Eric... : March 2014

So much has been happening. I have been uber stressed, but not in a bad way... just there is and has been so much on my plate.
Moving. I moved. Moving is stressful. Very stressful. I was not in my old apartment for a year, and I acquired a ton of stuff. I love stuff. A lot of the stuff I have I am perfectly content leaving in Korea when I eventually leave. For the present though... its a lot. I was going to move one week. The day I was set to move, they moved it to the next week, and the day I was supposed to move the next day, the changed days again. I was more or less living out of suitcases... I decided to start moving some stuff over myself. I wanted to unpack a little. Get to a normal life. So i did. Then, one day Ronnie and Stephen moved the rest of my stuff over. So I got moved into my new apartment. It is awesome. It is the first time I have actually had a decent apartment. Its still a studio... but it is bigger, and it has a good layout. I like it.
Went on a ski trip where I went snowboarding. I was horrible at it. I improved. I fell often. I think I broke my tailbone. If I go again I will try skiing. One of the biggest problems with snowboarding is standing up. With skis they come off your feet. A snowboard does not. You have to life yourself up without moving your feet... all the while trying to do it on a slippery slope. I do not have the strength nor the build for it.
I finished my first year. Exciting and sad. I loved my classes. I loved my kids. Most of them came back for 1st grade. Fred and Julie from France and Eric and Shawn from Denmark did not come back. Julie is moving to the US and Shawn is moving to another part of Seoul. Freds parents are sending him to a math school and there were no classes at ecc forgot his level when he was free. Erics mom did not think he was advancing as much as he should so she is sending him to a different academy. I agree. Some students are not made for ECCs style of teaching. He was one of them.
I still get to see most of them nearly every day. I will have to go to the ECC website and get some final pictures of my kids.
I was asked to mc the graduation. I have heard horror stories about it. Well I prepared and I caught some major mistakes. It went well. Next year even if I don't host I know what I can do to make the program better.
I am coming to the end of my first week of the new year... it is great but stressful. My kindy schedule... I have a 6-1 class. 6 years old first year at a school. Almost no English at all. Some know most of the alphabet. One of them was ostensibly supposed to be a 5-1, but mommy wanted him in the 6 year class. He threw a temper tantrum. I literally and to carry him around class like a baby. He just literally turned 4 and he is dropped in class not knowing what is going on being forced to speak English. All of the other kids are good... he is the youngest. I understand his stress. He threw a tantrum when he got in, and as soon as he calmed down, he was brought to my class and became my responsibility. I normally hate babying kids... but it was between picking him up and getting my shoulder all snotted up or having a baby yelling to high heaven damaging my ears.
Granted all of the kids are having their moments. Since I don't speak much Korean and the kids don't speak English... its tough. They tell me what seem like well thought out sentences in Korean... but I have no idea what they are saying. they are adjusting to a new schedule and not being able to get food or go to sleep when they want... but I am optimistic.
I teach a 7-3 class. 7 years old 3rd at ecc. They are smart. It is a girls club. All of the students are girls and their other teachers are all girls. Im the only boy. They are adorable. My first day they decorated the board saying I love you....It melted my heart. So far they are adjusting to my new teaching style. They seem to be getting it and loving it. Its kind of hard. The parents are demanding. I was put in that class because I am a fun and good teacher. I show results and keep kids happy. There are some teachers that are fun but cant teach and others that teach but the kids find boring. parents and students both love me (most of the time).
On mwf I picked up one new class in the afternoon. 2nd and 3rd graders mostly but really low level students. I kept 2 of my classes. My first years (1st-4th grade) from USA class and my students starting their second from England class.
On T/r I picked up a new 6 year old class. Equivalent to a 6-1.... but these kids come 80 mins on Tuesday and 80 on Thursday. I teach the 40 of each 80. The kindy kids come 5 hours a day... These get less than 4 hours a week. They may be the most challenging. I teach 1st each day. It's tough cause they know no English. They do not even know their English names. Many challenges. I am scheduled to help the Korean teacher for the time she is with them. She has never taught kids. I wish I had a korean teacher to help me when I am with them. I help her keep them in their seats and paying attention. but I have to do all of that plus teach by my self all the while not knowing what they say. ...

Update from when i originally wrote this. I decorated my classes with pictures of the countries (Denmark and Greece). Andy in my Greece class is still tough. Ronnie sits in on my class sitting next to Andy. I hate it. Having your boss sit in on class and micro manage it is horrible. I loathe going into work because of it. I used to look forward to going everyday. Now... not so much. I can't do what I need to do in class. The other 7 kids are improving quickly. Andy is not. Keeping on babying him not only hurts him but it hurts my class.
My 6-1 on Tuesday and Thursday is not great either. I would not have a problem but me being with all young kids slays me. I just dont have the energy to do that class...
I miss older kids. I miss having kids that I can talk to and have a conversation with. It used to be good with kindy in the morning and advanced elementary in the afternoon. My elementary in the afternoon are all low level.
Last week one of the foreign teachers missed his afternoon class... my old class. I got to cover. I loved it. The kids loved it.
So needless to say, this year is not as awesome as last year. My boss sitting in during my first classes and no classes I can talk to. Its not bad... but it is just so much more draining. Teaching all low level uses so much more mental energy. I have to be 100% on and entertaining and a giant character. Older learners I was still on but more of an educator role. Older kids used more brains. Still mental but a different type.

I was sick half of last week and this weekend. Not really sick, just a cold (and partially from exhaustion). I slept a ton. It was needed.

All of this typed from my phone. Please excuse errors.