Kids are ridiculously hilarious

This school year, I’ve been given some additional responsibilities at work. A stack of completed worksheets is carefully tucked into my middle drawer; I have the task of correcting all of ‘em. This may seem like a mundane assignment; but I actually enjoy whipping out my Lilo & Stitch stamp and inkpad for such occasions.

My students’ homework often brings a smile to my face. Why? The second-graders’ compositions are giving me a quick glimpse into their daily lives. Their personal reflections are definitely shaped by their surroundings. A lot of my kids have written how their weekends were consumed by planting rice with their parents or grandparents. Others have said they spend hours upon hours doing their club activities, followed by a session at cram school after dinner. And many of them talk about hanging out at the nearby mall, where they enjoy eating cheeseburger "sets" from McDonald's.

Here are a couple excerpts:

“We practiced baseball in the morning. It was very hard. I studied Japanese and social studies. And I played a game in the afternoon. I went to private school after dimer. I learned English. I was very tired.”

“I played on TV games for two hours. ‘My the summer vacation’ and watched TV ‘A SpongeBobu.’ I was very happy.”

“I returned home after school. And I went to hospital by bike. I got oneself examined. The doctor made a careful examination of my a finger. I went to a pharmacy after that. And I bought a lipcream. In all, it took one hour. I was very tired.” (Poor girl!!)

Kids also tell me some of the funniest things:
“I’ll see you, baby!” – one of my elementary school kiddos bidding me adieu. I told him he watches way too many movies.

“HERRO!” – I’ve started teaching phonics to the kiddos, but they still can’t differentiate between “r” (ra ra ra racket) and “l” (la la la lion).

"Gemma-sensei, are you a mother?" - one of my elementary school kiddos.