Back again!

Well, it's been a little while since I posted, so the question you may be asking is, "Where have you been?" Then again, you may not be asking. You may not care. Indeed, there may be no-one reading this at all. However, deluding myself that there is at least one person out there that is reading this and cares - well, here is my answer:

I have been on a teaching round at a primary school down the highway a bit.

However, that answer does not capture the multitude of emotions that have occurred during my practicuum, so here is a post to attaempt to capture as much as I can of what it was like.

Firstly, it was hard. It was hard because I left the house early and got home often quite late, which meant I was tired and had little time left over for study and no time for writing! It was hard because I had to prepare lesson plans which were overly labour-intensive. It was hard because what time I did have left had to be used, to a certain degree, on catching up with my family (who are perhaps too used to having me around all-day every-day).

Secondly, it was tiring (aside from the points above). At first the constant standing and pacing, the constant get up and go, the constant energy of "performing"(see below) and observing, the constant always having something to do really drained me. I became somewhat used to it over time, but it was very tiring aside from being long.

Thirdly, it was emotionally draining. You would hope to go well, and some little snot would play up and detract all the goodness out of the lesson. Things would be running smoothly and then someone would get some attitude or cheek and your plans would come crashing down around you. Or, as the case may be, you just would be ready in time, or you were just plain wrong, and the kids would look at you like you were an idiot, or say you were an idiot, or just ignore you...

Fourthly, it was a hoot. I shared some great times, put on some alright "performances", had some great laughs and shared in some terrific moments. There were some amazing highlights, and perhaps none so high as when some kid who just didn't do some particular thing did it under my tutelage! For example, one of the purposes behind my social education sequence was to encourage one particular child to communicate, another to come out of her shell, another to gain leadership skills, and others to develop interpersonal skills, and they all did!!! What a high.

This teaching round will definitely be a whole chapter in my memoirs (hah hah hah).

However, now I am back here in my little room, at my little computer, with a mound of assignments looming. So I have to lay aside all that and get into it, because, as they say, time waits for no man.

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"Performances: performing": I do not mean to demean teaching at all when I speak of performing and performances in regards to teaching. However, I also do consider teaching - in the practical classroom environment - very much a performance based activity. Consider the voice projection, eye-contact, pacing, use of humour, dramatics, etc: all performance essentials that are vital to good classroom teaching, I think. However, while this is not to say that all teachers are first-rate actors (and actors are not all teachers - they don't have to plan and evaluate and record and observe the way teachers do), performing is part of being a teacher.