Because of the holidays, I’ve been in a very reflective mood. I’ve been thinking over my life in the last year and how much it has changed. Because of a random set of circumstances, I quit my job last year on my birthday. So I kind of view that as the beginning of this crazy year. Last year’s Christmas was filled with me drinking up the last bits of family time. Then in March, I headed here. It’s been a great experience so far. I’ve done things that I never imagined possible.
School at the high school is going really well. It took a few months for me to get into the swing of things and for the students to get used to my broken Shqip/English conversations and I teach differently than they are used to. But I have mastered the use of the register (the teacher’s grade book) which is way more difficult than you would imagine. And I think some of the stuff I’m saying is getting through to them. And I taught them the phrases TGIF and bling, bling. So clearly they are better off knowing me.
The private school has been great. I teach a beginner class and team teach an advanced class. The beginners are getting to the point where we can have brief conversations in English. The school decided to have a New Year’s party and it was a really great time. Each different class worked on a presentation in English – a song, a story, a dialogue or poem. I taught my class Jingle Bells and they did a great job singing the song. I was a bit worried that my class wouldn’t be as good as the other classes so I pulled a favor and brought a guitar playing friend which ensured that ours was the best. Another highlight was the Romeo and Juliet scene. Two kids asked me to pick out a scene in Romeo and Juliet for them to act. I suggested that I translate it into modern English and they agreed. So I picked the balcony scene. I did forget how ridiculously romantic the play is and I definitely had some fear of screwing up Shakespeare. Especially the really famous lines. "Would a rose by any other name smell as sweet?" It was a bit nerve wracking. But they memorized the whole scene and really brought down the house. The party ended with circle dancing and some hip hop. And the party ended at 11:30 am so all of this went on before lunch!
So in summary. I don’t think that I’ve ever had a New Year where I felt that my life had changed so much, but it all has been for the best. I’m enjoying my time here, meeting all kinds of great people, and hopefully making a bit of a difference here.
Hope you enjoy the pic of me shaking it up with my students.
School at the high school is going really well. It took a few months for me to get into the swing of things and for the students to get used to my broken Shqip/English conversations and I teach differently than they are used to. But I have mastered the use of the register (the teacher’s grade book) which is way more difficult than you would imagine. And I think some of the stuff I’m saying is getting through to them. And I taught them the phrases TGIF and bling, bling. So clearly they are better off knowing me.
The private school has been great. I teach a beginner class and team teach an advanced class. The beginners are getting to the point where we can have brief conversations in English. The school decided to have a New Year’s party and it was a really great time. Each different class worked on a presentation in English – a song, a story, a dialogue or poem. I taught my class Jingle Bells and they did a great job singing the song. I was a bit worried that my class wouldn’t be as good as the other classes so I pulled a favor and brought a guitar playing friend which ensured that ours was the best. Another highlight was the Romeo and Juliet scene. Two kids asked me to pick out a scene in Romeo and Juliet for them to act. I suggested that I translate it into modern English and they agreed. So I picked the balcony scene. I did forget how ridiculously romantic the play is and I definitely had some fear of screwing up Shakespeare. Especially the really famous lines. "Would a rose by any other name smell as sweet?" It was a bit nerve wracking. But they memorized the whole scene and really brought down the house. The party ended with circle dancing and some hip hop. And the party ended at 11:30 am so all of this went on before lunch!
So in summary. I don’t think that I’ve ever had a New Year where I felt that my life had changed so much, but it all has been for the best. I’m enjoying my time here, meeting all kinds of great people, and hopefully making a bit of a difference here.
Hope you enjoy the pic of me shaking it up with my students.
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