Pandas and Polar Bears

I'm in the middle of teaching computer. I have to say- I got pretty darn lucky when I got to teach computer. It's a lot of fun. I usually join the kids in playing mario. haha

So I have nothing to really post about, but I thought I'd tell you about my class because I'm finally reaching the point here where I'm not the new teacher and everything is comfortable for me and the kids and we've got a routine. It took a while because the other K3 teacher has been here all year (plus a couple years) and they were so used to her. I teach K3- which is the equivalent to American kindergarten. Their are two K3 teachers, me and Sharon, and we divide the class and the subjects in half, so normally I only teach about 11 kids at a time. Except maybe computer and swimming. It's great. Each half of the class has a name, the Pandas and the Polar Bears. How these names came about, I have no idea, but it's pretty cute. All the kids are very proud of whether or not they are a Panda or Polar Bear. haha

My class has all sorts of nationalities in it. Thai, English, Austrailian, Singaporean (?, haha), Malaysian, Chinese, Greek, Korean, Russian, Japanese. It's nuts. I'm learning about a lot of different cultures. I have 3 kids that stand out the most. The first is Vladimir. If you guessed that he was the Russian, you are absolutely correct. haha He came a few weeks ago and did not know a word of English or Thai. Not even a yes or no. He's picked up English so fast. It's amazing. He's like a sponge. Another standout would be Callum. He makes me laugh because his parents are Austrailian, but he was born in England and has lived here since he was 2 or 3, so he tells people that he is Thai. The other day at lunch I overheard him talking to a Chinese student and got very confused because I couldn't understand a word that he was saying. I thought maybe he just had food in his mouth or something or was just being silly, so I asked him if he was speaking English. He just looked at me like I was stupid and said "no, Thai". Oh well, of course. haha Why wouldn't I assume that a English student and Chinese student were speaking Thai at an English/ International school?? The next major standout would be Pavlos. He is, of course, Greek. He stand out because he speaks the most random languages. haha He speaks Greek, French, and Madagascan. He learned English at school a few months ago and doesn't speak any Thai. Madagascan... can you believe it? haha

I always feel like I have a lot of boys in my class, but really the boys are just extremely loud. They all fight with each other all the time about anything, everything, and nothing. They are continually talking or punching or throwing something. Don't get me wrong, they are extremely sweet kids, but they have a lot of energy. They also do everything very fast and everything is a race. It's kindof obnoxious. I always need to plan extra things for the boys to do. The girls, however, are the exact opposite. Always quiet and always trying to help me. Plus, they are very very slow at everything. The last to finish their work, last to finish eating, last brushing their teeth. I am constantly trying to find more time for them to finish everything. haha

I should probably get back to teaching computer. haha Sharon is absent today, so I think we'll be playing lots of games this afternoon, possibly watching Kung Fu Panda for recess because it's raining, but that's okay. We're all Kung Fu Panda lovers here. haha