A Typical Day

Although there really is no such thing as a "typical" day when teaching at Shanghai High School International Division, this day was about as typical as they come. So, I thought I would try and share it with you (whatever "you" might be out there and interested).

My day began at 7:15 when I rode my bike to work. We don't have to be in the office until 8:10, but I am almost always early -- usually sometime before 7:30. This morning, I planned on showing up around 8:00, but the power went out right after I exited the shower. So, I did my best to get ready in the dark and made my way to the office. I had little interest in wasting away cold and dark minutes in my apartment.

I arrive at the office, and unpacked my things so I could begin preparing for the day ahead. Here is my desk:



I did not have to teach until second period, or 9:40. I spent the hours before then preparing my day, which included a vocabulary review game for my 9th grade English class, because final exams begin on Thursday. We ended up playing a doctored game of "Pyramid" -- the game show where one player has the word and has to describe it to the other player, but without using the word.

Simple enough.

Or so I thought. . .

The students below are Ryan (left) and Jin Choi (right). They are both Korean. They tend to hang out with each other a lot. They are "preparing" for the game.

The beginning of the game! Here we see Kelly (in the red) Ryan, Lidia (hiding behind Ryan) and Jin. Jin acted as the prompter. Whenever they figured out a word, they had to write it in the boxes of the pyramid. Each round was, thus, worth six points. I think they got four on their first attempt! Not bad!

Still playing. Lidia talks with her hands a lot.

The other team. Much to my surprise, no one was really that excited about it. Even with the bribe of Dunkin Donuts for the winning team, it was like pulling teeth to get them excited and involved. The boy making the lovely face is Jacky, my eighteen year old. How it is that he is eighteen and in 9th grade remains a mystery.


The back of Jin, and one my favorite students of all my classes, John. John is from Sweden, and is in love with everything Swedish. Generally, his journals, writing responses, and vocabulary sentences have something to do with Sweden somehow. His business model we did a few weeks ago was for a Swedish home goods store. I think he might have some competition with this place known as Ikea. Ever heard of it?

Jin, yet again, and Kaylynn. Kaylynn is friends with JP, and from what I can tell, they are the Queen Bee's of the classroom. Before class and in the little bit of free time before the dismissal bell rings, they are sure to be dishing the latest gossip. It's always in Chinese though, so I (sadly) miss out on the content. Additional note: Kaylynn is also a whiz at memorizing vocabulary words.

Ryan hiding from the camera.

Oh, Jacky. How normal you look. How strange you actually are. Hehe . . .

Lidia, John and Kelly. Additionally, that is the lone heater all the way in the back of the classroom. Needless to say, sometimes I teach from the back of the class.

Okay. Shift gears. By this point I have gone to lunch, which looks a little like this . . . :




. . . and taken some time to prepare for my afternoon classes. Next up: 10th grade English for an hour class. First thing on the agenda: Reading Comprehension. I still have them convinced that reading comprehension exercises are important, so I figured it would be a good time to take a picture of them. Nothing makes me look like a good teacher more than 25 heads buried in reading material.

But, alas, Kevin foiled my plan!

Kevin is the most outgoing student in class. When other students use the free time I give them to chat with friends in Chinese or Japanese or Korean, Kevin comes up to my desk and talks to me in English. He likes talking to me because it helps his English, but also because he is fascinated by the United States. I'll take what I can get . . .

Ahhh, look at them all working quietly. It's a teacher's dream . . .

One of the many pencil cases that can be found in the halls and classrooms of SHSID. Everyone, and I mean, everyone has one. Even I have one! (Nicole gave it to me for Christmas.) Its a hobby of mine to keep track of the one's I see around. This one is, obviously, Elmo themed. I especially like it when I find a "macho-man" with a soft and fluffy Giraffe. Oh yes, such a dichotomy exists.

Ross working:

Ross realizing a picture is being taken of him:

This is Number 9. Yes, his name is Number 9. Or, let me say, that is what he told me to call him at the beginning of the year, and I have done so until now and will continue to do so. As for the origin of the name, well, it remains shrouded in mystery. I kind of like it that way.

This is the best student in the class, Jack. He is diligent and very, very smart. His English is not the best, but it is improving rapidly because of his hard work. When I get lost or forget a worksheet or assignment I have given, I know that Jack will be there to steer me back on course!

Ina (left) and Aiko (right). These two are bests friends and really good students. They spend class listening intently and, oddly enough, stroking each other's hands. Asians are very touchy with each other, but on a completely platonic level. It must be nice to feel so free to be close to someone else on a level of such deep friendship.

This is Casper. By appearance, it looks like he is up to no good. However, Casper is always there to "Shhhhhsh" the people at the back of the class when it gets rowdy. He is also the one who has spoken to me on occasion about the bad situation at his former school, concerning violence and lack of motivation. He is interested in learning, and really values what goes on in the classroom.

Hahaha. I asked Ross and Kevin to replicate what goes on in the halls between bells. This is what I got:

There is always playful rough-housing between classes, as over worked students release pent up energy and, sometimes, frustrations. I have never seen these interactions cross the line, into "real" violence, but they still are a bit disconcerting.

Lilian sleeping.
YieRi sleeping. I do not allow students to sleep when we have real class work to do. But seeing as I am a new teacher, one of the hardest things to get right consistently is timing. I often find that I under plan, and usually have five to ten minutes lingering at the end of class. During those times, I allow students to work on homework, speak quietly to each other, ask me questions, or sleep. I do not put sleeping out there as an option, but if that is what they choose to do I do not stop them.

This decision makes perfect sense when you realize the context of the situation. This is not the only time most of these kids will go to school during the day, especially the Korean ones. Many of them go to tutoring or "Cram" schools for hours after the SHSID school day ends. Sometimes, they only get a few hours of sleep and rarely do they get time to just hang out with friends and be teenagers. I cut them some slack when I can.

The Japanese kids (from bottom left); Christie, Risa, Motoako, and Yuun. Because I teach at an international school, many times I can see countries in my classroom. The Koreans with the Koreans. The kids from Hong Kong with other HongKongers. Taiwanese with fellow students from Taiwan. And, in this case, all of the Japanese. Because they are all too young to have the conflict between these counties in their active consciousness, there is rarely tension or animosity. Rather, it is usually an arrangement of convenience and often one of language fluency.
This is is Chelsea and Sandy. They are always huddled together and discussing something.

Ahhh, the twins. Well, not really, but they may as well be. Jessica (left) and Carol (right) are best friends. They sit together everyday and, unfortunatley, have a lot to talk about. The "unfortunatley" comes in when their talking overrides my lecturing. I often have to yell at them. I should just seperate them, and I often warn that I will, but I never actually have the heart. It must be pretty wonderful to have a best friend literally by your side.


A typical desk, minus the fact that is is econimics work and not English. Like I said, my lesson had ended for the day and I gave them free time to review for other classes and exams.



This is Sarah. She is a new tranfer to my class, and I am not sure how she made it through the previous level because literally (and I mean literally) all she does is read comics and draw anime. She is an amazing artist, but I do have to keep her on top of her school work because her love for animation often interferes. She is writing her long research paper on whether or not comics are good for the development of the mind. This girl has found something she loves, and she is sticking to it!

Some sweet kicks.

A note on one of the desks. Yet another thing I am going to start collecting with my new camera. There is graffiti all over them!

I often find myself asking this question during my day at SHSID:


And, finally, the last class of the day! 11th grade world history. I am not sure that it would be true to say that any of them actually speak English. On a good day, they can take the words they know and maybe string them into something that could almost be called a sentence. But, hey, we make it work!


Yeo Ju (left) and Yeo Jun (right). This is are rare occasion. These two normally have their heads down and their brains in a deep and consuming slumber. I tried for the first month to keep them awake, but then I realized that it was taking away from the flow of the lecture for the rest of the class. So, I forfeited. There are worse battles to lose and many more battles yet to win.

Walter (in the red), Andy, and Kimi. Walter's story is wonderful. In the beginning of the year, he HATED me. I mean, with the greatest spite available in his little body. I was not sure of the reason, but I soon realized (around the same time that I realized none of them spoke English) that I was simply teaching above his level. This rightfully made him angry because it made him feel stupid. As soon as I realized this and adjusted my teaching accordingly, he quickly changed. His attitude improved. His scores on quizzes improved. He paid attention in class and took notes! From the first big test to the third he went up over 40 points! During our individual conference, I congratulated him on his accomplishment, to which he kindly thanked me for all of the work I put into the class, making it easier for him to learn the material. :o)

From my desk:

This is Thomas, one of my awesome Korean kids. I like both their demeanor and their style.
Another two Korean students, Zara and Lee. Lee is a laugh and a half, although he almost never pays attention to what is going on.

I made a joke out of taking this photo because as soon as Lee saw the camera come out, he immediatley took a class outline and pretended like he was studying. So, I put on a little act in front of the class, pretending to be a safari leader out in the sahara. I said something about how rare it was to find a "Studying Lee" in its natural habitat. The class was in hysterics. And ever more so we we realized he was reading it upside-down. Haha.

This is my desk at the end of the day, when I am getting ready to pack up and head back to my apartment. Is that a wine bottle, you ask? Why, yes it is. The school gave one to each of us for christmas. I should probably take it home. I don't want my student's getting the wrong idea.

No worries about my co-workers, though, they already have plenty of ideas about me. Haha . . .

Oh, and right before leaving the office, I caught Brian stealing some toilet paper from the boys bathroom. Like I said at the beginning, just a typical day at SHSID.

Zaijian!