In case you missed it. On Sunday I thoroughly enjoyed all of the pictures of snow from home. But I even more enjoyed sitting near the harbor in the middle of the afternoon at the Trailer Boat Club, eating lunch in the sunshine and warm breeze from the water.
I suppose it's about time I talk about the real reason I'm here. If you thought my 31 hour travel experience was a whirlwind, imagine going into a new classroom, 6 weeks out of the end of the school year, 15 hours after landing at the Darwin airport. I think the only reason I survived was off of adrenaline, the leftovers Roger gave me for lunch, and the positive energy of my new mentor teacher. Seriously though, Catherine (my mentor teacher) is one of the kindest, personable, hilarious people I have ever worked with. During my past two placements with teaching for Grand Valley I had such good experiences, I imagined this could have easily been the teacher that made me not want to teach any more; trust me, I've heard placement horror stories. However, it's the total opposite. Catherine welcomed me in with open arms. The first Monday seems to all be a blur of meeting new faces, trying to understand the school schedule, and comprehending the ideas of recess and not having individual classrooms.
To explain a bit about the school I'm at: it is a middle school, with grades 7, 8, and 9. It is placed in front of the high school, and is practically brand new, being built in 2008. This middle school is very well known in Darwin; it is perhaps the wealthiest middle school in the area, and students come from all suburbs to attend. The population is a bit over 600 students at the moment and is growing. Class sizes are around 28 students on average. Teachers do not have their own individual classrooms. Instead, there are classrooms designated for specific grades and specific subjects. The teachers move from classroom to classroom, as the kids do as well. The teachers have an office space, where each office consists of 4 teachers of similar subject and grade level. It has been quite the challenge to remember to bring everything I need to teach from the office with me downstairs for the class. Luckily, there are two classrooms just outside our office that we teach in for half of the day most days. This helps to limit the number of times Catherine and I walk up the stairs each day (which is quite a high number). The classrooms are not necessarily separated by anything but a partial wall, meaning that if the class next door is working in groups and you're trying to give a test, it is not possible to have it quiet. This has been one of the most frustrating things I've experienced with this set up. There is a main courtyard and a huge area outside of the school with grass that students can play sport on and eat their lunch on during recess and lunch. These areas are all outside and in the open. Luckily, the inside of the school is all very well air conditioned. The staff room is HUGE: there's a full kitchen, 2 separate fridges (1 that "contains adult beverages for after hours"), and enough mugs for every teacher in the building to have tea at the same time. As far as teaching goes, Catherine teaches 2 lines of geography and 3 lines of English. After much discussion with Catherine it is clear that teachers are not held accountable here as they are in the States. There are no observations or consequences based on test scores; in fact, teachers do not necessarily even have a content degree for the subjects that they are teaching. I for one do not have a geography degree, and neither does Catherine, yet we are expected to teach the subject. Now, I am going to try to explain how the kids are streamlined here into classes. It is a bit of a confusing concept to me still, but hopefully this will make sense. There are 4 core subject areas: Maths, Science, Geography, and English. Then, students have electives to choose from (some of which they have to pay extra money for). In these 4 core subject areas, there are 8 different sections per grade level. For example: 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 8.5, 8.6, 8.7, and 8.8. These sections are based on academic and behavioral performance. 8.1 would be considered the "honors" kids in the States; these would be the kids who would move on to take AP classes in high school. The 8.8 classes are the ones who struggle the most academically and behaviorally. Though students can be in different sections for different subjects, and though students can move from these sections from year to year, neither of these situations is very common. The schedule for the school is as follows: 8:00-8:20 Roll Group (Take attendance, give announcements, work on homework, do school duties). 8:20-9:20 Lesson 1 9:20-10:20 Lesson 2 10:20-10:45 Recess (Students go outside; the cafe is open for them to purchase food; the staff has "morning tea" in the staff lounge, which consists of making tea and sometimes there are snacks brought in) 10:45-11:45 Lesson 3 11:45-12:45 Lesson 4 12:45-1:25 Lunch 1:25-2:25 Lesson 5 Each day we have a different schedule, but each week is the same. Each day we also have a lesson off for planning, which again is different each day but each day is the same every week. This means that I only teach 4 lessons a day, so each day 1 of my classes gets the day off. And of course on Fridays, the last lesson we play board games. This has already gone on for quite a ramble, and I have a lot of feelings about the way that this education system is set up, so I will hold off to talk about the curriculum and my teaching experiences for another day. But to summarize: I took a plane journey for 31 hours; I met my host family; I went to bed; 15 hours later I met my new mentor teacher and found out I was not only teaching English but geography: urbanization in China. And guess what? I started Tuesday (after less than 48 hours in Darwin). The cool part is it's already the weekend for me, and all my teacher friends from home still have a whole Friday to go. A 21st birthday celebration. Even though 21 isn't an exciting birthday for Australians (since their drinking age is 18), the park held a celebration this weekend for it being open for 21 years. The celebration included half price admission, which was the incentive for me to visit this weekend. Kaye and Roger's son's friend Darren went along with me. The park is known for its crocodiles, as crocodiles are huge in Darwin, but they also had a bit of a mini zoo exhibit as well, which housed other animals. For the celebrations, we lucked out in arriving just in time for croc feeding. Each croc has its own little area with water and land. It seemed very very small for the large creature. To feed the croc, the worker dangles a piece of meat on what looks like a fishing pole made of wood and string, and then the croc jumps to get the meat. It's actually very fascinating, and when they jump you can tell just how massive the creatures actually are. While this was happening, the workers were giving out information tidbits and answering questions. One woman asked if encountering a croc like this in an outdoor setting would it be best to run or walk. The worker explained that getting away as fast as possible is crucial, and to run straight in front of the croc rather than in a zigzag motion. This is because their neck muscles are so strong that they are more likely to get you if you are off to the side a bit. Moving on from the croc feeding, we encountered many other animals including an ostrich who was right up along the fence, a lion that was actually roaring, a dingo that was injured and had to wear the cone of shame, and a baboon that was trying to attack a child (though there was glass between them) when the child was sticking his hand near the glass. He opened his mouth aggressively, swung at the glass, and everything. Good thing the glass was there. Of course there were also kangaroos, which I thought was strange since I've seen them so prevalent in the wild here. Caging them seems cruel and unnecessary. At the end, we visited where the baby crocs are kept, and the indoor (air-conditioned!) museum and snake, amphibian exhibit. The whole time I thought of how Chris and Morgan would "rate" this "zoo." Then as we stopped for a beer on our way home, the bartender asked me if I wanted ice with it. And when I declined and laughed for a good five minutes, no one else in the pub found it funny.
Either a kangaroo or an accent. The day I said see ya later to my 9th graders, they came up with all kinds of comments and requests about my trip to Australia. While one student told me he would see me at the airport Friday afternoon to hop in my suitcase, most of the others asked me to bring back kangaroos. A few even told me to bring back an accent. They would be pleased to know that today, on our walk I saw quite a few kangaroos hopping about just feet away from where I was standing, and that I am indeed picking up a bit of the slang from my students over here. After school today, Kaye, Roger, and I went down the road a bit for a walk on a path through a bit of jungle-like area and then around the coast of the harbor. It was a beautiful walk, filled with so much nature and breathtaking fews of the harbor. There was a tree that reminded me of a fall in Michigan. There was a tree that if you pulled off a piece of the trunk, it was real cork. There was a massive nest that these birds make to hatch their eggs. There was a magnificent start to a sunset over the harbor. And there were kangaroos! When walking through the jungle-like area, there are a few different clearings that you come across. In these clearings, it is very common to spot a whole group of kangaroos hanging out, enjoying their time, and then hopping away as soon as they realize people are close. It was an incredible sight, as I have never seen kangaroos anywhere besides a zoo in the States. Besides the kangaroos, imagine a 90 degree day in Michigan with 100% humidity. We have about 1 of those every summer and everyone complains, stays in the air conditioned house, and waits for the next day where it is likely to be 60. In Darwin, there's no such thing as 60 (and not just because they use Celsius). It is hot. Every day. All day. So Roger, Kaye, and I enjoyed our walk and conversation, and then after putting out a fire that had been left by some aboriginals hanging out by the water (we saved the entire forest), we drove back home to shower before heading out to dinner. Dinner was at Eat A Pizza, and it was probably my favorite meal I have had in Darwin so far. Based off of Kaye's recommendation, I ordered a pizza that was garlic based instead of tomato based, meaning there was no tomato sauce. I ordered the Hawaiian (pineapple and ham), and we each had a glass of white wine. At the end, Kaye swore by this caramel dessert, so we each had one. It was a plate of sweet goodness. The meal was to die for; so delicious. And the leftovers I took for lunch the next day were just as good!
The adrenaline wore off. It seems as if I haven't stopped since I've left Detroit. From travel to arrival to settling in to starting my first day of school to birthday celebrations, it has been one thing after another. After my birthday on Monday, I was invited to Kaye and Roger's son Blake's house for a get together on Tuesday evening. Of course I went, met some new friends over a few drinks and quite enjoyed some Indian food (a first for me!). But all the good fun had to come to a halt at some point. I was just waiting on the jet lag to hit me like a water balloon falling from the sky (that's actually happening at my school currently--kids throwing water balloons from the stairs down into the courtyard, hitting teachers and students HA!). So however good the company and the environment posed to be, by Wednesday midday I was exhausted. I was getting a headache during school, and I felt so drained and tired. I came home from school and crashed for a good two hours. Afterwards, Roger made fish and chips for dinner--from a fish that Kaye caught! And we relaxed in the living room, talking and laughing for the rest of the night. It was quite uneventful, but a rest much needed, and company much appreciated. I've shared here a few pictures of my new home for the next six weeks. Kaye and Roger live in the suburbs of Ludmilla. There are neighbors on either side, as well as across the street. It's set up quite like a neighborhood in the U.S. would be, with gates that keep the houses secure. The gate also keeps Kaye and Roger's dog Sammy from nipping the postman (which did happen once!). Upon walking up the stairs into the house, there is a keyless entry, with a code that unlocks and opens the door--quite handy. Inside, you walk into an open living room, kitchen, and dining room area. To the left is a hallway that leads to two guest bedrooms (one of which is mine) on the left and a room for the toilet and a room for the sink and shower to the right. Just down the hall from the toilet and shower is Kaye and Roger's bedroom. Outside the kitchen there is a seating area for meals and entertainment. There is also a pool which can offer a refreshing dip if the sun hasn't boiled it to bath water over the course of the week. It's a lovely home, filled with much more love, laughter, and welcoming than I can put into a picture, and I'm happy to say that I have a safe, comfortable, happy house to come home to each night. A little home away from home, if you will.
Candles, a birthday cake, champagne, fire, and magic tricks. Before I left the states, I told my mom that I wasn't going to tell anyone it was my birthday over here. It is my first real day in Darwin, and I was not just going to wake up in the morning and announce that it was my birthday. My host mom, Kaye, was away on holiday and returned late on Sunday night, long after my jet lag put me to bed. We met each other this morning before she went off to work for the day, and not only did she tell me Happy Birthday but she had a card and a gift in her hands for me. It was so kind, so thoughtful, and so loving. I had been living in this house for less than 24 hours, but it already felt like a place I could call home. She announced that we would be going to dinner later that evening for celebrations. In the meantime, however, I had my first day of school to get to. I will talk about school in a later post, but this one is about my special day. I did not want it to be anything out of the ordinary, and it certainly was, so it deserves its own story. The day flew by, and Roger picked me up from school. We did some driving around town, and then he brought me home before we went to watch some of Kaye's cricket players practice. Once Kaye got home from practice, we headed off to dinner with their son Blake and their friend Fran. This bunch was such a lively, entertaining, funny, kind group of people. I could not have asked for a better birthday party. We went to a restaurant where the owner did magic tricks--one of his tricks gave me free money for my birthday! Where the food portions were "American-sized," meaning I had lunch for the next two days. Where Kaye and Roger brought a chocolate, strawberry cake and sang happy birthday. And where the manager, upon departing the restaurant, gave me a free bottle of champagne for the road. For dinner I had chicken schnitzel, upon Blake's request, with "chips" (fries) substituted for the vegetables or salad. (Roger quickly learned that I do not eat vegetables our first lunch together on Sunday). Dessert was delicious, and a few glasses of wine later, we were on our way home after such a lovely evening. And then I got to relive all of the love I felt the next day as well because then it was my birthday in America.
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