Job Discussion Forums

[kev7161]

You know, I teach little first graders, darlings all.

Today, I'm to start my teaching day at second period. As is usual, I get there near the beginning of first period to get things ready for my lesson. As I walk in, the Chinese teacher is conducting her lesson. The kids are attentive and seemingly eager to learn. There's very little chit-chatting and other sorts of distracting behavior. This is not uncommon, by the way.

2nd period - my Math class. We are learning to tell time. For the most part, the kids were okay, but the build-up is coming. 3rd period is phonics - - initial blends is the lesson. For some reason, the kids can't get into language arts - - no matter how much we sing or chant or color or whatever, they just seem bored and restless and they sure do let me know by talking to each other while I'm talking, turning their pencil and eraser into toys, making little origami things, etc. It seems the louder I try and talk over their noise, the noisier they get. I try the opposite approach and just stop talking. That rarely works. Today, I just YELLED at this little 'uns: "Be Quiet! You don't do this for Miss 'X", why do it for me!!!!" Well, of course, that shut them up pretty darn quick, but I hate to resort to yelling to get them to pay attention.

I've had this complaint here before, but I know a couple of possible reasons to my problems:

1. The students don't get to move around enough because 25 students + two or more teachers are crammed into this little closet of a classroom. We can't do too many activity-based games due to restrictive movement. Also, right now it's too cold to go outside and do something.

2. The language barrier: By now, 90% of my students seem to understand pretty much everything I say. Their pronunciation is good when they repeat words and some are starting to formulate simple sentences on their own. However, learning another language can be totally uninteresting, even at the first grade level, no matter how many "fun" activities you try and do.

3. Chinese children are animals! Everytime we DO try some sort of activity, these kids are just bouncing off the wall. Okay, not everytime. The other day in Science, the kids were doing Life Cycle charts in pairs and that activity ended up pretty good. But MANY times, it just seems to fall apart.

4. I'm a crappy teacher whose creative juices just aren't flowing very freely these days. I am constantly trying to come up with something new and different, but I'm sputtering out. AND, I do have a textbook to get through before these kids move on to second grade.

So, I guess - - HELP! Who has gone through this sort of pain and suffering and what are some tricks that worked for you? My guess is I do a lot of the same things as you do/did, but maybe not often enough. AND why is it they can be the perfect little students for their Chinese teacher and not for me? This is no different than their later high school years. They sure do start their indifference early, don't they?

PS: I've decided to also stop sending homework home on the weekends (as parents have requested). Last Monday, all their Chinese work was returned and I got about 50% of what I had sent home with them. So, I can't be bothered with that aspect any longer.

[Petulia Pet]

My girls and I at Salon Doreen use to take some lesons at the high school about beauty tips and they were always very interesting in what we said so we didn't have your problem so I can'be of much help from my teaching exerience, but in my on-line TESol degee Professor Chicotoze (???) said the golden rule was Keep em busy. He had a poem,

If they fidget with their digit
And make you cross and shout
Make em take their notebooks out
And make the little baskets work

I am going to make this my golden rule. Work work work. I think eep their heads donw and donw'tworry too much about the talk. If their writing they can't act up. I suggest you make them write. Don't worry about the frills.

[dajiang]

So how much time does a lesson take?
Are you teaching one group for like an afternoon? And is mrs X still in the classroom when you are teaching?

Anyway, something that might work is that you could be more strict. As you've noticed a loud voice does the trick, if you use it sparingly, but perhaps the little 'uns think you're too soft on em. So, try to be tougher on them.

So, fun and games should be used, but make it seem like it's a reward for their good behaviour. If they're rowdy, it's gonna be boring quiet activities the whole time, but if they're nice and behave, you can give them something fun.

Structure I found was very important too. I don't teach young Chinese kids myself, but lower high school kids in Holland (very very rowdy bunch btw), and to keep them in check I write the set up of the lesson on the board at the start of the class, so that people know what we're doing. I keep instructions very clear and uniform too btw, but I'm sure you're doing that already.

Anyway, I've seen a couple of young learner's classes and one thing I remember that worked well was to have the students work in groups of say 4 or 5 on different subjects. The thing with this is that you need lots of materials and a system that the kids know well. You said you teach several subjects, so you can have extra materials on these subjects with exercises that they can work on individually on in pairs. When they are finished with one thing they can work on their other subject for a while. (this can be easy or fun, like a puzzle or drawing). It's to make sure that they are kept busy and not bored when some students are still working on other subjects/exercises.
In this you can introduce a system of cards for the kids: Green if you are fine and don't need help; red if you have a question. This will save you from lots of hands in the air or worse, hordes of kids yelling for help.

G'luck with the little buggers,
Dajiang


PS: Pet, your post is hilarious. I like the way you keep it unclear for us readers if you are for real or not.

[7969]

one thing i've noticed in chinese classrooms, in particular middle school, is the complete absence of field trips.

i remember taking field trips to planetariums, museums, restaurants, parks, a real field trip to look for different flora and fauna..... kids need a break from the classroom once in awhile, something fun to look forward to. this is seriously lacking in china.

7969

[vikdk]

[kev7161]

I'll try to clarify a few things:

Yes, the other teacher is often in the classroom with me. Sometimes she actually is up and walking amongst the students while I'm teaching the lesson. This works out great because they, if not paying attention, are at least not talking so much. Many times, however, she's at her desk doing . . . something . . . on her laptop or sometimes even "resting" with her head down. I don't get that at all. I teach the same group of kids 4 lessons a day. Every day is 2 language arts classes (Phonics, spelling, reading, etc.), 1 math class, and then a rotation of classes including science, art, oral english (New Parade). They also have 5 Chinese lessons a week, 2 "Chinese" math classes, 2 PE classes, 4 music classes, and a few other things that I'm not involved in. They are kept busy. They stay in that classroom until 7pm or later, so I can understand why they behave they way they do - - I just don't like it so much.

Yes, I should be able to teach with NOBODY else present and I do that from time to time. It's not like the kids are out of control and running around and kicking me in the shin or anything. It's just they seem restless, disinterested, and talkative. Not ALL the kids mind you. Out of the 25, there's easily 7 or 8 that are top notch and these are the ones that always raise their hands to answer questions. However, my goal is to get beyond that top 25% group and get the others more involved.

We have plenty of learning materials - - textbooks, manipulatives, worksheets, more. I do have puzzles and coloring sheets available when needed. I teach 40 minute lessons and try to put in two or three different activities in each lesson. One poster said it right: when they have busy paperwork, they are pretty good. The one bad habit I'm trying to break of them is to tell them to TAKE THEIR TIME. Some of them think it's a race to see if they can get done first and even the sharpest of the group can make silly mistakes.

I've mentioned field trips to my co-teacher and it's been greeted with less than enthusiastic feedback.

I honestly don't feel it's my teaching skills, rather how to mix it up a little and figure out what's going to keep these kids focused and on task for a large portion of the class time. By the way, they get 15 minutes between classes to play and drink water and go to the bathroom, etc. I personally feel that's too much. That's about 15 x 6 breaks, plus a huge break after lunch. Not that I'm a taskmaster, but they really get wound up running up and down the halls and getting them calmed down for class can be a challenge. I'd rather have shorter breaks and then a 20-30 minute recess time in the afternoon where we can go outside or to the gym to play for awhile. Our class instigated a "mini-class" of 30 minutes during that 2 hour lunch break. Basically a review class that one of us takes each day. Now the other 1st grade classes have followed suit. Keeping in mind these are 7 and 8 year olds and they do need enough "play" time throughout the day. If we could only have a bigger classroom where we could have such things as a reading corner, an art corner, centers, play areas, etc. This special class is supposed to reflect a "western style" class and those types of things are common in American 1st grade classrooms.

[7969]

[Spiderman Too]

[Roger]

Field trips are probably perceived as a huge waste of academic learning time. Plus they cost... And require you to make preparations and insurance too has to be thought of...

I once asked my college students whether they would love to visit a plant in the vicinity of our college; it would have required a bus to ferry us there.
The students were all for it but the college decided we would have to walk there - preferably not during class hours...

My intention was to show the students a factory from the inside so they could gauge for themselves the differences between the drudgery of a blue-collar worker's life and their own planned future.
We abandoned it not the least becuase a walk to that factory would have meant a walk on the wild side of a two-lane, no-sidewalk busy road between two high walls.

[vikdk]

[7969]

perhaps a field trip to a car crash is in order. wont have to go far to see that. and a good lesson may be learnt.

7969

[lou_c]

I teach teenagers, so I can't be of much help from my own experience. However, my wife teaches 6 year olds, and here's what I've learned from watching her.

1. (This one is true for all ages.) You can only do the something for 20 minutes. Period. If what you want to teach can't be taught in 20 minutes, reduce it. After that, no matter how good a teacher you are or how interesting the subject, they're gone. You need to move on to something else.

2. With 6 year olds, if what you're doing involves you talking and them listening, you only have 5 minutes before they're gone. Design your lessons around things that they get to do, with no more than 5 minutes of instructions from you.

3. Be VERY nice and absolutely strict. Let nothing go by. If a kid twitches, call him/her on it, but do it with real compassion. If they know that you love them and that you're on their side, they'll take anything you dish out.

4. Sing a lot. Sing your instructions. Sing your hellos. Sing them to lunch. Sing them to the bathroom.

Good luck. I couldn't do what you're doing. I'm completely intimidated by first graders. My wife is a wizard.

[kev7161]

Actually, my kids are in the 7-9 year old range (and here's what gets my goat: this is a special program within the school - - sort of a 50/50 immersion program. One kid who is from Australia - Chinese parents - is in the class. Totally fluent in English. Knows everything we are doing already, from vocabulary to spelling to Math to Science. He was in 1st grade in Australia last year, so anything that may have been "new" to him is just a repeat now anyway. AND, I remember when I was nine, I was in the 4th grade already! His "nine" is not the Chinese nine either - - just the regular ol' age like we all do. Another kid was let into my class right after the Spring Break. He's from Korea - - about as smart as a rock. He is so behind the other kids academically, he'll never get caught up. But his father is a so-called "VIP" somewhere so he was allowed in, capping my 25 maximum promised to me. We have such a HUGE disparity of students, it's quite difficult to address all their different needs).

1. Yeah, our periods are 40 minutes long. I try to do 2 to 3 different activities within each class. The transitions are the roughest (like collecting or handing out papers).

2. I try to ask a lot of questions. My first five minutes are often review of the previous day's lesson as a warm-up. Sadly, the same 7 or 8 kids are the ones that ALWAYS raise their hands. Definite future leaders. The others? I call on them and some manage to squeek out something in the tiniest of voices, the rest are mute.

3. You know, I am strict. I'm not a taskmaster and we do laugh and have fun, but if you were a fly on the wall, you'd see and hear me telling kids to put their pencils away or taking little "toys" or whatever away from them. I do this throughout the day. But, as with anything, it gets tiring after awhile - - and often the kids I'm on are the same ones day after day.

4. Thanks, I'll remember that. I do sing in class, but I don't think I sing enough. We actually have some sing-along English lessons and sometimes I'll burst out in a song we learned last week and the kids naturally start singing along. But I'll try some more as it seems appropriate.

[sonya]

Next time the kids act up, tell them, "Wo hui dashi nimen!" :P I'm kidding.

You don't speak any Chinese, right? I don't know, I've never taught EFL before. I mentioned this to my friend who's bilingual and taught English in Korea, and she reacted the same way as I did. When I hear that someone teaches little kids in a totally unrelated foreign language and the kids are fidgety and don't take him too seriously.. it seems a bit like, of course they're getting bored and fidgety.

I think if you spoke some Chinese when you were explaining English, or told some jokes in Chinese, they would take more interest and be more attentive in class..

I guess you aren't being lax with them already, but, still, be more strict..

[hangzhouvice]

Hello, I can relate. I have been here in China for 5 years and I have taught many children's classes, even today, I was given four periods of classes from an agency to teach.

1. The students don't get to move around enough because 25 students + two or more teachers are crammed into this little closet of a classroom. We can't do too many activity-based games due to restrictive movement. Also, right now it's too cold to go outside and do something.

Small rooms suck, but going outside isn't the answer either, to me, it is like hearding cats. if you have two other (Chinese) teachers, work as a team to do something. I like to have my kids stand up, move around, to LISTEN to my words. Speak to them in English, not just teach.

What I like to do is to ask the kids what something is in Chinese, and if one of them can, write the character on the board for me. it gives I and the child an even footing, a teacher teaching a teacher.


2. The language barrier: By now, 90% of my students seem to understand pretty much everything I say. Their pronunciation is good when they repeat words and some are starting to formulate simple sentences on their own. However, learning another language can be totally uninteresting, even at the first grade level, no matter how many "fun" activities you try and do.

For myself, I truly believe that girls (females) are much more interested in learning than the boys, and the boys sometimes get aggressive, destructive or just plain stupid with each other. A good game is to break up the class into males and females (if possible). Whatever game you play in class, there will be a great rivalry between the sexes on who is smarter.


If you have been in China for even a few months, one should know some words in Chinese to speak to the students. Some schools like "Kids Castle" does not allow for the foreigner to even speak Chinese.

3. Chinese children are animals! Everytime we DO try some sort of activity, these kids are just bouncing off the wall. Okay, not everytime. The other day in Science, the kids were doing Life Cycle charts in pairs and that activity ended up pretty good. But MANY times, it just seems to fall apart.

EEK! I couldnt teach Science to the students. Where do you work? by the way, Korean kids are the animals. Korean kids openly insulted me, stuck their finger in my behind, physically assaulted me and each other. That Hakwan was like San Quentin for 6 year olds, and I was a naked guard with no gun. Chinese kids are much better, especially the children of the working class.

4. I'm a crappy teacher whose creative juices just aren't flowing very freely these days. I am constantly trying to come up with something new and different, but I'm sputtering out. AND, I do have a textbook to get through before these kids move on to second grade.

Dealing with 25 children and keeping them in order is a difficult job, and many of us never had any experience doing this before we entered this field. I do not know how many hours you are responsible for them, but if you have two teachers, the strain should not be so great that it could not be overcomed.

With my children, I try to entertain them, I do the same old games time after time, I make them speak in class and I do the job to the best of my ability. What i think we failed to remember is that children are people and not all children are equal in personlaity. Some are nice kids, others are pure brats. Some children you will love, and some you hope you never see again. I don't like all my children, but there are a few that I would take home and raise as my own. You just have to like kids to do the job.