First Impressions
- Joseph Upatham School-
After meeting our orientation leader and school supervisor, we all felt a sense of relief. Sam, our coordinator, was sweet and inviting, making sure we were comfortable and fed on our first night. We were brought to a wonderful Thai restaurant, where he ordered for us a large family style mix of traditional thai food. This was the very night I found my favorite Thai dish, Tom Yum Soup. Tom Yum is a coconut based soup paired with chili's shrimp, ginger and other vegetables served in a bowl over a flame. It is absolutely delicious, and one of those dishes where you might swear to yourself that you are not that hungry, and magically 10 minutes later the soup has disappeared and you look around wondering who ate it all. One of the girls I teach with has a major shellfish allergy, making thai food all the more frightening. One tip I will add that is PERTINENT to survival with food allergies in Thailand, is that you need and must learn the words for your allergies in the native speaking language. Most people want to sell us tourists their food, so they do not hesitate to nod their head and say yes, no egg, fish, or whatever allergy you just asked them about. PLEASE be careful. Now that I have gotten the motherly advice out of my system, please be open minded to food! Some foods I have found look exactly like what would be a dumpling at home, but are a very sweet dessert. Just try it! Don't expect that you will know the taste that is about to enter your pie hole, and give it two or three bites before giving up on it completely. You will be surprised. On that note, the meal was amazing, and only just around the corner from our foreign teachers apartments, so we felt so great about our town already. where I was just so excited to learn that there was a stand up toilet. Yes, you heard me right.
- Our Apartments-
The apartments or should I say 'mansion', as the title is Joseph Mansion would allude to, houses all of the foreign teachers at our school, as well as some other staff. AND we have standing toilets! You better believ that this was the very first thing I sprinted in my room to see. Most of the toilets in Thailand are squat toilets where without getting into too much detail, it takes much time and precision to make sure you do not fall in, get any clothes wet and actually have a somewhat tolerable moment alone. They are the bane of my existence. I hope to be friends with this concept by the end of my trip, but I highly doubt that fear of mine will ever be resolved. I do however promise anyone who is reading this post that I will do my very best to successfully master this issue during the duration of my stay inT Thailand. I believe in myself. Any who, I felt very fortunate considering reading about and hearing about other people's experiences teaching and living circumstances. It is spacious, our rooms very large, but also full of geckos and cockroaches. I remember telling my father that we had bugs and lizards in my room and his response was, "Sam, they come with tropical weather". As my parents lived in Thailand for 6 months of their lives, they completely understand the conditions I was about to set foot in. On that note, I spent most of the first day we moved into our apartment insect bombing and taping up all holes or any crevices in my room so as to keep out the foreign animals I am not accustomed to. It was quite the scene helping Emily clean her room out since we located about 10-12 dead cockroaches the size of my fist after moving her desk to the other side of the room. It was official, we made it to Thailand, and this was our home. Just so you know, we laugh about it every time we come we spot a bug or a lizard now, it unfortunately just becomes second nature. Sometime we walk really loudly into the room so that all creatures here us giants coming and scurry, so we can live in peace, in one shared space... Might I say however, our air conditioning, standing toilets and shower heads over the toilet are a form of luxury here and I am forever grateful, not to mention our king sized bed? Bigger than any bed I've ever laid my eyes on. Im perfectly okay with where we are, creatures and all.
-First Impressions-
I will now continue with my original subject, my school! Well isn't that the reason that I came here in the first place. The name of our school is Joseph Upatham school. Until we arrived here, I had absolutely no idea what we were all in for. All I knew was the original welcoming letter with nothing but a few photos and general facts including the fact that our school was Christian, there were several thousand students, and 28 foreign teachers. The school was exactly what I had been hoping for, It is large, open air, and the campus is BEAUTIFUL. Wherever they can fit a palm tree, flowering plant, or mini sculpture with waterfalls, they found it. The children all seem very happy, running around with their matching uniforms, girls wearing braids. The most exciting part of this school is that it has multiple campuses, and on each campus a coffee shop. Now, if you know me well, you know that coffee is my all time favorite thing in the world. Maybe to a point where its not necessarily healthy to have four cups a day, but out of complete necessity for my mental health and well-being. On that note, I was extremely happy and my life was complete to hear that at any moment in my day, I could go sit with an iced cup of coffee, tired from teaching, sweaty and gross from the day and enjoy this sacred moment. I can tell you now weeks later, that the coffee shops on campus have infact become my sanctuaries. I often meet the foreign teachers for coffee to talk about difficult classes, the fact that we are homesick, or sometimes to not even talk and sit in silence (which happens often). Culture shock will get you, when you least expect it. You will find that you're extremely exhausted, or agitated or sad and then you will realize oh right, this is adjustment. This is Thailand. Something I have to tell myself almost every single day to find my footing and re-adjust.
The very first day of school we were herded into a large parade for all of the teachers in our program for what is known as sports day. Now I know that field days and other days involving competitive sports tournaments are huge in the United States, well at this school I want you to picture the olympics, but just louder and full of really cute children screaming and shouting and dressed up in all kinds of crazy uniforms. We were just thrown into this mix, complete chaos, being tugged in every other direction. The new foreign teachers were here, and it was the most chaotic and energetic day of school I guess they have the entire year or so I'm told. So our first impression kind of blurred into a large mix of color and noise until we no longer knew how to speak or even say our names. With little sleep, food and information, we trudged through the day laughing, smiling and occasionally on the brink of tears. The older girls were dressed up to the high heavens, in traditional thai costumes and also costumes both embodying and honoring the recently deceased king and his wife. They looked beautiful. After speaking to some of the girls, we learned that they had been awake since FOUR AM getting their hair and make up done for this day. Most of the children prepare the entire year for this event, making dances and backdrops, performances and working on their athletic abilities. We just happened to be lucky enough to catch all of it on the very first day we arrived. Talk about timing. Needless to say it was a Friday, and we could not be more excited for a day off. The pictures below, speak louder than words.
-The Students-
What can I say about my students. The very first thing that comes to mind on this subject is that the relationship between a teacher and a student is most definitely a love/hate situation. Do not get me wrong, the hate is no where directed towards the student themselves, it is the behavior, the rules of discipline, the occasional disrespect and the ways in which these girls were told to live their lives and watch everything they say and do. That being said, my students are extremely beautiful on the inside and out, no matter how much they frustrate me. They are so quick to smile and have the most genuine and sweet smiles. So even when you are so angry and supposed to have that angry face on, you can't help but suppress the smirk that is trying to burst through your so called 'serious' exterior. My problem is that they know I am friendly, that I like games, that I am a creative teacher that lets them draw and do charades and run around in class as long as it is somewhat productive. So I have grown a tough shell when they begin to get out of control. Does it always work? no. But at least I can say that I try. I am slowly finding that with each week, every class begins to build a different relationship with you. The classes I enjoy most get to have the most fun, and the worst classes, more paperwork and pop exams that I do not enjoy just as much as the students.
I tried to assert discipline from the beginning, mostly threatening my children with no games at the end of class. But once they get to know you after two weeks of teaching, you notice that they find your weak spots and then poke you 100 times over in that very spot. CHANGE IS NECESSARY! I realized after three weeks of teaching, you have have have to change it up! Kids get bored fast. And for some reason these kids, faster than normal? They aren't under a ton of pressure to do extremely well in language as it is an elective subject for them. Most of us teachers teach conversational english so they know enough to get by! Tourism is a huge pull in Thailand and speaking English is a very smart concept to Master especially if you plan on owning your own business or working in the world of business. However, one of my classes even answered the question of what do you want to be when your older with "wife". Now she did giggle afterwards but it seemed that this was a widely accepted thing for these young juniors in high school! My first though after all was "NO" , but then again I can't help but impose my liberal arts feminist views on children who have little to no idea what our culture looks or feels like. Either way, I tried my best to mold my lesson plans around ambition and empowerment. If anything is missing from the curriculum books, it is that they need to motivate children to strive for more! Most of our curriculum plans involved basic conversation, aka what is needed for food, clothing, directions and in case of emergency. I know that whoever is reading this is thinking, "Sam you're there to teach english", well I know okay? It not my fault I intrinsically need to motivate other people and try to challenge perceptions and perspectives of those around me, It is my strength and my weakness, and do not worry, when I return home, I will stick to my day job. In the meantime, I will continue to give midterm essays with with undertones of ambition and future oriented thinking, sue me. Anyways my girls have begun to answer them in purpose. This week I received response essays with future ambitions of being a Lawyer, Doctor, and even a business woman. Thats what Im talking about girls! I will force you to think ambitiously if at all just to get the ball rolling in that category of life. By the way, a side note. Your children's names in Thailand will be hilarious. I have names such as Thank You, Fresh, First, Pun, Punch, Best and more. You'll see their names on the white board below.
On another note, my students can be the sweetest humans I have ever met, and then also so draining that I don't even know my name by the end of class. Having all girls is rough, they are catty and group together and just honestly do not care about anything else besides gossiping and being next to their friends. How do I handle this? I usually threaten taking points away, and then also never playing a game EVER again, until next class of course. On certain days these things work, on others no one care about anything and the next time I turn away from the board one girl will be standing on the desk pretending to ride it like a horse. Yes this has happened, and yes I have walked out. Only once, but I did. Honestly change is the only thing I can recommend. Play different games, bring in different lesson plans, and just be different every class. Seems simple, but it is not if you have any experience lesson planning then you understand me completely. Either way, I think that every teacher is consistently learning, the energy of the classroom, the boundaries that are constantly being tested and the lifestyle you had to uphold to stay awake and alert everyday including a full 7 to 8 hours of sleep or you will find yourself banging your head against the whiteboard counting down the minutes to the end of the day. Okay, lengthy description aside, all of you teachers are angels sent down from heaven. Thank you for every single moment of patience, dedication and discipline that you offered me in my lifetime, and thank you for doing one of the hardest jobs I have yet to experience besides maybe the job of motherhood which I will never dare set a comparison too I'm, sure once I cross that road. And my mind is taking it too far once again, so here are the tips.
Tips for Teaching:
1. Discipline straight away. Kid smell discomfort, and unorganized days and they just know how to push your buttons.
2. As easy as it might sound, do not allow games or music unless rewarded by good behavior.
3. Change up your games! Kids get bored fast. Yeah you made up the best game on the earth, try to play it more than once in one week, and boom you've lost your kids attention.
4. Take time for yourself. Coffee, coffee and more coffee. Usually coffee comes with a cute cafe, and that cafe usually has wifi. This is your haven. Use it. On the really bad days, just listen to your body. If you're sick or you're not in a good place, play games with the children. Don't push yourself, it will make your teaching experience miserable
5. Thai time, is time that doesn't really had set guidelines. Yes in theory, children have to be in the classroom by 10:30 for third period, but in reality, we aren't sitting down ready to learn or have our books out until 10:50. Just let go, and adjust. (Sounds easier than it is)
6. General lifestyle at school. Eat lunch with the children when you have the energy, they love sitting with teacher and usually they are more enjoyable than in class. Converse with the teachers that have been there longest, they usually know everyone at the school and have the best recommendations for you.
7. Bikes versus mopeds: think about safety. I have a bike, but I take motor taxi's to places further than school because the people who drive these are trained well and grew up driving them. Yes it does look cool, yes it is fun, and yes you get places faster! But the amount of accidents I have seen or heard about are expansive. Get a bicycle, with a basket because it's fun. Get at me. Pictures below.
8. Keep in touch with family. You can vent with family. Facetime them, the visual representation of my mom gets me through days. I am so grateful for technology. It saves my butt daily, and we are so lucky, us millennials, to have access to the things we do. TAKE ADVANTAGE!
9. Stop caring so much, find what you are grateful for daily and smile. A Smile goes a long way here.
- Our Apartments-
The apartments or should I say 'mansion', as the title is Joseph Mansion would allude to, houses all of the foreign teachers at our school, as well as some other staff. AND we have standing toilets! You better believ that this was the very first thing I sprinted in my room to see. Most of the toilets in Thailand are squat toilets where without getting into too much detail, it takes much time and precision to make sure you do not fall in, get any clothes wet and actually have a somewhat tolerable moment alone. They are the bane of my existence. I hope to be friends with this concept by the end of my trip, but I highly doubt that fear of mine will ever be resolved. I do however promise anyone who is reading this post that I will do my very best to successfully master this issue during the duration of my stay inT Thailand. I believe in myself. Any who, I felt very fortunate considering reading about and hearing about other people's experiences teaching and living circumstances. It is spacious, our rooms very large, but also full of geckos and cockroaches. I remember telling my father that we had bugs and lizards in my room and his response was, "Sam, they come with tropical weather". As my parents lived in Thailand for 6 months of their lives, they completely understand the conditions I was about to set foot in. On that note, I spent most of the first day we moved into our apartment insect bombing and taping up all holes or any crevices in my room so as to keep out the foreign animals I am not accustomed to. It was quite the scene helping Emily clean her room out since we located about 10-12 dead cockroaches the size of my fist after moving her desk to the other side of the room. It was official, we made it to Thailand, and this was our home. Just so you know, we laugh about it every time we come we spot a bug or a lizard now, it unfortunately just becomes second nature. Sometime we walk really loudly into the room so that all creatures here us giants coming and scurry, so we can live in peace, in one shared space... Might I say however, our air conditioning, standing toilets and shower heads over the toilet are a form of luxury here and I am forever grateful, not to mention our king sized bed? Bigger than any bed I've ever laid my eyes on. Im perfectly okay with where we are, creatures and all.
-First Impressions-
I will now continue with my original subject, my school! Well isn't that the reason that I came here in the first place. The name of our school is Joseph Upatham school. Until we arrived here, I had absolutely no idea what we were all in for. All I knew was the original welcoming letter with nothing but a few photos and general facts including the fact that our school was Christian, there were several thousand students, and 28 foreign teachers. The school was exactly what I had been hoping for, It is large, open air, and the campus is BEAUTIFUL. Wherever they can fit a palm tree, flowering plant, or mini sculpture with waterfalls, they found it. The children all seem very happy, running around with their matching uniforms, girls wearing braids. The most exciting part of this school is that it has multiple campuses, and on each campus a coffee shop. Now, if you know me well, you know that coffee is my all time favorite thing in the world. Maybe to a point where its not necessarily healthy to have four cups a day, but out of complete necessity for my mental health and well-being. On that note, I was extremely happy and my life was complete to hear that at any moment in my day, I could go sit with an iced cup of coffee, tired from teaching, sweaty and gross from the day and enjoy this sacred moment. I can tell you now weeks later, that the coffee shops on campus have infact become my sanctuaries. I often meet the foreign teachers for coffee to talk about difficult classes, the fact that we are homesick, or sometimes to not even talk and sit in silence (which happens often). Culture shock will get you, when you least expect it. You will find that you're extremely exhausted, or agitated or sad and then you will realize oh right, this is adjustment. This is Thailand. Something I have to tell myself almost every single day to find my footing and re-adjust.
The very first day of school we were herded into a large parade for all of the teachers in our program for what is known as sports day. Now I know that field days and other days involving competitive sports tournaments are huge in the United States, well at this school I want you to picture the olympics, but just louder and full of really cute children screaming and shouting and dressed up in all kinds of crazy uniforms. We were just thrown into this mix, complete chaos, being tugged in every other direction. The new foreign teachers were here, and it was the most chaotic and energetic day of school I guess they have the entire year or so I'm told. So our first impression kind of blurred into a large mix of color and noise until we no longer knew how to speak or even say our names. With little sleep, food and information, we trudged through the day laughing, smiling and occasionally on the brink of tears. The older girls were dressed up to the high heavens, in traditional thai costumes and also costumes both embodying and honoring the recently deceased king and his wife. They looked beautiful. After speaking to some of the girls, we learned that they had been awake since FOUR AM getting their hair and make up done for this day. Most of the children prepare the entire year for this event, making dances and backdrops, performances and working on their athletic abilities. We just happened to be lucky enough to catch all of it on the very first day we arrived. Talk about timing. Needless to say it was a Friday, and we could not be more excited for a day off. The pictures below, speak louder than words.
-The Students-
What can I say about my students. The very first thing that comes to mind on this subject is that the relationship between a teacher and a student is most definitely a love/hate situation. Do not get me wrong, the hate is no where directed towards the student themselves, it is the behavior, the rules of discipline, the occasional disrespect and the ways in which these girls were told to live their lives and watch everything they say and do. That being said, my students are extremely beautiful on the inside and out, no matter how much they frustrate me. They are so quick to smile and have the most genuine and sweet smiles. So even when you are so angry and supposed to have that angry face on, you can't help but suppress the smirk that is trying to burst through your so called 'serious' exterior. My problem is that they know I am friendly, that I like games, that I am a creative teacher that lets them draw and do charades and run around in class as long as it is somewhat productive. So I have grown a tough shell when they begin to get out of control. Does it always work? no. But at least I can say that I try. I am slowly finding that with each week, every class begins to build a different relationship with you. The classes I enjoy most get to have the most fun, and the worst classes, more paperwork and pop exams that I do not enjoy just as much as the students.
I tried to assert discipline from the beginning, mostly threatening my children with no games at the end of class. But once they get to know you after two weeks of teaching, you notice that they find your weak spots and then poke you 100 times over in that very spot. CHANGE IS NECESSARY! I realized after three weeks of teaching, you have have have to change it up! Kids get bored fast. And for some reason these kids, faster than normal? They aren't under a ton of pressure to do extremely well in language as it is an elective subject for them. Most of us teachers teach conversational english so they know enough to get by! Tourism is a huge pull in Thailand and speaking English is a very smart concept to Master especially if you plan on owning your own business or working in the world of business. However, one of my classes even answered the question of what do you want to be when your older with "wife". Now she did giggle afterwards but it seemed that this was a widely accepted thing for these young juniors in high school! My first though after all was "NO" , but then again I can't help but impose my liberal arts feminist views on children who have little to no idea what our culture looks or feels like. Either way, I tried my best to mold my lesson plans around ambition and empowerment. If anything is missing from the curriculum books, it is that they need to motivate children to strive for more! Most of our curriculum plans involved basic conversation, aka what is needed for food, clothing, directions and in case of emergency. I know that whoever is reading this is thinking, "Sam you're there to teach english", well I know okay? It not my fault I intrinsically need to motivate other people and try to challenge perceptions and perspectives of those around me, It is my strength and my weakness, and do not worry, when I return home, I will stick to my day job. In the meantime, I will continue to give midterm essays with with undertones of ambition and future oriented thinking, sue me. Anyways my girls have begun to answer them in purpose. This week I received response essays with future ambitions of being a Lawyer, Doctor, and even a business woman. Thats what Im talking about girls! I will force you to think ambitiously if at all just to get the ball rolling in that category of life. By the way, a side note. Your children's names in Thailand will be hilarious. I have names such as Thank You, Fresh, First, Pun, Punch, Best and more. You'll see their names on the white board below.
On another note, my students can be the sweetest humans I have ever met, and then also so draining that I don't even know my name by the end of class. Having all girls is rough, they are catty and group together and just honestly do not care about anything else besides gossiping and being next to their friends. How do I handle this? I usually threaten taking points away, and then also never playing a game EVER again, until next class of course. On certain days these things work, on others no one care about anything and the next time I turn away from the board one girl will be standing on the desk pretending to ride it like a horse. Yes this has happened, and yes I have walked out. Only once, but I did. Honestly change is the only thing I can recommend. Play different games, bring in different lesson plans, and just be different every class. Seems simple, but it is not if you have any experience lesson planning then you understand me completely. Either way, I think that every teacher is consistently learning, the energy of the classroom, the boundaries that are constantly being tested and the lifestyle you had to uphold to stay awake and alert everyday including a full 7 to 8 hours of sleep or you will find yourself banging your head against the whiteboard counting down the minutes to the end of the day. Okay, lengthy description aside, all of you teachers are angels sent down from heaven. Thank you for every single moment of patience, dedication and discipline that you offered me in my lifetime, and thank you for doing one of the hardest jobs I have yet to experience besides maybe the job of motherhood which I will never dare set a comparison too I'm, sure once I cross that road. And my mind is taking it too far once again, so here are the tips.
Tips for Teaching:
1. Discipline straight away. Kid smell discomfort, and unorganized days and they just know how to push your buttons.
2. As easy as it might sound, do not allow games or music unless rewarded by good behavior.
3. Change up your games! Kids get bored fast. Yeah you made up the best game on the earth, try to play it more than once in one week, and boom you've lost your kids attention.
4. Take time for yourself. Coffee, coffee and more coffee. Usually coffee comes with a cute cafe, and that cafe usually has wifi. This is your haven. Use it. On the really bad days, just listen to your body. If you're sick or you're not in a good place, play games with the children. Don't push yourself, it will make your teaching experience miserable
5. Thai time, is time that doesn't really had set guidelines. Yes in theory, children have to be in the classroom by 10:30 for third period, but in reality, we aren't sitting down ready to learn or have our books out until 10:50. Just let go, and adjust. (Sounds easier than it is)
6. General lifestyle at school. Eat lunch with the children when you have the energy, they love sitting with teacher and usually they are more enjoyable than in class. Converse with the teachers that have been there longest, they usually know everyone at the school and have the best recommendations for you.
7. Bikes versus mopeds: think about safety. I have a bike, but I take motor taxi's to places further than school because the people who drive these are trained well and grew up driving them. Yes it does look cool, yes it is fun, and yes you get places faster! But the amount of accidents I have seen or heard about are expansive. Get a bicycle, with a basket because it's fun. Get at me. Pictures below.
8. Keep in touch with family. You can vent with family. Facetime them, the visual representation of my mom gets me through days. I am so grateful for technology. It saves my butt daily, and we are so lucky, us millennials, to have access to the things we do. TAKE ADVANTAGE!
9. Stop caring so much, find what you are grateful for daily and smile. A Smile goes a long way here.
School days are the best days
Sports Day Extravaganza
English camp, Kanchanaburi
My Students
Thai Coffee is Heaven.
Check out my "First Impressions" Teach in Thailand video below:
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