I think a lot of teachers hate that and try to redirect by saying things like, "That's a good question but we need to focus on blah blah blah so could you ask me after I explain blah blah blah?" I don't really like doing that.
Kids get bored and their mind wanders. Everyone does it. I think kids just have lower inhibitions so they act on it. They grow out of it eventually, whether Ms. Quentlan redirects their attention or not. Plus, while some might argue that it makes others lose focus, I actually think it's a nice palette cleanser or quick mental recess break. It takes away from the monotony.
Anyways, here's some samples from the past month or so.
#1
Me (gesturing to TV): Do she 아니면 Does she have a dog? Yes, she -
1st grader boy: (In Korean) Teacher, what's your most hated country?
Me: ...does. Uh...hmmm. (In Korean) I'm not really sure. (Long pause)
Other 1st grader: (In Korean) I hate China.
Other 1st grader: (In Korean) I hate Japan.
Original 1st grader boy: (In Korean) I hate Russia because of Ukraine.
Me: (In Korean) Yeah, I think me too. Either that or North Korea. Wow, that's a hard question. (In English) Ok, next: Does she 아니면 Do she have a.....
#2
Me (opening board game box): (in English) So, who's going first? Let's spin the wheel to -
2nd grader girl: (In Korean) Teacher, how many syllables do foreigner names have?
Me: (in Korean) Uh...um, in Korean you always have 3 but -
Other 2nd grader: (In Korean) Some people have 2!
Me: (In Korean) True, but usually you guys have 3: 김 - 송 - 혜. <-(my wife's name)
Other kid: 김현지.
Me: (in Korean) Right, but in America, you can have 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 or 6 or 10...you can have whatever!
Kids collectively: (in Korean) What! That's crazy!
One kid: (in Korean)So you could have a name like 김도현미경지후라이언티쳐?!
Me: (in Korean) Yeah, totally! For example, my name is 라 - 옌 - 헬 - 멘 (my English name written in Korean (Koreans don't spell it this way but I prefer it this way)). That's 4.
Another kid: (in Korean) True, yeah, I saw your last name on our Quizlet (the app they use to study vocabulary).
Me: (in Korean) Yup, that's it. (in English) So, the first player is (spins wheel)...
#3 (This one happens a lot)
Me (gesturing to TV): (in English) Ok, next up is song time. (Pause as I open up the song list (see pic above))....
Random 3rd grade girl: (in Korean) Teacher, last week I went to my grandma's house and the cat there askfjh;as and so I sadklasdlkf;afkjla;sfd with my grandma and then the cat slkdafjhla;fsj and alsdkjhflasdfk so then I sdlkjhalsjdf salkfhlsak sahkalsk ashfdkajs asdfhlaskdj ashfkasd ashlkasdf hsas;fjas haslkjasl
Me: ::doing a mental countdown in my head to the time when I'll just cut them off automatically and continue the lesson::
Same kid: (in Korean) and so we went to the store asdlkf;jas;l sadflhl sadf hasdf ;asfhaksd sadhfklafds; sad;fhaskld
M: :: 6, 5, 4...::
S k: (in Korean) and I didn't know that the salkfj sadfjkhl; asdhasdf asdh;klasdf;lajsl;kasdfjaaslkasj;ladf
M: :: 2, 1::
S k: (in Korean) sadfkj;ladsjf asadf ;lsahjlas sad;fkljh;. (Looks at me expectantly for a reaction)
M: :: cancel mental countdown since the story is finished and strategize how exactly to react. Was it a funny story or interesting story? Random dice flip in my head foosh foosh foosh fooosh heads!::
M: Oh, wow! ::chuckle a bit just in case their story was supposed to be remotely funny:: Ok, the song is Here is the Beehive!
S k: ::smiles, happy that she shared her story::
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