Now that I have talked about the towns, let me tell you a bit about the schools, the teachers, and my job at Soham Village and City of Ely Community Colleges.
Soham Village College
On the left here, you can see the badge I have to wear when I am at the college. I don't like that it's a "temp card", but what I do like, is that it's written "teaching staff" in red on it =D *proud*.
I have two mentors in Soham. A man and a woman, who are both really nice and helpful. They are quite young too, which helps me feel comfortable with them! I will have some lessons with them. So I might change my mind about them haha.
The other teachers are really nice and they seem to be curious about the German assistant and me. They smile a lot, say "hello" and are happy to chat during the breaks.
The staff room is small, but cosy. We can have tea, coffee, and cake too =P The only really bad thing about the staff room is that the bell sounds really really really loud in it. I think I'll end up deaf soon =S
I would like to say some things about the pupils, but the fact is, I have only attended two observation lessons, so I can't tell much. However, I can say that they are more disciplined than the ones in my home town. They have to line up to enter, and leave the class rooms. They wear uniforms, which make things more serious and formal, and teachers are quite strict with the uniforms. At Soham Village College, I will teach Year 10 and Year 11 students (13-16 years old, I think). But my mentor told me that after Christmas, I might have some Year 8s and Year 9s, so we'll see!
I already said that the college was really well equipped. Too many computers. And they have those amazing big touch screens, which allow you to do basically everything haha! The classrooms are nice, decorated with pupils' drawings and stuff.
My timetable is all right. I have Tuesdays off, which is cool, though Mondays or Fridays off would be better. I'm happy with my timetable. School finishes everyday at 3pm, but I finish sooner some days.
What I like about Soham Village College is that it's very well organised, very well equipped and that the teachers all seem to be happy to help. The thing I like less about the college is that it's too well organised. Let me explain. I feel like some teachers are not relaxed enough. Every detail matters a bit too much. But that's only my first impression, so I'll see as time goes by!
Here is a picture of the school's old building:
City of Ely Community College
Don't you think Ely's badge looks much better than Soham's? Well I do hihi. It's more precise too; it says "language assistant" =D*prouder*.
So I don't really have a mentor at Ely College, but the head of the language department is the one I should talk to if I have problem, or a concern, or anything. He's really nice! More relaxed than my Soham mentors.
The other teachers, though I've only met two, are great! One of them is just a bit older than me, and she's really nice. The other one is older; she's been teaching for more than 20 years, and she's really happy to speak French with me =)
The staff room is nice as well. There is a microwave, which is good, as I will take my own food to school. I tried the canteen once, and I don't want to try it again, given that seemingly harmless ham sandwich I had...
What can I say about the pupils? I have only met two, really. But overall, they seem like the ones at Soham Collage, from what I've seen. I'm really happy because at Ely College, I will teach Year 9, Year 10, Year 11, Year 12 and Year 13 students. So I will have some Sixth Form students, older ones. I had two lessons with them today. They're only two in the class and their level is good, so I'm going to be able to do interesting stuff with them =).
The college is not as well equipped as in Soham, but it still is great! They also have those big touch screens. But I haven't seen any computer rooms... I still like the school though! There are a lot of drawings and works displayed.
I really like my timetable at Ely Collage, as I have Fridays off! I also start a bit later in the mornings, which is good hehe.
What I like about Ely is that it seems more relaxed than Soham. The teachers want their assistants to have fun and enjoy themselves. I feel like I'm really free at Ely College. For example, I have to prepare a lesson for my Year 12s tomorrow, and the teacher said I could do whatever I wanted, as long as it fitted the studied theme =). What I like less is the fact that things are explained really quickly. And also I hate the fact that the journeys to and from Ely are going to be tricky, because of those freaking buses...
As I didn't think necessary to take a picture of the actual college (which looks boring between you and me haha), here is a little something anyway:
Overall, I'm happy with my schools. But it's only been a couple of days. Let's now see how it goes! =)
LLoyds bank, but they wanted more documents than Barclays. So I went to the appointment, hoping I'd open that freakin' bank account. The banker was a really nice young lady. She asked me some questions about my life and we had a few good laughs. I had to show my passport, the letter from Soham Village College, my driver's license, as well as a letter from my host mum. Fortunately, I had my driver's license, because otherwise, it would have been problematic, given that my host mum's letter was not enough. Then she asked me a lot of questions about my hobbies, family, plans for the future, studies etc etc. After that, she made me choose a bank account. I chose "Barclays Bank Account", which is free. The lady also wanted me to open a savings account, but I politely declined her offer. I don't think I'll save much money... And that was it! I received my PIN number two days ago, and I should get my debit card soon!
On the left here, you can see the badge I have to wear when I am at the college. I don't like that it's a "temp card", but what I do like, is that it's written "teaching staff" in red on it =D *proud*.
Don't you think Ely's badge looks much better than Soham's? Well I do hihi. It's more precise too; it says "language assistant" =D*prouder*.
