This past weekend was a blast. CDI took everyone on an all expenses paid trip to Muju Ski Resort! We met at CDI at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday morning. They warned us if we were late we would get left behind. They were smart though and told us 8:30 sharp knowing people would be late, so we didn't end up leaving until 9 a.m. I knew that I would only be gone for one night, but somehow I ended up bringing a huge suitcase. Everyone else had a small bag or backpack. Oh well, I've never been a good packer. We took the Chungdahm school buses which aren't your typical big yellow buses, they're like Greyhound buses and are super nice. I would've loved going to and from school in them.
So Muju is about an hour and half south of Daejeon which isn't too bad and driving that distance you usually wouldn't stop. Well, I guess it's common for Koreans to stop at EVERY rest stop along the way when traveling even a short distance. Luckily there was only one and it had a little more than just snack food and restrooms. There were vendors lined up selling everything you could imagine from mops and brooms to stuffed animals and mini bowling sets. So after some browsing, we got back on the bus and drove the rest of the way to Muju.
When we got there they fed us lunch and handed out the equipment. It was a great deal. I got snow pants, a winter jacket, goggles, and rentals for free! The lift tickets were good for four hours which was a perfect amount of time. I was worried because I didn't see snow until I got to the actual mountain. I'm pretty sure it was all manmade because under the chair lifts there wasn't any snow. I conquered the bunny hill first. Instead of a tow rope, there was a moving sidewalk type thing to bring you to the top. I think skiing is like riding a bike, even if you don't do it for a few years, it comes back to you once you start doing it again. The hardest part was avoiding running into people. The hills were packed. I had to wait in line for an hour just to get on the chairlift! The hills were comparable to Michigan ski resorts and there were about 25 slopes. The weather was perfect for skiing, the sun was shining, and I avoiding getting a goggle tan line.
The people who didn't go skiing or snowboarding went sledding and snow mobiling. I wish I could've done it all. Everyone met back at the buses around 4:30 p.m. and we headed back to the pension to get ready for dinner. Another CDI branch was there so we all had dinner together. There were probably around 75-100 people altogether and the night only got better. Dinner was a delicious Korean BBQ and there was pizza and hot dogs. They provided us with tons of snacks later too including cheese puffs annnd chips and salsa. So good! Anyways, knowing this was a Korean party not only was there enough food to feed an army, but they also bought 200+ bottles of soju. We played games all night and there was karaoke too. I felt like I was at summer camp.
In the morning we all had breakfast and headed back to Daejeon with of course stopping at a rest area along the way.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Friday, January 29, 2010
The Name Game
When I took Spanish and French in middle school we had to pick Spanish and French names. I remember I chose Mercedes as my Spanish name because it reminded me of the car brand and I kept Michelle as my French name. Well at CDI April, the students have to do something similar and choose an English name. Actually, it's the teachers responsibility to choose the name for them. So far I haven't needed to name any of my students, but I'm looking forward to the day I do. Other teachers name their students after their favorite movie or TV characters, so being the entertainment junkie that I am, I will probably do the same ie: Bella, Jacob, Edward, Blair, Serena, Chuck Bass, and Nate.
Top Five Best Student Names:
5.) Oscar
4.) Hans
3.) Xaviar
2.) Harry Potter (his name used to be Bank Robber)
1.) Captain Jack Sparrow
Top Five Best Student Names:
5.) Oscar
4.) Hans
3.) Xaviar
2.) Harry Potter (his name used to be Bank Robber)
1.) Captain Jack Sparrow
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
BA in Advertising
Graduating with a degree in advertising, it’s hard not to notice it around me.
Coming home to find restaurant magnets on my apartment door never seems to fail. Because of the language barrier I’ve never ordered their offers over the phone so until I learn Korean, the magnets will be used as refrigerator decorations. Since I got my TV, I’ve noticed that advertisements play at the end of shows instead of during them. I don’t know how effective this is, but I enjoy watching commercial free episodes. Not only do they play at the end of shows, but the frequency of the same advertisement is a bit much. I’ve seen the same ad play four times in a row. Talk about high frequency or maybe it was just a cheap sales package.
One day when I was walking home from work a car stopped right in front of me. Thinking they were stopping for me to cross the street (not normal in Korea), I started walking. A bunch of papers flew right at me. The car wasn’t stopping for me… they were stopped in the middle of the road to throw advertisements on the ground. Picture the scene from 10 Things I Hate About You when the party invitations gets thrown down the stairwell. That’s exactly what it felt like. Surprisingly though, there’s never litter on the ground. So maybe people actually stop and pick up the flyers.
I read somewhere that single trip subway tickets in Daejeon are plastic tokens instead of paper ones, like in Seoul, because they’re easier to advertise on. One of the coolest ads I’ve seen was on the subway in Seoul. You know when you’re at Disney World and vendors sell you those lights that you swirl around and they spell something. There was an ad like that in a tunnel on the subway. The subway was moving so fast that an electronic sign flashed an ad. I also noticed on my bus ride to Gimhae, that there weren’t any billboards.
When I studied abroad we visited Cheil Worldwide in Seoul. It is ranked as the 16th largest global ad agency so it was a rare opportunity to visit there a few years ago. Well, walking around Seoul this past weekend, I came across Cheil Worldwide! I was so excited to have noticed the building that I asked someone to take a picture of me in front of it. Unfortunately, mid-picture, a security guard came out and stopped me, but luckily it sort of came out.
This is my study abroad group and I in front of Cheil back in 2007.
And this is me now... post getting yelled out by a security guard. Good thing the photographer had good reflexes.
Coming home to find restaurant magnets on my apartment door never seems to fail. Because of the language barrier I’ve never ordered their offers over the phone so until I learn Korean, the magnets will be used as refrigerator decorations. Since I got my TV, I’ve noticed that advertisements play at the end of shows instead of during them. I don’t know how effective this is, but I enjoy watching commercial free episodes. Not only do they play at the end of shows, but the frequency of the same advertisement is a bit much. I’ve seen the same ad play four times in a row. Talk about high frequency or maybe it was just a cheap sales package.
One day when I was walking home from work a car stopped right in front of me. Thinking they were stopping for me to cross the street (not normal in Korea), I started walking. A bunch of papers flew right at me. The car wasn’t stopping for me… they were stopped in the middle of the road to throw advertisements on the ground. Picture the scene from 10 Things I Hate About You when the party invitations gets thrown down the stairwell. That’s exactly what it felt like. Surprisingly though, there’s never litter on the ground. So maybe people actually stop and pick up the flyers.
I read somewhere that single trip subway tickets in Daejeon are plastic tokens instead of paper ones, like in Seoul, because they’re easier to advertise on. One of the coolest ads I’ve seen was on the subway in Seoul. You know when you’re at Disney World and vendors sell you those lights that you swirl around and they spell something. There was an ad like that in a tunnel on the subway. The subway was moving so fast that an electronic sign flashed an ad. I also noticed on my bus ride to Gimhae, that there weren’t any billboards.
When I studied abroad we visited Cheil Worldwide in Seoul. It is ranked as the 16th largest global ad agency so it was a rare opportunity to visit there a few years ago. Well, walking around Seoul this past weekend, I came across Cheil Worldwide! I was so excited to have noticed the building that I asked someone to take a picture of me in front of it. Unfortunately, mid-picture, a security guard came out and stopped me, but luckily it sort of came out.
This is my study abroad group and I in front of Cheil back in 2007.
And this is me now... post getting yelled out by a security guard. Good thing the photographer had good reflexes.
These are a few of my Favorite Things
-Heated floors: Koreans love it hot, including the floors. Heated floors make it (almost) enjoyable to step out of bed on a cold winter morning. I’m not sure what it is about heated floors, but if I lay on them, I can fall asleep in a second. I’m definitely going to need to install some in my (future) house.
-Shopping: When I studied abroad for a month I came home with two extra suitcases filled with fun souvenirs, purses, clothes, etc. At that rate, I’m going to come home with 24 extra suitcases so I’ve been trying to pace myself. So far I’ve been very good about shopping, minus my obsessive accessory and headband purchases. Right before I left my mom told me “Don’t buy junk! You should buy something worthwhile.” So I’ve been thinking of something memorable to save up for, something that will remind me of Korea. I’m still thinking, but until then I’ll channel my inner Blair Waldarf and keep buying headbands. I’ve been to the shopping districts in Seoul and Daejeon and I feel like I’m in heaven every time. On the streets and underground there are rows and rows of vendors selling everything imaginable. You can bargain with vendors, but I have yet to try it. There are also regular stores like Zara, The North Face, Nike, H&M, and Polo.
-Home Plus: It’s like Target on steroids. This is where I go grocery shopping. It’s about four floors (no big deal) and literally has everything. Home Plus is your one stop shop plus some.
-Korean Side Dishes: They come with every meal and I love them. Kimchi is the most popular side dish. It’s pickled cabbage and has spicy chili paste on it. I think I’m a fan of all of the side dishes because they’re all pickled. You know how I’m obsessed with sauerkraut? Well, it’s kind of like eating sauerkraut with every meal.
-Delivery is Free: Mcdonalds and every pizza joint in town delivers... for free! There isn't a minimum purchase amount either. The delivery guys ride these motorcycles with hot boxes on the back and traffic laws don't apply to them. Until I learn more Korean, I have yet to order in.
-Tipping and Tax: Or lack there of. Tipping a server or cab driver is not necessary and tax is included in everything so what you see is what you pay. Genius idea. I've tried to tip cab drivers before if they're really helpful, but they don't accept the extra money.
-Shopping: When I studied abroad for a month I came home with two extra suitcases filled with fun souvenirs, purses, clothes, etc. At that rate, I’m going to come home with 24 extra suitcases so I’ve been trying to pace myself. So far I’ve been very good about shopping, minus my obsessive accessory and headband purchases. Right before I left my mom told me “Don’t buy junk! You should buy something worthwhile.” So I’ve been thinking of something memorable to save up for, something that will remind me of Korea. I’m still thinking, but until then I’ll channel my inner Blair Waldarf and keep buying headbands. I’ve been to the shopping districts in Seoul and Daejeon and I feel like I’m in heaven every time. On the streets and underground there are rows and rows of vendors selling everything imaginable. You can bargain with vendors, but I have yet to try it. There are also regular stores like Zara, The North Face, Nike, H&M, and Polo.
-Home Plus: It’s like Target on steroids. This is where I go grocery shopping. It’s about four floors (no big deal) and literally has everything. Home Plus is your one stop shop plus some.
-Korean Side Dishes: They come with every meal and I love them. Kimchi is the most popular side dish. It’s pickled cabbage and has spicy chili paste on it. I think I’m a fan of all of the side dishes because they’re all pickled. You know how I’m obsessed with sauerkraut? Well, it’s kind of like eating sauerkraut with every meal.
-Delivery is Free: Mcdonalds and every pizza joint in town delivers... for free! There isn't a minimum purchase amount either. The delivery guys ride these motorcycles with hot boxes on the back and traffic laws don't apply to them. Until I learn more Korean, I have yet to order in.
-Tipping and Tax: Or lack there of. Tipping a server or cab driver is not necessary and tax is included in everything so what you see is what you pay. Genius idea. I've tried to tip cab drivers before if they're really helpful, but they don't accept the extra money.
Monday, January 25, 2010
In Honor of American Idol: Welcome to Hollywood!
Every other week is an "acting” week. The students read a news report in front of a blue screen and act out the script. There are different backgrounds and cool intro, news type music, so I get pretty excited when it’s an acting week. Last week April told us that there is an April wide acting contest. All of the April Institutes throughout Korea are to submit their best videos to headquarters and the winners get a trip to Seoul, and could win a Nintendo Wii, electronic dictionary, or restaurant certificates. I tried to motivate my students to do well by giving them extra points (huge!) and I said I’d buy them something “special”. Well that translated to an iPhone, video games, and other electronics that I would never buy them. So I ended the conversation telling them IF you win, we will discuss your prize. Well my bribery worked… for some. Last week all of the teachers got together to make our “dream acting teams” and about ten out of the 16 students chosen are from my classes. Obviously not everyone makes it to Seoul, but I hope my students do well in the competition! Maybe my forensics gestures will come in handy. I’ll keep you posted on how they do.
Cry me a River
In training we had to mock teach and also practice classroom control. We had these cards that had different scenarios on them such as yelling out answers, not sitting in your chair, not understanding the material, etc. The person mock teaching would step out of the room and two of us would choose cards and act them out. Of course the people acting took each scenario to the extreme (or so I thought). We would climb under the table, write on the board, yell out answers, and chat with our neighbors, but one situation that stands out in my mind is Q pretending to cry.
Well what I thought was an extreme situation of a student crying, happened not once, not twice, but THREE times to me last week! I mean I know that I’m a really intimidating, scary, and mean person (ha), but really three times in one week?!
On Wednesday it was raining all day so the students brought their umbrellas into the classroom. Now these weren’t travel-sized umbrellas, for some reason their parents thought it was necessary to send their child to school with golf-sized umbrellas. Bigger umbrellas mean there’s a bigger chance to poke or stab people with them. It wasn’t quite to that extreme, but one of my students somehow got wedged in his chair between the wall and his desk and his umbrella was digging into him and he started crying. I fixed the situation by un-wedging him and he was fine.
Thursday was an “acting” day. The students recite a news report about the topic of the day and I record them in front of a blue screen. It’s actually really cool. There are usually two parts and each student gets a part. The kids are smart enough to realize the part with the least amount of lines is the easiest to memorize and act out so of course everyone wants that role. Well, one student didn’t get the part he wanted and started to cry. I stood my ground and did not let him change parts. I did however let him choose first the next time. Since then I make them draw parts out of a hat to make it fairer.
Friday’s sob story is a little less climatic than the other two. One student (another boy!) had a bad headache and started crying.
Boohoo.
Well what I thought was an extreme situation of a student crying, happened not once, not twice, but THREE times to me last week! I mean I know that I’m a really intimidating, scary, and mean person (ha), but really three times in one week?!
On Wednesday it was raining all day so the students brought their umbrellas into the classroom. Now these weren’t travel-sized umbrellas, for some reason their parents thought it was necessary to send their child to school with golf-sized umbrellas. Bigger umbrellas mean there’s a bigger chance to poke or stab people with them. It wasn’t quite to that extreme, but one of my students somehow got wedged in his chair between the wall and his desk and his umbrella was digging into him and he started crying. I fixed the situation by un-wedging him and he was fine.
Thursday was an “acting” day. The students recite a news report about the topic of the day and I record them in front of a blue screen. It’s actually really cool. There are usually two parts and each student gets a part. The kids are smart enough to realize the part with the least amount of lines is the easiest to memorize and act out so of course everyone wants that role. Well, one student didn’t get the part he wanted and started to cry. I stood my ground and did not let him change parts. I did however let him choose first the next time. Since then I make them draw parts out of a hat to make it fairer.
Friday’s sob story is a little less climatic than the other two. One student (another boy!) had a bad headache and started crying.
Boohoo.
A Day in the Life of MJC
So like I said in my first post I work at CDI April Institute. April has the youngest students at CDI ranging from first to fifth grade. Each level is named after a plant term: Seedbed Starter, Seedbed, Seed 1 and 2, Sprout 1, 2, and 3, Sapling 1 and 2, and Junior Master (it should be green thumb or something plant related). P.S. The levels at CDI are golf terms! There are four semesters a year and last three months, so I’ll get new classes every three months. Each semester I’ll go through three books that have twelve lessons in each book. April is in addition to their regular schooling so when the students are on break, we have Intensives. Intensives are basically extra classes for the students to attend, but because of them, my schedule has been a little different than usual and goes something like this:
I wake up around 8:30 a.m… well 8:45 a.m. after pressing snooze once (or three times). Luckily, I live kiddy corner to work so I can leave my place at 9:29 a.m. (my clock is 4 minutes fast) and arrive to work at 9:30 a.m. When I get to school I print off my review tests for the day and grade homework. I don’t have a first class so I get some extra time to get organized for the day. Then on Monday, Wednesday and Friday’s I have 3 classes in the morning, each 40 or 45 min. long with five minute breaks. The nice thing about intensives is that I get a long lunch break in between my morning and afternoon classes. After lunch I teach four more classes and my last class ends at 5:35 p.m. I stay after to grade tests and put in participation grades and I’m usually out of work by 6:15. On Tuesday and Thursday’s, I get two 40 minute breaks because I don’t have a first or third class then I teach six classes straight through. My last class on Tuesday and Thursday’s is done at 5:10, and I’m out of work by 6 p.m.
Once intensives are over (this week is the last week) I will work from 1-9 p.m. and teach six classes every day. The nice thing about working at April is that we don’t have to work on the weekends. I’m looking forward to sleeping in once intensives are over, but I know I’m going to get into some pretty bad sleeping and meal eating habits.
My youngest class is Seed 2, my oldest is Sprout 3, I have a lot of Sprout 1 classes, and one Sprout 2 class. I’ve really enjoyed teaching these levels because they’re eager to learn and their English is good enough to understand me pretty well. Right now I teach reading and speaking classes and one writing intensive class. Some material is more interesting than others, but overall the lessons are pretty entertaining. The hardest part is classroom control with the younger classes and of course those are my biggest ones. My smallest class is four students and my biggest is 11. I’ve noticed when “trouble makers” are absent the whole classroom attitude is different. It’s amazing the influence one student can have on the whole class.
I wake up around 8:30 a.m… well 8:45 a.m. after pressing snooze once (or three times). Luckily, I live kiddy corner to work so I can leave my place at 9:29 a.m. (my clock is 4 minutes fast) and arrive to work at 9:30 a.m. When I get to school I print off my review tests for the day and grade homework. I don’t have a first class so I get some extra time to get organized for the day. Then on Monday, Wednesday and Friday’s I have 3 classes in the morning, each 40 or 45 min. long with five minute breaks. The nice thing about intensives is that I get a long lunch break in between my morning and afternoon classes. After lunch I teach four more classes and my last class ends at 5:35 p.m. I stay after to grade tests and put in participation grades and I’m usually out of work by 6:15. On Tuesday and Thursday’s, I get two 40 minute breaks because I don’t have a first or third class then I teach six classes straight through. My last class on Tuesday and Thursday’s is done at 5:10, and I’m out of work by 6 p.m.
Once intensives are over (this week is the last week) I will work from 1-9 p.m. and teach six classes every day. The nice thing about working at April is that we don’t have to work on the weekends. I’m looking forward to sleeping in once intensives are over, but I know I’m going to get into some pretty bad sleeping and meal eating habits.
My youngest class is Seed 2, my oldest is Sprout 3, I have a lot of Sprout 1 classes, and one Sprout 2 class. I’ve really enjoyed teaching these levels because they’re eager to learn and their English is good enough to understand me pretty well. Right now I teach reading and speaking classes and one writing intensive class. Some material is more interesting than others, but overall the lessons are pretty entertaining. The hardest part is classroom control with the younger classes and of course those are my biggest ones. My smallest class is four students and my biggest is 11. I’ve noticed when “trouble makers” are absent the whole classroom attitude is different. It’s amazing the influence one student can have on the whole class.
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