School has been quite amazing. Everyday I meet Kathy outside of our apartment building at 7:00 am and we walk to school arriving by 7:15. We are required to be there by 7:30, but most people are earlier than that. Two mornings we have meetings, one a lead teacher meeting and one a "stand up" (read short) meeting for everyone that works in the classrooms. School starts at 8:30 but there are no bells and the students start drifting in by about 8:15. Many children are habitually late (maybe it's the traffic). Three mornings a week, we start with an assembly called Morning Song which Kathy leads with her guitar in hand and it's a nice way to start the day. Then it is back to the classroom with my 16 students, although this past week, many children started their holiday early and I only had 10 kids! We have our circle time, which consists of more songs, a very brief calendar and graphing activity, some singing games and a Math activity then we have some physical activity, either on the balcony where there are some tricycles, scooters, plastic big blocks and a mini trampoline or in the Dragon's Den, which is a large room with lots of big foam building shapes, a tunnel and some climbing toys with a slide. Back to class for morning brunch which magically appears at 10:00. After that the Chinese teacher does a half hour lesson, then we have Centres where I do observations and perhaps work with kids that need extra help with some math or language concepts. My Indonesian teaching assistant, Mercya, is amazing and is alway there stepping in with kids that need help with something. The Chinese teacher, Stella (!) is also always there helping out at a centre. After Centres, there is a half hour Indonesian lesson with Dina or a Moral Studies lesson with Kristen. We finish off with a story, Reflection, and book time, good bye song and that's it as my class leaves at 12:30! Mercya controls the end of the day, because every child has to be signed out by their nanny or parent.
After that, I am free to go for lunch except for one day where I have Gym supervision with the older children that stay for the whole day. My afternoons are for planning with my team and two afternoons a week, I have meetings, one a general staff meeting and one a Primary Years Planning meeting where we learn about and plan for the current unit of inquiry (International Bacaluareate Program). I know it will get a bit busier, because we all have to take turns offering after school programs once a week for a term or two. Also, after the holiday we start reporting to the parents weekly with a sort of newsletter, telling what their child has accomplished, photos etc. That will take some time but I have my afternoons to work on it, unlike the teachers who have students the whole day. They'll be using their prep times, which they get a lot of. All of the teachers can leave at 4:00.
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| Working during a Math activity |
The most amazing thing for me is how much help there is available. If we want to paint, one of the cleaning crew sets it all up on the balcony and cleans it all up when we are finished. After morning brunch, someone appears with mops and cloths to take care of spills and crumbs and every day my area carpet is vacuumed and steam cleaned, (Joanne are you jealous yet?) along with the big pillows that the kids use at book time. The workers dust every day, tidy up the block and book centre and if I accidently leave my water bottle on my desk, it's cleaned when I return in the morning. If I need furniture moved, Mercya calls for help and someone comes immediately. When we leave our classroom to go to the gym or Dragon's Den, which involves elevators and walking through public areas of the building, a Security Guard comes with us. If I need paper cut or a display put up, Mercya does it. There is a worker that stays in the bathroom all day long, cleaning and supervising that area. The children are very indulged, mostly by their nannies (some of them have two nannies!) and are less independent than comparable children at home. If a child is hurt at school, he/she is taken to the nurse and the teacher must call home right away to explain what happened. My first week, the same student was hurt two days in a row, once with a minor bump to the head and once a bleeding lip and a trip to the hospital. That involved several phone calls and emails. This whole experience is really not comparable to teaching at home, where you constantly feel as though you can't get on top of things and spend hours prepping for lessons and activities and little or no time during the day to catch your breath. Is there anyone out there that wants to join me?
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| Winston and Fahri singing during a Chinese lesson |
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| In the Dragon's Den |
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