Let's Lesson Planning!!

Each week I teach 8 homeroom classes with a Japanese English teacher. The class i teach is called "Oral Communications" and we use the textbook, "Expressways."

Each chapter focuses on some unbearable dialogue between a Western English speaker, usually an international student like Kate from Australia, and Some Japanese person like Takeshi or Kate's host-parents. Last week's lesson was about using computers and email and I really regret not finding a way to show the class some of my favorite youtube clips.

In class, we usually spend about half the period playing the dialogue on a stereo off of a CD for the students, as they have to do various activities while listening like fill-in-the-blanks or multiple choice questions about what's going on. This part is mainly led by the JTE and then i lead them in the activity i've planned for that week.

This week there are no classes until Friday (thank-you midterms!), but here is the dialogue for next week's classes:
____________________________________
Lesson 7: Doing Volunteer work
Kate: Volunteer work in Australia means doing things like reading to the blind or collecting money for starving people in poor countries

Takeshi: Of course, we do that kind of thing, too. In fact, there's an old people's home near here and some of us went there to talk and sing to the residents.

Kate: That's good. Did they enjoy it?

Takeshi: Yes, the did. Actually, I played shogi with one man and he beat me. He was very pleased.

Kate: Oh, I'm sure he was. When i leave school, I want to spend some time doing something useful in Africa.

Takeshi: Good idea. But don't you have to be able to dig wells or have other practical skills?

Kate: Of course. One thing i can do is to teach English to children. What can you do?
____________________________________

Is it just me, or is there a little air of disdain between Kate and Takeshi? "what can you do?"

Last week it was:
____________________________________
Kate: Can i ask you a favor?

Takeshi: You want to use my computer don't you.
____________________________________
I wonder where all of this unspoken tension is leading to? In Chapter 6 Takeshi of course lets Kate use is PC so she can do research for her Social Studies project, though he begrudgingly points out that he was in the middle of doing the same thing. (Grammar point: "I was going to do the same thing!"... students have a hard time with that). At the end, kate muses about her need to buy a floppy disk, to which Takeshi replies tinge of sarcastic disdain...

Takeshi: Don't bother. I've got lots. Do you want me to print out hard copies of your research too?