All around the world within the classroom

"Hi, my name is Dana. I want to go to Egypt. I want to see the pyramids. Thank you."

This is what I've been telling the elementary students at Mugyo each Thursday when I assist their class.

I love how they all wear name tags for my benefit! I also love Haruka's cheesy smile in the picture. :)

According to the lesson plan that the teacher made, I also tell them that I want to:

1. Go to Italy to eat pizza, pasta and see the Leaning Tower of Piza.
2. Go to America to eat a cheeseburger, play baseball and see the Statue of Liberty.
3. Go to Japan to eat sushi and watch sumo wresting.
4. Go to Canada to see a polar bear and go skiing.
5. Go to India to eat curry and see the Taj Mahal.
6. Go to China to eat gyoza and see a panda bear.
7. Go to Tanzania to see Mt. Kilimanjaro and a lion.
8. Go to Australia to eat lobster and see a koala.

This sounds like a pretty good to-do list to me! I could totally eat my way around the world, and see some famous sites plus a few animals while I'm at it. :)

Actually, I'm already on my way since I can check the first three off the list! Plus, I've been to Canada. (Although I didn't go skiing there or see a polar bear. Next time...) But my real-life list of places I want to go to/food I want to eat/things I want to see is MUCH longer than this!!

It's so fascinating to experience other cultures. I also think it's fun to learn about different countries in a classroom setting. (not as fun as actually traveling though!) So I've had a good time teaching about places in the world for the last few Thursdays in a row.

Each time, we've played a game where the students have to match pictures with the corresponding country...

Notice how baseball, cheeseburgers and the Statue of Liberty represent America. Hmm.

I teach the students how to pronounce all of these things in English. "No, it's not Leaning Tower of Pizza. Let's practice again: Piza." Gets 'em every time.

I'm a fan of this lesson because the students are not only learning new English words, but they're also learning more about different countries. I really hope that they're inspired (as I am) to learn even more about the world and do some traveling for themselves.

I also hope that one day I'll be able to say, "Hi, my name is Dana. I've been to Egypt, and I saw the pyramids. Thank you."