Pen Pricks

Okay, so I have completely given up on the activities that have been assigned for my BAP class. We're no longer doing trust falls, or writing raps about the environment, or whatever. It's a waste of time.

Unfortunately, to take this stance meant that I had to find replacement assignments. The trick was to find something that kept my kids' interests, but I didn't have me working my arse off to get them to do it. Plus, if it didn't work well, then... at least I didn't work my arse off.

Seeing that I had a friend teaching ESL over in Japan, I decided to hit her up for some sort of pen pal program. That way our BAP time consists of sitting in desks and either reading or writing letters. Lord knows, they need more reading and writing. Plus, the Japanese kids get to learn English and both classes are exposed to new cultures.

Sadly, "exposure" from my students resembles more the actions of a flasher than, say, walking through a Norman Rockwell exhibit.

Check out the low-lights of the initial letters that the kids wanted to send (I'm no fool. I ask them to share, and then I ask for a school appropriate version.).

"Do you drive cars?"

Uh, Honda, Mitsubishi, Toyota...

"D-O Y-O-U N-O W-H-A-T I A-M S-A-Y-I-N-G"

Let's hope not.

"If I include 20 bucks, will you send me some Japanese weed?"

They're pen pals not state pen pals.

"Suck on my egg foo yung, ya Commies!"

They're Japanese. Please keep all hatred to its appropriate nationality.

"I don't know karate, but I do know crazy."

This one I'm okay with. I mean it is James Brown.

I've got a long way to go before getting them to write drafts that won't result in an international incident. Wish me luck.