Monthly staff meeting… Once a month we were required, in our contracts, to work until 7 pm. Sometimes this was allocated time in our classes updating displays, marking, preparing resources or meetings within our teaching teams. Other times there were specific things the management team wanted to discuss and inform us about and so it
Last full week before the holidays… It’s Monday morning and the last full week before the Christmas holidays, so I was feeling quite upbeat as I start the morning with my year 2s. We do the usual routine of taking the register and discussing their weekends and then I explain what’s in store for them
A new concept! The idea of how the Spanish wash their clothes, particularly in the cities, was quite a new concept to me. Yes, most apartments had washing machines as part of the furnishings when looking for a rental, some even had driers. This was a handy feature so that I didn’t have the faff
Homesick… Sadly, my time at home for the Christmas break had come to an end. My flight was at 7:15 pm. After the long 3-month term, I had no idea just how homesick I had been and how much I’d missed home. I guess the whole moving overseas and starting a new job had kept
It’s nice just to be left to get on with it! More often than not I usually get left alone to get on with teaching my classes without being disturbed or ‘spied’ on as we were in my last school. Back in England, there was a time before I left when we were told to
A different arrangement… One thing that wasn’t really discussed in much detail during my interview was how the parents’ meetings were arranged given that there are two teachers and two classes. I remember asking the question, and the English head dismissing it saying that it was something that the two teachers arranged together and delivered
Homeward bound! There are several children from across the school that also get the same bus back as me, including some infantil (or early years) children. There is an adult specifically employed to supervise them. Like a chaperone I guess. And, the poor woman certainly earns her salary, as they are all lively and loud!
Needing to transfer money home… On starting my new job, I needed to set up a Spanish bank account in order to receive my salary. Well, the school HR team set it up on my behalf! During the first week, a member of HR made the appointment at the local branch and then accompanied me
Duo SIM… Before moving to Spain I opted to buy a duo SIM phone in order to still be able to use my English number, but also to have a Spanish SIM card to avoid extra costs and ensure I got the network coverage that I needed. So, I bought the Duo phone, popped my
Coffee and lingo… Saturday morning and I have arranged to meet up with one of my language exchange friends for coffee. She has very good English as a result of many years of language exchange with English visitors and teachers who have come and gone again. She has been attempting to help me with my Spanish
