A quiet day at home

We got up early this morning - before 7 - and decided to walk to the Botanical Gardens before it got too hot. It is amazing how busy the city is that early in the morning. The park was full of people doing tai chi and the Singaporean take on 'keep fit', which did not look very strenuous. There was a lot of half-hearted arm waving and the instructor had a small tape recorder playing a jazzed up, 'modern' version of Beethoven's 9th (choral) - I think Beethoven would be turning in his grave. There were lots of other people out and about, as well as the ubiquitous maids walking huge, hairy, panting dogs. It is a lovely time of day, before the heat gets too much.

We have spent the rest of the day just chilling. We are really enjoying spending time in our flat. We said we would go out for dinner tonight but have opted for an Ottolenghi special instead. What is great about living here is the range of Asian veggies, spices and carbs available in the shops so we can experiment with some very different dishes. And the local produce is, obviously, a lot cheaper than 'western' food. We will be trying a Malay 'sambal' this evening - it's supposed to be very spicy!

When I am not busy getting distracted, I am also trying to prepare for a grammar lesson that I am teaching on Wednesday - the difference between the future perfect and future continuous tenses. Answers on a postcard please! I am now teaching upper intermediate English learners who are apparently a lot more challenging than my lovely pre-intermediate expat ladies. They ask you tricky questions and expect on-the-spot answers. Pesky students! So it requires a lot more preparation - as the teacher, I am the middle(wo)man between the grammar book and the class. So that requires me to understand the grammar myself and then put it into simple terms so that they understand, whilst ensuring that my lessons are fun, engaging and 'student-centred'. Not a lot to ask really.

Milestones passed, boxes ticked

It is my last day at school today. The remainder of my time as a 'student' is really just admin, a few days at university, a week in a primary school. I'll hear whether I have 'passed' on the 29th June, but I am not expecting to fail.

As I wandered over to Pret for my morning tea (and today, an almond croissant as a treat) I suddenly felt very proud of what I have achieved and really glad that I can now (almost) say, 'I am a teacher'.

Tread softly

My lecture on Monday was on 'Becoming a Teacher' and I loved it for a number of reasons, chief among them the cool software the professor used to give his presentation (check it out: http://prezi.com/).

The theme was how the different 'beginnings' of a career in teaching could end in very different endings. The key to success, and serenity, is having the ability to experiment, diversify and change your approach to your work. Interesting and I hope that I end up in the 'serene' camp.

But it was his thoughts on everything between the middle and the end of our careers that I will remember. He reminded us of the huge influence that teachers can have in a child's life and shared an anecdote about a boy who had grown up to be a fireman. He had always wanted to be a fireman, ever since he could remember. But one of his teachers had strongly counselled him against it, telling him he would be throwing his life away. Luckily he ignored his teacher and fulfilled his ambition. And when this teacher and his wife were involved in a serious car accident, he was at the scene and was able to give both of them life-saving treatment. The teacher looked more kindly on him after that.

The point was, every day children come to school and they lay their dreams at your feet. As a teacher you have to be careful where you tread. As Yeats said:

But I [...], have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams beneath your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.