"Go out and do something for somebody. Go out and give something to somebody.
It will take you away from yourself and make you happy."
-- Joseph Jefferson
Remember how you over-prepare for the first day of a new class? Well, that was me last week on my first day as a volunteer at a local K-8 school. One of the volunteer positions was to test 4th graders on reading skills but I thought it would be more fun to help a teacher in her combination career exploration and life skills class and opted to do that instead.
So I met with that teacher a few weeks ago and scheduled this past Thursday for me to go in and talk to her 7th-8th class about a career teaching in a foreign country. I spent about a day and half preparing my presentation. Unlike when I was a classroom teacher and had a plan book with only a 3" x 3" box to write up each lesson plan, now I could type whatever I wanted without being constrained by space limitations. And type I did: The notes for my presentation took up 5 pages. That's where I went wrong!
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Here I am teaching in China; source: The ESL Nexus |
You can grab a version of the exit tickets here; I modified them so they can be used when giving a presentation about any kind of job. Click on Make a copy when prompted by the message on your screen and then you can access the file.
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Download your own copy HERE; source: The ESL Nexus |
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Here I am practicing taiji with a friend in China; source: The ESL Nexus |
The classroom teacher has already asked if I’d be interested in doing some classes about cooking Chinese food—of course I said yes!--and I will also be helping out in the school garden. I’m really looking forward to this opportunity and periodically I’ll blog about my experiences as a school volunteer. If you volunteer at a school or if you have any advice for volunteers, I’d love to read them in the Comments section below.