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Moving to Japan

Exciting times. I have always loved exploring new countries and when I landed in Haneda airport, Tokyo did not disappoint me. It has a very distinct character of its own and if you want to know more about this lovely country, hop on a plan and come visit!

I had been on edge ever since the class lists were assigned to us. I worried about whether the students would take to me. The first few days were crucial for building bonds. I realize now that it doesn't matter how many years one has spent teaching, we all go through the same levels of anxiety.

I have been assigned 23 lovely students. They are vibrant, vocal, and have very strong opinions. This is my first year teaching 6th grade so my work is clearly cut out for me. 

One challenge I face is  remembering names!

A great app which helped me address this (I learnt their names within a day!) was Fotobabble,  an app which allows you to take pictures of students and attach an audio component to it. I have always known of this app but never used it in this way. Do give it a try next time you have trouble remembering your students name. It helped me with pronunciation as well!

This is not much of a post. I wish I had the time to continue this blog. When time permits I will. In the meantime, miles to go before I post!

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