The China Teaching Web

Let’s face it. Teaching can be really boring sometimes. Even if you have a great group, certain topics can really bring the interest level down to almost zero. Such was the case this afternoon when I was discussing “shopping” with a group of students. Shopping is enjoyable enough but who wants to discuss it for an hour? Using a diagram, I had to show my students the names of every possible part of a store. These terms ranged from “turnstile” to “bakery” and I could tell that no one was too thrilled with the subject matter. I tried to make it as interesting as possible adding my own personal anecdotes about shopping but to no avail. And time seemed to slow down as we moved along. It seemed like it had been hours when I finally looked at my watch and said “alright, see you later!” I think I breathed a sigh of relief.

Later, I had a chance to talk about “Space Programs” with my students. Now there’s a topic I actually have an interest in. If I’m interested in it I can make my students interested in it. The time flew by in that class. We were still in the middle of a great discussion when I had to dismiss the class.

 The point is, there are some classes where a teacher just isn’t going to feel very much enthusiasm. That was me today, when I was talking about shopping. But I still had to do it because I know that terms related to shopping are a very important part of the English Vocabulary. I don’t want it to be my fault if my students go to America one day and can’t ask where something is in a store. We pushed through the lesson and in the end, I think they got it. And just in time too because the boredom was gnawing on me like a rabbit on a carrot.