Here is the puppet dance that I was in. I'm on the left.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Culture Week
This week was Culture Week, where the foreign teachers plan day activities and night performances for different continents each day. Monday was China Day, Tuesday; Latin America and Africa, Wednesday; Asia, Thursday; Europe, and Friday; North America. I had been hearing all about Culture Week since I've arrived but I had no idea how big of a production it was actually going to be. Here a some of the pictures from Europe and North America days.
The foreign teachers wrote and starred in the week-long performance which featured superheroes and villains in pursuit of each other around the world in which they experienced different cultural dances.The performances included Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and "Beat It", Tina Turner, Beyonce's "Single Ladies", Viking Opera singers, the Korean pop song "Nobody", Enrique Iglesias' "I Will Be Your Hero", and the final dance from the movie "Slumdog Millionaire".
Hula dance
North America finale dance with all the superheroes.
Tina Turner performance.
Slumdog Millionaire dance.
Filipino dance.
Korean pop song "Nobody".
I helped out with Europe day. During the day I dressed up as an Italian gondolier and took about a thousand pictures with students. During the night performance I was in two dances; a riverdance and a puppet dance.
The foreign teachers wrote and starred in the week-long performance which featured superheroes and villains in pursuit of each other around the world in which they experienced different cultural dances.The performances included Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and "Beat It", Tina Turner, Beyonce's "Single Ladies", Viking Opera singers, the Korean pop song "Nobody", Enrique Iglesias' "I Will Be Your Hero", and the final dance from the movie "Slumdog Millionaire".
Hula dance
North America finale dance with all the superheroes.
Tina Turner performance.
Slumdog Millionaire dance.
Filipino dance.
Korean pop song "Nobody".I helped out with Europe day. During the day I dressed up as an Italian gondolier and took about a thousand pictures with students. During the night performance I was in two dances; a riverdance and a puppet dance.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Adjusting
There are many things I love about China but some things definitely take some getting used to.
Pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way.
Babies don't wear diapers.
Children go to the bathroom wherever they please (including the sidewalk).
Lines (especially in bathrooms) are non-existent. You think there is a line until someone cuts you.
Important things are done very last minute and in a very laid-back manner.
When shopping, the store workers will follow you around and watch your every move.
People are extremely pushy in crowds.
There is no toilet paper or soap in restrooms.
The smells.
But for every bad thing, there's probably 5 good things about China. It's a great place to live and I really enjoy teaching. Next week are mid-terms already. This semester is going to fly by!
Pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way.
Babies don't wear diapers.
Children go to the bathroom wherever they please (including the sidewalk).
Lines (especially in bathrooms) are non-existent. You think there is a line until someone cuts you.
Important things are done very last minute and in a very laid-back manner.
When shopping, the store workers will follow you around and watch your every move.
People are extremely pushy in crowds.
There is no toilet paper or soap in restrooms.
The smells.
But for every bad thing, there's probably 5 good things about China. It's a great place to live and I really enjoy teaching. Next week are mid-terms already. This semester is going to fly by!
Advice
It is the end of October and thankfully, the weather is still warm. The mornings and nights are a little chilly but the days are perfect short sleeve weather. The students here dress according to seasons, not temperature though. They all wear jackets in the middle of the day when it's warm out. Today I got a little advice from a student...
"Hello, Rachel! I send this message to you just want to tell you: this serious period, beauty is important, but health is the first, please dress more and keep warm. We need you! Wish you a strong body!"
This week in class I am teaching what you should and shouldn't do when calling or visiting your foreign teacher. Apparently I should have covered not telling your teacher she should "dress more."
"Hello, Rachel! I send this message to you just want to tell you: this serious period, beauty is important, but health is the first, please dress more and keep warm. We need you! Wish you a strong body!"
This week in class I am teaching what you should and shouldn't do when calling or visiting your foreign teacher. Apparently I should have covered not telling your teacher she should "dress more."
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Miss Rachel
After being in China for two weeks, I have finally begun teaching. Classes began on a Saturday which was unusual since our normal classes are Monday through Thursday, but we had to make up a day since we had a holiday the week before. I was definitely nervous to start teaching but once I got in the classroom, the nerves went away and it felt great to be teaching these students.
I teach freshman students which is very exciting because for most of them, this is their first experience having foreign teacher. I am teaching ten classes a week so I have around 200 or more students.
This week, I got to give my students English names. Some of them had already found names that they wanted to use. There are a lot of Shines, Suns, Leos, and Toms but then there are the really strange ones. I've been keeping a list of the really interesting names.
Grubby (2 in the same class)
Yuppy
Elf
Monkey
Devil
Hades
Greedy
Obama
Action Will
Lion
King
Big Sun
Meter
Kaka
Boke
Jane (for a boy)
Grubby and Yuppy are my favorite on the list, they really make me laugh.
Although this week has been fun, it has also been challenging. I'm having to get used to the discipline parts of teaching, as well as, making sure that they understand what I'm saying to them, and hoping that I'm being an effective teacher so they are learning something.
A couple of my classes are all boys who have SO much energy, so getting them to focus and take me seriously has been my biggest challenge this week. I think many of them are only interested in hitting on me. I've never been called beautiful so many times in my life (from the boys and the girls). What a confidence boost! Although, the boys call each other handsome all the time so it's just part of their culture, I think. I've also received a couple of text messages from one student that were probably meant to be harmless but it may have been a little inappropriate to tell your teacher you think she is "sooooo hot."
The joys of this week have been reading the information cards that each student has filled out. This particular card stood out to me.
After finishing my first day of teaching, I was sure that this is where I'm supposed to be right now. It felt great to be teaching these students and I'm so excited for this experience.
I teach freshman students which is very exciting because for most of them, this is their first experience having foreign teacher. I am teaching ten classes a week so I have around 200 or more students.
This week, I got to give my students English names. Some of them had already found names that they wanted to use. There are a lot of Shines, Suns, Leos, and Toms but then there are the really strange ones. I've been keeping a list of the really interesting names.
Grubby (2 in the same class)
Yuppy
Elf
Monkey
Devil
Hades
Greedy
Obama
Action Will
Lion
King
Big Sun
Meter
Kaka
Boke
Jane (for a boy)
Grubby and Yuppy are my favorite on the list, they really make me laugh.
Although this week has been fun, it has also been challenging. I'm having to get used to the discipline parts of teaching, as well as, making sure that they understand what I'm saying to them, and hoping that I'm being an effective teacher so they are learning something.
A couple of my classes are all boys who have SO much energy, so getting them to focus and take me seriously has been my biggest challenge this week. I think many of them are only interested in hitting on me. I've never been called beautiful so many times in my life (from the boys and the girls). What a confidence boost! Although, the boys call each other handsome all the time so it's just part of their culture, I think. I've also received a couple of text messages from one student that were probably meant to be harmless but it may have been a little inappropriate to tell your teacher you think she is "sooooo hot."
The joys of this week have been reading the information cards that each student has filled out. This particular card stood out to me.
After finishing my first day of teaching, I was sure that this is where I'm supposed to be right now. It felt great to be teaching these students and I'm so excited for this experience.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
New Art
Here are a couple paintings that I bought this weekend. I love them and I'm really excited to hang them up in my apartment.
The artist is apparently pretty well known for his original artwork. It is called "wood cutting". He was very eager to point out his work in American books and news articles.
Life in Xinzheng
There is an amusement park not far from campus. A group of teachers went the other day and rode bumper cars, swings, and go carts. Part of the park is a little scary though. The game below had many little prizes such as stuffed animals in cages. If you could throw a hoop over the cage, you would win the prize. But some of the cages had live birds, hamsters, and squirrels in them that I'm pretty sure were caught in the adjacent park.
The zip line that runs over the river.
A beautiful park near campus.
The "Tienanmen Square" or East side the Administration Building that faces toward the city.
This is a street just off of campus where there are many little shops and restaurants. Many of the streets near campus look like this.
...or this. It doesn't look like much but the streets come alive at night. Food carts line the streets and the restaurants bring out tables and food stands onto the sidewalks and streets. I hope to get some night pics up soon.
It is corn harvesting season and since I live in a rural area, this is what you can see almost anywhere you go. They line up the corn on the streets in perfect little rectangles to dry the corn.
A river that also runs through campus.
The zip line that runs over the river.
A beautiful park near campus.
The "Tienanmen Square" or East side the Administration Building that faces toward the city.
This is a street just off of campus where there are many little shops and restaurants. Many of the streets near campus look like this.
...or this. It doesn't look like much but the streets come alive at night. Food carts line the streets and the restaurants bring out tables and food stands onto the sidewalks and streets. I hope to get some night pics up soon.
It is corn harvesting season and since I live in a rural area, this is what you can see almost anywhere you go. They line up the corn on the streets in perfect little rectangles to dry the corn.
A river that also runs through campus.
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