Yesterday I assigned one of my in-company groups a discussion project. One of the unit objectives had been to learn and actively use various discussion interjections and expressions such as "I admit it!" "That's precisely what I mean." "What I'm trying to say" and "Anyway, . . ." So, I looked through the ESL treasure trove of online jewels, www.onestopenglish.com and found a discussion topic that I thought would get my ordinarily stagnant, advanced-level business adults talking.
The assignment: A fire is consuming a building and fourteen people are stuck on the 32nd floor. The elevator can only hold 8 people, and for some reason, the stairs are out. The students are given a list of the 14 people which contains the profession and a few notes on each desperate person. The students must use these notes to decide which 8 people will live and which 6 people will suffer from smoke inhalation before having their flesh consumed by a raging hot fire.
The people included
*a lawyer (who has four young children who depend on her).
*a journalist (whose recent investigations broke a drug ring).
*a farmer (who has made two failed suicide attempts).
*a mailman (who is suffering from cancer but responding to treatment)
*a politician (who is an active environmentalist)
*a priest (who does a lot of community work)
Three out of the four students took the time to read through the both the professions and the notes and then decided. The other student (with whom I have had previous problems), well... here are a few of his responses.
About the lawyer:
Me: Why the lawyer? She has four young children who depend on her. (Trying to encourage discussion and use of vocabulary)
St: Because she takes money away from our children. All lawyers should die.
About the priest:
St1: He can just consider it a promotion.
About the journalist:
St2 (who is in favor of keeping the journalist and killing the mailman): But the mailman is not needed as much, plus he's dying anyways.
St1: But she should die. She's young and female and a journalist. All journalists should die.
St2: Do you read any news or magazines?
St 3 and 1: Yes.
St2: Online or paper.
St 3/1: Online.
St2: So the journalist is more necessary and useful.
St1: She should die. All journalists should die.
The thing about this is that he was serious. He has said quite a few comments like this before in class. It almost makes me want to cry (especially since I'm young, female, and have carefully considered a career in journalism). However, I feel like after making a few, hopefully thought-provoking remarks, the best solution is to awkwardly laugh it off.
I wish I could say this kind of discrimination is rare, but I have heard many such remarks. One of the biggest reprimands I have to make among my students is to teach them that "nigger" is not an appropriate word. They have actually been taught to use this word by their Russian English teachers! Of course it doesn't help that they turn around and ask why they hear it in music sung by black artists, but I just have to insist that that word not be used.
However, it does bring home to me the fact that I do more than teach English. I have the opportunity, not to spread the glories of English tradition and superiority, but to share with them a more expanded horizon of thoughts and philosophies. Black people are more than just druggie rappers. There's more to life than math, science and vodka. Smiling is okay.
I can't say I was born to be a teacher and that teaching is my destiny (the thought of which actually gave me nightmares a few years ago). In fact I would like to be the perpetual professional student. But I do love those few moments when I feel like I am actually connecting with my students. One of the greatest feelings was when I was watching Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone with one of my advanced teenage classes, and one of my students exclaimed out of the blue, "Ahh, I understand it." And that's why I am teaching without regrets.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Monday, December 6, 2010
Pay Day and Blessings
Pay Day! I have never appreciated two words so much. But, tomorrow is pay day, and I am extremely excited. 8,000 out of 10,000 rubles from my last paycheck went to pay bills back home. This left 2,000 rubles for two weeks. Normally it can be done fairly easily since I walk to and from work and don't eat out a lot. However, this past pay period I was assigned a new class that was not within walking distance. The day of the first class, I ran out bus rides on my card. So, I ended up paying for it. In the future, I will have a month long bus pass, but as I said, I haven't needed one before now.
Since this past week was the first of the month bills were due. So, I've been without phone and internet and surviving off of spaghetti noodles and rice. Which isn't bad, but after 2 weeks of it, I want something with substance. In addition, all but two light bulbs in out flat died. My room and both toilet and shower room are in complete darkness (except when my computer is on).
Normally, it's not so bad to get from paycheck to paycheck, but it seems that everything hit during these two weeks. I only have to take 4,000 rubles from my next paycheck, so life will be easier.
The good news is that God provides blessings everyday through wonderful friends. I am so thankful for all of the friends I've made here. Lena, Alex, Janice, Jon, Lidia, Kayla, Colleen and many more! They help remind me to be joyful in all things.
Kayla and I on our exploration of the great city and Colleen's birthday party at the Starlite Diner which is another post in and of itself.
Sincerely,
Your Russian Traveller
Since this past week was the first of the month bills were due. So, I've been without phone and internet and surviving off of spaghetti noodles and rice. Which isn't bad, but after 2 weeks of it, I want something with substance. In addition, all but two light bulbs in out flat died. My room and both toilet and shower room are in complete darkness (except when my computer is on).
Normally, it's not so bad to get from paycheck to paycheck, but it seems that everything hit during these two weeks. I only have to take 4,000 rubles from my next paycheck, so life will be easier.
The good news is that God provides blessings everyday through wonderful friends. I am so thankful for all of the friends I've made here. Lena, Alex, Janice, Jon, Lidia, Kayla, Colleen and many more! They help remind me to be joyful in all things.
Kayla and I on our exploration of the great city and Colleen's birthday party at the Starlite Diner which is another post in and of itself.
Sincerely,
Your Russian Traveller
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
When You Add a Little Snow
The weather has finally begun to freeze. Almost overnight it went from around 10C to 0C to -17C. And I love it. Last night, I was freezing, so I put on my fuzzy socks and my hoodie and snuggled under three layers of covers. It felt really good. I love this weather. I love the warm, comfy clothes that bring back memories of family and childhood. I love the glistening snow that frosts the trees. I love the cold fresh air that is invigorating and painful at the same time. It's WINTER! It's Christmas!
This morning was truly a lazy morning. I just wanted to stay huddled under my blankets. So, I did. I slept in, and then when I felt like it, I got up and piddled around on the computer. Around noon I started cooking lunch. Noodles with a Caesar/Tarter sauce and chicken. Yummy! I also made and drank a liter of hot green tea. While I ate I watched some old sitcoms on my computer.
I feel so happy to be here in this place right now. Before I came to Russia I had all of the usual worries. What if my apartment is a dump? What if my company screws me? What if something bad happens back home? What if? What if? What if?
Fortunately, everything has worked out well. I have a charming (if small) flat. My company is decent. I enjoy most of my coworkers. And Russia is amazing. Like any country, there are ups and downs. Like any jobs there are ups and downs. I've come to accept the fact that life is one crazy screwed up roller coaster. Which is why, on perfect mornings like today, I am going to appreciate them fully. Sometimes, all we need to put life back into perspective is a few blankets and a nice cup (or four) of hot tea.
And maybe a little snow.
This morning was truly a lazy morning. I just wanted to stay huddled under my blankets. So, I did. I slept in, and then when I felt like it, I got up and piddled around on the computer. Around noon I started cooking lunch. Noodles with a Caesar/Tarter sauce and chicken. Yummy! I also made and drank a liter of hot green tea. While I ate I watched some old sitcoms on my computer.
I feel so happy to be here in this place right now. Before I came to Russia I had all of the usual worries. What if my apartment is a dump? What if my company screws me? What if something bad happens back home? What if? What if? What if?
Fortunately, everything has worked out well. I have a charming (if small) flat. My company is decent. I enjoy most of my coworkers. And Russia is amazing. Like any country, there are ups and downs. Like any jobs there are ups and downs. I've come to accept the fact that life is one crazy screwed up roller coaster. Which is why, on perfect mornings like today, I am going to appreciate them fully. Sometimes, all we need to put life back into perspective is a few blankets and a nice cup (or four) of hot tea.
And maybe a little snow.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Fake It Till You Make It
I'm not a naturally upbeat and enthusiastic person. I want to be, and sometimes I am, but my natural mode is reserved and quiet,sometimes depressed sometimes quietly content. This tendency in me has come to bother me more and more. Like I said, I want to be one of those happy-go-lucky persons that people are drawn to. In fact, I usually gravitate toward them, hoping some of their spirit will rub off on me.
Before almost every class I teach, I hear an old saying of my old voice teacher, Cindy. "Fake it till you make it." She would always tell me this whenever I was in a bad mood, but had to sing or practice or do whatever anyway. "Fake it till you make it." For some reason this, out of everything she ever told me, has stuck with me. I've found it means even more to me now that I'm teaching.
In today's society, the word "fake" has such a negative connotation. It's often synonymous with insincere. But for me at least, "fake" has taken on a whole new meaning. I'm not talking about changing my personality or character to fit in with a crowd or to manipulate (well, maybe manipulate, but in a good way). Rather, I'm talking about faking my apparent emotions and feelings in order to make the people around feel happier and more relaxed so that they can enjoy learning.
I hate going into class with a bad mood or feeling tired or depressed. The last thing I want is for my classes to feel I'm taking my personal feelings out on them. So, I "fake" it. As soon as class starts I'm jumping around, changing my face and voice tones, doing everything I can to get my students to participate and enjoy the lesson. During the 45 or 90 minutes of class, I'm a stranger to myself. The thing is, "faking" can actually lead to "making" it. By the end of class, I usually do feel somewhat better (most of the time). And, I think overall, most of my students appreciate the crazy me instead of the more subdued or angry me they would otherwise get.
The thing is, it is really frustrating when I pour out all of this energy and enthusiasm (which I really don't have), and it comes back unreturned. I mean I make myself exhausted every day just to try to help them a little. But then I get those classes where everyone just sits and answers questions with one word, and they drive me absolutely crazy. Of course, sometimes, if you push hard enough and refuse to move on, they'll comply with some amount of grumbling. But still, it makes me feel awful - especially since they're adults. I mean, I expect it of teenagers, but adults? Their seeming apathy makes me feel useless. I didn't know if I was even getting through to them.
The thing is, the class itself isn't bad. I really enjoyed almost everyone in there. But there were three different levels within the one class level. The advanced students were already brilliant and didn't need me, and the struggling students continued to struggle. They laughed at my "enthusiastic" antics and complained about the lessons after class sometimes. It got to the point where I had to ask if someone else could take them.
So today, I told them that next class they would have a new teacher. I almost started crying, because I did have a couple special students in the class I enjoyed and I knew liked me. Several students asked me why. Evidently, some of them, some of the students I thought were merely tolerating me, actually liked my "faked" attempts at enthusiasm. My craziness and bizarre behaviour appealed to them. I have to admit that it relieves me to find out that I did make a small difference - albeit unknowingly. Still, what's done is done. Hopefully they will learn and grow more with a new teacher. Hopefully they understand that it is not them personally that made me move.
Sincerely,
Your Russian Traveller
Before almost every class I teach, I hear an old saying of my old voice teacher, Cindy. "Fake it till you make it." She would always tell me this whenever I was in a bad mood, but had to sing or practice or do whatever anyway. "Fake it till you make it." For some reason this, out of everything she ever told me, has stuck with me. I've found it means even more to me now that I'm teaching.
In today's society, the word "fake" has such a negative connotation. It's often synonymous with insincere. But for me at least, "fake" has taken on a whole new meaning. I'm not talking about changing my personality or character to fit in with a crowd or to manipulate (well, maybe manipulate, but in a good way). Rather, I'm talking about faking my apparent emotions and feelings in order to make the people around feel happier and more relaxed so that they can enjoy learning.
I hate going into class with a bad mood or feeling tired or depressed. The last thing I want is for my classes to feel I'm taking my personal feelings out on them. So, I "fake" it. As soon as class starts I'm jumping around, changing my face and voice tones, doing everything I can to get my students to participate and enjoy the lesson. During the 45 or 90 minutes of class, I'm a stranger to myself. The thing is, "faking" can actually lead to "making" it. By the end of class, I usually do feel somewhat better (most of the time). And, I think overall, most of my students appreciate the crazy me instead of the more subdued or angry me they would otherwise get.
The thing is, it is really frustrating when I pour out all of this energy and enthusiasm (which I really don't have), and it comes back unreturned. I mean I make myself exhausted every day just to try to help them a little. But then I get those classes where everyone just sits and answers questions with one word, and they drive me absolutely crazy. Of course, sometimes, if you push hard enough and refuse to move on, they'll comply with some amount of grumbling. But still, it makes me feel awful - especially since they're adults. I mean, I expect it of teenagers, but adults? Their seeming apathy makes me feel useless. I didn't know if I was even getting through to them.
The thing is, the class itself isn't bad. I really enjoyed almost everyone in there. But there were three different levels within the one class level. The advanced students were already brilliant and didn't need me, and the struggling students continued to struggle. They laughed at my "enthusiastic" antics and complained about the lessons after class sometimes. It got to the point where I had to ask if someone else could take them.
So today, I told them that next class they would have a new teacher. I almost started crying, because I did have a couple special students in the class I enjoyed and I knew liked me. Several students asked me why. Evidently, some of them, some of the students I thought were merely tolerating me, actually liked my "faked" attempts at enthusiasm. My craziness and bizarre behaviour appealed to them. I have to admit that it relieves me to find out that I did make a small difference - albeit unknowingly. Still, what's done is done. Hopefully they will learn and grow more with a new teacher. Hopefully they understand that it is not them personally that made me move.
Sincerely,
Your Russian Traveller
Monday, November 15, 2010
Because I'm in Love (or Obsessed)
Caution: This post has almost nothing to do with Russia, but I had to include it because I'm obsessed and in love.
I am so in love right now that I just had to write about it, despite it's next-to-nothing relevance to Russia. Josh Groban just released his latest album, Illuminations. And, I completely understand that I just showed you my inner nerd with the last two sentences, but I don't care!
I remember when I first discovered Josh Groban. My parents had his CD stashed away among their collections, and I came across it one day as I was rummaging through their things (before you judge, you should remember that parents give up their right to privacy when they have kids). I saw the CD with his face on the front, and I admit, his gorgeous face drew my pre-teen attention (I was only like 12 or 13 at the time). I listened to it a time or two, liked it and put it aside and forgot about him. A year or two later, I came across the CD again and fell completely under the Josh Groban spell. Seriously, J.K. Rowling may as well have invented something for it, because I was mesmerized. I especially loved the song "Vincent."
Fast forward several more years later and you find me as the proud owner of the self-titled Josh Groban, Closer, Awake, Noel, the single from the soundtrack Troy Remember, and a couple of other random singles. (I still have to get the soundtrack to Chess that he did though.) And now, now I am the even prouder owner of "Illuminations: Deluxe Edition!" You could plausibly call me obsessed, but I whole-heartedly claim it to be a healthy obsession.
So, a little bit about Illuminations.
Illuminations was unlike his other CDs in many ways. To begin with, most of the songs were written by Josh Groban himself. This means they are more personal, and the CD has fewer covers (which I adore). Secondly, the goal of the CD was to be more real and less perfect. He tries more things with his voice that his more classical songs shy away from, such as falsetto. You also hear less of the typical "adult-contemporary pop" beats and more of a random mix of sounds like African drums. He even has one song "The Wandering Kind" that is completely instrumental (I think I read that he wrote it when he was around 12).
In addition, the publicity for this album has been crazy. I am a follower on facebook, so for the past several months, I have been receiving updates and early single release notices. Many of the songs were released to the public early through singles and music videos. They were like mini-teasers, making you long for more. I became obsessed with the new album after I heard the early-release of "Hidden Away." Then to ice the cake, Josh Groban had the entire CD up for your listening pleasure a day early on facebook. So, last night I stayed awake listening to it for hours, determined that I would buy it on iTunes as soon as it was released in the US (although due to technical difficulties, I was about an hour behind schedule at the time of purchase).
I love this CD! It is by far one of his best! Below are listed some of my favorites from the album.
1. Bells of New York City - the first song on the album that completely blew me away last night. I love the passion and darker musical undertones.
2. Galileo - I means seriously, who else can get away singing a song about a random dead astronomer. Although different in music and intentions, it reminds me of his cover "Vincent."
3. War at Home - Listen to it. Now. Beautiful. And remember this is the singer who did the greatest version of "I'll be Home for Christmas" due to its military undertones.
4. Hidden Away - As previously mentioned, this is the song that made me obsessed with buying this CD. The lyrics alone make me melt.
5. If I Walk Away and Voce Existe Em Mim - both slightly eccentric (at least compared to his usual) musically. If I Walk Away has more of a plucked-string approach. Voce Existe Em Mim is his first Portuguese song and uses African drums.
6. The cover of "Straight to You" - Just beautiful and heart-warming.
Other Favorites by Josh Groban (or as I like to refer to him: My future husband)
In no particular order
1. So She Dances
2. February Song
3. Broken Vow
4. Remember
5. My Confession
6. Now or Never
7. Hymne a l'amour
8. Vincent
9. Never Let Go
10. Mi Mancherai - I'm melting again
So, do yourself a favor and buy his latest (or any of his) album(s). Listen and feel your entire body melt into one gigantic puddle. Guys, if you aren't in the melting state-of-mind, buy it for your girl and let her melt into you. Seriously.
Sincerely,
Russian Traveller
P.S. Please note that the whole obsession tone of voice should be taken as a joke. I definitely appreciate amazing musical talent, but there should be no cause for concern that I am going to turn into some creepy stalker with stacks of magazines and a couple of glue sticks.
I am so in love right now that I just had to write about it, despite it's next-to-nothing relevance to Russia. Josh Groban just released his latest album, Illuminations. And, I completely understand that I just showed you my inner nerd with the last two sentences, but I don't care!
I remember when I first discovered Josh Groban. My parents had his CD stashed away among their collections, and I came across it one day as I was rummaging through their things (before you judge, you should remember that parents give up their right to privacy when they have kids). I saw the CD with his face on the front, and I admit, his gorgeous face drew my pre-teen attention (I was only like 12 or 13 at the time). I listened to it a time or two, liked it and put it aside and forgot about him. A year or two later, I came across the CD again and fell completely under the Josh Groban spell. Seriously, J.K. Rowling may as well have invented something for it, because I was mesmerized. I especially loved the song "Vincent."
Fast forward several more years later and you find me as the proud owner of the self-titled Josh Groban, Closer, Awake, Noel, the single from the soundtrack Troy Remember, and a couple of other random singles. (I still have to get the soundtrack to Chess that he did though.) And now, now I am the even prouder owner of "Illuminations: Deluxe Edition!" You could plausibly call me obsessed, but I whole-heartedly claim it to be a healthy obsession.
So, a little bit about Illuminations.
Illuminations was unlike his other CDs in many ways. To begin with, most of the songs were written by Josh Groban himself. This means they are more personal, and the CD has fewer covers (which I adore). Secondly, the goal of the CD was to be more real and less perfect. He tries more things with his voice that his more classical songs shy away from, such as falsetto. You also hear less of the typical "adult-contemporary pop" beats and more of a random mix of sounds like African drums. He even has one song "The Wandering Kind" that is completely instrumental (I think I read that he wrote it when he was around 12).
In addition, the publicity for this album has been crazy. I am a follower on facebook, so for the past several months, I have been receiving updates and early single release notices. Many of the songs were released to the public early through singles and music videos. They were like mini-teasers, making you long for more. I became obsessed with the new album after I heard the early-release of "Hidden Away." Then to ice the cake, Josh Groban had the entire CD up for your listening pleasure a day early on facebook. So, last night I stayed awake listening to it for hours, determined that I would buy it on iTunes as soon as it was released in the US (although due to technical difficulties, I was about an hour behind schedule at the time of purchase).
I love this CD! It is by far one of his best! Below are listed some of my favorites from the album.
1. Bells of New York City - the first song on the album that completely blew me away last night. I love the passion and darker musical undertones.
2. Galileo - I means seriously, who else can get away singing a song about a random dead astronomer. Although different in music and intentions, it reminds me of his cover "Vincent."
3. War at Home - Listen to it. Now. Beautiful. And remember this is the singer who did the greatest version of "I'll be Home for Christmas" due to its military undertones.
4. Hidden Away - As previously mentioned, this is the song that made me obsessed with buying this CD. The lyrics alone make me melt.
5. If I Walk Away and Voce Existe Em Mim - both slightly eccentric (at least compared to his usual) musically. If I Walk Away has more of a plucked-string approach. Voce Existe Em Mim is his first Portuguese song and uses African drums.
6. The cover of "Straight to You" - Just beautiful and heart-warming.
Other Favorites by Josh Groban (or as I like to refer to him: My future husband)
In no particular order
1. So She Dances
2. February Song
3. Broken Vow
4. Remember
5. My Confession
6. Now or Never
7. Hymne a l'amour
8. Vincent
9. Never Let Go
10. Mi Mancherai - I'm melting again
So, do yourself a favor and buy his latest (or any of his) album(s). Listen and feel your entire body melt into one gigantic puddle. Guys, if you aren't in the melting state-of-mind, buy it for your girl and let her melt into you. Seriously.
Sincerely,
Russian Traveller
P.S. Please note that the whole obsession tone of voice should be taken as a joke. I definitely appreciate amazing musical talent, but there should be no cause for concern that I am going to turn into some creepy stalker with stacks of magazines and a couple of glue sticks.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Moscow Explorations and Revelations
Thursday and Friday of this week (November 4th and 5th) were holidays here in dear Russia. Fortunately, a public holiday means I didn't have to work. Excitement over in my corner!! Anyways, this lovely lack of responsibility meant that I actually had time to be productive and have adventures. I won't bore you with the details of Thurday's activities because they were fairly mundane and headache-y (picture a GRE studybook and a marketful of fish).
However, Friday was a different story filled with, as my face book status reads, "dragons, cathedrals art, art that's not-so-much art as a kid with a paintbrush, McDonalds, Christmas trees, masks, stereotypical construction workers (evidently its an international thing), wrong streets, right streets, underground streets, clowns holding people by the legs, and much, much more."
Kayla and I met at Central School around 1 and then headed to McDs to plan our adventures. We decided the first site should be the MARS art gallery/museum. Let's just say that the getting there did prove to be half of the adventure. We got off the metro and wandered across the park in our chosen direction. Along the way we came across way too many kids, a statue of a clown holding someone upside down, a horse, a statue of a man in a skirt slaying a dragon, and a restaurant called Mr. Burrito that had pictures of giant pretzels. The MARS is slightly out of the way and in the middle of a typical European street which was surrounded by construction workers. Oh, and by the way, the stereotype for construction workers in the US is not specific to the US. They will whistle and holler internationally. But the museum was worth it.
The museum was relatively small, but filled with a variety of projects. Three rooms contained architectural/interior designs for offices. Some were exceedingly cool. Evidently, it IS possible to have your own bubble. And, you can even work in a hamster wheel if that suits your fancy.
There were two rooms with more contemporary art which were really impressive. Giant hands, banana peels, masks, 3-D bodies, etc.
From the MARS we made our way to a metro station and then to the Red Square area. Instead of venturing around the actual square, we expanded our horizons. Our route took us pass the parliament building and a statue of Moscow's founder. We also passed the Bolshoi. After a while, we ventured into a book store, but found nothing to our satisfaction. Venturing further we explored one of Moscow's oldest buildings.
This building is fantastic. It has been turned into a very ornate and touristy super market with a small souvenir shop in the back. But the architecture, the interior design - BREATHTAKING! I had to buy something there, so I ended up purchasing a chocolate truffle bar and green tea.
From the supermarket we traversed over to the Arbat and hit up Dom Kenegi, a bookstore that has a wide selection of English books. I ended up with a copy of Homer's The Iliad and The Odyssey. It should keep me occupied for a while.
However, Friday was a different story filled with, as my face book status reads, "dragons, cathedrals art, art that's not-so-much art as a kid with a paintbrush, McDonalds, Christmas trees, masks, stereotypical construction workers (evidently its an international thing), wrong streets, right streets, underground streets, clowns holding people by the legs, and much, much more."
Kayla and I met at Central School around 1 and then headed to McDs to plan our adventures. We decided the first site should be the MARS art gallery/museum. Let's just say that the getting there did prove to be half of the adventure. We got off the metro and wandered across the park in our chosen direction. Along the way we came across way too many kids, a statue of a clown holding someone upside down, a horse, a statue of a man in a skirt slaying a dragon, and a restaurant called Mr. Burrito that had pictures of giant pretzels. The MARS is slightly out of the way and in the middle of a typical European street which was surrounded by construction workers. Oh, and by the way, the stereotype for construction workers in the US is not specific to the US. They will whistle and holler internationally. But the museum was worth it.
The museum was relatively small, but filled with a variety of projects. Three rooms contained architectural/interior designs for offices. Some were exceedingly cool. Evidently, it IS possible to have your own bubble. And, you can even work in a hamster wheel if that suits your fancy.
There were two rooms with more contemporary art which were really impressive. Giant hands, banana peels, masks, 3-D bodies, etc.
From the MARS we made our way to a metro station and then to the Red Square area. Instead of venturing around the actual square, we expanded our horizons. Our route took us pass the parliament building and a statue of Moscow's founder. We also passed the Bolshoi. After a while, we ventured into a book store, but found nothing to our satisfaction. Venturing further we explored one of Moscow's oldest buildings.
This building is fantastic. It has been turned into a very ornate and touristy super market with a small souvenir shop in the back. But the architecture, the interior design - BREATHTAKING! I had to buy something there, so I ended up purchasing a chocolate truffle bar and green tea.
From the supermarket we traversed over to the Arbat and hit up Dom Kenegi, a bookstore that has a wide selection of English books. I ended up with a copy of Homer's The Iliad and The Odyssey. It should keep me occupied for a while.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Some Randomness for Life
Tonight, I am really tired for some reason. Ever since I've started teaching, my sleeping schedule has been thrown completely off, like out of this world, an alien has inhabited my body off. Anyone who really knows me, knows that I am an early-to-bed, early-to-rise type of gal.
My senior year of high school, I would fall asleep between 8-10 pm and wake up at 4:00 in the morning to do my homework. I liked the quietness of the morning and the feeling of productivity I achieved doing work without the tv in the background. When I did my homework in the evenings, there was always some new episode of something to draw my attention away from the work in front of me. In addition, I usually did some of my best work when the clock ticked away my deadline.
Now, I can't sleep until 2:30/3:00 in the morning, which means I don't rise until 9:30-11:00. I don't like it as much. I've tried and tried to get my sleeping patterns back on track, tried to make it more comfortable. I've gone to bed at 10:00/11:00 on several occasions, but I always end up lying there for hours and hours and hours and hours, yawning into the darkness. And, I don't know who invented counting sheep, but he/she was an idiot. The only thing that counting sheep does is make you think of other barn yard animals which has you singing "Old McDonald had a Farm, EIEIO." Believe me, it is NOT pleasant to get that song stuck in your head.
However, tonight might prove to be the night that Mr. Sandman decides to visit me at a reasonable hour. See, this morning I actually woke up at 8:30 and did not, I repeat DID NOT, go back to sleep. I was assigned a Saturday class this week. And, although that means that I no longer have a day off besides Sunday, it does mean that I get paid extra for the class. A nice compromise I think. Plus, if today proves to be a template for the rest of the classes to come, I will really enjoy it.
For one thing, it is a TOEFL class. Because it is a testing class, the students are at a slightly higher level (intermediate-ish).
Second, there are only three students enrolled in the class, and one of them never showed up today. The two that did show up are a couple. They know each other and are comfortable speaking in front of one another. Even when I had games where they competed against each other, they would help the other person out.
Third, because it is a small, TOEFL class I can pick the curriculum. There is not a course book. In fact, the only book I have is a book of practice tests. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to give my students practice test after practice test after practice test. For those who don't know, TOEFL is the standardized test that international students need to take and score well on to get into universities in the United States. Its roughly the US equivalent of Europe's IELTS exam. However, I do think that it is better than the IELTS. The TOEFL is special because almost all of its tasks are integrated. Students are expected to listen to a lecture, read an article and then respond to both of them through speaking and writing. Most of the audio clips are from actual college lectures, which prepares them for entering university. In addition, the tests forces students to learn words or guess the meanings of words through context (which is a sadly lacking skill - even in the US).
The ambiguousness in the coursebooks means that I have more freedom to plan my lessons. When I found out that the class is extremely small and the couple is interested in some day moving to the States I asked them how they wanted the class structured (after all, it is a business). While they do want to practice and study for the TOEFL, they would also be interested in learning some English related to other things in the States (i.e. culture: movies, music, technology, shopping).
The good news for my students is I spent 21 years in the States. I've taken the Texas TAAS test and the Texas TAKS test many, many times. I've taken the ACTs and the SATs. I competed in expository writing in high school for four years. Basically, I know US standardizing testing. Now, hopefully I will be able to impart my knowledge to them.
The class meets for three academic hours every Saturday (which is 2 hours 15 minutes). I told my students that they will every week they will need to learn and write down in a vocabulary journal ten new vocabulary words along with the part of speech, the definition and a sentence using that word. They will also begin each class with a no-pressure journal question. Hopefully, without putting too much pressure on journal writing, they will be able to practice writing at length without feeling overwhelmed. The intense writing comes towards the end of each lesson.
Today, I combined American culture with the TOEFL skills by utilizing the holiday season. Today's focus was . . . HALLOWEEN. Russians don't celebrate Halloween, but they do know a little about it. I'll admit, I never celebrated Halloween either growing up. But, as a native English teacher, part of the job is to impart cultural traditions along with the language. It makes lessons more fun and interesting than regular grammar exercises. For my other classes I had found and used a few texts on Halloween origins and traditions in other countries (the US, Mexico and Britain). So, I reused them today to teach basic reading skills like scanning and context reading. The texts were at an upper high-intermediate to a low intermediate reading level except for a few Halloween-related words like ancestors, neopagans, graves, etc. However, they were able to guess the meaning of most of the words through context. I was so proud and happy.
It was just one of those lessons that actually made me feel good to be a teacher. I know that I made several mistakes in the lessons and not everything went as planned (for one I was expecting and thus planned a lesson for more students), but the lesson as fun (at least for me). I hope (and think) they enjoyed it too, and I hoped they actually learned from it.
Anyways, the lesson was good. The weather is fabulous. The night is just right. And I am very contented. How are you doing on this dazzling night of darkness ( no evil pun intended)?
Sincerely,
Your Russian Traveller
P.S. Thinking of the night makes me think of the old children's song.
I see the moon, the moon sees me
The moon sees somebody I want to see
God bless the moon and God bless me
And God bless the somebody I want to see.
Where are you tonight? Are you away from family and friends as I am? After all, Halloween was originally celebrated because people believed that on the 31st, the end of the Celtic calendar, they could communicate with their beloved departed ones. It was a blessing for those left behind. So, God bless you tonight wherever you are.
Your Russian Traveller
My senior year of high school, I would fall asleep between 8-10 pm and wake up at 4:00 in the morning to do my homework. I liked the quietness of the morning and the feeling of productivity I achieved doing work without the tv in the background. When I did my homework in the evenings, there was always some new episode of something to draw my attention away from the work in front of me. In addition, I usually did some of my best work when the clock ticked away my deadline.
Now, I can't sleep until 2:30/3:00 in the morning, which means I don't rise until 9:30-11:00. I don't like it as much. I've tried and tried to get my sleeping patterns back on track, tried to make it more comfortable. I've gone to bed at 10:00/11:00 on several occasions, but I always end up lying there for hours and hours and hours and hours, yawning into the darkness. And, I don't know who invented counting sheep, but he/she was an idiot. The only thing that counting sheep does is make you think of other barn yard animals which has you singing "Old McDonald had a Farm, EIEIO." Believe me, it is NOT pleasant to get that song stuck in your head.
However, tonight might prove to be the night that Mr. Sandman decides to visit me at a reasonable hour. See, this morning I actually woke up at 8:30 and did not, I repeat DID NOT, go back to sleep. I was assigned a Saturday class this week. And, although that means that I no longer have a day off besides Sunday, it does mean that I get paid extra for the class. A nice compromise I think. Plus, if today proves to be a template for the rest of the classes to come, I will really enjoy it.
For one thing, it is a TOEFL class. Because it is a testing class, the students are at a slightly higher level (intermediate-ish).
Second, there are only three students enrolled in the class, and one of them never showed up today. The two that did show up are a couple. They know each other and are comfortable speaking in front of one another. Even when I had games where they competed against each other, they would help the other person out.
Third, because it is a small, TOEFL class I can pick the curriculum. There is not a course book. In fact, the only book I have is a book of practice tests. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to give my students practice test after practice test after practice test. For those who don't know, TOEFL is the standardized test that international students need to take and score well on to get into universities in the United States. Its roughly the US equivalent of Europe's IELTS exam. However, I do think that it is better than the IELTS. The TOEFL is special because almost all of its tasks are integrated. Students are expected to listen to a lecture, read an article and then respond to both of them through speaking and writing. Most of the audio clips are from actual college lectures, which prepares them for entering university. In addition, the tests forces students to learn words or guess the meanings of words through context (which is a sadly lacking skill - even in the US).
The ambiguousness in the coursebooks means that I have more freedom to plan my lessons. When I found out that the class is extremely small and the couple is interested in some day moving to the States I asked them how they wanted the class structured (after all, it is a business). While they do want to practice and study for the TOEFL, they would also be interested in learning some English related to other things in the States (i.e. culture: movies, music, technology, shopping).
The good news for my students is I spent 21 years in the States. I've taken the Texas TAAS test and the Texas TAKS test many, many times. I've taken the ACTs and the SATs. I competed in expository writing in high school for four years. Basically, I know US standardizing testing. Now, hopefully I will be able to impart my knowledge to them.
The class meets for three academic hours every Saturday (which is 2 hours 15 minutes). I told my students that they will every week they will need to learn and write down in a vocabulary journal ten new vocabulary words along with the part of speech, the definition and a sentence using that word. They will also begin each class with a no-pressure journal question. Hopefully, without putting too much pressure on journal writing, they will be able to practice writing at length without feeling overwhelmed. The intense writing comes towards the end of each lesson.
Today, I combined American culture with the TOEFL skills by utilizing the holiday season. Today's focus was . . . HALLOWEEN. Russians don't celebrate Halloween, but they do know a little about it. I'll admit, I never celebrated Halloween either growing up. But, as a native English teacher, part of the job is to impart cultural traditions along with the language. It makes lessons more fun and interesting than regular grammar exercises. For my other classes I had found and used a few texts on Halloween origins and traditions in other countries (the US, Mexico and Britain). So, I reused them today to teach basic reading skills like scanning and context reading. The texts were at an upper high-intermediate to a low intermediate reading level except for a few Halloween-related words like ancestors, neopagans, graves, etc. However, they were able to guess the meaning of most of the words through context. I was so proud and happy.
It was just one of those lessons that actually made me feel good to be a teacher. I know that I made several mistakes in the lessons and not everything went as planned (for one I was expecting and thus planned a lesson for more students), but the lesson as fun (at least for me). I hope (and think) they enjoyed it too, and I hoped they actually learned from it.
Anyways, the lesson was good. The weather is fabulous. The night is just right. And I am very contented. How are you doing on this dazzling night of darkness ( no evil pun intended)?
Sincerely,
Your Russian Traveller
P.S. Thinking of the night makes me think of the old children's song.
I see the moon, the moon sees me
The moon sees somebody I want to see
God bless the moon and God bless me
And God bless the somebody I want to see.
Where are you tonight? Are you away from family and friends as I am? After all, Halloween was originally celebrated because people believed that on the 31st, the end of the Celtic calendar, they could communicate with their beloved departed ones. It was a blessing for those left behind. So, God bless you tonight wherever you are.
Your Russian Traveller
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