Today was the day...the first day we got to leave from our new home to venture out into the world of Kettering and onto the reason we are here. We of course began our day with the most important meal of the day...eating our first breakfast in our kitchen (over the kitchen counters). [Side note: I burnt my toast..it went from white to charcoal in - I kid not - 60 seconds] We looked at the clock and, based on our previous calculations, decided to leave at 8:15 to make sure to be at school by 8:45. We were directed to the "restaurant" (cafeteria) by the principal; he seems like a nice chap. We eventually made our way through our day, having breaks in between, and hearing about all the great changes that are taking place at the school - and there are MANY changes.
After lunch, we went off to our department meetings - where we got to good stuff...trying to find out who and what we were going to teach. That's when it came to my attention:
1) I will be teaching 17 classes a week when the other girls I'm sharing a flat with will only be teaching 14 (3 classes DOES make a difference when they are 1hour 20minutes long each).
2) Even though I agreed on the job based on the fact that I would be teaching 11-14 year olds (approximately grades 7-9), I found out that I will be teaching at least one class in each of the grades 7 to 11. That upsets and terrifies me, as that is NOT what I agree to. [For the record, I e-mailed my contact in the agency and hope to get some answers from him]
3) Most of the new hires come from Canada (at least 7)
I am still trying to wrap my head around point 2, but at the moment know that there is nothing I can do.
When we got home, we began straight to work on our furniture assembly. Okay, so the girls continued on with it while I went to the store I bought it from to see what they would do for the missing piece, as well as purchase another drying rack for my wet clothes (recall: no dryers here) along with a half-decent tool kit. Luckily, I was able to get the missing piece and continue with my assembly.
I won't bore you with all the details (for once), but let's say that I procrastinated by making our first dinner in the house (mashed potatoes, fried onions and peppers, and grilled chicken) then put on a load of laundry (after dinner) and then back to the grindstone. I finally completed my assembly and filled the dresser with my clothes by midnight. Now I have to figure out exactly where I'm placing it. Either way, my room is starting to feel like MY room...I love it!
Interesting Fact:
1) I'm sure you have heard that teachers LOVE free stuff (for evidence, please see my area of the basement in our family home). Well, I have often wondered if that was just a Canadian teacher thing. Well, let me reassure you that it is NOT exclusive to Canada. We will be receiving a daily allowance for food in the school restaurant for breakfast break and lunch. The only catch is that we eat our meals with our students in the same cafeteria. Meh....FREE FOOD!!!
2) Although the washing machine looks small, it is great for doing a load of my laundry...who knew
3) When the box tells you it is a 2-person job...trust that it is a 2-person job (I found out the hard way)...but Argos furniture is much easier to follow than Ikea :)
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