(no subject)
I've had an evening of doing nothing and it's finally given me time to catch my breath a little. Since changing job and moving it's been non-stop.
First, I worked eleven days straight without a day off. And when I say worked, I actually do mean worked. With my old job I'd be there for about eight hours a day but usually half of that was spent reading books or studying as I had no classes and didn't need all of that time to prepare. With the new job I'm constantly busy, either with teaching or prep work, from the second I get there to the second I leave. It means the days are just flying by, but it's also quite tiring.
My apartment is slowly getting sorted. I now have actual floor space and all of my suitcases are empty and put away. There's just a few boxes lining the walls now and I hope to empty at least another one tomorrow.
Yesterday I went on an overnight English camp with the first year junior high students. We went to an education centre in Saitama and I was surprised when I found out that everyone had to make their own way there. For me, it was 90 minutes and three train changes and it would have been similar for everyone. If my class when I was 11 years old had been asked to do that, I'd have bet money that a third would have been late and that a further third would never have turned up at all and would have just gone somewhere random. Thankfully my students were good and all turned up on time. The rooms for the girls were nowhere near the teacher's rooms either and I was expecting them to be up all night talking and wiped out in the morning but nope, they were all bright eyed and energetic this morning at 7am for our pointless walk around the facility.
The camp itself was fun. I had to teach five lessons to them over yesterday and today so it involved a lot of preparation (powerpoints, worksheets, things for games, etc) but it went well and I received good feedback from both the girls and the vice principal who came along too. He did just sit at the back during my classes reading a book, but I guess his disinterest was a sign that I did well and he didn't need to pay attention because I had everything covered.
This week should be a normal week and then I have two four day weekends coming up due to Golden Week and the school owing us all a day off for working a Sunday. I hope to have the apartment sorted by the end of those holidays. I've been assured that things will calm down and be a little quieter once Golden Week has gone and everyone is settled in, but we'll see...
First, I worked eleven days straight without a day off. And when I say worked, I actually do mean worked. With my old job I'd be there for about eight hours a day but usually half of that was spent reading books or studying as I had no classes and didn't need all of that time to prepare. With the new job I'm constantly busy, either with teaching or prep work, from the second I get there to the second I leave. It means the days are just flying by, but it's also quite tiring.
My apartment is slowly getting sorted. I now have actual floor space and all of my suitcases are empty and put away. There's just a few boxes lining the walls now and I hope to empty at least another one tomorrow.
Yesterday I went on an overnight English camp with the first year junior high students. We went to an education centre in Saitama and I was surprised when I found out that everyone had to make their own way there. For me, it was 90 minutes and three train changes and it would have been similar for everyone. If my class when I was 11 years old had been asked to do that, I'd have bet money that a third would have been late and that a further third would never have turned up at all and would have just gone somewhere random. Thankfully my students were good and all turned up on time. The rooms for the girls were nowhere near the teacher's rooms either and I was expecting them to be up all night talking and wiped out in the morning but nope, they were all bright eyed and energetic this morning at 7am for our pointless walk around the facility.
The camp itself was fun. I had to teach five lessons to them over yesterday and today so it involved a lot of preparation (powerpoints, worksheets, things for games, etc) but it went well and I received good feedback from both the girls and the vice principal who came along too. He did just sit at the back during my classes reading a book, but I guess his disinterest was a sign that I did well and he didn't need to pay attention because I had everything covered.
This week should be a normal week and then I have two four day weekends coming up due to Golden Week and the school owing us all a day off for working a Sunday. I hope to have the apartment sorted by the end of those holidays. I've been assured that things will calm down and be a little quieter once Golden Week has gone and everyone is settled in, but we'll see...