- Kids will be kids, regardless if they live in China, Australia, Russia, or the U.S.A. I taught 6 sections of 5th graders and 1 section of 3rd graders. The 5th graders were rowdy. The 3rd graders were cute and quiet and happy you were there. The kids love PE and there is a class clown in each class.
- Chinese students get very excited to have a foreign teacher. I got many stares and smiles when I walked into the classroom.
- Class sizes are much larger in the Dalian public school system than they are in Spring Valley, MN. There were 50-60 students in each section I taught. Another foreign English teacher said that he has classes with 70 students. It makes teaching a bit difficult.
- Chinese teachers have creative ways to get students to be quiet. In all the classes, if the teacher does a special clap, all the students are suppose to respond mimicking the clap, be quiet, and sit up straight with their arms crossed on their desk.
- Students greet teachers in the hallway by raising their hand and saying "hello teacher." You say hi to about 10 students from one classroom to the next.
- Chinese students have a massage break mid-morning where they give themselves a head, shoulder and neck massage.
- Students have a 90 minute lunch/recess time. They can either eat the hot lunch or the lunch their parent drops off for them at lunch time. Students eat at their desks. For recess, the teacher decides the students' recess activities. Some teacher allow their kids to go outside, others let them nap, others have study time or English tutoring time.
- Teachers, including foreign English teachers, get free lunch. I had Chinese cafeteria lunch yesterday. Chicken necks any one?
I enjoyed my first day in the Dalian public school system, although I don't know how effective I was in actually teaching the students English. I am very thankful a bilingual Chinese teacher accompanies me to each class.
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