Tuesday, July 19, 2011

My students bring knives to school!

It is the last day of teaching for the semester!  I have three days of prep {that is, desk-warming/desk-sweating}, then some summer camp, then vacation!  I have "School is Out for the Summer" cued up, it is just on pause for the moment.

In honor of the last day of school, I thought I would share an interesting fact about South Korean students with you.  I remember being shocked the first time one of my third graders whipped out a razor blade (or box cutter or whatever you choose to call it - Koreans call it a knife) and started cutting things!
Thank you Google Images for helpin' a sista out.

Yes, my kiddos bring box cutters to school.

No, there is rarely any blood.

Koreans are great at using these!  In combination with a ruler, you can cut straight lines so fast!  And you can cut through multiple pieces of paper at the same time.  If you are going to use a ruler, I would suggest getting with a metal edge (not that I have destroyed a plastic ruler ever).

My kiddos also bring their cellphones to school.  Nope they do not use them to cheat.  Yes, I have seen 5 years olds with cellphones.

It is a different culture.  Different rules about what age is acceptable for different responsibilities.

***EDIT: sidenote: if you are going to go all Korean and use a box cutter, make sure you are cutting onto a GLASS surface.  Do you not try to use one on a desk that does not have a glass top.  No glass top = damaged desk.  Not that I know that from experience.****

Next blog post: If Koreans use knives in the classroom....guess what they use in the kitchen :)

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