Finally worked out how to put photos on !

WEEK FOUR

Monday morning up early and feeling pretty good about my Lesson Plan for  3A, which will be a dry run for   the Observed lesson, but first a lesson on Irregular verbs.  I had a game involving a crossword  (note to self  - check they all actually understand the words  Across and Down).    You have to think ahead and order photocopies if you want them for the whole class, and I thought that they could do this exercise by table,  as teams, but   children were soon leaving their tables to check answers and it became generally noisy and chaotic, but not in a bad way, and I think they enjoyed themselves.  We played  my fall back game  Listen at the end, and they finally got to 20 and there was a big round of applause, but Natti was laughing because they had cheated by just giving the numbers they had in the order of the Register !

Then   3 ESO when I was  lucky enough to have a dry run at  my Lesson Plan for  the Observed Lesson tomorrow  .  _  Disaster  - it did not work.  So I am back to the drawing board, when I have already submitted my plan.  My sixth form lesson also did not go to plan.  I was expecting to have another conversation class with a small group, but   Graciela asked me to speak to the whole group  about any topic and they would then write an account of it.  As this was the “science” strand of the sixth form, I decided to talk to them about   science in the theatre  -  Marilyn  Monroe meeting Einstein to explain the theory of relativity  in the play  Insignificance by Terry Johnson.  It soon became clear that  this was not the right level for most of them  (although one girl did say she understood the theory of relativity   -  joining the dozen others in the world who do !).  So I soon turned to giving them an account of my  tourist activities while I have been here.  It is constantly an issue  trying to find the correct level with classes that I have never taught before,  so there is often a period of re-adjustment .

The Primary lesson in the afternoon continued to be a challenge.  One thing I do know is that teaching Primary levels is not for me!  I suppose it is a good idea to discover this before I go to a foreign school for any period .

By the end of the day I was completely depressed, and not feeling in any way primed for the Observed Lesson.  Yet strangely the next morning went really well I repeated the  Crossword class with another group, this time with copies for everybody so that they could work in pairs,  checked they knew the vocabulary , and it all went very smoothly with good monitoring !  The next lesson on  Passive Voice also went well, and by the time I did my Observed lesson, I was on a roll, well sort of.  I had prepared extra materials for them to use, and so was able to get them doing some exercises in class.  They all liked the Listening Game  (even Reea and Andrea looked as if they enjoyed it) and wanted to do it again at the end .  Any resemblance to the original Lesson Plan was limited !

Feeling reasonably good about the day so far, I then had a three hour gap to my last two lessons with Primary, which sadly knocked the shine off the day .

Only one more Primary class to go !  Got a  message from one of my teacher students that he had hurt his arm and would not be able to make his conversation lesson on Thursday !

WEDNESDAY

            This is normally my easiest day because  I have had either writing or reading classes with  2A and 2B,  but today   I had to go over the marking that I had done last week, and highlight common mistakes, such as use of  prepositions and when holiday is used in the singular or the plural   (I don´t think even Cliff Richards knows).  So both classes were more challenging than usual .  I had also foolishly forgotten the request for name signs  as it had not really been necessary in previous lessons, and soon realized how important they are in making a connection with the class.  Vague pointing does not make a student feel special.

The sixth form this time  wanted a class on relative clauses.  I had read up on it and a colleague lent me a lesson plan she had used for the same issue, but   I still feel inhibited from playing games with young people that age  (although my colleagues assure me that 17 year olds love games and stickers as much as the younger ones !).  we were soon launched into the complexities of  defining and non-defining clauses, and when best to use “that”, but in the end the teacher had to explain one point to me and I was  probably the student who learned most about this area.  Finally we spoke about La Manada again, and the whole class was as passionate about it as  a couple of weeks before.   When they have something they want to say, they really do speak in English.

THURSDAY

So my last day of secondary school: and my first class was cancelled because they had an exam.  I took the opportunity to walk down to the Museu Faller and got my own individual English speaking guide for a 40 minute tour of the exhibition which was fascinating.  Models of some of the huge polystyrene figures that are like Spitting Image caricatures of local politicians and businessmen who have incurred the wrath  of the local barrios for  general shenanigans and corruption.  All of them   (about 40) are burnt at the end of the three day celebration in March, except one which is preserved each year,  and masses of work go into them, as well as the costumes that are worn during the festival.  It would be lovely to come back for that.  Then back to school for my final lesson  with the troubled PMAR class, their behavioural attributes which had got them there  a bit more evident this time.  Still we played games, did some actual written work and it was not too bad a class to finish on, although I did not get that spark that had been occasionally achieved of actually interesting them.

A last night in the flat making a sort of stew out of everything that was left in the cupboard, pretty inedible, but we concluded the evening with some riotous dancing : salsa, Tango, and whatever it is that I do !

FRIDAY

            My last lesson with the Primary class, but first got to see how it is really done by Mamen.   Then mainly games for the last lesson, with nothing especial to learn finishing with a game of hangman, and disposal of some of my remaining stickers (of superheroes).   A quick coffee and goodbye with Mamen and then back to the secondary school  to hand out small boxes of chocs and cards to my teachers and receive a card myself.  Empanadillas for the staff room were also much appreciated and a number of photos taken.  I have at least finally got the names of the teachers in my head,  if not most of the 350 or more  different pupils that I taught over the four weeks  sometimes only twice, due to exams and holidays.   Not surprisingly, the names that have stuck tended to be the naughtier ones, who needed more attention!  And those in the smaller classes of behaviourally challenged children.

 I have however tasted  the two top levels of Primary  (aged 10-12), and five levels of secondary school  (12-17 -  not final year Baccalaureat), so I certainly cannot complain about lack of variety.    I have also taught  first classes of the day, classes before break and after and before lunch in secondary, and at the end of the day in Primary, which  timing,  I am reliably informed, makes a considerable difference to the way the class reacts.  Certainly the  first class of the day, starting with a prayer, always seemed the  quietest.  They had still not woken up.   Generally they were all reasonably behaved and more loquacious than mischievous in intent.   Only on the penultimate day did I actually have to put a child in the corner  (!) to get her  away from her friends.

I had my  last conversation class with Pepe  - amazed to learn that Josephs are often called Pepe because Joseph was the Padre Putativo of Jesus!, when he very kindly bought me on book of Neruda’s Memoirs, which I must now learn Spanish properly to read. 

As always happens, I suppose,  I was finally beginning to feel at home in Gandia and more relaxed.  So I leave it and all the people at the school with real regret, feeling that only in the last week  was I beginning to get the hang of it all.  It has been a challenging and rewarding experience, and  I do now feel considerably more confident about the whole idea of teaching and really appreciate the training I had at both International House and with UKLC at Chester, and of course the inspiration and support from the teachers at Escolopia:  Graciela, Raquel, Mamen, Gema, and especially my liaison teacher Natividad.    One last night of Tapas in Valencia, kindly courtesy of SCOLA or UKLC, and sharing a room with Dave in the Convent Hostel in Moncado, and then it is up early for the plane home.  Andrea is helpful as always, and I am grateful to all the help both Andreas, and Alicia have given to me over the four weeks as well as Amy of course back home, reminding that she has already sent me an e-mail containing answers to any question I usually ask.  It will be hard too to say goodbye to my fellow Gandia Groovers, with whom I have shared the trials and tribulations and successes of teaching as well as an enormous amount of chicken  and old rock songs.

  Thanks to UKLC and the Erasmus Project for this experience, which I hope will enable me to be a much better teacher in the future !

Moncada Meanderings

Saturday:

We finally manged to get to down to Albufera today taking the No25 bus from opposite the Palau de la Musica. Unfortunately this No 25 bus did not go into El Palmar, going past the turning before we realised it. When we arrived in El Perellonet the bus driver realised that we and two other groups had wanted to go to El Palmar so he made sure that we got off at the correct stop on the main road. However, this still left us with a 3.5km walk along a road with no footpaths and only a narrow verge. Thus, on arrival we had an appetite which we duly filled with some Paella de Marisco before taking a trip out on the lagoon. The trip was very nice and tranquil with good views across the lagoon and of some of the wildlife.

After making a successful bus journey back from El Palmar to downtown Valencia we ventured into the Jardins Del Turia to look at the Andalucian festival. There were many women in traditional dress, some very beautiful, dancing in the many marquees and some were performing on stage for a competition presumably as there were hundreds of spectators. Amongst all of this there plenty of food and drink on sale and I tried mojitos for the first time. It was delicious, so I had another. My companion had a cocktail which had extremely large measures of alcohol in it and was slightly inebriated from just the one drink!

The fact that we were slightly inebriated does not explain why we caught the wrong metro at Angel Guimera and ended up on the line to Paterna and not Moncada. Apparently it was my fault! Fortunately it was still early enough to get the correct metro back to Empalme and then home.

Sunday:

Our final free day was spent down in the city centre having a mooch around the shops near the Plaza Redonda, the round square as the locals call it, and then to the flea market outside the Central Market – no fleas being sold, obviously. After slowly meandering round the old town we ended up back at the Jardins Del Turia and decided to head back to Andalucian festival for another mojito for me and fried cuttlefish for my companion. By early evening we were both feeling a little jaded from our travels and head back to prepare for work the following day. So ended our last free day in Valencia.

Monday:

Monday is the busiest day on my timetable with five classes that I am either teaching or assisting another teacher in. This was followed by another reinforcement lesson with two of the teachers to allow them to practice their English conversational skills which we did for 90 mins.

Tuesday:

Similar to the day before but with only four classes and another reinforcement lesson after school with two more of the teaching staff.

Wednesday:

My easiest day of the week with only two lessons so I’m free by lunchtime. The 4^th year primary class had finished their coursebook so today we played Word Bingo. Trying to get them to do the most simplest of instructions such as drawing a nine box grid (3 x 3 squares) and infilling the squares with a word from a vocabulary group (animals, fruit, numbers 1-20) took ten minutes each time. So, we only played three games. But it was great fun nonetheless.

Thursday:

A busy day with only three classes as the 4^th year primary class had a sports day with the other classes of the age group in the Moncada area. In the afternoon I had another visit down to the Kindergarten and Lower Primary where I had them singing “Old MacDonald Had a Farm”, or rather I sang and they made the corresponding noises and actions, followed by “If You’re Happy and You Know It …” finishing with last week’s favourite “Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes”. They were a little bit hot and bothered to be fair but they were as charming as last week.

Friday:

My last day here at the Collegio de San Jose in Moncada L with only two classes. Today I had my observed lesson by one of the staff from UKLC which went well. The audio player didn’t want to work at first so I resorted to the written text in the back of the Teacher’s Book whilst my able assistant (Maribel) fought with the audio player which we then duly played. The students in ESO1 were on their best behaviour for me today, not that they needed to be, as all of the students here at the Collegio de San Jose have been a joy to teach. I thank that the presence of Reea from UKLC who was observing me made them all very shy and quiet which is most unusual.

The school's Director, Jorge, presented me with a certificate and pen and keyring with the school's logo on them as a thank you for all the hard work that i have done these last four weeks. I was quite moved and my eyes did mist up a little - or was it the chalkdust in my eyes?

I am going to miss the students and the staff that have made my time here both enjoyable and enlightening as I have learnt many things from both watching and assisting the teachers here and from teaching the students, being able to put in to practice everything that I have been taught on my CELTA course (thank you Darren and Michael at IH London).

Tomorrow we all fly home. If I could pick up my house with all of my possessions in it and place it here in the Valencia area I honestly think I would. As Arnold Schwarzenegger said, “I’ll be back!”

A Tale of Two Cities

As most of my teaching has been with older students and adults, and my typical school day runs from 3-8 pm, I've had plenty of time to discover A Coruña. Most mornings, I've taken the bus into town and visited one of the many - and I mean many - museums, casas museos and art galleries. Often, I've been the only person there, apart from the staff. At the Casa des Ciencas, I amused the cleaner by running round all the interactive exhibits, pushing and pulling levers like a four year-old.

I've discovered that A Coruña was originally two cities: the old town, where the nobles and wealthy bourgeoisie lived behind the medieval walls, and the Pescadería, where the fishermen and traders tried to eke out a living. I like the fact that Maria Pita, the city’s heroine, had humble origins, but gradually rose socially by marrying four times, each husband being a little higher in the social hierarchy.  

Nowadays, the 'two cities' take a different form. About twice a week, the cruise ships dock in A Coruña's busy port, the huge edifices dwarfing the harbour front. They offload a small city-full of tourists into the old town, more than doubling the local inhabitants in one go. Dressed hopefully in summer clothes, while the locals are still muffled in scarves and winter coats, the visitors are immediately recognisable as they crowd the old town and local bars.

Cruise ship in A Coruña harbour

Today's visit had an unexpectedly feminist theme. Near the Obelisco, I noticed a demonstration gathering: mainly young women carrying banners, with slogans such as, 'No es no' (no means no), 'Mi ropa, mi vida' (my clothes, my life). As it hadn't started, I walked on to the old town, to the casa museo of Emilia Pardo Bazan, a 19th century novelist, who was a strong supporter of women's rights and education. Finally, I found the beautifully restored casa museo of Maria Pita, who defended the city against Francis Drake in 1589.

On the bus back to school were three girls from one of my 4th year classes. They told me that they'd just been part of the demonstration I'd seen earlier, which was against the acquittal of the so-called 'Manada' (wolf-pack), five men who were accused of raping a young woman during the Pamplona bull-running. The girls were in their school uniforms and had skipped class to take part. We got into a lively conversation about feminism which lasted the whole journey back. Their commitment and enthusiasm were really heart-warming.

Demonstration against the Manada verdict

Now the weather is warming up here, it will quite a wrench to leave. Liceo la Paz has been a great place to teach, my colleagues have been good company, and there are still many new places to discover in A Coruña.

The final countdown……………..

As I start my 4^th and last week here at School in Gandia, I am amazed at how different I feel about this now.  Whilst lesson plans are still a time-consuming and onerous activity, and teaching the class is still scary, I am much better both activities, and of course, I know the children now which makes it all so much better.  It is a particularly good feeling when the children ask when you will be doing their next lesson.  I’m sure games, fun and stickers have all contributed towards this! 

The children are often noisy and enthusiastic, generally I’ve managed to keep control of the classes and they have all participated in the activities I had planned.  There have been lessons where I could have done better, sometimes the activities were too hard or too easy, but I’ve learnt from those.  It’s a challenging experience and definitely has provided me with much needed practical experience in being in front of a class, without this experience I don’t think I’d have enough confidence or ability to go straight into the teaching world.

Living in a shared flat with 3 others is great fun, and the comradery has helped us all though those days when we can’t imagine why we ever thought this was a good idea. 

I’ve done my Observed Lesson – a massive relief to have that behind me now, and I wonder what the comments will be – time will tell.

Now I’m starting to say God Bye to my classes and the lovely teachers who’ve helped and mentored me and whose experience has given me the ability to stand at the front and teach the class!  Being in a school and seeing how it is actually done is really invaluable to any newly qualified teacher be it Celta or any other teaching skill – no matter how good the teachers’ learning is, you have to be in the school class to appreciate all the teaching skills and how to implement them. 

It’s been a great experience, thanks to everyone at UKLC and everyone else who has been involved, particularly the flatmates……………………The Gandia Groovers!

Non é o que parece

I notice it first whilst I’m drilling. I’m running through past simple and past particles and the harmonic energy is good. But that’s not what I’m noticing. My body is swaying. Subconsciously.

Somehow, in the midst of the early May heat, and despite the mild greenhouse effect that Calasancias school generates, my body still feels the need to move. There’s a rhythm is this class. It’s grown organically. I didn’t foresee it and now I’m not sure whether I can stop it. But there’s more to this. They’re doing the same. Facing me is wall of bobbing pale blue uniforms. At first I’m uncertain if they’re just mocking me or whether somehow, in this absurd moment, we’ve entered into some type of hypnotic and quirky routine. I listen for a faint snigger or cackle. Nothing.

I begin to monitor my gestures. They’re small, hesitantly subtle and definitely nothing dramatic. I decide to go bolder. I flick my leg out a little to the left. They follow my movement. I observe their faces. Amused expressions – they’re hooked, they’re into this and it’s not just me. I worry I may become transfixed with this power. They seem to mimic any movement that I do.

I can’t remember if this is something I’ve witnessed before in my teaching practices but damn it, I’m here, I’m enjoying it and they seem to be as well. I decide to raise the volume of my voice. One way or another I think this will inject a new level of enthusiasm into our choreography. It works. Now the mannerisms get bigger. I’m waving, gesturing wildly with my hands and now we’ve finally all synchronised.

There’s a moment when I forget what it is I had actually planned for this lesson, but I push that thought aside and continue. I hush my voice, and they hush theirs. I say a word and they repeat it. The beat continues. We’re making music or maybe it’s art. I’ll probably never know. My mind drifts – I’m thinking Sadler’s Wells and Wayne McGregor.

Unexpectedly, insecurity grapples me. Is this really how these kids are going to remember how to pronounce their set list of verbs? It’s all gone lucid and very David Lynch. I lose myself in this dilemma and our synchronisation stutters. I stare down at my verb list, in the same instance clamber at identifying movements that might invoke the correct verb. I’m all over the place and stumbling. Yet, I don’t think they’ve cottoned on. I’m bluffing well. I make a final effort to make body action equal verb but it doesn’t quite come off.

But by now it’s too late. We’re at that bit in the Thriller music video where Michael Jackson is dancing with the zombies. We’ve all committed to this eccentric and peculiar performance. And there is no stopping it. Not a chance. So, when I eventually arrive at the final verb, the only sensible thing is to start it all over again.

Regrettably there were no other teachers, video evidence or witnesses to this event other than myself and class Quinta A.

Some things go viral, other things just work out perfectly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOnqjkJTMaA

A coruna tour

The second weekend ended with a tour of Coruna characterised by beautiful sights and bonding.

The pinnacle destination for me was el Torre de Hercules where high and beautiful views. Although getting to the top of the tower was an effort as inside of it was too claustrophobic with stuffy for me.

Another highlight for me was this experience...seen in the video.

The tour ended with the bad idea on the part of some of us, where we got ice-cream and froze after that.

Overall it was nice to see more of Coruna and hear some of its history.

~Maya M-S