Feinschule is a Fine Schooluh

I have survived week one at my new school. (Well, almost survived...still gotta get through today!) The week started out rough, but it’s gotten better and better each day. Monday morning, I came in and literally stood in the corner for about an hour b/c nobody told me where to go or what to do. Everyone just sort of stared like I was a blonde alien. A really inconvenient blonde alien. But things are looking up, and I’m starting to get in the swing of things.

So my new school is called Feinschule English Institute. It’s the head office of a franchise of about 40 schools around Korea, so this particular branch is both the school and the publishing company, where they make a distribute their books to the other schools. It actually turned out that while I was on vacation, this school talked to the boss of my old school and somehow it was arranged that all of the kids from my old school would follow me here. As well as my favorite Korean teacher, Amy. So it’s been an adjustment for everyone trying to squeeze our kids in with theirs, and adjusting the schedule accordingly. But I think everyone’s getting used to it! I love having my kids and Amy with me! (But Amy’s not staying. Can’t win ‘em all I guess…)

My current role at the school is preparing curriculum for the start of the new school year, which is March 4. I’m going to be the music and drama teacher, so I’m getting my yearly plan for music class together. And more importantly (and much more time consuming), I have to create a drama curriculum for Feinschule, which I have to present at their conference with all the schools on February 6, and which will be used by all the schools. I need to make 4 different levels, with 6 dramas each, which, if you do the math, is 24 dramas. Eeek! And each drama requires 3 books—the play/story book, the activity book, and the teacher’s guide. And each drama needs to last 8 weeks. Fortunately, I only need to have a couple done by February 6! I don’t really know where to start, and I’m not really getting much guidance. But so it goes in Korea!

Everyone here seems pretty cool. There’s another foreign teacher from Arkansas, and one Korean-Canadian who works mostly with the curriculum. And the Koreans have been really great so far. I’m just glad to have my first week down. Only 51 to go! (Not thinking about that, not thinking about that….)

So, in other news, I went to see Muse last night!!!! It was so good to see a live show. Nobody comes to Korea, they just skip right on over to Japan. I would like to write a letter to all cool bands out there, that goes something like this:

Dear _______________ (insert cool band name),

Please come to Korea. It’s really not so bad. The galby is delicious.

Love, Teacher in Korea who misses good music

Maybe I would elaborate a little. But anyway, Muse was awesome. If I were a rock ‘n roll star, I would like to be the female version of Matt Belamy. I would totally rock out the piano like he does.

Happy Friday everyone!