Autograph Signing Session

I've decided that for my community project here in Chamalgan, I will set up an autograph booth and sell my autograph for a reduced rate (500 rather than 650 tenge, 1200 for a signed portrait). Of course I'm kidding, but I and all of the other volunteers have been asked for our autographs dozens of times over the last week or two, and several times by the same children. It's often the case that they'll hand us their school journal and it will have a list of all of our autographs already on it, including our own. I hope they don't take it as rude when I point out that I've already signed it, but I think it might be a competition thing for them (I have more autographs than you!) Anyway, I thought this was interesting and funny. It was definitely pretty weird the first few times, but it's strange how quickly you get used to it.

Other news of note: The Black Eyed Peas are playing here in Almaty tonight. They are HUGE here; most of the kids (who all have cell phones) have several of their songs on their phones. It's not uncommon to walk down the street past a group of children listening to music on one of their phones. I don't quite understand how they have phones at age 9 but use a hole in the ground when they have to go to the bathroom, but it's the way it is.

Other artists that are big here that I wouldn't have expected: Michael Jackson, 50 Cent, Avril Lavigne. I guess we can't always export good American culture.

I also taught my first full lesson this week, to a class of 10th graders. It was an interesting experience to say the least. I spent several hours planning my lesson using the 10-B textbook, and when I got to my 8:00 class I was told at roughly 7:58 that this class used a different textbook. If I had had any kind of fall back plan at all, this might have been more nerve-wracking than it was, because then I would have had to implement a new lesson on the fly. But thankfully, since I didn't have anything to fall back on, I had no choice but to teach the lesson as I had planned. It ended up going okay, but it was an interesting first teaching experience.

We are also putting on a talent show with some of the children at the local school (called Gymnasia). I am working with some of the students on reciting a poem called "Five Little Elephants." It should be pretty entertaining- it is 5 eleven year old boys that all think they're pretty tough, so it's pretty funny to hear them read it. I'm hoping they don't figure out the translation for what they're reading in the next four weeks, or I may not have anyone to perform.

That's about it for this week. Next week I will teach two lessons on my own and team-teach one with a local teacher, and we will be conducting a lesson on computers with some of the English teachers. Things are busy but good. Hope all is well back in the US.