Today I learnt that you get more exercise from carrying the croquet set up 4 staircases than actually playing the game!
We thought this may have been the world's biggest ever Hokey Cokey - but then discovered that the world record is over 7000 people, so we fell short by about 6500!
Who's the queen? I'm queen!
Ozzies finding a way to surf in the middle of a land locked country in Africa!
My quest to find a new job has begun. The forms and CVs have all been completed and now all I have to do is decide where in the world I want to go next and actually GET a job - not much then!
The choices of where to go are dizzying. Not only do I want to find a country in which I would like to live, but also try to find the right balance of salary, a school that looks welcoming, well resourced and offering opportunities for development, a social life outside of work, fun places to travel in the holidays and a good standard of living.
I'm using a specialised international teaching recruitment company that helps the process become a little easier. Each school publishes the vital statistics, such as the salary, benefits, the curriculum offered and details about the school community. I'm thinking of printing off all the forms and playing a giant game of 'International Schools Top Trumps'!
It would go something like this:
Salary: $55 000 a year beats $45 000
Flight allowance: Annual beats every 2 years
I wish I could make my mind up on where I would like to be. One minute, I think that Eastern Europe would be appealing; it's close to home, has some culture and I imagine the cost of living is still fairly reasonable. Then I remember that it would involve learning a really complicated language ... But it would be lovely to experience seasons again after 2 years in the land of eternal spring in Bogota and 3 years of the alternating 'hot and dry' and 'hot and wet' of Uganda. At the moment the 'hot and wet' is triumphing!
Then there is Asia, which with its diverse number of different cultures surely can't be lumped together as one homogenous group. The mixture of ancient and fascinating cultures and blossoming modern cities is appealing. I have yet to step foot on that continent and the prospect of travelling there is very enticing. On the other hand, I could be a little lost with the even more complicated languages with alphabets I can't even read and I would feel like a giant all the time and not be able to find any clothes to fit!
I had never considered the Middle East before, but now I wonder whether I should open myself up to the idea of living in a modern city like Dubai. I have always imagined it to be a soulless place and don't really relish the idea of having to live in air-conditioned shopping malls and cars all the time. However, after 3 years in Uganda, I wouldn't mind living somewhere where things actually work and earning a few big bucks.
Do you see why I am in such a dilemma?
Certainly the strangest thing I have ever seen is the 'Disney English School of Shanghai', where the whole curriculum is based around Disney films. I don't think I would be avery good fit for this sickly sweet approach to education, unless I was able to spend any bad tempered days in role as Cruella de Ville! If I had to teach in a themed school, I would prefer the Hogwarts International School. Lunch duties would be far more entertaining, I could turn anybody who chatters in class into a frog and fly home on my broomstick at the end of the day.
Take a look at this clip about the Disney school
Funnily enough, the percentage of British teachers at this school is a big fat zero! Oh and take a look at the 'up next' clip in the top right hand corner - a slightly disturbing juxtaposition I would say!
One of my favourite things about international teaching is the mix of children in our classes. We have practically the whole world under one roof!
At the moment, my class is learning about the Second World War. I asked the children to find out about their family histories. Unfortunately, not everybody was able to do so as the war fades out of living memory and deeper into the history books. If only I had listened a little more closely to those stories that my grandparents repeated at what seemed like every family gathering!
The stories from my class are just fascinating. One boy's great aunt was part of the French Resistance and even helped shelter Jews, escaping persecution. The same boy's grandfather was very young during the war, but remembers having to flee Rouen to the countryside to escape the heavy bombing
The most amazing coincidence is that one boy's great grandfather was in the RAF and stationed at RAF Squires Gate (now Blackpool Airport). He worked on plane maintenance - perhaps the same Wellington Bombers my Granny worked on at a site just down the road! They lived near Stanley Park and his grandad remembers meeting lots of Prisoners of War - now I always thought that Pontins was a POW camp, but perhaps I'm wrong!
There are many more stories, but it would take too long to talk about them all.
Take a look at the little movie I made for my assembly. Some of the pictures are the actual photos of the children's grandparents (and my Grandad), but I used images from the Internet where the originals couldn't be found. I'm pretty impressed that anybody old enough to have fought in the war knows how to scan and upload a photo to email - but I guess they were quite a resourceful generation!
Right now we're right in the middle of reports, so as usual, I find anything I can to distract myself. It's funny how I can churn out endless amounts of rambling on my blog, but when it come to reports I am totally uninspired.
Maybe if we could write what we're really thinking it would be more fun! Today I read the opening chapter of Matilda with a boy. Here are some of Roald Dahl's report comments:
The periodical cicada spends six years as a grub underground, and no more than six days as a free creature of sunlight and air. Your son Wilfred has spent six years in this school and we are still waiting for him to emerge from the chrysalis.
Or how about ...?
Fiona has the same glacial beauty as an iceberg, but unlike the iceberg she has absolutely nothing below the surface.
Pure brilliance from Mr Dahl, proving that the best children's writers entertain the grown ups as much as the kids.
I was trawling through the Literacy books this afternoon and came across a couple of little gems I will share with you. We have been learning about persuasive writing and discursive writing recently. Here are a couple of the kids' arguments in favour of wearing school uniform:
More Money
Getting uniform would mean teachers get paid more salary and that would make the teachers stay instead of leaving.
Really? Well all of my class are wearing full uniform - I await my bonus!
Here's the next one:
Uniforms have been used for generations by police, school children and security guards. So before you vote 'no uniform' think - policemen look cool!
Glad we've got that one straight then. I wonder whether he was talking about police in full riot gear or the crisp white uniform with matching gloves worn by the Ugandan traffic police!
It seems as though the school year has only just begun, yet already thoughts are turning to whether people will stay or move on to pastures new. Is it time to move on to a new place? Somewhere with a healthier wage packet, or is it a good idea to stay where I am quite contented, most of the time? This is the dilemma that faces International teachers every year. We are asked to make a decision on our futures by the Christmas, so that the school can go to a recruitment fair in the January. While this all makes perfect sense, it is always difficult to project your thoughts so far into the future. What if you quit your job and can’t find anything else? What if you decide to leave a place and suddenly realise you would really like to stay for longer? I know for a fact that I enjoyed my second year in Colombia immensely more than my first, yet I had to set the whole job hunting process in motion in the October of my second year. It was only as I boarded the plane to leave that I truly realised I was deeply saddened to leave. I spent my first few months in Uganda looking at my time in Colombia through rose tinted glasses. I am now entering my third year in Uganda and can hardly imagine leaving. For all the daily frustrations that I talk about, there is something that has got under my skin that I find hard to let go of. Maybe it’s the beautiful country, the year round sunshine or maybe it’s the wonderful people who brighten up your day … or maybe it’s the fact that I am a lazy little madam who likes having a maid in to do my washing or the little luxuries in life we can afford here that wouldn’t be available to us at home. It’s probably a mixture of all of them. So when I look at my options I wonder what the future has in store for me. Am I ready to go ‘home’? But what is home anymore and what sort of lifestyle can I afford to live? What do I do if I go home? For sure, we are spoiled rotten here, with our small class sizes, wonderful kids and ample free periods thanks to all the specialist lessons. I’m not sure I want to get back on the treadmill that is teaching in the UK. And what about other places? The Middle East is renowned for good schools, generous packages and a lively ex-pat lifestyle. But then I don’t think I could cope with the heat and I hate air-conditioned environments, so is that really the place for me? Then there is China, which would definitely have a rich culture, but is it too exotic and different to everything I have known before. These are tough choices and if anybody has any advice on the subject, then I am all ears …
“I know, let’s have a normal week. You know, one where we just teach our lessons all week and nothing exciting happens!” was the cry from the staffroom. Our school year is jam packed with special themed days to make the year more exciting for the kids. Barely a week goes past without something out of the ordinary happening. If we’re not rehearsing for a school production then it’s Literacy Week and if it’s not that then it’s Earth Day or something! This is all great, but it doesn’t half get the kids hyped up. Sure, we all enjoyed honing our mental mathematics skills on the worldwide online game for World Maths Day, but it was a bit disappointing for those who didn’t have internet at home. Athletics Day is great for a select few, but for many kids, it seemed to be an exhausting and disappointing day. And the less said about Invention Convention the better (OK I will say it ... I HATE Invention Convention – 2 weeks of clutter and confusion in the classroom, where the entire class are expected to invent something completely new and functional out of a bit of cardboard and cellotape. It can’t be much fun for the kids either, as they are told that ‘no, you can’t make a robot out of a shoebox and water bottles and expect it to work’, or, ‘no, you just stole that idea from the ‘Wallace and Gromit’ clip we just watched’). Anyway, I digressed. This week we had my favourite school event of the year, International Day. Yes I was a little grumpy first thing in the morning as I confiscated a Fez type hat, a Masai stick for clubbing lions, a German flag and an Indian scarf … all before 9am! However, as we gathered on the field for the Parade of Nations, my spirits lifted. Children came to school in their traditional national dress or the colours of the flag, then found other children from their country. We have representatives from all over the globe. Some nations are represented more strongly than others – while the UK, India, Uganda and perhaps South Africa stood out as the biggest groups, on small boy held up the flag for Nepal alone! Our stomachs grew bigger as the morning wore on. I was impressed that Year 4 were scheduled to go to the Asia tent first as we could get first pickings on the food! By 10am I had gorged myself on falafel, hummus, dips of curry, spring rolls, mini-pavlovas and whatever else I could lay my hands on. My hand was decorated with a henna tattoo and I tried to burn off a few of the calories with an attempt at belly dancing. So in each of the tents, we had a little ‘taste’ of the continent. In the afternoon, we sang and danced the ‘Waving Flag’ World Cup song so many times it nearly drove us mental. The kids went home happy and energetic. The day’s success could be measured in the children’s smiles!
