Advertisement
Published: October 28th 2008
Class 2
This is class 2 - every grade has up to 8 classes on our school. Only the top 1 or two classes have a foreign teacher.I tried uploading videos yesterday, but they were taking too long and I head to head home. So I'm trying again. Keep your fingers crossed, there should be two videos here when I am done. The first is of our kids (mostly Jean's grade 5 students, a few of my grade 4 students) - they are putting on a performance for the Swedish delegation we had here last week. Honestly, the best part of having those ladies here was seeing what our kids can do! They're amazing, they put their all into everything they do (well, most of the time😊. The second video is of the ping-pong club - this little guy is only in grade 2, and already he can hit that ball faster then I could ever dream of! And this teacher, no matter where that ball went she had it. Unbelievable!
Every day I'm confronted with the spirit of these kids. You know, Chinese children have a lot of pressure on them. Because of the one-child policy (which the majority of Chinese agree with), these kids have their entire families future resting on their shoulders. Most of them have glasses, many of them have classes outside of
Emma
She is so serious, you'd think she was 45! This little girl's smiles are rare, she is an incredibly hard worker, and one of the leaders in the class. She's going places! It's one of my goals to make her smile every day. school - and most kids go to school for at least 10 hours a day! Seriously, they are at school before 8am, and many don't leave until after 7pm. Could you have done that in Grade 4? Because there are so many students in China, and not enough teachers, there are multiple "levels" in the school system. Before grade 1, each child takes a test, and depending on their score (also who they know, or how much money their family has), that is the school they go to. Again in grade 6 they take a test to enter middle school, again for high school, then again for university. In May, National Geographic did an entire issue devoted to China, and in it they stated that only 30% of university age kids get accepted each year, there is just not enough room for every student who wants to attend. Yet every day when I walk into my classroom, I am greeted by smiles, hugs, tickles, gifts, and laughter. I don't think I could do it if I was put in their place! It makes me feel guilty sometimes - I earned a certificate in five days that enables me to do
Eye exercises
Every second period the kids do a series of different exercises designed to help them relax and rest - yeah right! what these kids might never do, even if they study for years! I work at the 3rd best elementary school in the entire city of Wuhan (my co-teacher Jenny took five years of school to do what I do, works sometimes twice the hours, and gets paid half my salary).
For those of you that know me well, one of the things I'm always saying is I want to make a difference. Well, here I actually feel like I am. I have the power to change these kids lives, and in turn, make their families lives better. It's a HUGE responsibility, but I cherish it.
Anyways, I know I kind of went on a tangent there, but these kids are so special, and these little videos don't do them justice. We're so proud of them, they're amazing, I wish you could all meet them. Keep them in your prayers, ok?
Advertisement
Tot: 0.06s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 5; qc: 45; dbt: 0.0302s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
