My Elementary Schools

Hi again everyone!

Sorry I haven't had the chance to post anything in a while. It's been surprisingly busy around here teaching classes, buying groceries, cooking, going to JET events, and setting aside an hour or more a day to stay in contact with my Honeybunny (that's Kristin Armstrong, for the record). Outside of that, I haven't had much free time to relax, clean my place, or post things on the internet. After a while, my massive fanbase (a.k.a. my sister) began complaining about the lack of movement, so I'll try my best to let you all know what's going down in my life.

So, let's talk about my elementary schools. I have 3 of them: Harabetsu 原別, Toyamanishi 戸山西, and Nonai 野内. I've already had a chance to go to all of them and gotten to know some of the students. If you didn't know, elementary school students don't start studying English until 5th grade, so I don't teach any classes 4th grade or under. Harabetsu and Toyamanishi are rather large elementary schools, with about 5 classes for me to rotate throughout. Nonai is a much smaller school, with only one class per grade. I really like teaching at Nonai because I can actually remember who some of the students are.

Now that you know about my schools, let's talk about the kids. My general conclusion is this: I love 5th graders; I hate 6th graders. I'm really not sure what the reason is, but the difference between 5th graders and 6th graders is vast. The 5th graders get excited about everything. If you show them something about America that they're familiar with, they'll love it. Especially if that is Disneyland. They will lose their shit when you tell them you lived 10 minutes from Disneyland. They also love eating lunch with you and they will do their best to talk to you (but mostly in Japanese). Beware of giving away autographs, though. If one student asks for it and you give it to them, the classroom will erupt into a flurry of notebook and pen grabbing, and then kids will bum rush you to get their share. Their presence will blot out the sun. For a few minutes of my life, the sky was composed entirely of 5th graders.

Fast forward one year later, and you'd think nothing would have changed, but you'd be wrong. The sixth graders don't get very excited about much. If you try to speak to them in English, they'll probably just turn to each other and say わかんない and then give up on listening. They'll start paying attention again if you show them Disneyland or give them candy, but they'll lose attention once you stop. And some of the kids are just obnoxious. They'll talk to their little clique in the middle of class and just won't shut up. You can tell the teacher has given up on them because he/she just tries his/her best to ignore it. Classes lose energy really quickly, and it's hard to get the energy back up. Eating lunch with them is a pain as well. My first day at Harabetsu Elementary School, I was told to eat lunch with a class of sixth graders I hadn't introduced myself to yet. Think about it: I entered an unfamiliar area filled with unfamiliar people who barely speak a lick of my native language, and on top of that I look like a teacher and subsequently an authority figure. That was probably the most awkward lunch I have ever consumed, and I high-tailed it back to the teacher's room as soon as I finished.

I don't go to elementary schools very often. I only go to Harabetsu and Toyamanishi about twice a month, while Nonai only gets me once a month. I'm gonna miss the excitable fifth graders and I hope they remember me when I return, but I'm glad I don't need to see the sixth graders for a while.