I would do differently/should keep in mind for the next young child I teach one on one:
1. Find a bunch of activities to do during the lesson. Activities that might work:
Hop-scotch with flashcards
Flashcards-repeating until they know them, ask them first, then have them ask you
Go fish (I found a toy fishing pole and magnetic fish that I could put the words of the day so that he "fished" for the words then identified them.) As above, switch roles.
Use the worksheets found on ESL-kids.com-the drum, word match and bingo were a hit
(This one goes really fast though, five activities might take up five minutes.)
I did half of the lesson using the ESL-kids and half of the lesson using the worksheets from Starfall.com
(When using Starfall: at first, I had him do the activities, but then just started to print out the handouts because he wasn't retaining the information enough to tell his parents what he was learning-although I could see him improve. What I did instead, was to really emphasize one story and then do the worksheets. Next time, I would do one story per week and each day do a different worksheet. Thus, one week would be "short a," the next "short e" as opposed to one story per day, which works better with the older students. This way, it is repeated a lot and they can integrate the information.)
"Find me"-hide flashcards around the room and have the student find them-switch
Matching
Shoots and Ladders (helps with counting)
Go fish with flashcards (works with older students)
Simon Says (again, for older students)
Coloring (He was able to color the story we read)
Songs? (This one really hasn't gone over well with any of the students I have.)
2. Along with choosing one story to do per week, I would also choose one theme to do. I thought I could switch up the theme every few days, but I think it would be better to work with one theme for a couple of days. This way, I think I could keep the activities we did each week relatively similar, but the "newness" would come with the change of theme. For really young students, I might have to do a few themes every few days.
3. Start out strong then go soft. I think one of the mistakes I made with the five year old, was that I wasn't authoritative enough from the beginning. I think it worked to have him choose some of the activities, but I should have been more structured to start. I hope this would have saved me the stress then of loosing him towards the end. In other words, I gave him the power too soon, I should have had him earn it more (especially in Thailand where the teachers are definitely seen more authoritative than in the States.)
4. Planning really, really, really makes a difference!
I think that's it. Moral of story: I learned A LOT from teaching "Bee" and, despite the fact that he was the most challenging student I've had, there is a part of me that's sad to have the lessons ended. He was exceptionally bright and on his way to becoming trilingual. Although I'm not sure that I could have kept him engaged for one more class, I'm going to miss him.
1. Find a bunch of activities to do during the lesson. Activities that might work:
Hop-scotch with flashcards
Flashcards-repeating until they know them, ask them first, then have them ask you
Go fish (I found a toy fishing pole and magnetic fish that I could put the words of the day so that he "fished" for the words then identified them.) As above, switch roles.
Use the worksheets found on ESL-kids.com-the drum, word match and bingo were a hit
(This one goes really fast though, five activities might take up five minutes.)
I did half of the lesson using the ESL-kids and half of the lesson using the worksheets from Starfall.com
(When using Starfall: at first, I had him do the activities, but then just started to print out the handouts because he wasn't retaining the information enough to tell his parents what he was learning-although I could see him improve. What I did instead, was to really emphasize one story and then do the worksheets. Next time, I would do one story per week and each day do a different worksheet. Thus, one week would be "short a," the next "short e" as opposed to one story per day, which works better with the older students. This way, it is repeated a lot and they can integrate the information.)
"Find me"-hide flashcards around the room and have the student find them-switch
Matching
Shoots and Ladders (helps with counting)
Go fish with flashcards (works with older students)
Simon Says (again, for older students)
Coloring (He was able to color the story we read)
Songs? (This one really hasn't gone over well with any of the students I have.)
2. Along with choosing one story to do per week, I would also choose one theme to do. I thought I could switch up the theme every few days, but I think it would be better to work with one theme for a couple of days. This way, I think I could keep the activities we did each week relatively similar, but the "newness" would come with the change of theme. For really young students, I might have to do a few themes every few days.
3. Start out strong then go soft. I think one of the mistakes I made with the five year old, was that I wasn't authoritative enough from the beginning. I think it worked to have him choose some of the activities, but I should have been more structured to start. I hope this would have saved me the stress then of loosing him towards the end. In other words, I gave him the power too soon, I should have had him earn it more (especially in Thailand where the teachers are definitely seen more authoritative than in the States.)
4. Planning really, really, really makes a difference!
I think that's it. Moral of story: I learned A LOT from teaching "Bee" and, despite the fact that he was the most challenging student I've had, there is a part of me that's sad to have the lessons ended. He was exceptionally bright and on his way to becoming trilingual. Although I'm not sure that I could have kept him engaged for one more class, I'm going to miss him.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
A departure from the usual.....
So I wanted to take this post to briefly address some of the concerns that have come my way regarding the political situation in Thailand.
Basically I want to stress that what's going on in Bangkok right now is in no way shape or form affecting us down south (i.e. in Kamala or Phuket even). And it certainly has nothing to do with foreigners. As someone recently pointed out, what is going on in Bangkok has to do with the Thai people expressing their rights as "democratic" citizens. It would be like being from another country during the protests that were taking place in 2003 in LA against the Iraq war.
In Kamala, the situation is even further removed. If I did not teach in a house that had a tv-I wouldn't even know there is a problem.
Please, everyone, thanks for your worries, but there is really no need. Kamala and Phuket are sound, beautiful and safe.
Basically I want to stress that what's going on in Bangkok right now is in no way shape or form affecting us down south (i.e. in Kamala or Phuket even). And it certainly has nothing to do with foreigners. As someone recently pointed out, what is going on in Bangkok has to do with the Thai people expressing their rights as "democratic" citizens. It would be like being from another country during the protests that were taking place in 2003 in LA against the Iraq war.
In Kamala, the situation is even further removed. If I did not teach in a house that had a tv-I wouldn't even know there is a problem.
Please, everyone, thanks for your worries, but there is really no need. Kamala and Phuket are sound, beautiful and safe.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Changing of the Seasons...
So last week (to the day as a matter of fact) was my last lesson with Sophia. Although the classes didn't "accomplish" her parents' goal for her (i.e. passing the interview to continue onto second grade), I hope she got something out of it by the end. I know I certainly did. '
The last few lessons were extremely fun for me, mostly because for the last two weeks, I went to her house instead of having her come to the school. Although the first lesson was really awkward, I think this ended up being a pretty good thing. For one, Sophia's sister (or cousin, I never was able to figure it out) was able to sit in on the lessons with us. With the added person, the class became way more entertaining for Sophia and it was easier for me to just step back and let the two of them interact-as opposed to feeling like I had to keep her busy the entire time. Not only that, but I think Sophia felt more comfortable and as she opened up, it gave me an opportunity to just have fun with her. It was really great to see her laugh and joke around and I think some of the walls came down.
The roles of "teacher" and "student" have been interesting (to say the least). Unlike the states, the people of Thailand (and most of Asia I'm told) still hold teachers in the highest respect. Of course, I, for one am in no way opposed to this, but it's been kind of weird for me to interact with the students in a much more formal way than I am used to. Really, what I love most about teaching or watching kids is that I get to be one!!! Thus, it was a nice change at the end when I could just play with Sophia and let down my guard. Needless to say, I have no idea what her parents thought, but I hope she learned something!!
I certainly have missed her and her family this week.
In other news, last week also marked the addition of a new student, and, in doing so, has presented me with a whole slew of new and exciting challenges. I will try to update soon with an account of my "adventures in teaching English to a five year old!!!"
The last few lessons were extremely fun for me, mostly because for the last two weeks, I went to her house instead of having her come to the school. Although the first lesson was really awkward, I think this ended up being a pretty good thing. For one, Sophia's sister (or cousin, I never was able to figure it out) was able to sit in on the lessons with us. With the added person, the class became way more entertaining for Sophia and it was easier for me to just step back and let the two of them interact-as opposed to feeling like I had to keep her busy the entire time. Not only that, but I think Sophia felt more comfortable and as she opened up, it gave me an opportunity to just have fun with her. It was really great to see her laugh and joke around and I think some of the walls came down.
The roles of "teacher" and "student" have been interesting (to say the least). Unlike the states, the people of Thailand (and most of Asia I'm told) still hold teachers in the highest respect. Of course, I, for one am in no way opposed to this, but it's been kind of weird for me to interact with the students in a much more formal way than I am used to. Really, what I love most about teaching or watching kids is that I get to be one!!! Thus, it was a nice change at the end when I could just play with Sophia and let down my guard. Needless to say, I have no idea what her parents thought, but I hope she learned something!!
I certainly have missed her and her family this week.
In other news, last week also marked the addition of a new student, and, in doing so, has presented me with a whole slew of new and exciting challenges. I will try to update soon with an account of my "adventures in teaching English to a five year old!!!"
Sunday, March 29, 2009
The Downs
So I thought the lessons with Sophia were going really well, but then she had her interview on Wednesday to go into grade 2 (the entire reason why she is taking lessons from me in the first place) and she completely failed!
It was an interesting moment when her mom told me that. At first, I did the usual, automatic, fall-into-guilt routine that I normally do. I felt really bad about it, thought that we should just stop the lessons right there (we have five more to do), and I was completely ready to pay the family back for the classes. But then, I stopped myself. I noticed that I had kind of gone off the deep end in terms of reacting and just stopped. Of course, I could feel the tension, and the fear inside my chest that stayed for pretty much the rest of the night, but at least I got some distance from it. I think in the past I would have really done a number on myself-beating myself over the head for not being "good enough." This time, however, after the lesson, I sat down and looked at the situation more objectively.
Were there things that I, as a "teacher" could have done better? Yes, the first and foremost being that I should have more aggressively looked into what interview questions Sophia was going to be asked so that I could have tried to target them more specifically. [Ironically enough, I did find this out, and, while I could have streamlined the things I was teaching her a little more, I don't think I would have changed the topics too much.] I also could have focused more on speaking with her. For instance, I used flashcards with words and pictures...next time (if there is one) I think it would be better to only use words at the beginning and then just go to the pictures. I used the words because she's pretty smart and seems to learn the word before she learns what's on the card. However, since the interview was strictly oral, I think it would have been better to have her practice supplying the words from memory.
That said, was the "entire 'failure'" my fault? (As I was so readily able to believe.)
Of course not. Sophia is really smart-and she has a firm grasp on what I have taught her thus far, I think she just gets nervous. For instance, whenever one of the other teachers asks her a question-she doesn't say anything. I wonder if part of what happened was a confidence issue?
That's something for me to look into then, how do you build a student's confidence? And comfort in speaking the language?
Also, and not that this in any way "justifies" her performance during the interview, but she also failed the Thai portion of the test. So I have to keep in mind that there are other factors involved other than me. (Surprise, surprise.)
All in all, I think the entire experience working with Sophia has taught me more about myself (and how the meditating does actually allow for distancing) than anything. I just hope she has gotten as much out of it as I have.
It was an interesting moment when her mom told me that. At first, I did the usual, automatic, fall-into-guilt routine that I normally do. I felt really bad about it, thought that we should just stop the lessons right there (we have five more to do), and I was completely ready to pay the family back for the classes. But then, I stopped myself. I noticed that I had kind of gone off the deep end in terms of reacting and just stopped. Of course, I could feel the tension, and the fear inside my chest that stayed for pretty much the rest of the night, but at least I got some distance from it. I think in the past I would have really done a number on myself-beating myself over the head for not being "good enough." This time, however, after the lesson, I sat down and looked at the situation more objectively.
Were there things that I, as a "teacher" could have done better? Yes, the first and foremost being that I should have more aggressively looked into what interview questions Sophia was going to be asked so that I could have tried to target them more specifically. [Ironically enough, I did find this out, and, while I could have streamlined the things I was teaching her a little more, I don't think I would have changed the topics too much.] I also could have focused more on speaking with her. For instance, I used flashcards with words and pictures...next time (if there is one) I think it would be better to only use words at the beginning and then just go to the pictures. I used the words because she's pretty smart and seems to learn the word before she learns what's on the card. However, since the interview was strictly oral, I think it would have been better to have her practice supplying the words from memory.
That said, was the "entire 'failure'" my fault? (As I was so readily able to believe.)
Of course not. Sophia is really smart-and she has a firm grasp on what I have taught her thus far, I think she just gets nervous. For instance, whenever one of the other teachers asks her a question-she doesn't say anything. I wonder if part of what happened was a confidence issue?
That's something for me to look into then, how do you build a student's confidence? And comfort in speaking the language?
Also, and not that this in any way "justifies" her performance during the interview, but she also failed the Thai portion of the test. So I have to keep in mind that there are other factors involved other than me. (Surprise, surprise.)
All in all, I think the entire experience working with Sophia has taught me more about myself (and how the meditating does actually allow for distancing) than anything. I just hope she has gotten as much out of it as I have.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Using what I learned in TEFL
The other day, during Shari's* lesson, I caught myself in the middle of trying to elicit an answer from her. And again, that evening during the lesson with Sophia I found that I was not only eliciting answers from her, but I was also subtly correcting her English by mirroring her. Both eliciting and mirroring are skills I learned from TEFL. The funny thing about each situation was not necessarily the fact that I caught and acknowledged myself using TEFL skills (although that is pretty funny), but that I was actually using them in the first place.
In the TEFL course I went through, one of the first things we were taught was how to "elicit" an answer from a student. As opposed to asking the student outright if they know the answer, (something that is not reliable as more often than not the student will just say "yes") eliciting allows you, as the teacher, to really check their comprehension. As we learned, simple eliciting techniques can be anywhere from asking the student what she did that day, to asking her whether or not what she said was correct.
When I caught myself doing it, I had asked Shari to write "made" and she wrote "mad;" to which I asked: "Really? What does that [poingtingto mad] say?" She then said "mad," corrected herself (by adding the 'e') and we continued on. (Coincidentally, I have caught my Thai teacher eliciting the answer out of us on numerous occations by asking the class whether or not another student's answer is correct. It's certainly weird, and oh so very fun, to be on both sides at the same time!!)
What was really cool (if you'll allow me the use of that slang) was that during the TEFL course it was kind of hard to practice understand what eliciting meant. I wasn't sure that I was going to retain the information. However, looking back, I realize that I've been eliciting answers from students since I started teaching. Somehow, without even realizing it was happening, I really did integrate the information we received in the short four week course. Now, seeing it "in action" is really amazing, and I finally understand how it works!!
The same, if not more, can be said for mirroring: a process of correcting the students. For me, especially in the one on one groups, the hardest part has been to not correct all of their mistakes all of the time. Especially with Shari, who wants to get everything correct every time, I have to remember, especially when she is reading out loud, that she doesn't need to get every word right. It's not only time consuming to do, but it is also really tiring.
The other day I think I frusterated the both of us by trying to be too exact with my correction. I was repeating every single word she was saying incorrectly (which was a lot because she's just learning how to read) and it became pretty cumbersome. I think I was mostly frustrated because I know she knows the material, it just didn't feel like she had made progress that day. Interestingly enough, the next lesson, I found myself trying to correct her by mirroring as opposed to direct correction. I also let many of the words go, and reminded myself to focus on the "target language" (another TEFL skill). Once again, mirroring is something we learned in TEFL and something I did without thinking about it. Instead of correcting the student when she says "Yesterday I go to the market," you say, "Oh, so you went to the market yesterday, how was it?" Theoretically, and in actuality, the student picks up on the mistake and corrects herself, as opposed to the teacher always coming down on the student. Unsurprisingly, mirroring worked a lot better!
This also has been an invaluable lesson for me in terms of the crossover of being a teacher and student. It has allowed me to remind myself to go easy on myself (especially when I'm pronouncing Thai); and has helped me try new things with Shari when teaching her how to read. (For instance, I'm having her read a lot more to herself as opposed to out loud because I've finally experienced first hand what it feels like to be able to comprehend something in your head, but not necessarily be able to express it.) All in all, I think that one of the greatest things about teaching has been to watch, and be a part of, the learning process. Both as a teacher and as a student.
*NOTE: The names of my students have been changed.
In the TEFL course I went through, one of the first things we were taught was how to "elicit" an answer from a student. As opposed to asking the student outright if they know the answer, (something that is not reliable as more often than not the student will just say "yes") eliciting allows you, as the teacher, to really check their comprehension. As we learned, simple eliciting techniques can be anywhere from asking the student what she did that day, to asking her whether or not what she said was correct.
When I caught myself doing it, I had asked Shari to write "made" and she wrote "mad;" to which I asked: "Really? What does that [poingtingto mad] say?" She then said "mad," corrected herself (by adding the 'e') and we continued on. (Coincidentally, I have caught my Thai teacher eliciting the answer out of us on numerous occations by asking the class whether or not another student's answer is correct. It's certainly weird, and oh so very fun, to be on both sides at the same time!!)
What was really cool (if you'll allow me the use of that slang) was that during the TEFL course it was kind of hard to practice understand what eliciting meant. I wasn't sure that I was going to retain the information. However, looking back, I realize that I've been eliciting answers from students since I started teaching. Somehow, without even realizing it was happening, I really did integrate the information we received in the short four week course. Now, seeing it "in action" is really amazing, and I finally understand how it works!!
The same, if not more, can be said for mirroring: a process of correcting the students. For me, especially in the one on one groups, the hardest part has been to not correct all of their mistakes all of the time. Especially with Shari, who wants to get everything correct every time, I have to remember, especially when she is reading out loud, that she doesn't need to get every word right. It's not only time consuming to do, but it is also really tiring.
The other day I think I frusterated the both of us by trying to be too exact with my correction. I was repeating every single word she was saying incorrectly (which was a lot because she's just learning how to read) and it became pretty cumbersome. I think I was mostly frustrated because I know she knows the material, it just didn't feel like she had made progress that day. Interestingly enough, the next lesson, I found myself trying to correct her by mirroring as opposed to direct correction. I also let many of the words go, and reminded myself to focus on the "target language" (another TEFL skill). Once again, mirroring is something we learned in TEFL and something I did without thinking about it. Instead of correcting the student when she says "Yesterday I go to the market," you say, "Oh, so you went to the market yesterday, how was it?" Theoretically, and in actuality, the student picks up on the mistake and corrects herself, as opposed to the teacher always coming down on the student. Unsurprisingly, mirroring worked a lot better!
This also has been an invaluable lesson for me in terms of the crossover of being a teacher and student. It has allowed me to remind myself to go easy on myself (especially when I'm pronouncing Thai); and has helped me try new things with Shari when teaching her how to read. (For instance, I'm having her read a lot more to herself as opposed to out loud because I've finally experienced first hand what it feels like to be able to comprehend something in your head, but not necessarily be able to express it.) All in all, I think that one of the greatest things about teaching has been to watch, and be a part of, the learning process. Both as a teacher and as a student.
*NOTE: The names of my students have been changed.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Balancing Act
Tonight's class was amazing and evidence of how important it is to stay open with your students and open to change.
The seven year old I teach is extremely bright and very talented. From the first class I could tell that she has an affinity for drawing and tonight that interest really showed. I've been utilizing ESL-Kids (a great TEFL resource that has useful and convenient hand outs) to create flashcards and worksheets. However, lately the printer I use hasn't been working so tonight I was just going to have my student make her own flashcards. I had only planned for it to be a short activity, but it ended up taking most of the class and we actually never touched the "flashcards" at all. Instead, I had her draw on a white board all of the actions we were covering (sitting, hugging, drawing, etc.) and she really took an interest in it.
At first, she only drew pictures similar to the ones I had shown her, or similar to the ones I had drawn. However, it didn't take her long to really get into it and after four words she was already drawing me teaching, drawing her sister reading, and drawing herself running. It was really amazing and the pictures she drew were, in my opinion, pretty detailed for a seven year old. I think the part I enjoyed the most was being able to see things through her eyes (like the picture of me teaching!!!).
Likewise, during the process I learned more about her than I've managed to find out after talking with her for two weeks. For instance, for the picture of her running she drew herself and then filled in all of the elements of a race. Through questioning her, I found out more about the race. She told me the picture was of her as a baby and I was able to find out that was six years old at the time and that she was the only one in her family who ran.
All in all, I'd say that to be able to interact with her and understand her through something as simple as drawing was a very unexpected joy. Actually, to watch her learn and build her confidence day after day has been just plain fun!!
The seven year old I teach is extremely bright and very talented. From the first class I could tell that she has an affinity for drawing and tonight that interest really showed. I've been utilizing ESL-Kids (a great TEFL resource that has useful and convenient hand outs) to create flashcards and worksheets. However, lately the printer I use hasn't been working so tonight I was just going to have my student make her own flashcards. I had only planned for it to be a short activity, but it ended up taking most of the class and we actually never touched the "flashcards" at all. Instead, I had her draw on a white board all of the actions we were covering (sitting, hugging, drawing, etc.) and she really took an interest in it.
At first, she only drew pictures similar to the ones I had shown her, or similar to the ones I had drawn. However, it didn't take her long to really get into it and after four words she was already drawing me teaching, drawing her sister reading, and drawing herself running. It was really amazing and the pictures she drew were, in my opinion, pretty detailed for a seven year old. I think the part I enjoyed the most was being able to see things through her eyes (like the picture of me teaching!!!).
Likewise, during the process I learned more about her than I've managed to find out after talking with her for two weeks. For instance, for the picture of her running she drew herself and then filled in all of the elements of a race. Through questioning her, I found out more about the race. She told me the picture was of her as a baby and I was able to find out that was six years old at the time and that she was the only one in her family who ran.
All in all, I'd say that to be able to interact with her and understand her through something as simple as drawing was a very unexpected joy. Actually, to watch her learn and build her confidence day after day has been just plain fun!!
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