A night off at last

On holiday at last, hurrah!

I haven't had more than a fortnight off since 1985, so you would think I would be euphoric at the prospect of 3 whole weeks off (3500 word assignment and horrible Saturday job notwithstanding), and yet I feel strangely deflated. I was rather sad to be leaving school yesterday, as I felt very much at home there and as though I'd been there forever. I got a good send-off from my S2 class, from whom I'd recklessly asked for feedback; one good thing and one bad thing about my lessons. The 'good things' ranged from "she made the lessons fun and interesting" and, bizarrely, "she has a good sense of fashion", to "didn't have to do so much work" and "not getting into trouble". Not sure that the last two reflect particularly well on me!

I seem to have made quite a good impression on the kids anyway, if not on the tutor who came to visit me this week...probably best to draw a veil over my crit, as the results were not good. I was fairly philosophical about it until I went to Uni today and spoke to my fellow students, most of whom seem to have done an awful lot better than I did. Ah well, things can only get better.

But to return to making an impression on the kids, how should I feel about hearing myself described as "fit" by a third year boy? Offended? Indignant? Flattered? Disturbed? Hmmm...

Anyway, now that I am back in the real world, I feel I should go and purchase some Christmas cards and stamps and get on with it. Last posting date tomorrow, so no pressure.

4 days and counting...

Much as I have enjoyed my time in school, I am counting the days to Thursday, when I can come home for good. Unfortunately, I have another crit to squeeze in before then, so I can't relax just yet. It's with my hitherto nice S2s, who turned into a class of nutters at the end of this week. Their teacher has been off sick, and some of them decided to take advantage by either going a bit wild or relaxing and not doing any of the exciting creative writing tasks I had spent hours devising, and the result was that I had to send one of them out to cool off. This is the first time I have had to do this, and I amazed myself with my ability to be quite stern and serious! Who would have thought, eh?

The 'highlight' of the week was a trip to the Lyceum in Edinburgh with 90 first years to see Pinocchio, the hero of which was variously described by my colleagues as "the gayest puppet ever" and "a wet simpleton". The whole thing was seriously disturbing.

I am slightly worried by the fact that I seem to be doing less teaching as the weeks have gone on. In fact, the only class I really taught this week was the S2 class, for various reasons (solo talks, essays, NABs...), and I don't think that can be right. I should really be getting as much teaching done as possible while I am still at a nice, middle-class school, as I fear those Glasgow kids in my next placement may tear me apart!

Crits, killer heels and custard slices

Well, I survived my first crit, although I did not entirely cover myself in glory! I was marked 'satisfactory' in three out of the four headings, but am not yet there in the other one (Teaching and Learning, which sounds to me the most fundamental of the lot...). My objectives were a bit foggy and I tried to cram too much in. I realised my instructions were a bit lacking shortly after the kids had started their task, and I was rather bombarded with questions. Ah well, it's all a learning experience! On the plus side, the little monsters behaved impeccably; I suspect the class teacher had given them a severe warning while I was out of earshot, threatening dire consequences if they stepped out of line. And my tutor noted as areas of strength my rapport and - unbelievably - my 'presence'! Just need to work on the rest now...

But still on the subject of 'presence', I'm finding it a bit difficult to know what to do when faced with a particular 14 year old who is already taller than I am, who tends to get up and wander around a couple of minutes before the bell goes. I'm fairly tall (and invariably wear killer heels in an attempt to make myself taller still) but it's a bit intimidating when they are standing over you, refusing to sit down. And the thing is, this boy probably knows this, as he's fine when he is seated! I suppose it's all about confidence, and they'll exploit any weaknesses if they can.

I am hoping to get some lesson planning done today, so that I can get on with my Portfolio, which is hanging over me like a big hangy-over thing, tomorrow. The other tutor who is visiting me is very big on Portfolios, and I don't think he'll be distracted by a custard slice and a winning smile like my own tutor was this week!