Ode to my Sheep Class

"We are Sheep Class!
We are awesome!
We are strong!
We aren't babies,
We don't cry.
We are Sheep Class!
We are awesome."

That's right, Sheep Class. So far to date, in my limited teaching career - the BEST class I have ever had to teach. They absolutely rocked and thankfully have influenced my minor turn around in my attitude towards teaching. Unfortunately, with the arrival of the new semester, and the end of winter, it means I no longer have the joy of teaching these little kidlets anymore. Boo.

And so, here is my Ode to my Sheep Class.

Okay, well, actually, there is nothing lyrical, therefore Ode-like, about this post, but here is my 'Big Ups' to my fave little kidlets.

A couple of the kids I ended up teaching for around 5 or 6 months perhaps. When they first arrived they had minimal english. They could say 'Hello', would perhaps understand 'How are you?' or 'What is your name?', but generally knew nothing. This often could result in some frustrating moments as you refuse to let them leave the room, thinking they are just being little shites, when actually they are screaming at you "Hwajangshil!" which I have since learnt, means 'toilet'. It was a little touch and go sometimes.

However, I finally managed to get their English to a stage where we could hold basic conversations. And conduct a whole lesson with no Korean spoken. Sounds like a minor thing, but to remember how little these kids knew, and now what they understand, is amazing. And god it made teaching fun.

With their improvement in English, came the opportunity for their humor to shine. And boy did they shine. And oh the games we played. And oh the laughs we had. And good god, the stupid things I taught them.

The chant up written above was what I taught them in hope it would stop the younger ones from crying and throwing hissy fits. I used to make them chant it, with actions, probably around 4 times a day. And they got shockingly into it. With the introduction of this chant though, I came to realise that they couldn't really pronounce 'Sheep' properly. They for some reason would always miss the pronunciation of the 'p' at the end. And resultingly would say/scream: "We are She Class!" The unfortunate part of this is that 'she' means 'pee' in Korean. Opps. I am no longer allowed to call my current class 'Sheep Class'.

Other mindless things I taught them, and loved listening to them shout back at me, are:

Me: Who rocks the party that rocks the party?
Children: We rock the party that rocks the party!
This provided me with endless entertainment. As I would indicate the beat of the chant with my hands, which they depicted as dance moves. This meant that the class all ended up doing what looked like black-homie-rap-type dance moves. It was hilarious to watch when they all got into it.

And for you Aussies out there:
Teacher: Look at moiiiee. Look at moie.
In true Cath and Kim accents. And Yes, the kids eventually started doing this back to me when I had my back to them doing something and ignoring their 'Teacherrr. Teacheerrrr!' yells. It sure as hell got my attention. And I sure as hell did turn around and look at them after that.

Also, the classic chant - Ozzy, Ozzy, Ozzy. Oi, Oi, Oi!

I know its not really English but in Korean they yell, 'Yah', and I would always yell 'Oi' at them. And for some strange reason a couple of them would always yell back 'cucumber' and then bend over in the giggles. Little did I realise that 'Oi' is infact cucumber in Korean. When I realised this I also laughed, and came to appreciate the little jokes they were making at my expense.

One of my favorite kids is Lance. I have been teaching him for around 6 months now and he is awesome. I love him, he's so funny. And he has the best laugh. He opens his whole mouth up, throws his head back and totally loses it. And when he's really cracking up, he throws in the knee slap for good effect. Or table slap should he be sitting down. And he's super ticklish, and as soon as you even begin to tickle him, he throws himself, stomuch first, down on the floor and just screams with laughter. Its hilarious and so much fun. But one day when I was watching a DVD with the kids, he came and crawled onto my lap. I patted him on his head and said "Oh hello my Little One" he turned around, hugged me, and replied with "Hello my Big One". It was sooo cute. And I'm scared as to how happy that made me. Does make me.

Here is a picture of me and My Little One, Lance.

My other favorite kidlet is Jennifer. Who is incidently, Lance's best friend. Might I add, god they can fight. But Jennifer, although a little stroppy, is hilarious. And bascially treats me as a Jungle Gym. At any given moment, she will jump on my back, sit on my knee, climb on my shoulders, climb into my lap, hang off my arms or just wrap herself around my waist. Her favorite thing to do is instead of calling me "Teacher Kiri", is too come up with different names for me. For example, "Teacher Monkey, hahahaha" or "Teacher Elephant, hahahaha". Lately, I have just started to finish teaching at 5.30 but stay at school until 6.30, and she does also as she waits for her brother. Jennifer has now turned into quite the little teacher, and as I potter about doing whatever Teachers are meant to be doing, she follows me around with a set of flashcards asking in a twisted kiwi/korean accent "What is it?" "What color is it?" and with each correct answer, I get the flashcard to keep. And boy, does she lose it when I get it wrong. But again, just an indication of how much she has learnt. Its great.

Here is a picture of Me and Teacher Jennifer. (wish you could see her awesome Winnie the Pooh slippers)But, yes unfortunately, a new semester has started and I choose to give my little kidlets up in order to teach the babies. Yeah, 3 year olds. Its a little different. But I think I will always look back on Sheep Class and realise that some joy does come out of teaching. These kids rocked. Totally rocked. I still get to hang out with them at school. And as stupid as it sounds, it brings me sooo much joy listening to them ask every morning when they arrive "Teacher Kiri! Sheep Class? Me, Sheep Class?" To which I reply, "Sorry guys, you've grown up and gone to a big class now". Their response, "Oh, noooo." And they point to me and say "Me, in Teacher Kiri's class."

And I'm grateful I had such a good class. After hating teaching for 6 months, it was super-duper rewarding to finally get to that stage where the kids have improved so much, that it makes teaching that much easier. And more fun for all.

Here are a few more photos of our various activities at school.

Getting ready for Duck, Duck, Goose.

Jennifers Birthday.

And FYI - Birthdays aren't celebrated over here, everyone turns one year older at New Years. Little Jennifer didn't even know it was her birthday. How sad huh.
Taking the kids down the Chocolate and Cookie aisle at the supermarket. It was a little stressful.

"One, Two, Three - Strike a pose"

Another random thing I taught them for a laugh.

I Love Sheep Class. They feckin rock.