I will begin this post with the heads-up that it has A LOT of pictures! Schools here typically take tons of pictures, which they use when they submit lesson plans to the government and on their websites. Enjoy!

English Camp: We are now finished with English Camp for this semester. Schools here continue school through the end of January, when there is a 3-week long winter vacation before second semester starts at the beginning of February. These pictures are from the last two schools we went to, where the students were particularly sweet, engaged, and eager to learn. I have absolutely loved traveling and working with a new group of students almost every week. I will miss camp over the next two months but I am happy to have many varied experiences under my belt now that I can share here.

Teaching Chanukah to an entire elementary school (!!): This is definitely one of the most exciting opportunities I have ever had in my life. The past two weeks have been the most exciting (and the busiest!) this semester. I have been able to teach about Chanukah for a full two weeks; I have taught every class in the school about Chanukah. The teachers and administrators at Chong Qing have been curious to learn and helpful to me as I planned all of our Chanukah programming. For each class, I presented a powerpoint that included an introduction to concepts such as ‘Jewish people’ and ‘Hebrew language,’ and explained the basic story of Chanukah. I also presented key vocabulary, taught a Chanukah song, and showed pictures of Jewish students from my mom’s kindergarten class in the United States. After presenting the powerpoint, I taught the students how to play dreidel and then gave them a chance to spin and play this exciting Chanukah game. Following this, I reheated pre-made latkes, a traditional Chanukah food, and each student was able to eat a piece.

Before all the pictures ... Here is an article about Chanukah at Chong Qing (http://www.pacificnews.com.tw/shownews.php?postnewsid=19&titleid=81632) that was published in an education newspaper. It's all in Chinese, but it's worth a quick look! Everyone here has been so excited to learn about a new holiday and it's wonderful to see that the school made sure this article was published. Several teachers said to me "I'm so glad our kids can learn about something other than Halloween and Christmas," and both teachers and students alike have eagerly been asking questions about this new culture/religion :)

Every day during Chanukah, during the 10-minute break between 1^st and 2^nd period, the teachers made a school-wide announcement inviting all students to come to the front gate.  There we had set up two posters of a Chanukiah (the traditional candelabra we light on each night of the 8-day holiday), and each day I called up a different student to ‘light’ the newest candle. I had other students come up to write the date and count “Today is Chanukah day number ____.” On some days I also had students come up to hold a toy Chanukiah and several dreidels while we lit each big Chanukiah. Then we gave all students a little cookie after they had said “Happy Chanukah.” Needless to say it was a very energetic 10 minutes where the students were very excited to participate and learn new Chanukah phrases. On some days there was Hebrew music playing in the background, and every day the sounds of students’ laughter and Chanukah greetings could be heard around the school.

We had other whole-school activities as well. At the end of the week we took the longer 20-minute break between 2^nd and 3^rd period to organize many simultaneous games of dreidel. The teachers made another announcement and students came flocking to the front gate, sitting in front of the Chanukiah posters in circles on the floor. I briefly re-explained how to play dreidel, we gave each group a dreidel and some playing pieces, and students were free to play. Many teachers came to watch, and all of the English teachers were there to help facilitate and answer questions. Many students remembered and/or were able to figure out exactly how to play … and though there was definitely some confusion, students enjoyed themselves nonetheless and came up with their own creative ways to play. It was wonderful to see these Taiwanese students excited about playing a Jewish game I grew up with!

Then on Friday of the first week, I was able to take about 15 minutes of our weekly all-school assembly to present a Chanukah program. First I showed an abbreviated version of my powerpoint. I was addressing an audience with a wide range of Chanukah knowledge; many students had already had had their Chanukkah lessons, many were not scheduled to have those lessons until the following week, and none of the teachers had seen anything yet. Then I welcomed one of our Grade 4 classes to present some Chanukah introductory sentences in both English and Chinese and then to sing I Have a Little Dreidel. I taught this song to students in Grades 1-4, and this particular class was very enthusiastic about performing it, complete with hand motions, for the whole school. Then lastly, I showed a video I made that included clips of Chanukah activities from our students here, from my mom's kindergarten students, and from 8th grade students at the Jewish elementary school I attended from 4th - 8th grade.  My 5th grade teacher and I have been compiling and sharing videos of our students engaged in Chanukah activities as part of a cultural exchange project, which was a wonderful addition to our Chanukah programming here. 

On Monday of the second week I was able to put together what was definitely one of the highlights of the whole experience. During the 20-minute break in the morning, I set up skype with my mom! She was projected up at the front of our audio-visual room, and students and teachers came to see Teacher Sara’s mom! Some students sang the Chanukah song I had taught them (“I have a little dreidel”) and a few more students asked her some questions. Then, when everyone was there, we watched as my mom lit the Chanukiah (with real candles!), showed us different dreidels, sang the Chanukah blessings … and showed everyone our pet rabbit and cat. The students loved it, oohing and ahhing at the Chanukiah and dreidels, calling out the different colors of the candles, and waving hello and goodbye to our pets. The teachers, too, were interested, and some even stayed afterwards to personally say hello to my mom. It was quite an exciting morning and it was wonderful to see how much everyone got out of the skype call – including students, teachers, and my mom.

On the whole, this experience has been incredibly exciting for me for many reasons. My school has been nothing but supportive and interested in helping me bring something new to this community. Many people at my school have a surface-level knowledge of Judaism (if any at all), and most have never met a Jewish person before. To be able to give 400+ people a positive experience with a Jewish person, Judaism, Hebrew, and Chanukah specifically, has truly been a remarkable opportunity for me. 

I have now been in Taiwan for 4 months! Contemplating this specific milestone over the past few weeks has been an interesting process. I have been fortunate to have had many opportunities to travel internationally before this year: Israel in 11th grade and the Czech Republic and Namibia during my junior year of college.  All were for one semester - 4 months. Right now is the period during which, in the past, I was getting ready to come home.

At times, the realization that I will be here for many more months is daunting. At the same time though, I believe very strongly in making cross-cultural awareness a part of my life, and here I can do that EVERY DAY. I am committed to continuing to learn how to teach the value of open-mindedness, and this year is an amazing opportunity to dive head-first into that process.

Last week for my birthday, our whole group and some other friends surprised me by showing up to the shaved ice shop (a yummy dessert here) when I thought I was only going with one friend!

Interesting tidbits: Before I discuss life here in Taiwan, I would like to first share two things that have been on my mind the past few weeks.

1) I saw this recently and think it is priceless, which on one hand seems silly because I am not actually a parent yet ... but being a teacher really must be quite similar because I found myself laughing out loud as I read these. If you like children, click on this link and enjoy!

https://www.upworthy.com/15-hilarious-parenting-comics-that-are-almost-too-real?c=tpstream

2) I also came across this Facebook page all about the amazing activities one teacher organizes for the students in his special education classroom. He posts videos of the creative ways he teaches them life skills and I have found one idea more inspiring than the next. This teacher plays his guitar and uses music therapy to encourage students to express themselves, spends time complimenting each student, tests their comprehension not by giving tests but by asking students to act out what they have learned, connects his students to other special needs students around the country, and more. Please take a minute to read about this fascinating and inspiring, classroom environment:
https://www.facebook.com/specialbooksbyspecialkids/

Now for some updates about life in in Taiwan!

English Conversation with Chong Qing teachers: There are several staff members who faithfully come to our English Conversation each week. One woman is retired and she volunteers in our library. Beauty's English is about as good as my Chinese, but she and I have nonetheless formed a special connection despite the language barrier. I love talking with her because she is determined to have a conversation; I use the little Chinese I know and therefore can practice and improve, and it's a great opportunity for her to do the same with her English. She is very patient and with the help of pictures, and body language, we always have very interesting conversations. Beauty is the woman in the bottom left of the picture below.

Our weekly English conversation is a wonderful experience. I love it and the teachers seem to gain a lot from it. It is also quite a challenge; I am responsible for guiding a conversation among a small group of teachers whose English levels range from very very very basic beginner to complete fluency along with much awareness of U.S. culture. I usually begin the conversation nervous about how to ensure that everyone is somehow involved and minimally uncomfortable ... Our teachers are great and so it always works out well, with much informal chatting, informing each other about cultural norms and linguistic tidbits, and of course, translating. This "Conversation Time" is a both a weekly struggle and success for me. I wonder/worry if I am providing enough opportunity for the teachers to practice their English, if everyone is interested and engaged, if I am doing all I can to help people feel comfortable and not embarrassed to use their English, if I vary the topics enough from week to week ... and so on :) Below is a picture from one recent English Conversation.

Chong Qing staff: Last week, the Academic Affairs Department went out for lunch. It was nice to spend time with teachers, interns, and administrators outside of our office.

English Camp: I LOVE this aspect of being a Taichung ETA. English Camp is set up differently for ETAs at each site; ETAs elsewhere in Taiwan have students who come to them in the same place each week. Since we travel to different schools each week, we have the opportunity to see many varying parts of Taichung, different school buildings and set-ups, different school atmospheres, and different staff. It is a fascinating experience and I have learned so much more about elementary schools here from physically seeing so many. It is a wonderful experience to see how much these students and staff appreciate our coming and providing a brief, fun, and interactive exposure to English.

I have also grown personally through this experience. The average group size that we work with is 50 students, and not only do we present our lesson to them but also to all of the teachers, administrators, and principals who come to see what we do with their students. It is quite the audience. I often laugh at myself for choosing the path of teaching because I don't like to be the center of attention, and as teachers that is exactly what we do all day long! I have grown more comfortable speaking in front of staff who are there to watch us, and in front of students I do not yet know (though we make sure that the ice is usually broken withing the first 10 minutes of our English Camp curriculum). 

I co-teach with 3 other ETAs each week, and we each lead one period. I lead the first period, which means that I am the first ETA to address the students, break the ice, quickly gauge the students' overall English ability and comfort level, and introduce what we will be learning and doing that day. The very beginning, right as I take the microphone and double-check that it really is time to start, is always a bit nerve-wracking for me, though less so as time goes on. This is a great personal challenge for me that I am grateful to have the chance to work on each week.  Below are two pictures from the first few minutes of English Camp a few weeks ago; in the first picture I am introducing the concept of English Camp and in the second picture I am leading a demonstration of a quiet cheer that we use to get the students' attention.

Yes, the students come in and sit in rows often separated by boys and girls! We do our best to offer them a different experience by encouraging them to sit randomly in a group, thus creating a more informal atmosphere and lessening the gap between teacher and student. Often by the end of the day this is very successful and well-received.

Winter in Taiwan: It is getting cooler here! This is the first place I have seen people wearing winter jackets, gloves, hats, and scarves when it is 60 degrees Fahrenheit, or 15 degrees Celsius, as people 1use here. The sky continues to be beautiful (though in part that is because of pollution) .... People are so cute, warning each other that it will be cold and reminding us foreigners to wear our winter jackets.

I know that it is already cold back at home ... wishing everyone a warm and healthy winter!!

It's been several weeks since my last blog post ... time is beginning to fly in the way it does when routines become better established ... I continue to love my time here in Taichung and am excited to share more here on this blog.

Last week at school we celebrated Halloween, which is something that many schools do here. At our weekly whole-school assembly, I talked a little bit about Halloween and then some of our Grade 3 and 4 students sang and danced to “A Witch on Halloween.”  One of my co-teachers and I had been teaching this song for the previous two weeks, and the students were so cute and funny about it. Afterwards we all took many pictures, some of which I have included here.

I have started hosting a “Tea Time” period one morning every week during the students’ 20-minute break. The students choose to come, so it is always a nice small group of students who want to be there. We have a little snack and I organize informal games and activities that help students practice speaking and writing in English. It has been a nice way to form personal relationships with students outside of class, and it is also great exposure for them to have a little bit more time during their day when they are challenged to speak English.

                                                        

(So sorry but for some reason I simply cannot make the text in this paragraph agree to be black......) Two weeks ago, there was a jazz festival in Taichung. Every night for about a week and a half, thousands of Taichung residents gathered outside on a big lawn in a park downtown to enjoy the jazz performances of musicians from all over the world. Many people spread out blankets and had picnic dinners. Among the musical highlights were a jazz a capella group from Hungary, a Taiwanese singer, and an Israeli jazz quartet. It was an unbelievable experience to be sitting outside under the stars with thousands of Taiwanese people there to appreciate music and companionship. I went with my friend Claire on the last night of the festival, and because it was so crowded we were sitting very close to everyone around us. There was a family right in front of us and their little girl, Connie, shyly let me know she wanted to talk to me in English.  Needless to say I was probably even more excited than Connie was, and over the course of the evening she and I exchanged names, hobbies, birthdays, Chinese/English vocabulary, and took many videos and pictures. 

                   

This past weekend my roomates and I finally made it to Gaomei Wetlands, which is a well-known spot here for catching beautiful sunsets. We had tried to go a few weeks ago, but we left too late and turned around after watching sunset from the road. The scooter drive was about an hour long, which was really fun (!) and a great way to see different parts of Taichung. Being at the wetlands at dusk was a beautiful way to end the weekend.