Everyone Gather 'Round the Circle

Thursday and Friday were Anne and Brett's last days as English teachers and they let me help out. I walked into the room and the kids exploded with excitement. Any notion that Chinese school children sit obediently mannered in their desks, raise their hand when called on, and listen to their teacher attentively couldn't be further from the truth. I don't know if we were like this as kids, but these Chinese 2nd and 3rd graders were all PSYCHO. I think it may be because they're always eating candy in class. I could understand Anne's frustration in having to ask to class to calm down every twenty seconds.

Before I even entered the classroom, I caught the children performing their "eye exercises". This is a five minute period in which bell-like music chimes over the PA system and the children close their eyes and massage them. The kids all wear the same blue track pants as a uniform. They also wear a scarf of a color that denotes their grade level.

For Anne's final class, she needed to administer oral exams in a separate room so I had the kids all to myself. We played hangman and a drawing game in which I drew an animal that the kids had to name. My favorite students were two girls named Annie and Susan. These are their English names, but the kids are allowed to choose their own names which led to some interesting choices. Some of the kids assumed identities such as Guitar, Bosco, and my favorite, Killer.