Being Genki is Hard

'Genki' is a rather versatile word in Japanese. (Btw, forgive me for not yet having found the double quotation mark. Or rather, I see it, I just don't know how to type it yet. Damn elusive keys!). I'm sure I am far from grasping it's many meanings, but among them I have detected 'energetic', 'enthusiastic', 'strong', 'full-of-life-and-youthful-energy'. Basically, when JETs are hired, they're sort of expected to be genki, or at least to make the class more genki. So while this is relatively easy to do at first, I can see and feel that it's going to get tiring real fast.

To start with, I have to figure out my role in the classroom. Remember that I am an Assistant Language Teacher, so I am second (actually third, which I'll explain in a minute) in command. The English teacher's role is to get through the curriculum. My role is to pronounce words for the benefit of the students and make English more interesting and (hopefully) fun overall.

There are two English teachers with whom I work at the middle school. Nakamura Sensei teaches the 3rd grade and one of the first grade classes. Yanase Sensei teaches the 2nd grade and the other 1st grade class. But here's the catch: both teachers attend ALL of the English classes, usually. They just take turns being in charge and split up the management of the classes. This makes me 3rd in command at all times. A lot of the time, it feels like there are too many English teachers in the room, but at other times, such as during a speaking drill, it's nice to have the extra pairs of eyes and ears to help the students practice. It seems like there may well be times where the best place for me would be sitting quietly at the back of the room.

Now here's the biggest reason why being Genki is hard. The dynamic between 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders (7th, 8th, and 9th graders, to us Americans) is incredibly different, and each grade has a unique kind of energy that would be most beneficial to cultivate. The 1st graders are the best. They still remember elementary school when English class was Fun! In middle school, they're still willing to play games, sing songs, move about, and actually show some enthusiasm. 2nd graders are starting to get a little too cool for that. Some of them are rather dedicated students. Some of them are disruptive, but still try to learn a little. I can sense they might play some games, but it'll take a bit of testing to know just what kind.

But the third graders, oh, they're just too cool for school. They really are on the border between middle and high school, and quite a few of them are unafraid and even proud to show that they don't care much for class. One of my third graders is a disruptive punk. Seems like the best solution is to just ignore him and fight the urge to wack him upside the head. At any rate, it will be tough to find activities that the 3rd graders will actually get into.

Middle schoolers here get recess. I'm a little jealous. But then, they also clean the school - we're talking wipe-the-floor-with-rags-on-their-hands-and-knees cleaning! I feel too awkward sitting at my desk while they clean around me, so I went to help them clean in one of the class rooms. It's kinda hard work, especially on a hot day when there's no AC.

And this brings me to my next topic. I /really/ wish I could speak more Japanese! I played soccer yesterday with a group of boys, and I couldn't understand a thing! I couldn't even ask properly who was on my team, nor could they understand me when I asked, so there were a few awkward moments between passes. I couldn't figure out how to ask if I could help them clean either. Learning is slow, even while it's fast, and I'm sorta choosing my battles between learning how to speak and learning how to read. It's just going to be a long time before I can properly function in society in Japanese. *Sigh*

Ah well. At least folks are nice. I should try to be a little more Genki in my learning of Japanese so people will help me more and I'll get more practice. Guess I better start flexing my genki-muscles. They're going to get quite a work out...