In this field note, I will be interviewing a Mongolian 6th grader. He is 11 years old, lives in Ulaanbaatar, and goes to an international school here in Mongolia. He has two older siblings that are 22 and 19, and one younger brother who is 8.
It's important to remember that because I am doing the interview in English, I chose a kid whose English level is very high. Because he studies at an international school, he studies half in English, and half in Mongolian. International school kids are not always representative (a good example) of all Mongolian kids, since kids live very different lives here depending on where they live, what their parents do, and their access to resources.
As you read I encourage you all to think – what is the difference between Mongolian kids’ lives and your life?
“For breakfast, I usually eat eggs and tomatoes or sometimes normal Mongolian foods like shuultei gorol (soup with flour). Sometimes when my parents make too many buuz (Mongolian dumplings) for events or holidays (like Tsagaan Sar) then we eat the leftovers for breakfast.”
