After teaching a wild two days of Halloween lessons, I am (as of yesterday at 10:30) officially on vacation. Upon reflection on the past few weeks teaching, I decided to do a little counting: 8 days taught over 3 weeks. And now I have 12 days off. I feel like something could/should be scientifically proven with those numbers, but I haven't figured out what yet... All I know is that I have 2 more days in Metz to hang out, sleep in, do laundry and pack for a week of trains, travel and friends.
Teaching is still going well, and now I find myself wondering what in the heck I need to accomplish with my kids between the return from vacation and the start of Christmas break - a mere 6 weeks later. There is so much I want to do, all at once, but I know that won't do anyone any good - myself or the kids. And I also have to figure out how to do perhaps a series of lessons on American Thanksgiving. That'll take a bit more explaining than Halloween.
One class of CM2s (5th-graders) continues to be difficult and frustrating, mostly because they are a large, rowdy group that doesn't really seem to care about learning much of anything. Their classroom teacher is pretty fed up with them, but says I'm doing a really good job. I can't even imagine what a not-so-good-job would look like! But between the homework they were assigned last week, and the quiz I warned them about coming up after break, maybe they'll start to think English is a real class; just as important as math or French. What's just as surprising as this CM2 class's behavior is the polar opposite behavior of my other class of CM2s at my little school. I've only had 2 real teaching days with them so far, but they've been pleasant, attentive, have participated and seem to be enjoying the class. I was warned my 2 classes at that school might be more challenging than my others, since the school serves a neighborhood of a largely disadvantaged socio-economic class. My CM1s (4th-graders) there are a little difficult from time to time, but it's nothing like at the other school.
So on this, my first day of vacation, I slept in, went to the market to browse and drool over the many, many cheese vendors' displays, and to plan out meals with all the incredible products I can get there. In the afternoon, despite a mild mist, I rode my bike out to the center of Montigny-les-Metz, the suburb in which I teach (but my schools are on one side of the town), to visit the Maison des Pays Messins (literally, House of the Lands of Metz). It's like a cross between a tourism office and a cultural center. It's a pretty small building, but they were having a little exhibit about a small town near here, Sainte-Ruffine. I knew nothing about this place before checking out the photo/history exibit, but now I certainly want to go there. Fortunately, it's conveniently located on one of the major bus lines. It's a little town with a lot of history, dating back to the Roman era with surviving remains of some thermal baths. The photo exhibit gave a brief overview of what there is in this little commune, which would have been completely unsatisfying in and of itself, but after reading some more about the town when I came back home, I really want to go there and see the sites for myself.
I whipped up a soup at the end of the day that turned out to be a huge success and will certainly clear up the pesky stuffy nose I woke up with this morning. Recipe available upon request!
Teaching is still going well, and now I find myself wondering what in the heck I need to accomplish with my kids between the return from vacation and the start of Christmas break - a mere 6 weeks later. There is so much I want to do, all at once, but I know that won't do anyone any good - myself or the kids. And I also have to figure out how to do perhaps a series of lessons on American Thanksgiving. That'll take a bit more explaining than Halloween.
One class of CM2s (5th-graders) continues to be difficult and frustrating, mostly because they are a large, rowdy group that doesn't really seem to care about learning much of anything. Their classroom teacher is pretty fed up with them, but says I'm doing a really good job. I can't even imagine what a not-so-good-job would look like! But between the homework they were assigned last week, and the quiz I warned them about coming up after break, maybe they'll start to think English is a real class; just as important as math or French. What's just as surprising as this CM2 class's behavior is the polar opposite behavior of my other class of CM2s at my little school. I've only had 2 real teaching days with them so far, but they've been pleasant, attentive, have participated and seem to be enjoying the class. I was warned my 2 classes at that school might be more challenging than my others, since the school serves a neighborhood of a largely disadvantaged socio-economic class. My CM1s (4th-graders) there are a little difficult from time to time, but it's nothing like at the other school.
So on this, my first day of vacation, I slept in, went to the market to browse and drool over the many, many cheese vendors' displays, and to plan out meals with all the incredible products I can get there. In the afternoon, despite a mild mist, I rode my bike out to the center of Montigny-les-Metz, the suburb in which I teach (but my schools are on one side of the town), to visit the Maison des Pays Messins (literally, House of the Lands of Metz). It's like a cross between a tourism office and a cultural center. It's a pretty small building, but they were having a little exhibit about a small town near here, Sainte-Ruffine. I knew nothing about this place before checking out the photo/history exibit, but now I certainly want to go there. Fortunately, it's conveniently located on one of the major bus lines. It's a little town with a lot of history, dating back to the Roman era with surviving remains of some thermal baths. The photo exhibit gave a brief overview of what there is in this little commune, which would have been completely unsatisfying in and of itself, but after reading some more about the town when I came back home, I really want to go there and see the sites for myself.
I whipped up a soup at the end of the day that turned out to be a huge success and will certainly clear up the pesky stuffy nose I woke up with this morning. Recipe available upon request!
Mexican-Style Bean and Veggie Soup, served with a dollop of fromage frais - like a cross between yogurt and sour cream
Recipe, please!
ReplyDeleteloveyourmama
Looks DELICIOUS Kap--I'd love that recipe! Jessica and I are in the process of gathering things to make pickled Korean kimchi to stave off colds and the flu...but she has to finish her gallon jar of pickles first.
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