So I've discovered a way of controlling most of my third graders, for most of the time!! I call it the smiley face technique…I put a smiley face in the top corner on one side of the bored and a really really sad face in the top corner on the other side of the bored, they are all really eager to have their name under the happy face, and if there name gets put under the sad face they can be quite and hardworking for well over 10 minutes to try and have their na...

So it turns out that my forehead doesn't enjoy sunlight, it preferred to be hidden away behind a full fringe of hair. I hadn't really thought about the fact that my forehead hasn't seen sunlight for about 2 years, so when Anna and I went down to the beach last Saturday it didn't occur to me to apply extra sun cream to it, which now means that my forehead is pealing….yes just my forehead. NOT a good look!! My first (sort of) full week at school has been a mix...

And what a crazy week it has been. I survived my first three days of school with "monster class", Anna and I have renamed Grade 3, they are absolutely crazy and apparently the worst year in the school, just my luck!! On my second day, however, I discovered that worksheets are a gift sent from heaven!! A good word-search can keep them quiet for at least 20 minutes, I spent the whole of Thursday night making worksheets in an attempt to have a peaceful Friday (it...

Today was my first day of school, with actual children in the classroom!! Today I had just 9 children, which is a nice size, but apparently children carry on getting enrolled right up until the end of August so I won't know exactly how big my class is going to be for a while, although they don't normally take more than 20 students per grade. Lessons don't start until next week, so for these 3 days we get to play games and get to know each other (so they think ...

I'M A HOMEROOM TEACHER!!! :D Which in England would be "form teachers", but it basically means that all the Grade 3's are mine and all the Grade 4's are Anna's. We are not only in charge of teaching English, Maths and Spanish, but we also have to set exams, monitor behaviour, write report cards, and correspond with parents if there is a problem (through another teacher who will translate for us to start with). We have already met a couple of our students: Vane...