A Day in the Life...

7:00 AM: My alarm goes off about this time... I promptly reset the alarm for 7:15.
7:15 AM: I get up and take a shower.
7:30 AM: I make some pancakes.
8:00 AM: I take the elevator down from my apartment on the 10th floor.
8:10 AM: I get on the number 98 bus (standing room only) and pay 850W (85 cents).
8:30 AM: I arrive at Ewha, the language school I work at (on the 6th floor).
8:45 AM: I grade some essays.
9:00 AM: I have my first class of the day. Reading level 98 (levels go from 96-106).
9:05 AM: I take role and write down the names of the missing students. I write their Korean names using the Korean characters. Then I shut the paper in the door. One of the secretaries swoops by and rips it out of the door... it disappears like magic. Sometimes the children jump in surprise.
9:10 AM: I check that everyone has done their homework and initial their homework sheets (which have also been signed by their parents).
9:15 AM: We open our reading book and each child reads a paragraph. Sometimes we must read the same page several times so that everyone gets a chance.
9:30 AM: I ask comprehension questions and explain words or concepts I think the children may not understand.
9:35 AM: I write down the homework for the day.
9:40 AM: Crazy music begins playing... this signals the end of the class (it seriously sounds like circus music or something).
9:45 AM: Quick break. I put together needed materials for the next class.
9:50 AM: Class number two. Reading level 99. This class is full of energy. Some classes sit in silence and it is a real chore to get them to participate... but not level 99. No, they are nearly out of control... so of course I love them. I attempted to teach them "Eric's game" today. I called it a "special test"... not a game. It was a disaster and very fun.
10:30AM: Quick break.
10:40AM: Class number three. Reading level 97. This class is difficult because the children barely understand English. We read things like... Good dog, Rover.
11:20AM: Quick break.
11:25AM: Class number four. Reading level 103. The reading is extremely difficult. The kids are older. They barely understand what they are reading. I spend much of the class helping them summarize the reading. I have also given them tips on how to answer reading comprehension questions. The first day, I busted out the "process of elimination", "method of inferring (reading between the lines)", and "scanning (or skimming)". I just made the stuff up as it came to me. Jean, observed my class and afterwards told me that she was very impressed by how prepared I was (I wanted to laugh. I hadn't prepared a thing.)

... Anyway, I think you get the point. I get home around 9:00 PM. Eat, email, and then sleep.

A wiseman once said, "A lazy man eats no bread."