To become a seeded teacher, the most important element is ” continued enthusiasm”.

Since I seldom participated in international volunteering activities, so when I first learned that DENER was looking for volunteers and seed teachers, I was curious and wanted to learn to teach, hence I joined the seed-teacher recruitment meeting.

But after the meeting, I kept thinking over and over: “Can I come to every training lesson?” “Can I apply all I learn?” “Can I design my own lesson?” ” Can I successfully become a seeded teacher? “” Can I really stand on the podium to teach children knowledge? “Many reasons to doubt myself constantly come to my mind.

Then the teachers and teammates at DENER, as well as good friends who attended with me, kept encouraging me, making me feel that I can do well. And that allowed me to have more confidence about becoming a seeded teacher.

After intensive training, I learned how to capture children’s attention, how to manage the entire class, and how to make picture books interesting.

Teaching reading is not just flipping the books. It was more important to learn how to bring the ideas to children through games and activities, so that they can be active and think for themselves.

Although I cannot design a whole new lesson by myself. I try my best to integrate and apply what I learned in the classroom to my own lesson.

It is a great improvement for me to complete a lesson with other seeded teachers and be able to give other seeded teachers some suggestions.

Plan + material +teaching system + tools + team chemistry + water = a class lesson

Before welcoming the first teaching, we just kept discussing and making up the elements of the above formula. We, the seed teachers, designed the class in a teamwork way. In theory, work should be assigned so that everyone takes part that they are good at. However, we miraculously allowed everyone to do all the work.

I think this was extremely helpful to those beginners so we can learn different things and understand how things come about. For example, like making a lesson plan was something I can’t and have never heard of before. But very fortunately, someone taught us how to complete our lesson plan.

Although I did not write my plan well at the end, but at least I learned how to do it and use it. Being a seeded teacher, one should not only be enthusiastic about teaching, but also for learning.

On July 9, the seeded teachers came to teach in Guanglong Elementary School, in the Taiping District of Taichung City. Although this was an internship and there were teachers sitting in the back of the classroom to help us when needed, I was still feeling very nervous.

I was afraid that the class plan would go wrong; I could not perfectly convey what I want to teach the children and the methods I use would not allow the children to understand.

All these pressures made my leg trembled and even had a stomachache before going on the podium. Fortunately, my partners encouraged me with her firm eyes that I should believe in myself. 

To my surprise, the children would respond to me during the class. Their actions made me more confident as the class go on, and the corner of my mouth smiled involuntarily.

This is when I realize that a student’s response is so important for the teachers. A student’s small expression or gesture will affect the teacher’s mood and attitude, and vice versa.

Soon after that, we had the “Reading into the Tea World” teaching event at Tainan Yujing Elementary School. With the last experience, I was still nervous but not so afraid anymore.

In class, I found that every kid’s learning ability is different. Teacher have to change methods and adjust the class mode so that all children can get what we want to convey.

Because during this event, all the volunteers had to be multi-tasked, it was quite demanding. Yet at the same time, “continued enthusiasm” was a way I reminded myself.

In fact, children have great observations. Maybe you care more about this child and ignore the other accidentally, they would feel it.

And why continued enthusiasm is the most important element of being a seeded teacher? It is because professional knowledge and teaching methods could be acquired through learning. But enthusiasm and the passion for teaching to the kids is the drive that keeps me going and persevere.