It’s impossible to believe, but I am beginning my tenth year in China. It also means it’s my tenth year as a teacher making it the longest job I’ve ever held. Despite that, I almost never think of myself as a teacher. When someone asks me “what do you do?”
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Chinese Wedding (with video!)
Remember those students I call “my babies?” The ones I taught for four years and watched them grow up? The ones who stayed with me when I was in the hospital 5 years ago? The one’s that sobbed into my shoulder as they graduated and said goodbye? The ones I
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Young Tibetan Artists Need Your Help!
Western Women who date and marry asian men stick together. I’ve mentioned it a few times but I’m a member of a group called WWAM and I have met many, many amazing women over the years from it. Since becoming online friends I have met several in real life and
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Thousand Character Chinese Classic
Like I do at the end of every year, I have my students in speaking class become teachers. Their final exam is to “teach class” for 15 minutes. (Not a presentation, but actually teach.) This is always super fun. Students freak out when I assign it to them, but then
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You Know You’ve Been in China A Long Time When…..
Three years ago I wrote a post called 10 Signs You’ve Lived in China a Long Time. It was a post about all the culture differences I’ve grown accustomed to over the years. At this point I’m so used to China I’m not really sure what I do differently anymore.
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Being a Teacher is Worth It
Besides going to mountains this winter break, I had another accidental theme: Seeing my students. I’ve been teaching for so long, and with such a large number of students, that it just figures they are now spread all throughout China and I’d bump into them from time to time. This
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My First “Kid” Got Married!
On the last class with my darling graduated students we played a game. “Who’s gonna be the first…?” Things like, get married, have a baby, become a millionaire, live abroad, etc. Well, one of those questions have been answered because at the end of December, about 6-months after graduation, my
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I Feel a Bit Guilty About Yesterday’s Post
So after I totally dissed my students in yesterday’s post, I had my last class with one group of kids. We had a christmas party (I do it every year) and when class was almost over one student stood up and said they had a special gift for me. He
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Funny English Names of my Chinese Students
One of my very first posts in China was about students picking hilarious English names. It just cracked me up that a boy would call themselves “Cookies” or a girl “Super.” But like all things, you get immune to it. I’ve had plenty of none traditional names over the years,
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Trying for a Work/Life Balance While Living on Campus
Almost exactly five years ago I went to my first dinner with students. I was so excited, and honored back then that the students wanted to spend time with me. That even though they didn’t know me very well, and their English level was a little low, they were willing