Job Discussion Forums

[annabella]

I�m looking for penpals for my Elementary school students here in Busan, South Korea. I'm a British Native teacher working at a private academy.

I have a class of 6 students, aged 11-12, mix of boys and girls, low-intermediate level. My students would like to improve their English skills by making friends with students who can write to them in English also. I�d like to use snail mail to begin with, to practice the art of letter writing and to make the initial contact more personal, including photos, country postcards, stickers etc. I�d really like to get them writing next month, with an aim for exchanging letters at least once a month. If interested, please PM or email [email protected]

[Craig!]

That's great, annabella.
What nationalities do your students most want?
Are you aiming for native English-speaking countries, or nearby countries?

From last year's penpalling, I found ''snail mail'' takes too long; personalized e-mail (with Photos!) worked best, esp. at first. Chat w/b good, too; many of my kids have QQ, but their penpals did not.

And some disappointment; only a very few of my students continue to write to their pen pals. Or i am not aware of them.

Miy students (ages 12 - 15) had expressed interest in penpalling with Americans, Canadians, Australians, English and other Europeans -- but not one said Koreans or Japanese. Soooo... And, I'm not ready yet this term to start it with the new Grade 1 students... But, maybe... Keep in touch on how it goes for yours.

I worked with an elementary school in Wash.,D.C, referred by The Peace Corps Volunteer Assn. Also, I put a coupla my kids' photos and bios on www.katw.org (Kids Around The World.org)
.

[annabella]

This particular class would like Chinese penpals, so other ESL students.

I know the limitations of snail mail, but I thought it would be a nice touch, at least for the first contact. I'm also checking out www.epals.com - a very comprehensive website for anyone looking to set up a penpal scheme.

In the meantime, is there anyone out there teaching some elementary students who would like some Korean penpals?