30 October 2005

Wizardry


Wizardry

I think I want to change my career path; I want to become a wizard. It seems so much more exciting than lesson planning and correcting papers. I could conjure up spells, dispense evil spirits, live in a castle high on a hill, and dress in really funky clothes.

Having said that, I finished week one of the new job and have to say it was quite enjoyable. Luckily, I only teach one level, something quite unheard of in the world of teaching. The only downside is that I teach one class two days a week and a different class three days a week, and I split these classes with two other teachers. Added to that confusion is that while I am on a break from my class, my co-teacher is teaching a different class, making it quite difficult to meet and coordinate plans. It’s a real Escher-type scheduling challenge, but I seem to have survived so far.

An added benefit to the work week is all the exercise one gets just going from classroom to office to photo-copy machine and back. I am working in a brand new, huge building, with cavernous ceilings and long, wide, winding corridors. (It really is nice architecture, although the color scheme of pale green and salmon leaves something to be desired.) However, it does take quite a bit of time to get from point A to point B, especially since no one is allowed to use the elevators. So if you happen to grab the wrong class register out of the teachers room at the back end of the second floor, and you teach at the back end of the third floor, and the staircase is in the exact opposite direction of both, it’s a bit of a hassle. Forget about running out to get an extra copy of anything.

And as for photo-copying, which we do a lot of, things brightened up on Friday. The English teachers got their own copier! Prior to that, there was only ONE machine for the WHOLE school, which was on a different floor at the opposite side of the building.

With the combination of a new job, new books, new classes, and all that running up and down, by Friday night I was fairly whipped and dreamed about hibernating in the house all Saturday. Unfortunately, I had to cruise into town for various, extremely uninteresting errands. I had planned to get up early today, Sunday, and go to the local market to stock up for the week, but just couldn’t do it. So I cleaned the house and vegetated most of the day.

With the weekend coming to a close, it is now time to sit down and work on next weeks classes and correct papers.

I’m going to Google, Schools of Wizardry.
Kate

ps: yes, it’s a watermelon!