Sorry I Can't

So I just had one of the best classes yet. This lesson with one of my 6th grade classes. and  was about saying you can't do something and giving the reason why. So, I started the class by having them make a list on the board of reasons why they wouldn't be able to go to school. The list went from, "I have a stomach ache," and, "I have a cold," to "I have malaria," "I have A.I.D.s," "I'm crazy," and "I have mad cow disease." ???


Also, it was pretty cute to hear the kids talk about their "stomatch atch," "cord," and "tootch atch," but mispronunciation is incredibly common in every class. That is probably one of the most critical reasons for having a native speaker teach...to be able to teach the difference between ruler and durer.


At the end of the class, I had the kids do an activity to practice their phone etiquette. They would throw a ball to one another around the room. When they threw the ball, they yelled Ring! Ring (or Ling! Ling!). When they caught it, they were supposed to "answer the phone," and say, "Hello, (their name) speaking."


In one case, a boy named Insoo caught the ball....and just sat there...silent...staring at the class. The class started screaming at him about what to say, and still, he sat, quiet and confused. Finally, the rather large, plump boy next to him shouted "Jaaaaaaaah!" in anger as he smashed his fists and head down on the desk in front of him. Then abruptly he sprang up, grabbed Insso's head in his hands, and yelled right in his face, "HI!!! INSOO SPEAKING!!!!!!!!" Insoo sheepishly repeated the greeting under his breath, and so ended the class.