Thanks! I've saved my favorites for part II. :)

Mell,
We're planning on visiting my family in the States, but where we'll "settle" or "move" isn't set in concrete. I'll post once the details are set ( . . . or possibly two years after the fact). :)

miss jaln jalan
I'm not sure if I replied to your comment before, but thanks for dropping a message. I'm glad you enjoyed and, no worries, the rest of the trip worked out great and I ended up living in Malaysia for a while. Go figure! Looking forward to more of your blogs.

Hi Jason,
I'm glad you found my articles (Teacing ESL Camp - Activities, Tips, and Experience and Teaching ESL: Korean Open Class). In reply, you were told correctly. You don't have to worry about grammar in most schools as co-teachers do cover the technical details. Most schools provide a textbook with lessons and, in my case, I taught all the material in the given textbook as this material is often included in their national exams, too. I encourage creating extra handouts or activities (one or the other per class in case students zip through the class's lesson) that may aide the students and help them have more fun (since some textbooks are repetitive and simply dull). Back to your original question, I found through trial and error that it's not always a good idea to teach terms like "past perfect," "gerund," or "dangling modifier" as the students have learned these concepts in Korean and will have difficulty remembering the English version for these concepts. However, I do think it is a good idea to teach grammar that may seem simple to us like "past," "present," and "future" as those terms can be very useful and are so important to the English language. Plus, it will really improve the students ability to write verbs. My middle school students were not ready for a comma lesson and often learned patterns in comma-usage like in the following cause-effect (i.e. It rained, so she took an umbrella) I don't recommend creating a bunch of lesson plans that may not fit with your school, but brainstorming/jotting down a few ideas in case you have to improvise a whole class is smart (especially while you aren't crunched for time before you arrive in Korea). Make a fun class for cursive or simple riddles. Korean English teachers seem to love when you teach idioms as they can be challenging and are often more difficult questions on national exams (i.e. what does "piece of cake" mean?). However, explaining idioms without knowing your students can be quite a challenge, so I do recommend waiting until you are more comfortable with your students. Whether your lessons work will depend greatly on each class's personality (some classes will be enthusiastic while others may fall asleep for the same lesson) as well as your relationship and your co-teacher's relationship with the students. Also, since I didn't work at a private school, rather, I worked at a public school the experience may vary, but you should be able to use any of the games or lesson ideas sometime during your experience. I haven't heard of Hands Korea, but I hope they're a good recruiter. I wish you luck and befriend any other teaching expats you meet in Korea as that can be a lifesaver down the line. I swapped lessons with two particular friends who would always put a lot of effort into making lessons, so I knew I could rely on their work as they knew they could rely on mine. Also, in times of visa details, extending/ending contracts, or overall cultural experience, it's comforting to know what other ppl are experiencing at the same time as you. I hope this was helpful and answered your questions. ENJOY your time in Korea!!!! :D Best, Michelle

Yup~ But, it certainly made for a traveling/diving memory. ;]

To health!
Thanks~ :)

Haha
Good observation, Mell. Fortunately, (this may be TMI for some people) I didn't have to wait two months, and it was equally an inconvenience and relief. ;)