Thank You & Goodbye

Topping off Jessica's three visits with big hugs, milkshake, and of course, fun English learning activities

Today, we had the Canadian AIESEC volunteer's last visit before she goes back home. Students had fun with the activities and of course, said their farewells, too. To thank her for the many classes she gave, they wrote in English or Chinese on the notes and cards. Furthermore, one of the classes had the chance to talk with another Canadian online. Compared to the previous one, they totally responded differently. Most important of all, I felt good about myself because once again so many classes and students had experienced the real joy of learning English.

The Agenda for Class 802, 809, and 810

Jessica came up with this lesson plan and made the worksheet to help students do a simple oral report. Based on the ABCD model of writing learning objectives, I revised the original one as follows:

1. With the game of charades regarding hobbies, students working in groups are able to guess what the assigned hobby is with silent actions.  

2. With the word bank about some hobbies, students are able to fill in the blanks in group work according to the hobby of their choice. 

3. With the finished worksheet, students are able to describe their hobby in English for Jessica's friend to guess what it might be.  

To wrap up the class, Jessica and I did a little demonstration of why talking about hobbies is important to start a conversation with a foreigner. 

Making Milkshake

In such a scorching hot summer day, it would be a real blast to have cold and tasty milkshakes in the classroom. The gifted students from the 7th grade and 8th grade prepared milk, ice cream, watermelon, and crackers to make their own milkshake. Meanwhile, the volunteer moved around and had a casual chat with them. Students were excited to put everything in the blender, even including the strawberry jam. They introduced what they did in English to her. I then tasted all the milkshake from each group and ended up having a full stomach. 

Saying Goodbye

At the end of each class, I encouraged all the students to give Jessica a big hug. Girls were more generous and gave her a passionate hug while boys were shy but eventually willing to try it. I felt like an agent, arranging group photos for one class and telling the eagerly awaited Dance Class to hang on for a while. My homeroom class presented a big card full of thank-you notes, and Class 809 and 810 also showed their gratitude hoping she can come back to Taiwan some day. 

All in all, my two colleagues and I think these were good English and cultural classes. To my surprise, some homeroom teachers even complained that I didn't include their classes. I enjoyed watching my students trying to use English even though it was intimidating to them most of the time. For some advanced learners, it went without a doubt they shared the same passion with me. Being able to communicate in English makes us proud.