Another New School

Hello all! Greetings from the UK. Question for all you- What is the difference between the United Kingdom, Great Britain, and England? There is one!

So today is Tuesday and I am at my second day of work at my new school. I am working in a secondary school(middle and high school) in outer London. The commute is somewhat long, about an hour and twenty minutes and it involves me walking, tube, bus, bus, and walking. However, I could go by train and cut the journey by about 30 minutes or so, but that would involve £36.60/week I would have to foot out. By doing it my method, I do not have to pay any extra because I already have a bus pass. All in all I like the free route better. On a negative note, my commute lasted 2 hours last night, but I was able to catch up on some sleep and make a couple of phone calls.

My job has me working with pupils whom have been "expelled" for the day. Here we call it external inclusion because they come to a separate area and we make them do work all day. We also have pupils come in for different periods because they are behind or disruptive. Teachers come in as well to lead those class periods. My main job duty is to supervise the inclusion pupils. They are not terrible students either, just sent out of class for a day for doing some stupid thing. My two pupils yesterday were caught hanging from the rafters...so nothing too bad.

The day is split up into five periods and today, we have no kids in inclusion. This means we do not have any pupils until third and fourth period. I have period one, two, and five to burn today. This will not be normal, but for today it is kind of fun. The teachers here have been exceptionally nice in making me feel welcome. The school is a normal, main stream school with about 1300 pupils.

What else have I been up to since my last blog? Lets see. Friday I worked both jobs, with the catering position being another charity ball with an Asian theme this time. I only worked the dinner so I did not see the entertainment (Chinese dragon and martial artists). I had the weekend off and that was really nice. Saturday Adam and I went to Hamspstead Heath, a huge park with lots of trees and paths. We climbed trees and ran around like little four year olds. After that, I went to the pub down the street to watch the England vs. Austria football match. England won 1 nil in a not very exciting match. The team has been under scrutiny for their lackluster play. The fans want to see some play that could possibly win the world cup. After that, I went home and made a huge pasta dinner, in all with tuna, sliced mushrooms, onions, garlic bread and the works. I thought it tasted brilliant. I then watched some lame American Idol British style and a pretty cool game show.

On Sunday I went for a run, discovered a cementary on my run and went in to explore. The place was massive. I wondered around for about an hour and probably only saw half of it. The oldest tombstone I saw was from 1835 but so many were rubbed off I know there were older ones. After this I went to the market in Brixton and then off to Greenwich for the afternoon. It was a gorgeous day out and I went to the park that overlooks the city. I ate a ton of food too, fresh Scotish shortbread, a cheese and onion pastry, a sweet and sour noodle dish, and a freshly squeezed fruit drink (not all at once). I had an absolute blast and it was very relaxing.

Yesterday I worked and then Adam and I caught a post work pint. We sat outside along the canal at the pub across the street from our place. Very nice. Tonight I work after teaching so it should be a long day. Hopefully I will see someone famous, after Kari has seen Prince William and Emily has seen Tom Hanks (an extra in the DaVinci Code). Work is calling me so I must be on my way! I hope you enjoy the update! Happy birthday to Jordan (on the 16th), another birday I will miss :(

Peace

For all you in MN, the weather is suppose to be about 23 C or about 78 F. A steamy day!