Day 2/3/4 : The Blur

My first day at school!!!

Going on about 6 hours of sleep in the previous 50+ hours, I arrived at school the next morning. Bender, the old teacher, brought me in early to show me around and give me more "tips". I was introduced to countless people whose names it will take me some serious studying to remember. I had heard that many schools have a training day or two to acclimate the teacher into the school and the systems. I heard wrong. They handed me a textbook and sent me off to my room to teach a lesson to 200+ students that day.

As an aside, I'll describe the school. It's a strange mixture of modern and "old world". The gym is just a gravel field outside in the courtyard with basketball hoops and one of those "Panamanian Dictator" pedastals that you can stand on while leading a formation of pre-teens doing jumping jacks. Yet, you will find in every room a gigantic plasma screen television. The "old" computer projection system is the same one that was just being installed in the Minneapolis public schools this last year. The classrooms are average, but overcrowded; classes average about 38 students. The hallways are filthy. I could just see Tim, my old anal-retentive principal walking these halls. He would burst a vessel of two. There are no custodians. The students are responsible for cleaning the whole building at the end of each day. That sounds like a great plan considering the sheer number of little cleaners running around, but the practical application fails miserably. They sweep and mop with as much discipline as........any middle schooler would I guess. My room is huge and relatively clean, so I can't complain.

Officially, I teach Conversational English. The kids have a regular English teacher. I am just there to....well.....I'll let you know when I find out what I'm there to do. I have 5 - 45 minute classes each day so I see all 1000 students each week. I had hoped to fill up all of the first class period with an introduction and "question time". I knew they were all extremely curious about the new and only white guy at the school. I didn't account for the fact that most every kid was as timid as a mouse. Getting them to speak individually was like pulling teeth. I ended up just giving them the "my classroom rules speech" and BSed my way through whatever page they told me they were on. The kids are actually pretty well behaved. They're fidgety and awkward like any middle schoolers, but their ability to follow directions makes up for the large class size a little.

4:30 came around and it was time for my zombie-self to walk home. It's about a 12 minute walk. I took a detour to a Homever store that was recommended a few blocks away. Stores here are a trip. I could buy a zuchini and a tie-clip about anywhere I go.

I have to run......goodbye for now!!

~tony