How to Teach Melting Pot to a non American

My 12 year olds vocab word was melting pot. This word is really weird to explain to someone living in a homogenous culture.

Me: So you know how America has lots of different people? Black, white asian? We all mix together to be one American culture. Like me for instance, even though I look Korean I have more in common with a white American than I do a Korean Korean right?

12 year old: confused look

Me: OK well have you ever eaten cheese fondue? You mix all different kinds of cheeses into a pot, you melt it? Pot, nembi you know? The cheese becomes one.

12 yr old: Chocolate fondue at Baskins Robbins!! (The korean BR here sells chocolate fondue pots)

Me: Yeah so like chocolate fondue, the people in America are all different kinds of chocolates and we melt to become one delicious superdip.

This actually worked, she got it.

Priss

So my 12 year old is really bad at flying airplanes. She vomits in the bathroom for the whole duration of a flight. This happens on every flight she goes on.

She says to me: "If I don't fly first or business class I die!"

She learns quickly

So one of the vocab words yesterday was macho. My 12 year old learns quickly.

"Macho means the way a man acts when he is very manly. When a guy sort of walks with his chest out and doesn't act girly at all. That is a macho man, can you use it in a sentence?"

"Jo Kwon is not macho at all."

Amazing.

Quotes from 12 Year Old

Today:
"What did you learn in science today?
"Nothing, we had a new girl in class so the teacher was off the hook."
"What? Do you know what that means?"
"She was very busy?"
"No."

Yesterday:
"So this girl in our clique was being a bitch"
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY? That is a very bad word JY Lee"
"Doesn't it mean brat?"
"No."

Comes in wearing pink Uggs
"Look at me I'm a fashionister"

Similes

I had my 12 year old write up similes.

Here are some samples:

The souffle was as light as an ostrich feather.

Lia's face is dark like the night sky.

What am I a robin?!

So we have a stricter tutoring schedule for my 12 year old and she now has to stay until 9:30 every night and do extra vocab/writing exercises on top of her homework.

She says to me, "What am I? A robin?!"

"What? No, you are not a bird."

"You know those metal things that are machines."

"You mean, are you a robot?"

Date Night with my 12 Year old

My 12 year old had a homework assignment to try a cuisine that is new and foreign to her. I wondered what kind of bs homework assignment is that. She goes to some bourgeoisie international school.

Lucky me, I got paid hourly for her to buy me a Greek dinner.

We went to Santorini's in Itaewon which is the the most famous (possibly the only) Greek restaurant in Seoul. Indian food is very good and popular here but Greek not so much.

Neither one of us were that impressed by Santorini's. She said she liked Indian food better, I agree. I think Indian food is more palatable to Koreans because we love curry already and also it is spicy like our cuisine.

I made fun of her because she does the Korean girl face pose in every picture. I have about 5 other pictures where she looks exactly like this:

Mousaka:

Gyro Platter:

Spinach Pie:

She is taller than me, and she has a better bag than me. Her bag is Miu Miu and she is....12.

I admit, I started doing the same face as her after awhile:

Osama Bin Laden Lesson

So my 12 year old didn't know the difference between the Empire State building and the WTC. So we got into it.

Me: But the WTC isn't there anymore because some terrorists flew planes into them and they fell down.

J: Who would do that?

Me: Well, OBL organized it because he leads this group called Al Qaeda which is a terrorist organization

J: Did they catch him yet?

Me: Nope, actually if you help the FBI catch him you get $25 million dollars

J: How much is that?

Me: That's 250 Bentleys (Bentley is her favorite car so I have to explain that way)

J: 250 Bentleys?! I am going to catch him!!!

Me: mmm don't think you will

J: Why not?

Me: I don't think your mom will let you go to Afghanistan or Pakistan to go look for him

J: Maybe he's in Seoul

Me: Uh, pretty sure he's not in Seoul

J: Maybe I'll be in Galleria and he'll be shopping

Me: I don't think you'll see him in Galleria shopping

J: Why not?

Me: Because he doesn't need a Louis Vuitton wallet

J: Why?

Me: He doesn't care about labels and things like that.

J: Oh my god, what's wrong with him?!

I. love. her.

My 12 Year Old

Sees my ipod. "I had your IPod.........in 2nd grade"

Ugh, little girls are the worst!

The Outsiders

I am teaching my 12 year old The Outsiders by S.E Hinton and there is some colorful language in there that I have to explain to her.

At the end of the class she says to me, "Listen to me for pete's sake, you broad. I am going to get boozed up." Oh boy.

Teacher, did you pray?

12 year old: Teacher, did you pray last night like I told you to?
Me: yup (lied)
12 year old: What did you pray for?
Me: You, of course. What did you pray for?
12 year old: I prayed that you would lose your tan

Koreans hate tans here for those who do not know.

My 12 year old student on my haircut

Teacher, you look like a Japanese person from 2008.

Burnnnnn