Downhill

The day started well with a lift from the dancing man from Narooz, on his lap, one child and another at the back so although we could not say much he could introduce his children, so that was fun. But after that well having stopped en route to year 1 for a minute to talk with the music teacher, who I thought explained via google translate that he was looking for the piano music for an English tune,  I was amazed to get to the class only to find that he was with them instead in another room.  It took another 15 minutes to extricate them, so it was like oh know the bad old days again, though I was able to use that time to set up the class. I knew only to well why the classroom teacher wanted them to have the extra music class, because the kids have to perform on Friday,  but apart from it being my class that is also why I wanted them, because I am doing a class with them on Friday too. so needed to pre-teach some material. So I was pretty brusque with her and the  poor kids suffered from a very brusque me too, but that way we got through the material but it was not relaxed or the right thing because they need to enjoy the class more than that.

I could not change my class time, though I could have if I had been primed as I needed to teach year 0.  I had popped into their class earlier to set up the materials I needed ready for it, as I spotted the door was open. I found the kids all happily playing quietly, no teacher. because we have no cover provision.  I figured that they were pretty safe in fact safer there than outside where I had found them earlier as the playground which has some nice bits e.g. the swing, which seems to have got broken today and the seesaw, which also seems to have got broken yesterday, so the kids were wondering in bits that are the ruins of the previous building.  The kids here are very robust, like little London kids playing in the ruins of the blitz, but I am very uncomfortable with this, when I try and caution them they are more determined to do it.  Safety and discipline were two areas that did not get covered at the meeting held over the holidays but I really do not know how to manage a situation like this but kids regularly play both at school and at home unsupervised. So I am afraid I left them to it as I could not bear to watch them. They were outside again when I went into the class to teach. I found a bell and luckily most of them came but I figured the rest of them over the playing field could exhaust me and use up my lesson so left them to it.  Another thing we did not manage to discuss break supervision. I have always hated the spectre at primary schools of kids at the end of breaks being marched into class, but now I understand how helpful it is. Anyway so I worked with the reduced class which was I must admit quite relaxing and then taught Krushki. At one point I realised that the other class were not with the head, who I must admit I had not seen all day, so when they asked me to come out I tried to motion 5 minutes, thinking she would appear and after that just got so engaged with my class I forgot about till I came out. I figured if her class was still around and not with her I would teach them, but they were not there, just the music teacher who explained it was indian music that I wanted.  He loves Bollywood he could sing the tune from one film all the way through in hindi, but he wanted the notes,  not an English tune therefore so not something I could really help him with so I headed home only to realise that my back was killing me. I think it might be carrying around the owners baby, he is lovely but just maybe too heavy for me to pick up as often as I do, so minding him for five minutes this evening so his mum could cook for me, I was trying to be very careful. Just as worrying is that it has taken an hour to get the computer to work. I cannot work out where the problem is with the cable but the connection often does not work so there is no power, I have tried some other cables, no joy, then suddenly it worked so I have written this and will try not to touch anything in the hope that it stays working at least for this evening, but there is no guarantee.