Black Coffee

I'm realizing that the times I sit at my desk in the teacher's room, smiling to myself about something I should write about, occur more frequently than the times I actually have to sit down and write. So, I will try to take advantage of them as often as I can. Forgive me the plot holes.

This evening I stayed about an hour and a half after the point until which I get paid. Two days ago I started helping out with the four kids who are going to be competing in the speech contest at the end of this month. That means I hang out with Anna for the last half hour of the lunch period, and I divide my after-school time between helping Saki, Ryo and Yoshimi. I only had two periods today that I didn't teach, which was not enough time to prepare next week's second-year (the equivalent of the American system's 8th grade) lesson. So, I did speech rehearsal, and then came back to the teacher's room to try to learn myself how to make up a real lesson. I had Monday and Tuesday off this week (see previous entry for explanation), so I only worked three days this week, but believe me, that is enough for now.

Because I teach each class from every grade once a week, all my lessons this week were almost the same. For the first and third year students, I did exactly the same thing. However, Kimura-sensee, the second year teacher, wanted me to focus less on my personal introduction and instead delve right into the textbook... which enabled his students to get bored of me that much faster. It was for one of his classes, my first period Tuesday class (2B) that I was staying later and stressing over. After speech practice Kimura-sensee was nowhere to be found, so I couldn't check with him to make sure the lesson I had skillfully devised was to his liking. So I searched unsuccessfully for quality flashcards online, and generally felt tired and out of it. Only until I decided I had to go, whether I was done or not (because the light was quickly fading and I am scared of my bike ride even when I can see the beckoning ditches just off the road) did I realize that maybe I hadn't taught this first period class yet, so all I would need to do for them is the same introduction-spiel I've already memorized. I actually still don't know, because the schedule the past two weeks has been so inhumanely confusing that... sorry, I need to say that again: has been so inhumanely confusing, that all I can hope for is to get through it, day by day.

All that said, I think teaching has been getting easier the more I do it. I mean, I'm saying this after admitting to basically teaching two different lessons a few times over, but, still, I think there has been improvement. Standing up in front of a room full of people, even if they are just kids, felt pretty daunting at first. It has been interesting to note how differently different classes will respond to me, even when I am doing the exact same thing in each class. It has something to do with the teacher (who is standing up there vaguely near me, attempting to control the noise level, and translating when there is a massive vocabulary gap), but perhaps more to do with the students themselves. After spending all of last week standing outside with the kids, watching them practice for Sports Day, I feel like I made some allies. I look for these people when I walk into the classroom, and hope they smile back.

My general impression so far is that I am the best off with the third years, who are all about 14 and 15 years old. One would imagine their English would be the best of the three different grades at Naruto Higashi Junior High, but that assumption might not be correct. I think I will probably be writing a lot more on this later, but it is pretty clear already that the school system is trying to prepare Japanese students to pass English exams, and not for them to actually be able to speak English. This makes sense, because how many of these people are actually going to be using English on a daily basis anyhow? But the catch is that the little English they could be able to command, that which is required for the English exams, seems like weird, kind of unimportant stuff. This is a pretty superficial rundown, but that is my impression so far. The textbooks are basically dialogues with a couple of vocabulary words along the bottom. Of course, there is additional stuff here and there in Japanese, so maybe I'm just missing all the good parts.

This first lesson I've been able to perfect (hah) the past three days goes something like this:

I. Greetings

M: Good morning!
Class: Good morning!
M: How are you?
Class: IAMFINETHANKYOUHOWAREYOU!
M: I am fine, thank you.
M: How is the weather today?
Class: It is sunny/cloudy/whatever!
M: What is the date today?
Class: It is 9 HUKHFSWEKJFESKJNLIL (Japanese teacher jumps in here) SEPTEMBER FOURTINS.

II. Personal Introduction

I have scavenged for a few things to pass around, like pictures of my family, a map of the US, some American coins, and a few badly colored print-outs of "Californian things." Otherwise, I am quickly developing chalkboard skills. I think this usually ends up taking about 10 or 15 minutes, depending on how much the teacher is jumping in to ask me additional questions and generally helping me out.

Then comes the Q & A section. For some reason, this part is normally painfully quiet in my classes. Hylton tells me he can get people really pumped up, but maybe I'm coming off too "nice" and not "goofy" enough, or something. Anyhow, if I can get a few people to ask questions, usually this portion can drag on for some time, as the students turn to one another to make sure they are asking the question correctly (even though they are usually asking in Japanese). For the most part they want to know things like, do I have a boyfriend (gleeful eruption when I say yes), what kinds of Japanese food I like, and what my favorite Disney character is (naturally). But I've been stumped already more than a few times. Because they are almost always asking in Japanese, the Japanese teacher there will translate for me, but often they have trouble getting across what is meant. Yesterday I was asked "what kind of boy I like," in the sense of, if I could choose a potential mate from this class of 40 thirteen year olds, who would I get with? I really tried to sidestep this one, because I can't see any way that would have worked out well. I think I ended up saying something like stupid like, "I like people who are friendly and have many interests!" I was telling Hylton this in the car ride home (he picked me up due to potential rain), to which he responded, "But I'm not friendly."

A few days ago I was asked "what is popular in America?" which, coincidentally, was probably the exact moment I realized I know nothing about current pop culture. Today I was asked if I take my coffee black by the same boy who kept trying to talk to me during Sports Day rehearsals last week. I had been standing idly by, watching children suffer through mukade (centipede), a game in which 13 schoolchildren tie their ankles together and are forced to run along a track. The black-coffee boy came up and started talking to me, in such rapid Japanese that it took a few moments for me to slip my wakarimasen (I don't understand) in there. But this boy was undaunted, and bravely plowed on. His questions could have probed my depths, had I understood them. He was possibly solving the world's mysteries, all while I stood by awkwardly, wondering how to extricate myself from a 'conversation' with someone who wasn't picking up on obvious social cues. I think it was our third encounter when Saito-sensee, the third year teacher, was standing by me when the boy approached, so she was able to translate for me. Apparently this kid had been trying to talk to me for three days about Pearl Harbor. "He thinks the story is very cool," Saito-sensee said apologetically.

III. Worksheet

The last portion of class, besides the "goodbye greeting," is my thought-inducing worksheet. After I go over the directions, in my s l o w a n d c l e a r E n g l i s h, I walk around the room to give ideas, clarifications and helpful spelling directions. I always wonder if it is worth poking the ones who are obviously trying to sleep. (So far I haven't.) It was during my rounds in my last class today that I was called over to a group of girls who were chirping Japanese back and forth at each other as they tried to come to a group consensus of how to tell me something. I think this is the first time I've been able to say I've gotten a pick-up line from a gaggle of 13 year old Japanese girls. Needless to say, "nice body!" doesn't have to be said with a swagger and a greasy mustache.

Like I said, I think it's getting better. I still don't really have a clue what I'm doing, but hopefully this is more obvious to me than to anyone else. I enjoy helping out with the speech contest kids, if only because it is one-on-one and I feel more comfortable miming with only one person not understanding me than 40. It is getting more and more routine to be taking my shoes on and off whenever I arrive or depart from school, and when we were issued spoons today for lunch instead of chopsticks, my hand felt strange with such little muscle control. I am already sure that when I return to the States, I will nod and bow at everyone, whether in greeting, thanks or when taking my leave. For all the kids that are probably making fun of me, there are also those who look quiet, interested, shyly willing. There are also the rowdy girls in the hall, always eager to say hello, touch my hand or struggle to pronounce the Japanified version of my name. Though kids are kids, and people are people, Japan so far has been polite, curious, and always interesting.

I have been surprised to find that one of my favorite demographics here is elderly women. I have been trying to cultivate a good neighborhood vibe, so walking along at night, or biking home in the afternoon, I try to say hello to people as I pass by. Some people don't respond, but most at least return the gesture, and some, usually older ladies, seem completely delighted by the exchange. The other night Hylton and I were walking along "downtown" Naruto, which is basically a cluster of strange little shops in the vicinity of the train station, when two older ladies were walking our way. I smiled, did the courtesy slight bow and said konbanwa, good evening. The first smiled and konbanwaed me back with a slight bow, and the other, whose white hair was partially dyed what seemed like an accidental shade of bright pink, walked right into a shop sign in her excitement to nod and wish us a good evening. It is little things like this that make you start to love a place.

Tomorrow I am going to accompany Hylton to the Japanese language lesson I was unable to go with him to last Saturday. Then, because I have woken up early every single morning the past two weeks anyhow, we are leaving early Sunday morning for Tokyo. Ah, Tokyo! We booked beds at a hostel in Asakusa (one of the 23 wards of Tokyo) for Sunday night because we have Monday off. Monday is "Respect for the Aged Day," a national holiday! Exclamation points abound! Hylton has a friend in Tokyo named Yoko, whom he met while living in Scotland. We will try to meet up with her, as well as with my friend Kai, whom I met while living in Germany. Some of the other ALTs that we met at training two weeks ago are coincidentally planning to meet up in Tokyo this weekend, so if plans ever get solidified, we might see them too. I will take pictures! Tokyo, yay!