And.......relax.........

Saturday evening. Actually, I've only just relaxed...as such. I've been reading course work. We've a first "diagnostic" assignment to complete in the next week. It's only supposed to be 750 words and its real purpose is to gauge how good (or otherwise) we are at writing "academic" documents. Having read (or at least skimmed through) a couple of the bibliographed (I just made that word up! Good, eh?) documents I not at least have a shape forming in my head of what is required. I can even think of examples from my own experience. Phew!

However, the more I read, the more I think that a year is never going to be long enough to learn all that needs to be learned. Document after document tells me how teachers are failing widely to do this or that......how the other could be done better (ooo, err, missus!) In some ways I think I need to get onto my first practical placement. I need to be reminded that I love being in a classroom and that I naturally do many of the things that the literature is telling me about. For example, the current assignment is about "assessment for learning"; not of learning. Examples of what teachers should be (but often aren't) doing are things like questioning children before a teaching session to see where they are in their understanding and thus know where to start. Hey! I thought. I've done that! When I've been asked to sit with a particular child to work through a knotty bit of, say, maths, I've instinctively questioned them first to find out what they do and don't understand and started where necessary. Gosh! I'm a natural.

Today has, of course, been the first "day of rest" since the whole she-bang started. Issy and I had rather too much wine last night to compensate for the most alcohol free week we've suffered in years. Good though. Edward had his newly re-scheduled piano lesson in the early afternoon and we went to lovely Barrow-in-Furness afterwards for one thing and another. Later in the afternoon, Thing Two and I did more of his model boat while Thing One was out playing with a friend. We generated quite a heady atmosphere in the dining room with lashings and lashings of plastic solvent glue. PONG! We've probably lost a few brain cells between us.

I'd better go and stir the soup now.

HUNGRY!

Kiss, kiss.

R.