ネイティブが教える英会話のジェムスクール☆Teachers☆

Walking around Japan can be amazing. With temples, mountains, and shrines abundant (all over) this place hasn't stopped amazing me in the last few months. I get the chance to play with kids and then on my off time walk around a place that feels magical to me. Back home in Michigan there are many places to go that reflect the same feeling but they are very far from where I live. Maybe, when I do go home, I will appreciate the area I live in more but for now I am soaking in every little thing possible.  

Do you remember the pumpkins that Adam and Leah had last week? Now they are Jack-O-Lanterns! The kids carved them (with some adult help) in the theme of Star Wars. On the left there is Chewbacca. Next to it is a TIE fighter. To the right of that, there is a Jabba the Hutt pumpkin. On the far right is Boba Fett. They look great!   

Well the Halloween party is over, but let's hope some of the enthusiasm about learning English stays not only for the kids, but for the proud parents who take joy in seeing their kids not only being exposed to English, but actually trying to say things, sing together and get a feel for expressing themselves in English. Taking the kids to have fun is a first step, let's all work together to keep the kids' enthusiasm up for trying to do things in English. Let's work on it together, parents and teachers, and of course the kids themselves. Learning English is fun!   

Halloween week has come to an end, but it was an amazing week filled with cute and cool costumes. I was so proud of my students for remembering to dress up in costume this last week. In the picture there are various images of my students and the costumes that they wore during the week. From store bought to hand made, each costume was unique and amazing. These kids never cease to brighten my day with the smiles that they wear when they come to class. Great costumes everyone!!!!

  

Just one day after our huge Halloween event in Manno Park, I participated in another event in Downtown Takamatsu. A lot of us volunteered to dress in costumes and stand in front of stores in Marugame-machi so the kids could go trick-or-treating. There was also a haunted house and at the end of the event, we paraded down Marugame-machi. It was so much fun. The kids had a great time!  

I hope everybody had a blast at the GEM Halloween event! Thank you for coming to Manno Park. What did you do? Did you eat lots of candy? I painted a pumpkin. I can't wait for next year's event. See you there!  

Halloween is coming upon us very quickly and we're all very excited for the GEM School Halloween party this Saturday. We get to share the fun spirit of this American holiday all week with our students. It makes me happy to see the students getting into it by coming to class in costumes. I love silly people in general so this makes me like my students even more! Hope you're enjoying this holiday as much as I am! Come out and play with us this Saturday if you can make it to Mannou Park.Happy Halloween everyone!





We used the pumpkin to learn geometric shapes and facial features!




















  

We have very smart students at GEM school. Sometimes we have students that know more English than even I know. So, although it is rare, I have some of my students teach the class. Here is a star student of mine. This is a picture of Ralph teaching my baby class. He is very young and very smart too. He was reading 'Five Little Pumpkins' to me. It's a halloween themed book.

Ralph taught me a lot that day.

  

The streets of Kanonji Shi were alive this past weekend! For a small town that is generally a very quite place, it`s fun to see just how excited and enthusiastic the locals get during the festivals. I even saw a few familiar faces that came from out of town for the big events in the summer as well. Good times and looking forward to the next festivities!!   

This is Adam, my nephew. He plays baseball back home in Detroit. The Detroit Tigers are playing in the World Series this year and our family is proud to say that we are from the "D" (Detroit). Japan seems to be big on baseball to :) What's your favorite team?  

In the United States some stores start to put out Christmas merchandise and decorations well before December 25th. We call this the "Christmas Creep". Every year it seems to start earlier and earlier. It looks like this phenomenon is not limited to the US. I was surprised to see the Colonel all dressed up as Santa already! There are also some holiday items set out in our local grocery store. Personally, I think that Christmas decorations in stores should wait until at least November 1st (after Halloween).   

This is one of my students, Kyle. He's been with us for about three months now and is making great strides in English. He was a bit stubborn at first, but now I'm so proud of him for putting in the effort and it's making class that much for fun!  

It has been observed that learning another language helps us understand our own so much better as well. I guess it's the contrast not only in how things are expressed, but the reflections of different points of view. It's like seeing something you've always seen from one perspective being turned around or upside down, not because you give up so much what you already have as you see it all in a different perspective. You go down deeper. I think even kids feel this when they really learn to say things in context, and realize they they've "got it".

  

It's October. That means Halloween is right around the corner! So find a pumpkin, get a knife and start carving. Making a jack o' lantern is fun. You can make all sorts of faces. But be sure to have a plastic bag on hand for the pumpkin guts, or else it will get quite messy!   

In America there is a saying, if you see a rainbows end, you will find a pot of gold. This is myth of course, a fairy tale, but it is always fun to think about. This was the first rainbow that I saw in Japan. It had three band levels. Such a beautiful and colorful rainbow it was. On that day, I was kind of disappointed, but when I noticed the rainbow, I was stunned by it's beauty and it brought a smile to my face for the rest of the day. It was the longest lasting rainbow that I have ever seen and I look forward to seeing more. So remember, when you see a rainbows end, you will find a pot of gold. That pot of gold is a smile that will last a while.   

As kids develop their language skills and start to see what`s "right or wrong" about what they`re hearing, they also enjoy pointing out mistakes as well as making them deliberately. A good way to make connections with language is through practical use of certain points and to apply them based on what the situation requires. This week`s use of a large doll house in a PP1 class had the kids laughing lots while they learned as they put the furniture of the house in the appropriate rooms and made notice of what seemed out of place. Although most items were arranged in the typical places, some kids found it to be quite entertaining to put some objects in very unusual spaces!  

Recently all the members of the GEM School family got together for a reunion. These are fun days when we come together to share a meal, ideas, and prepare for fun GEM School Events. Since we are all spread out through Ehime and Kagawa it's a nice opportunity to see everyone and catch up. I think it's important for a small company to create the kind of work environment in which we feel we are among friends. It allows for creativity to flow abundantly and beautiful and fun things can happen as a result. It is especially nice for companies like ours--with a small group of foreigners. When you have a problem or cultural or language misunderstanding, it is nice to know there are people who can help you and care about you. This is difficult for foreigners who work for big companies. They may feel lost and don't know who to turn to for help. Thanks to the friendly staff at GEM School problems become manageable!  

Many people tell me I am very creative and imaginative. I like to have fun all the time. I like to be happy and help others to be happy. No matter what situation I am in I always like to enjoy myself. I found that no matter how bad a situation I am in I can always find joy. Being creative and imaginative is a key factor in doing this. If you are creative and imaginative there is almost nothing you can't do.

Here is a picture of me using my creativity and imagination to pretend to be an owl. I am pretending very well. Try to guess which one I am.

  

More like flying fortresses that will knock you over at a moments notice. I have had the chance to follow one of the teams about from the building stages to the festival itself. These massive structures get carried around for days by a group of people who, for the most part, aren't any larger then myself. It was something I had never experienced before and I count myself lucky to have had the chance.   

Here are some pumpkins grown by the Jansen family back home in Michigan. They are much larger than pumpkins found in Shikoku. These ones are almost as big as children! Leah and Adam are very excited to carve pumpkins for Halloween this year. If you are excited for Halloween too, be sure to come to the Gem School Halloween Party on October 27th. There will be games, candy, costumes, English language fun, and a chance to win your own carved pumpkin!