When I first arrived in Korea in 1999, I had quite a bit of success discussing childhood experiences that require students to use a variety of past verb tenses. One of my favorite "gold nuggets" that was always a sure winner to elicit responses and create a jovial mood of collective harmony with my students was to pose the question "have you ever chased the mosquito truck?". After trying to figure out what I was asking them (because they didn't usually understand the verb 'chase'), my students always laughed and said "yes, I have".
Almost 8 years later, I find myself bombing on this question with students less than 30 years old. It seems times have changed. Students by and large don't share those childhood (neighborhood) experiences anymore (or they share fewer ones). It's rare that I find students under 30 who haven't spent every waking moment of their freedom in Hag Wons or at PC rooms.
What I would like to ask the other experienced teachers in our class is: What common childhood experiences, games or interests (that we can discuss in class) do the youngsters share nowadays? Do they share anything outside of school, Hag Wons or PC rooms? I'm sure they do, but I'm having some difficulty locating a new "gold nugget" that will be a sure thing in my conversation classes. The mere mention of "sashimi" with combined stabbing motion is still a sure thing (thank goodness). I look forward to hearing your suggestions.
9 comments:
To answer your question, Yes~ ^^ I have chased the truck many times and it was fun. Of course it happened when I was little. Strangly, I found it interesting to chase the truck with my friends.
I think it was fun because I was with my friends.
I am old enough to share the experience. Your writing reminds me of my happy childhood. Back then, we didn't have much things to enjoy ourselves.Chasing the truck was a danger, but my friends and I were in big smoke, ignoring adults' warning. Sometimes we went too far, got lost and had some difficulty coming back home.
Today children are too busy. I feel sorry for them. We should make progress in education system so that students spend their time to devote themselves to make their dreams come true and enjoy their time.
I accidently posted a comment without writing anything, so I erased it. ^^
I have vivid memory of chasing the truck, too. ^^ I guess there were not many things to attract our attention back then, that's why we were so excited about the mosquito truck..
Now, almost every kid plays computer games or study most of the time. I wonder "are they really children?" Children should take time to play OUTSIDE!!
I am sorry today's situation.
Of course I chased the mosquito truck enjoying fogginess. I even loved that smell. The mosquito truck is not a just old pleasant memory. It still exists. I saw mosquito bike last year. The scale was reduced but the power was enormous...^^
To me, I also had the same experience like chasing the mosquito truck. At that time, it was really great chance to get together with friends who live near house. Also, I like the smell coming from the truck.
I chased a mosquito trucks when i was little 1950's60's. I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2005. does this ring a bell with anyone else?
I was born in 1989 and the Mosquito truck just went by my house a few minutes ago here in Florida, US. I never rode behind that truck because I thought it was dangerous to breathe that junk in. I've never seen people riding behind it happy to do so. Riding around breathing in pesticide is not my idea of fun, haha
Its strange though, I feel like you do. It seems kids these days only spend their lives indoors and playing video games or wasting away in front of some blasted TV/computer/iPod, etc. The only times kids ride their bike is seemingly to go to the their friends house and play their video games, haha
The good ol' days for me included all the kids of the neighborhood playing outside until night, riding bikes, throwing clods of dirt and acorns at each other in concrete pipes before they were put underground for sewage, manhunt, building forts out of anything we can find, etc. I miss those times because so many kids just left or didn't bother anymore. I almost never hesitate to blame video games and school. How can you say people my age spend their time wasting away playing video games and I turn around and say the exact same thing of people who are kids now..? I've a feeling that every generation feels like this to an extent of the new generation, looking at them in disappointment.
I would absolutely love it if suddenly all these kids and teenagers lost their video games, computers, and phones forever and everyone had simpler and more human lives such as y'all did. This stuff to make our lives easier and "better" is just fattening us and wasting our lives. This is America in particular as seemingly so many here are fat.
Of course those who were adults when you were kids probably thought lowly of you too, huh.
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