So turns out the last thing I wanna do when I get home is write about teaching. Who'd have thought? LOL
All I have to say is I am ridiculously behind with my college work. I am going to a school in a week and a half and can't wait because that's the enjoyable bit (endless School Based Directed Activities aside). College makes everything seem unreal. And harder than it actually seemed when I was in school. When I was in school I was like, "I can do this!! And it's fun!" but college just makes me think, "FUCK OMG I NEVER WANT TO BE A TEACHER!".
My people in my group are awesome. I've made some great friends. Fairly often we have so much fun that we laugh until we cry.
Today in PE I think I nearly gave a man in my class a coronary. He was my partner in a "ball skills" session. That sounds rude already. Our tutor told us to pass the ball between us using as many body parts as possible. We did hand, foot, knee, head, and shoulder passes. Then I, for reasons unknown even to myself, thought it would be a good idea to turn into someone as (so so so so) scandalous as my mum and go "BOOB PASS!". I then passed the ball to him using my boobs. OMG. Normal people don't do things like that, do they? The poor man couldn't stop laughing. He looked so, so, so shocked. LOL.
College is going good. Have met some very nice people. My group (who I'm with for everything, all year) is largely cool. Lots of going for tea or beer. There's this funny proper sloany girl (v neck jumper, shirt underneath, pearl studs in her ears) who is actually the poshest person I've ever met. I guess they even need teachers in Chelsea. I hadn't really thought of that. LOLZ. The fact that I actually have to start doing work is yet to hit me. I still haven't bought the necessary books. I'm planning on getting myself organised tomorrow. I'm going out tonight, hmm. PE tomorrow. Nice.
Today we had performing arts and I got to compose the music for a scene of Hamlet. It was wicked. I got to play a drum and everything. On Friday we have music proper. I'm excited. It's well like being at school. You learn and they also teach you to teach.
We have to do reading for each lesson each week and put our notes/critique in a folder with various exercises etc. that we've done. It needs to be signed off at the end of the year in order for us to get our NQT status. One must be very organised indeed. I'm sure I'm up to it, I just need to get in the right frame of mind.
That is all.
Today was my first day at college. It was interesting. I've identified the people I want to be my friends (yeah, the people who look like my current friends) and now I'm planning how to capture them and force them to like me. The girls I was talking to today were all very nice but they talked about "going travelling" too much. One of them sounds Australian but she is from Essex and has only been to Australia on holiday. She doesn't even watch Neighbours all the time. I wore my xbxrx t-shirt because I wanted to make friends with people who also like xbxrx (ha ha, SUCH sixth form behaviour) but I don't think anyone likes xbxrx. Sad.
But yeah we had this like introductory talk thing about all the things you'd expect an introductory talk to be about and then this woman comes in to talk about how we're going to be doing "Carnival". I assume "Carnival" is an acronym for some serious part of the course. But no, she is literally talking about A Carnival. So, what, we do this with children from schools? No, no we don't. We, trainee teachers, have to put on our own carnival. With costumes, dancing, parading and all the things you'd expect in a carnival. How very, very strange.
We watched a DVD of last years carnival and it was fucking embarrassing. All these white, middle class people dancing to Caribbean music and making giant paper mache heads. I'm dreading it. Apparently it links in with the fact that Goldsmiths is big on Performing Arts teaching etc. I have 4 hours of Performing Arts lessons a week for the foreseeable future. But no Geography or History lessons. I DON'T GET IT! Surely, it should have at least been MENTIONED that the place is all about performing arts!? Everyone else seems as confused as I am. However, I don't really know what I'm whinging about because I do actually like Performing Arts. It sure beats the 2 hours of P.E. I have to do at 9am every Wednesday.
Today I was 'observing' (that's what they call it, it's more like being a teaching assistant) in THE CLASS FROM HELL! It was only year 2 (6 and 7 year olds) but many of them had teenager style bad attitudes and were rude as fuck. They didn't listen. They LAUGHED when they were told off and then immediately did what they were told off for again. They were SO NOISY. They didn't put their hands up. They talked whilst the teacher was talking. They couldn't work independently. They hardly got any work done.
I told this kid off for bending his book and throwing it around and shit (after I'd had to tell him about a million times to get on with his work). "Is that your book? Did you pay for it? No. No you didn't. So have some respect for school property, please J*****." He stopped but said, under his breath, "Oh my gosh man, some people need to loosen up". Six years old! I just shot him an evil and said firmly, "You do not talk back to teachers J***** because, believe it or not, we say things for good reasons." Six years old! He then proceeded to scribble all over his work sheet. Later on, during P.E., he ran out of the hall without asking and no one could find him. Lovely child. There are loads more examples of things like this from today.
I mean, the teacher wasn't exactly strict enough or good enough (she didn't explain things very clearly at all, or tell them what to do in the painstaking detail that is necessary, OR tell them off consistantly and persevere with punishment) so perhaps this is what all children are like if they're given a chance. What a frightening thought.
A supply teacher took over in the afternoon whilst the real teacher was doing planning and he was awesome with them. We were doing P.E. in the hall and he made like literally half the class sit out until they could behave. And he expected high standards in behaviour and persevered with punishment, keeping loads of them in over afternoon break etc. I know I'd prefer to be like him. The real teacher seemed to think that they'd "settle down". I doubt it. She needs to create more boundaries. She was saying she was pleased with how much work they did in literacy. They did NO work in literacy, in my opinion.
I probably shouldn't criticise teachers but, I don't know, this class and her approach to them seems like an anomaly in such an awesome school with really, really high standards in work and behaviour. I hope I don't have too many little shits like J***** in my class when I'm an NQT. I'm sure he can be a nice kid and that but turning him into that would be SUCH AN EFFORT!
First impressions of Key Stage 1: Not good.
The placement's going really well and I am sure that I want to be a primary school teacher and, futhermore, that I will be good at it. The school I'm working at is a really good school with a good mix of kids... Unlike the schools I've worked in before which have basically comprised of either all white, middle class children OR black, working class children this school has kids of all different colours, nationalities, faiths, classes etc. attending. It melts my heart. Not really, but it is kind of awesome. The teachers are quite STRICT but rad. I want to be both strict and rad when I am a teacher. I will try to stop saying rad, though.
I've done none of the work I am supposed to be doing for this placement. I've been out or busy basically every night so I need to play catch up. I've had no time for my 'reflective journal'. I can't wait til tomorrow when I can have a night in. And do some work, finally.
At the school there's a teacher who did his PGCE last year at the same college I'm going to be doing mine at. He said the course is really good. He told me not to worry too much about the work and stuff for this placement because they barely look at it. Good news. Better get to it.
And another thing... On here (Vox), how can you see people who have added you and you haven't added back? I deleted emails of people who have added me by accident! Boohoo!
Today was AWESOME. No time to elaborate now. Teaching doesn't seem as hard as I thought! And the day goes quickly! And getting there at 8.15am was actually okay.
Reflective Journal (Not a diary)
Note down your thoughts. The following areas are some that might be included - managing the children and their learning, classroom organisation, children's motives and attitudes, the interpersonal relationships within the class, ideas about approaches you might try in future. You should not just write down everything that happens during the day. You should select one or two aspects or events of the day and think about what you feel you have learned or understood in relation to them.
Well, that sounds thrilling, doesn't it? Today's the first day in a while that I've not planned to do anything. I was going to look through the (rather long) list and details of things I have to do in my work placement and prepare. But it turns out there's not much I can prepare. So instead I'm going to watch The OC and read the pile of magazines Melissa gave me. I also might go and (finally) buy a laptop. But buying a laptop seems insane. I mean, I could buy like 8 pairs of trainers instead? I do kind of think it'll be useful though. All the teachers I know have one. Hmm.
One thing's for sure, if I'm ever going to be able to get to my placements/college I need to work on the fact that it currently takes me about 3 hours to get dressed and leave the house.
Also, I've done almost none of the reading I was told to do over the summer. This is my summer! Not theirs! Plus, I can't afford to buy the books anyways.
I'm still working on my good start.
