Definitely much needed after moving, getting boomerang flu, helping out part time at the little primary school down the road, and getting the new puppy! Now that I'm 'on leave' I'd forgotten just how much I love my own space!
A good few months ago a friend of mine's Dad - who teaches at the little primary school down the road - got hold of me and asked me if I didn't want to help out while they looked for a full time drama / art teacher. I said no. Clearly. And look where I am now. I've been there a term. I'm loving it. And I don't think they're really looking for a full time teacher!
When I went in to help them out they'd been looking, unsuccessfully, for two terms (six months!) for an art / drama teacher. It's pretty scary how few suitably quilified teachers are left in the country - though who can blame them when you can go to Dubai or the UK and earn SO MUCH more money. Teachers are really undervalued in this country. Which makes so little sense to me - they're one of the first things I'd pump money into if I were trying to fix our woes.
So, soap box aside, now I'm teaching art 15 hours a week. It's great to combat being on my own for almost all my time (which is what happens when you work from home I'm afraid - the glamorous part of doing shoots only occupies about a fifth of my time!) but I'd forgotten how much energy you need to teach - even for the brief time that I'm there. And then . . . wonder of wonders . . . the term ended and I'm now on holiday! Feels kind of weird having so much time to myself (well, I do spend most of my time working - processing, getting quotes out, seeing clients - but when you work for yourself you can do the work whenever you want to . . . like after that afternoon nap, or after taking the puppy for a walk on the beach ;)
Next term I'll have to see how I go with the teaching though. For me teaching's a commitment that you make to the kids - its not about walking in and telling kids to do the random stuff that the syllabus dictates (anyone could do that), it's about building people up. And you can only do that if the kids trust you. And if they think you're leaving in a term's time, well then, from their perspective, what's the point of them waisting their time? It's horrible leaving in the middle of the year. So I'll probably stay on till the end of this year, but it'll be tough when season hits! Though I have to say that the staff at the school are just fantastic and they really help each other out, which makes such a difference if things get a bit rough.
Anywho, now that the couch is catching the afternoon light, and the puppy has settled down and is no longer trying to use the cat as a chew toy, I think I shall adjourn to the lounge for that nap!
