Cherish The Children: Introducing Helene Uchida's Monthly Column
Cherish the Children: Introducing Helene Uchida’s Monthly Column
Part 1: Cherish the Children
Hello InTogether!
I think it is great that the InTogether team has created IN THE KNOW Journal for English teachers in Japan. I would like to share many tips and stories with you through this resource because I selfishly want to help as many English students in Japan as I can. I have discovered over the years that the best way to help students is to support their teachers.
A Little About Me
I am a former junior high and high school English teacher from Brentwood, New York. At the age of 21 I entered the classroom as a teacher and soon realized nothing I had learned in university had prepared me for that position. I had to start from zero. Those five years at Brentwood are the foundation of my teaching career; in a nut shell, the kids were my mentors. Everything I learned about teaching I learned from them.
Even though I brought that know-how with me to Japan, I soon learned that Japanese EFL learners do not learn English the way native English speakers do. So I had to start from zero again. Like in the States, my Japanese students were my mentors. By observing them, I learned what worked and what didn’t work.
As the years went by, enrollment at my school, Little America, increased with the support of my husband, wonderful teachers and a strong Japanese administrative team. In an effort to support other teachers, we opened Little America Bookstore, the first English materials mail order service in Japan. And then as a result of teachers attending our bookstore presentations, we created our NPO TEMI (Teaching English Methods Institute) Association. I have also authored several books and created teaching materials for EFL learners in Japan. I wrote a column entitled “Primary Advice” in The Japan News for 17 years and also had the pleasure of writing for David Paul’s ELT News and Snakes and Ladders.
Conclusion
In my up-coming column, Cherish the Children, I will share with you the methods and strategies I have learned over the years which have triggered English success in the classroom. It is my honor to be a catalyst in supporting you so your students can enjoy their English experiences in your classroom.
