Thus Commences "Teacher Rochelle"

First day down! Many more to go. Overall, it actually went pretty well.

My very first class was the worst, but I’m proud didn’t completely lose my cool. I stepped into a classroom filled with a bunch of 10th graders (remember, they’re the class reading Black Beauty for the second time) without knowing quite what was expected of me. I asked the Thai teacher if it was time for Reader Club, and she literally stepped out of the room without a word. The students stood up and said “Gooood Moooowning Teeechurrr” to me, and then sat down and dissolved into chatter.

I tried to introduce myself, but I swear could have been naked and they wouldn’t have noticed my existence. I began with the fundamentals: the title, author and publisher of Black Beauty, but all the while the kids were yapping away. They didn't respond to “be quiet,” even when I used my sharp authority voice or walked to the problem area. Asking questions just resulted in a student staring at their desk, mumbling a one word answer if I was lucky. The only two questions that elicited responses were “What animal is Black Beauty about?” and “Is Black Beauty set in Thailand?”—I guess what one of our orientation instructors said was true: Thai students will not speak if they’re not 100% positive they know the correct answer.

After that, my classes got much better. I worked on a mystery adventure book called “Oranges in the Snow” with two fourth grade classes, and they were more behaved and engaged. Even my sixth graders, with whom I began Tom Sawyer, exhibited less of an “I don’t give a crap” attitude than my high school students.

I found that drawing pictures and acting out words from the book really helped the 4th graders follow “Oranges in the Snow.” Seeing me jump around the room like a goofball kept their interest, and made them invested in the next turn in the story. “Should Mary drink the special potion?” I asked, and some kids shouted “NOOO!!!! Don’t drink it!” while others shouted “YESS!! Drink it! Drink it!” with zest. One girl came up after class to ask me what an author was (I really felt like a teacher answering this question), and I noticed that when I bent down to meet her eyes, the student bent even lower so that she would be below my level. Definitely my first example of the respect teachers and elders supposedly receive in Thailand.

My sixth grade class was a little more chatty, I suppose it’s a tendency that snowballs during puberty (and becomes a full-time job by high school), but they still exhibited the playfulness of children. When I told the kids I was from California, one boy jumped up from his seat and began singing like a rock star: “Welcome to Hoootel Californiaaa!!!” to which I just responded “yes, that California” in an attempt not to laugh out loud.

My school campus is actually quite nice. The lunch served at the canteen was alright, definitely not the type of lunch I’m used to (glass noodles, rice and fish soup was not very reminiscent of pizza day in the states). As for the administration, everyone has been very nice, but they’re not great at telling us what we’re supposed to be doing. Myself and the three other teachers spent today pretty much stumbling our way through class—how were we supposed to know that the sing-song version of the Mancini’s "Baby Elephant Walk" was the school's version of the five-minute bell? The ex-pats from England, Australia, Canada and Denmark in the English department have been pretty helpful, but I still feel like a chimp dropped into an intensive session of brain surgery. Okay, perhaps not that bad. To be honest, I’m already getting better, and it’s only my first day.

I’m also lucky enough to live five minutes away from school, in an apartment complex with security, a pool, laundry, my own space and bathroom, satellite TV, a fridge, air conditioning, and two balconies. Yes, two! Horror stories are already trickling in from other teachers who are living in shacks with no running water, so I'm counting my lucky stars. I'm definitely willing to rough it when I travel, but I'm not sure about living that way. From what I’ve assessed, there’s not much to do where I am, but we’re only about an hour away from Bangkok, so I’ll be traveling almost every weekend!