The past three weeks have been a whirlwind of experiences at work. I taught my first winter camp, which lasted for three full weeks. This was much different than teaching a regular semester. For example, we teach 3 classes a day instead of 1, and we see our students every day instead of twice or three times a week. Every day, we arrived at work at 8 a.m. and left at 7 pm..

Another New Year’s resolution of mine was to be more active, which meant getting a gym membership. So on January first, my coworker and I were almost completely alone in the gym, but fulfilling the resolutions we had made. This tangent explains the reason why, even after 11 hours at work, my coworker and I headed to the gym every day, and even on Saturday.

But even though I ate dinner at 9 p.m. every night, I was still energized each day when I got up for work. I think this was a combination of working out and teaching all day. We had two elementary classes each day, and then a middle school class finished our day. For each class, we had 3 periods that were 40 minutes each. During second period, all 5 teachers brought their students to a projector room, where we played group games. These were by far the best part of my day. The elementary students were so energetic, and they made me laugh so much.

While it was an exhausting three weeks, it definitely was fulfilling. It was nice to see the students every day, although 3 weeks felt a little too short, and it was bittersweet to say goodbye. And, this was the first time I received gifts and notes from my students and my coteachers! I even received a gift and note from a student that wasn’t even in my class! I must say, during my 5 months in Korea, I find myself getting more attached to the students here.

Thanks for reading. 읽어줘서 고마워요! Stay safe and stay happy. 행복해요!