My Taiwan Adventure

Today at the end of my new marathon kindergarten classes, the three Chinese co-teachers presented me with a carefully constructed cut-out of Hello-Kitty and her sister Mi-mi riding a dolphin. They then said "You be not angry."

I looked at them in surprise. I almost never yell at the little kids but today my patience had frayed to the point that I barked,"Willy stop that!"and they took note. I had gotten to the point where a sharp comment followed if children stepped out of line. I wasn't ANGRY. Tired and run-down sure, but not angry. I shook my head and said, "No, no, not angry but tired."

The three teachers smiled sympathetically. "Yes, tired. We know. Class too long for them," said one of the girls, gesturing to a 4 year old boy with tear-stained cheeks.

"Yes," I nodded in reply, "too long." And it is. I'm teaching toddlers with 5 second attention spans and I've got to keep them on the ball for a very lengthy 2 hours. It's enough to make us ALL cry.

Neither my co-teachers nor I have control over what happens with the schedule, it's the whim of the director that I teach a marathon to kids who can't yet walk. We muddle through and sometimes there are casualties.

I found it note-worthy that my co-teachers felt the need to bribe me to not be angry. They felt they had to explain to me that they understood; that they agreed the class was too long; that they knew my frustration and wanted me to be happy. They did this through a gift. In North America we would have bitched together over coffee in a corner. This is the closest I've come to be being part of the 'gang.'

Welcome to the Taiwanese Teacher's Club, our emblem? A dolphin-riding Hello Kitty.

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