Well my 6 weeks excellent weeks in the UK are drawing to a close. Lots good times with great people. Sorry if the blogging has been a bit sparse!
I've been doing my best to get around the UK and see as many people as possible and am doing a couple of weeks of supply teaching to finish off the trip.
I'm having a great final week in Northampton. Lots of challenge, especially in the classroom - teaching in a school that is in special measures - ie under threat of being closed down. This week is their follow up Offsted inspection. Yesterday one of the inspectors went onto the field when a fight was in progress and had a burger thrown at her! Most of the classes need a pretty high level of behaviour management so it is keeping me honest!
Thought for Thursday 19th Jan 2006:
"A lot of the kids at school seem to think that I (their supply teacher) am there for their entertainment and try their hardest to get a predictable reaction. Well they are most mistaken - I'm actually there in a spirit of lovingkindness and light humour to help them to learn and to grow as people. Often I feel as though certain individuals are the ones who are providing entertainment for me and the rest of the class!"
... love that shit!
When I get back to Sydney I'll be starting my course in Anthroposophy with a view to becoming a Waldorf teacher. I will miss many aspects of my job at NumberWorks and there will be many sad farewells but I am fully excited about the start of the next chapter of my antipodean adventure. It seems as though the Steiner approach treats a person as'an acorn to be nurtured in growth', rather than a 'vessel that needs to be filled' and this is something I believe in my heart.
I'll also be running Total Immersion swim workshops, setting up swim squad, getting more involved with Rob's Run teaching, helping friends with their triathlon training and perhaps doing some supply teaching and maths tuition.
Plenty to keep me busy there!
Friday, January 20, 2006
Dunstan's UK Tour draws to a close...
Well my 6 weeks excellent weeks in the UK are drawing to a close. I've been doing my best to get around the UK and see as much of my friends and family as possible. Lots good times with great people. Sorry if the blogging has been a bit sparse! I'll post some highlights soon :-)
I'm having a great final week in Northampton. Lots of challenge, especially in the classroom - teaching in a school that is in special measures - ie under threat of being closed down. This week is their follow up Offsted inspection. Yesterday one of the inspectors went onto the field when a fight was in progress and had a burger thrown at her! Most of the classes need a pretty high level of behaviour management so it is keeping me honest!
Thought for Thursday 19th Jan 2006:
"A lot of the kids at school seem to think that I (their supply teacher) am there for their entertainment and try their hardest to get a predictable reaction. Well they are most mistaken - I'm actually there in a spirit of lovingkindness and light humour to help them to learn and to grow as people. Often I feel as though certain individuals are the ones who are providing entertainment for me and the rest of the class!"
... love that stuff!
When I get back to Sydney I'll be starting my course in Anthroposophy with a view to becoming a Waldorf teacher. I will miss many aspects of my job at NumberWorks and there will be many sad farewells but I am fully excited about the start of the next chapter of my antipodean adventure. It seems as though the Steiner approach treats a person as 'an acorn to be nurtured in growth', rather than a 'vessel that needs to be filled' and this is something I believe in my heart.
I'll also be running Total Immersion swim workshops, setting up swim squad, getting more involved with Rob's Run teaching, helping friends with their triathlon training and perhaps doing some supply teaching and maths tuition.
Should be plenty to keep me busy there!
I'm having a great final week in Northampton. Lots of challenge, especially in the classroom - teaching in a school that is in special measures - ie under threat of being closed down. This week is their follow up Offsted inspection. Yesterday one of the inspectors went onto the field when a fight was in progress and had a burger thrown at her! Most of the classes need a pretty high level of behaviour management so it is keeping me honest!
Thought for Thursday 19th Jan 2006:
"A lot of the kids at school seem to think that I (their supply teacher) am there for their entertainment and try their hardest to get a predictable reaction. Well they are most mistaken - I'm actually there in a spirit of lovingkindness and light humour to help them to learn and to grow as people. Often I feel as though certain individuals are the ones who are providing entertainment for me and the rest of the class!"
... love that stuff!
When I get back to Sydney I'll be starting my course in Anthroposophy with a view to becoming a Waldorf teacher. I will miss many aspects of my job at NumberWorks and there will be many sad farewells but I am fully excited about the start of the next chapter of my antipodean adventure. It seems as though the Steiner approach treats a person as 'an acorn to be nurtured in growth', rather than a 'vessel that needs to be filled' and this is something I believe in my heart.
I'll also be running Total Immersion swim workshops, setting up swim squad, getting more involved with Rob's Run teaching, helping friends with their triathlon training and perhaps doing some supply teaching and maths tuition.
Should be plenty to keep me busy there!
Friday, January 06, 2006
Flying Long Haul
Here is an excellent article about surviving international flighst from my friend Matt Eaves. His hilarious posting includes factual info, tips for coping and comments.
Check out the site by clicking here!
here is my response ...
haha - I thought he was joking about the pepper thing!
re: when to get on the plane I agree with Matt that being in the middle of the anxious throng is the worst scenario. My solution, however is the opposite - I like to stay in the lounge, with my laptop plugged into the mains, until the very last! I figure they will always give me a final call and once you get around the corner there is always a queue anyway so you haven't exactly delayed proceedings... I just hate queues so I want to avoid them & spend the mimimun time in the plane possible!
re: charging your lapton on the plane - especially for Cokaru the new Airbus A340-600 has in-flight charging facilities without having to buy one of those silly and expensive adaptors. You just plug in between the seats! The socket takes US, Au and UK plugs (very clever) but my AU iBook charger didn't have enough clearance to fit in. Next time I'll take my US adaptor or an extension!
BTW I once got 'in trouble' for plugging my laptop into a socket I found. I figured that if it was going to cause the plane to crash then they wouldn't leave it lying around, but the I got busted and the head air steward told the pilot who told the head air steward to spank me soundly! If only it had been a stewardess, sigh... note: only one part of this story is elaborated, can you tell which...?
an aside: Has anyone ever tried charging from a 110V shaving socket? Kind of antisocial but if you were on the last level of Tetris and you combined it with a pepper snorting mission...?
Cheers Matt,
PS "Discomfort is a state of mind!"
Check out the site by clicking here!
here is my response ...
haha - I thought he was joking about the pepper thing!
re: when to get on the plane I agree with Matt that being in the middle of the anxious throng is the worst scenario. My solution, however is the opposite - I like to stay in the lounge, with my laptop plugged into the mains, until the very last! I figure they will always give me a final call and once you get around the corner there is always a queue anyway so you haven't exactly delayed proceedings... I just hate queues so I want to avoid them & spend the mimimun time in the plane possible!
re: charging your lapton on the plane - especially for Cokaru the new Airbus A340-600 has in-flight charging facilities without having to buy one of those silly and expensive adaptors. You just plug in between the seats! The socket takes US, Au and UK plugs (very clever) but my AU iBook charger didn't have enough clearance to fit in. Next time I'll take my US adaptor or an extension!
BTW I once got 'in trouble' for plugging my laptop into a socket I found. I figured that if it was going to cause the plane to crash then they wouldn't leave it lying around, but the I got busted and the head air steward told the pilot who told the head air steward to spank me soundly! If only it had been a stewardess, sigh... note: only one part of this story is elaborated, can you tell which...?
an aside: Has anyone ever tried charging from a 110V shaving socket? Kind of antisocial but if you were on the last level of Tetris and you combined it with a pepper snorting mission...?
Cheers Matt,
PS "Discomfort is a state of mind!"
(my)OPIC bar accused of racist door policy
What do you think of this article (click the link)?
What is your opinion of 'bouncers'?
Do you have any personal experiences?
I'd be interested to see if experiences in the UK are different to Australia
I used to live with a guy who worked as a doorman. This guy had a PhD and had some pretty logical yet innovative ideas on the subject.
More from me once others have expressed their opinions...
What is your opinion of 'bouncers'?
Do you have any personal experiences?
I'd be interested to see if experiences in the UK are different to Australia
I used to live with a guy who worked as a doorman. This guy had a PhD and had some pretty logical yet innovative ideas on the subject.
More from me once others have expressed their opinions...
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