it's amazing how different kids are.
i had two classes this morning with terminale students who study half the time here, half the time at the music and dance conservatory. there were only 12 students in the class, so i took half for the first hour, half for the second hour. man, i lit the classroom on fire. i had their attention, made them laugh, engaged them in conversation, talked about interesting things, etc. in turn, they helped each other with their english, asked me questions, etc. both classes were so cool and i had some fun and felt like i got thru some heads.
so i was feeling pretty cocky when i walked into another terminale class today. i met the first half of this particular class last week and it went well, so i assumed this class would go well, too.
i'm such an idiot. for the first two classes today, i had a paper with two paragraphs prepared in case the conversation went sideways, but the classes went so well that i didn't have to use it. so for this third class, when i gave them the option of either talking about american life or reading the paper, obviously they didn't choose the paper, and i thought i could swing it by talking to them about anything. boy, was i wrong.
about 4 girls in the class seemed to care about talking and the other four people (2 girls and 2 guys) didn't give a shit whatsoever. their english is pretty good but mostly they just talked to themselves and didn't really participate or stay quiet when the other kids were attempting to talk.
bottom line: i should have reined the class in a little better. it's important to me to have a good rapport, be liked and have fun, yes, but it's also important to me to engage the class in conversation to get them practicing their english. after the first two classes this morning, i'd forgotten that kids are kids and mostly just want to goof off and not pay attention if they don't have to.
i think i may meet with them again in a couple of weeks and will be better prepared. if they are still disruptive and talking among themselves, i'll say something to the professor. it's a waste of my time and a waste of time for the other students who actually care. it sucks when i have have kids in class who'd rather eat glass than speak english.
mostly i'm just annoyed at myself. i got too cocky. oy.