When Spanish head went a#se over t#t!

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 keep our classroom doors open! Even though the doors all had glass in them and the classroom had windows facing out into the corridor itself. Given that it was a busy, bustling school, you appreciated being able to close the door to the noise outside at times. There were various annoyed conversations among us teachers, as we’d often find, or be told by a child on their way back from the toilet or interventions, that members of SLT were standing outside the classroom. So basically, we discovered that we were instructed to keep our doors open for them to listen into our lessons! We had our formal observations, learning walks etc. However, we were not informed about these sneaky observations taking place outside our classrooms. I say ‘sneaky’ because they would stand in a particular spot outside the door where we wouldn’t necessarily see or notice them. It was a deliberate attempt to make ‘secret’ observations on their part. Some teachers would close their doors, only to be spoken to by SLT and reminded that their door was to remain open! I was once told that myself and TAs couldn’t hang our coats on the back of the door as when SLT walked through the corridor they needed to see into our classrooms. Even though the door was permanently open anyway, on their request, and we had windows they could look into as they went by.

So, being ‘trusted’ to get on and teach my classes without the feeling of being spied on or under suspicion was heaven! Even if management could be a little eccentric or annoying at times! There is the school owner who spends the majority of his time in the office. He’s rarely seen around school. Then we have two heads – the English head and the Spanish head, who work on par together for the day-to-day running of the school.

The two rarely pop into class, but when they do just happen to pop in it’s usually with a message, to check something or something else to do with the general day-to-day running of the school. They might speak to some of the children or look through a book, but nothing on the scale to the feeling of when a member of management walked into my classroom back in the UK and just knowing that their intentions were for totally different reasons.

Nonetheless, even though it’s ok and I don’t usually mind, it can be quite annoying when you’re in the middle of something or you’ve just got the class settled into a task.  And more often than not it’s for something that could have waited until playtime, like asking if I can swap my break duty with another teacher next week but we’re on Tuesday of the current week so far. Or, it’s for something that I deem for a gormless reason whilst you’re in the middle of a lesson. Like, English head just popping in one morning. ‘I was cleaning out the library and found this book and thought your class might like it.’ It was a nursery book brought into my year two class, but hey! I just thanked her and put it straight in the cupboard!

Then there was one Friday afternoon when we were in mid-flow as the door swung open and English head walked in, with a bit of a spring in her step! She had a big grin on her face as she announced that no one would be able to get hold of her over the weekend (why would we need to contact her about work at the weekend? We’re not in the UK now!) because she is going to Bilbao with her husband. I don’t really know why she felt the need to come in halfway through the afternoon to inform me of this?! The only response really was to smile and say, ‘Ok, have fun!’ Maybe all this coming in with nonsense excuses was a sneaky observation tactic! But it didn’t feel that way to me. It seemed a bit more like they both just had a scatty, disorganised, eccentric personality.

There was one particular morning when I was giving it a few minutes before settling the children into their seats before taking the register. Suddenly, the door swings wide open as Spanish head makes her entrance in her clickety little black heels making their way over towards my desk. She looks at me and says ‘Uno minuto.’ Then turns and starts talking to the children. I just sit there like I was before she made her entrance, ready to take the morning register, and wondering what the reason behind her class visit could be this time!

All of a sudden, there is a flurry of 20 children hurtling towards their backpacks at the back of the room. It’s like a swarm of locusts. I’m just glad I’m sitting on the other side of the room out of the way. Meanwhile, Spanish head didn’t consider it might have been a wise idea to step to one side as she was giving her instruction. Instead, she remains standing in the middle of the room turning at all angles as the children rush around and past either side of her. Then turning this way and that as the twenty children were now on their way back towards her again excitedly waving slips of paper. So this is what she came in for! Watching her turn all ways to retrieve these slips of paper was quite amusing, but I remained professional and refrained from letting my amusement of it all show!

These slips just happened to be about a ‘stay and play’ event that was taking place at the end of the month. Now, I’m all for working in partnership and encouraging parents into school for different activities. I’ve even taken the lead in organising such events back home. But, this letter only went out the day before! I kid you not! Did she really need to come and disturb my class and hype the children up? They’re always full of beans at the best of times, well children are of course! But, it is also extremely hard to calm them again once someone has hyped them up! And, annoyingly, that someone who hyped them all up will return to their office and just leave me to it!  

As the crowd begins to disperse from Spanish head, there are still one or two heads in bags, bottoms in the air as they are frantically trying to find this slip that their mothers put in their bags that morning.

Finally, Spanish head turns to me as she begins to walk out of the room mumbling something in Spanish. I assume she is telling me that she will collect the rest later as she is flapping the slips of paper about in the air.

As she’s looking at me, she’s starting to walk back towards the door and mumbling something, which is pointless as I’m not really picking up on what she’s on about! But as she’s looking at me and walking, she’s not looking where she’s going! So, inevitably she trips over one of the children who is still head in bag bottom in the air frantically looking for their slip. As Spanish head trips she instinctively takes to a run in an attempt to stop herself from falling flat on her face. Which she manages to do as she falls into the door slamming it shut. Whilst this is happening the child she had tripped over emerges from her backpack with a confused look of, ‘Who’s just kicked me up the bum?’ as they rub their bottom. This is immediately followed by a grin and a look of relief as they’ve finally found their slip. Frantically waving it in the air like Charlie after he’d just found the last golden ticket!

Suddenly, there is a roar of laughter from the other 19 children who have witnessed the whole incident. And they are literally holding onto their sides and tummies they find it all so funny! Spanish head turns to look back at me and her expression is priceless! That was my breaking point! I just couldn’t help myself. I burst into laughter with the rest of the class, and quite literally laughed in my boss’s face!

Thankfully, we managed to avoid each other for the rest of the day!