Congrats, Smokey Swallows!

SMOKEY SWALLOWS, my family's favourite restaurant in Devereaux Avenue (Vincent, East London) has been rated among the top 100 restaurants in South Africa and is the only Eastern Cape restaurant on the list. (from DD)

Smokey Swallows is usually the choice we opt for when we go out for dinner (with the family). It was also the venue for my birthday dinner last year. The food is exquisite, atmosphere is relaxing (with occasional live jazz performances) and the hospitality - always very warm!
Congrats, Mr & Mrs Poole!

My birthday cake (at SS)

6.3 ....all in the name of candy!

On Friday's I teach four classes of Grade 6s - not easy! ...especially when you have to teach the kids a song that some of them think are too baby-ish for them, or if you try to get them motivated early in the morning. As tired or lame as I may feel, I have to be as energetic as ever with my classes because my energy rubs off on them. The most difficult classes are the first classes in the morning and the ones just before lunch time - because by then, the kids are restless and hungry.

BUT ...

On Friday, I had one of my favourite classes (6.3). I've been teaching the section titled, "Will you help me, please?" and my co-teacher and I had to teach them a song. Some of the Grade 6s were nearly lifeless when singing the song, but 6.3 made me so proud that I beamed with joy!

They really got into the song (clapping and making actions) and then I invited them to come and perform at the front of the class. Some of them were shy. But then I told them that I'd reward them with points if they came to the front, and this is what happened:

Every single student came to the front of the class - no one, as in no one were at their desks!

Patrick Mynhardt dies

I was shocked to read that Patrick Mynhardt passed away yesterday. He was a talented South African actor, both on screen and stage and many consider him to be the "last of the greats".

(Image from patrickmynhardt.com)

Hope Start Program

There's a program at my school called Hope Start and it was developed to assist students from underprivileged or troubled homes. Social workers at the school ensure a safe environment for the children to come after school (some children come from other schools) to play or use the facilities like books, crayons etc...

I'll be teaching the children in the Hope Start program twice a week - for 50 minutes each. I've been asked to come up with some kind of musical/drama where the children can perform. I've tried finding common ground with them ...especially trying to establish what their favourite cartoon characters are etc... (pretty difficult task since their ages are varied).

If you have any ideas of the kind of drama performance / song I could teach them, please let me know! There are only about 6 children. One of my primary aims for this program is to build the children's confidence.

Teaching parts of the body

For my kindergarten & special needs classes, I'm teaching them parts of the body. For my kinder- class today, I had them sit in a circle, and each had a blank piece of paper with a crayon. They had to listen very carefully to me. First, I told them to draw (only) a head. Then they passed the paper to the person on their left - so now, they have someone else's 'head'. Then they were told to draw eyes. Then they passed it to the left again, and they had to draw a nose. They soon got the hang of it, and the volume of laughter at the colourful faces increased every time! (I got this idea from ESL Cafe)

And this was the result:

For my special needs class, they each got a turn to come to the white board. They were blindfolded and had to listen to my instructions to draw a face.

Some got help from others....

After they were done, their blindfolds were removed and the giggles in the class were contagious.

This is one of my students (Sylvia) with her drawing...

Aloe Juice - for Nats again :D

I was introduced to Aloe Juice, and I love it...and what's a bonus is that aloe is really good for you (skin etc...)Here in Korea it's pronounced Aa-loh-eh.

Rules that actually work...

By now, my students know that when it's English class, I don't want to see a single thing on their desks. Not even their English books... I create my own lessons, and only use the prescribed text when absolutely necessary. Absolutely everything must be packed away in their school bags/desks, including pencils, erasers etc... This is one of the most effective rules, because then the children have no distractions (except each other) and have to face the front and pay attention.

I have caught a few students using cellphones in class, and I tell them that if I see a cellphone, I'll use it to call my family in South Africa!

Am I strict? No - not at all. Even if I say so myself ...I would have loved having a teacher like me! During my schooling years, I consider myself extremely lucky to have had some of the best teachers in my life (especially for English & Afrikaans). Perhaps that is where my fondness for languages stems from? And when I think about it, not only were my English & Afrikaans teachers strict, they were passionate about the material they taught.

Another rule in my class is that no Korean is to be spoken in class (except to ask for clarification to the Korean teacher). If i walk around and hear random chatting in Korean, I take points of the student's team. However...if I hear them speak English, I reward them with points.