I’m wearing lipstick and a lacey dress today and my high school students are bowing to me automatically and saying, “Beautiful” and, “We love you, Meri.” When I was a kid, I remember being prejudiced against women who dressed casually. Maybe it was just my interest in art and wanting something interesting to look at that made me snub women in jeans and gravitate toward women in pretty dresses. It’s interesting how kids pick up on these cultural pressures and form judgments at such a young age. When I worked as a mentor for middle-school kids in Portland, my mentoring sessions always went a lot more smoothly if I had put some thought into my outfit. It’s taken me a while, but I think I finally get it. I must adhere to societal demands and try to look nice.
But there is one place in Korea where kids have not been affected by these beauty standards. At the orphanage where I volunteer, kids are glad to see me, and if I'm wearing jeans and a T-shirt, that's just fine with them. They're happy just to be shown kindness and when my high school students made an alphabet book for them, they were over the moon.
I had given my high school students adjectives for every letter of the alphabet and had them think of a corresponding noun and draw a picture. The book might be a little advanced for kindergarteners, but they had fun looking at the pictures and learning some new words.
Next I'll show them a kids' book written and illustrated by me. :)
"Masterpiece" is a word rarely applied to even the most talented person's work. But with Brian Selznick, every piece of paper this man touches turns into a masterpiece. I was blown away by his picture book "Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride." Don't let the weak title fool you. It's actually a thought-provoking, original view of history, based on the true story of a plane ride Amelia Earhart and Eleanor Roosevelt took over Washington DC at a time when few women were allowed to drive cars. "The Houdini Box" is another great read. These books show kids that history is infinitely fascinating.
Brian Selznick travels around the world to do research for his books and to capture scenes for his illustrations. He takes his own interests in silent films, historical figures and French cinema and applies these topics to children's books so passionately that kids can't help but catch his enthusiasm for his interests. His books are never condescending, and from what I've read, truly deserving of the word masterpiece.
His new book "Wonderstruck" is an illustrated novel. It is about two children, living at different times, who follow their destinies to the Natural History Museum where their stories collide. I'm not sure how that's going to play out, but I can't wait to read it.
Brian Selznick was interviewed on Morning Edition. You can listen to the story and read an excerpt of his new book.
Today I brought joy to a class of 16-year-olds and a group of 5-year-olds. And I just brought joy to myself by listening to awesome Mongolian music, eating cookies and drinking milk. Yup, I know how to have a good time.
With my high school students, I played a game I call "Musical Jenga." For this game, I play music and the students pass around a bag of candy. Then I stop the music and whoever is holding the bag has to remove a block from the Jenga tower at the front of the class and answer a question written on the block. If they can answer the question in a complete sentence, they get a piece of candy. The game resumes until the tower falls or we run out of candy. The song I played today was Taylor Swift’s "You Belong with Me.” Taylor Swift mania ensued. Even the boys looked thrilled, bouncing in their seats and clapping when Taylor Swift kissed the boy at the end. At the students' request, I played the song three times and the euphoria stayed fixed on their faces. I guess I can't take credit for this outbreak of unbridled joy. It was all Taylor Swift and I have to admit, it's a catchy song.
The 5-year-olds were bouncing off the walls this evening when I went to volunteer at an orphanage. All I had to do to win them over was draw animals on the whiteboard. The kids went wild with each new animal I drew. The other teacher and I accomplished a lot in an hour. We taught the kids animal names and body parts and played Bingo and Simon Says. My co-volunteer, who speaks Korean, told me kids were asking about me, "Why aren’t her eyes brown?" and saying, "Meri's hair looks different." Many of these kids came straight from the baby orphanage a couple weeks ago to this new orphanage, so I might be the first non-Korean person they've ever seen. It’s only my first day and I absolutely love these kids already.
About a year ago, I had this awesome dream. Every dream I have about being another animal is awesome. In the dream, I was a sheep whose mission was to travel the world, bringing joy to children. The way these 5-year-olds gathered around me to stare into my eyes and gape at my odd appearance today, I might as well have been a sheep. So I kind of feel like this dream came true.
I write and draw and teach English to high school students in South Korea. I have worked as a mentor for middle school kids and as a kindergarten teacher at an orphanage. My writing and artwork have been published in Voicecatcher and Out of Place, a literary magazine in Seoul.
