First day at school

Hello people!

September has arrived....the schools have started and I'm officially a teacher! The work-free days at the BOE are a thing of the past and now I”m throwing myself into school life. Before I embark upon a (extensive) description of schools in Japan, I'll briefly tell you about last week...... The last time I wrote to you I was about to go for an orientation in Wakayama city. Everyone from the prefecture headed up north to congregate in the city for a 2hr orientation which basically repeated everything we learned in Tokyo! Not to matter tho....it gave us all the ideal opportunity to catch up and go out drinking. We ended up in an izakaya (Japanese-style restaurant) where copious amounts of alcohol resulted in me walking around introducing myself to Japanese people practicing my non-existent Japanese! We then headed to karaoke and I sang a very dodgy rendition of Madonna's “Like a Virgin”. I'm hoping everyone was too drunk to notice! Hungover the next day we went to see the Wakayama castle which was complete with Samurai costumes and a gorgeous view from the top. I spent the rest of the weekend exploring shrines and plums (local speciality)in Minabe town.

This weekend I ended up south in Kiikatsuura for a house party...home of Nachi falls. As per usual I took far too many drunken photos so feel free to flick through/ ignore them! I had a very Western day of: 1)speaking English 2)eating McDonalds 3) seeing X-men 3 4) shopping! Only in Japan could you find a bag saying “WATER.....it's very important!” 

 Before coming to Japan I figured that the school system would be different but I wasn't prepared for just how different. I mean kids wear uniform, use textbooks and well, learn but the school system is such that it seems to want to exercise its students both mentally and physically. A typical day is as follows..... 7.50am Arrive at school to have a 10 minute run around the complex
8.ooam Lessons start
12pm school dinners where the children get and serve the food. 15 minutes in which to eat lunch then it's time for “soji” (= cleaning the school) then its exercise time which seems to resemble military drills!
1- 4 more classes
4-6 sports/activities after school I have 6 schools in which I teach. In each one I have had to do a self-introduction and explain about England. The collage I made seems to work pretty well and I think the kids finally know that America and England were two entirely different countries! Last Wednesday was probably the scariest day I've had in Japan. I was ushered into a huge school hall with 400 students and had to introduce myself.....in JAPANESE! Arghhh! I suppose 6 schools may seem like a lot but I like the fact that each one is completely different and has its own distinct personality...it does however make it hard to remember names of students/teachers and I lose track of the lesson plans!

The elementary schools are so much fun to teach. They respond well to games and songs and, I'm sorry to say, have not yet been moulded by the traditional Japanese educational system (“the nail that sticks up is hammered down”) so they are enthusiastic about everything and are not shy to ask questions. Today I was teaching them how to shake hands today and made each of them look me straight in the eyes and give me a huge smile. Some of them were too shy to do it yet I later saw them shaking hands with the other children on the playground! The kids never fail to make me smile, especially when they ask questions such as:

1)Do they speak English in England ..... no comment!

2)(seeing a photos of friends with red eye due to the flash) Why do these people have red eyes? Are they evil?

One of the best things about teaching in Japan is how well sports are integrated into school life. Last week saw me coaching softball and this week saw me playing football with my elementary kids. The definition of confusion is being invited to play football with the kids (sadly they call it “soccer”) who expect all English people to play as well as their hero (Beckham) and finding yourself on a huge football pitch with 50 kids, 6 footballs and having no idea which goal you're shooting at, who you are playing with and trying to understand all of the kids who shout at you. I did however score a goal...not sure if it was the right end tho.........this week volleyball tournament and karate beckons! Also the local sports days are coming up so all the pupils are practicing for the dance competition and I've been helping out.

Anyways heading up to Osaka this weekend to check it out. Have Monday off so it gives me the ideal chance to look around and experience Japan's eating capital! Expect many photos! I hope all is well with you all and good luck to those embarking upon new projects....gambatte!

Sara xxxx