I didn't think that I could top my visit to Stratford-Upon-Avon... but my visit to the lovely city of Bath, with my department head, mentor and friend, Jayne Conway, has proven to be the highlight of my visit here to date. Trips to London aside, the female company of a fabulous woman, who enjoyed all the experiences on this trip for the first time alongside me, was great! Thank you so much Jayne for treating me to a lovely overnight stay in such a marvelous city.
Despite having been to Bath before, Jayne has always found herself with her husband and son in tow, so has never had the chance to experience the Roman Baths and the other museums we visited on this trip...so I am so glad I could experience this with her....although my good friend and mentor Nancy Sweeney, back at home in Northbridge, was always at the forefront of my mind as I toured this marvelous city. Nancy is our much beloved and treasured Latin teacher and is also the respected matriarch of the district. She too would have loved to see this wonderful Roman architectural and cultural masterpiece.
The day began with a warning on the BBC news that the stormy weather, wind and rain hitting the UK should be heeded by residents and it was suggested that all day trips be cancelled as the traveling could prove hazardous. Ha.... as Jayne said, "if you heeded all these things in this country you'd never go anywhere" and off we went. The traveling was fine, actually and we managed to arrive at our hotel without incident. Thankfully I had grabbed my fashionable Wellies, as the rain pelted us during our initial exploration of the city.
Our first stop was a cafe for a cuppa and then we proceeded to the Roman Baths. Thankfully, an indoor exhibit for the most part. We grabbed our audio guide and off we went. The tour of this Roman complex - encompassing the fully excavated main bath area, temple, altar and courtyard was magnificently explained on the audio guide, allowing each individual tourist to proceed throughout the museum at their own pace. The artifacts, temple and wall reconstructions using pieces of excavated columns, and figures allowed me to picture how an authentic Roman would have lived.
There were pieces of the exhibit, such as the gems recovered from the drainage systems when excavated that were particularly poignant. It brought home the age of these magnificent structures and also the idea that a young woman may have gotten up from the waters of the bath, looked at the hand only to realize that perhaps the gemstone in a ring given her by a lover was now lost. Each gem had an owner, with a life and story...what must they be?
Our next venture in the rain found us headed to the Fashion Museum and Assembly Rooms. Unfortunately the Assembly Rooms were closed for a private wedding. These rooms were large, grandiose ball rooms used for entertainment in the 18th and 19th century by the rich. There would be balls, gambling and other forms of entertainment where people would gather after their evening supper. The Fashion Museum was well worth the trip - and trying on corsets and crinolines gave both Jane and I a good laugh...something Micaela would have never participated in and would have only classified as "dorkiness." It was good to know that I was with a woman who braved the dress up experience! Quite fun!
Dinner for the evening found us in the Indian Eye - billed as the most authentic Indian food in the city, frequented by the likes of Jane Seymour and the cast of the East Enders - it provided a great venue for my first venture into authentic Indian food. Yummy!!!
On Sunday the sun shone brightly in the sky and seeing Bath by sunlight was a different experience altogether...while no less lovely in the rain, it was nice not to venture forth bundled in coats and Wellies!
This day found us back at the Circus and the Crescent; two architectural structures designed for the wealthiest citizens of Bath in the 18th and 19th centuries. We were able to enter Number One Crescent - an authentically restored regency period townhouse. It was lovely. We also learned that only the facade was designed by the architect John Wood, all the homes behind the facade were individually contracted builds and all are unique and different.
We then ventured to the Jane Austen Center where Jayne and I learned more about one of our mutual favorite authors. On the tour one learns that Miss Austen was not a particular fan of Bath, preferring the quiet of the countryside to the bustle and pretentiousness of the city. She lived in Bath during a time in her life where she and her mother and sister were at the mercy of of the generosity of her brothers to care for them. During their time in Bath they were progressively moving down the hill to the inner areas of the town, as their financial situation dictated. Considering she only lived here for a short five years of her life, they have capitalized on her later fame.
Our time in Bath went all too quickly, and like most other places I have visited, more time was needed to soak it all in, but it will be one I will not soon forget...and hopefully someday I will come back, next time with Nancy, and experience it all again!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
The Return of the Natives
Last Thursday evening Fairfield hosted their annual "Speech Night". The easiest way for me to explain this evening is to equate it to the tradition (or what it has evolved to be in the last ten years at Northbridge) of Class Night for our graduating Seniors.
Last year's Year 11 students, who left Fairfield and have since gone on to Sixth Form College, vocational training or the work force, most of whom are 16 or 17, return to Fairfield for a celebration of their achievements. They listen to speeches by the Headmaster, a guest speaker, and are entertained by musicians currently studying at the school. They receive their GCSE certificates and several little gifts. Highest achievers in each subject level are honored with a special award and gifts, seemingly books pertaining to those particular areas of study.
The evening began with a delicious roast dinner for the staff, lovingly cooked and served by Kath and Josephine, complete with Yorkshire puddings, roasted potatoes and several very yummy puddings to finish off the meal (desserts to all you Americans.) Micaela has determined that all sweets (desserts) are termed puddings here. The meal is provided in an effort to feed all those staff members who desire to stay for the evening activities, but who live too far from the school to return home and come back. It was very much appreciated!
All returning students gathered in the art room to mingle with the staff prior to the start of the night.
I was struck by the absence of student participation in this speech night, other than the musicians performing and the current Year 11 prefects who welcomed the guest speaker and assisted with the presentation of awards. At NHS both graduating and current students play a large role in Class Night ceremonies- making speeches, singing songs, playing instruments, and making presentations. Conversely, I was also surprised that no one from the leaving students stood to thank or recognize the staff for their years of dedication to the departed students' education. I am not certain that the same student/teacher relationships are fostered on this side of the pond as back at home; but that could be a false impression from this one function. I was also struck by the inclusion of hymns into the ceremony, on that token it would be comparable to our ecumenical baccalaureate church service for our seniors. I did like the creativity and uniqueness of the gift given to the guest speaker: a gift basket which included a leg of lamb from a Fairfield sheep, eggs from the Fairfield chickens and a scarf made from the wool of the Fairfield Alpaca's.
Overall, it was a nice evening and I was pleased that I had taken part. I am disappointed however, that I did not win the pool of money associated with a guess of the length of Mr. Barker's speech. Each staff member paid a pound ( a sum I thought should be upped to a tenner- typical American) for a guess,and one member of staff, my friend and PE teacher, Ian, uses a stop watch to time it...person closest wins the pool. Apparently this same tradition continues for Mr. Barker's speech at the Christmas Party...now I have a better idea of how much time to expect perhaps my chances at winning will be better.
I think this could be another tradition I can implement back at home...what,with a new principal and all... seems like a good wager...and everyone pays attention because they are all waiting to see how close they get to the winning time! ...and then behave very badly when they learn that a new teacher trainee actually wins! Good job Vicki!
S4K Macbeth
Last Tuesday, November 11, the English department teachers, (sans our fearless leader, Jayne, who was off being professionally developed) took the entire Year 9 group on a field trip to the city of Birmingham. Our destination: the Alexandra Theater to see a musical version of Shakespeare's Macbeth. The Year 9 students had studied Macbeth last year, so they were somewhat familiar with the basic concept of the play.While I was looking forward to this trip, I was somewhat skeptical - as my last experience with local musical theater was not the best, having seen the production of A Slice of Saturday Night in the local Hereford theater which was little better than a high school musical; in fact, NHS theatrical productions proved a cut above this production. I had no idea how Macbeth could be adapted to a musical - and specifically for kids - so, quite honestly I was fully expecting this production to be a flop. My friend Jo and I shared our skepticism along the 1 1/2 hour bus journey into Birmingham.
I will say that I was pleasantly surprised by this "graphic novel come to life" interpretation of my favorite Shakespeare tragedy. The production was performed by the theater group known as Shakespeare For Kids (S4K). They adapt Shakespeare's plays to make them accessible to children of all ages. Indeed, our Fairfield students were some of the oldest students among the theatergoers, many of the seats were filled with much younger students.
The set, the costumes and the musical numbers appealed to these children, and yes, even to me. I was impressed by the authenticity of the langauge that was preserved, while at the same time interspersed with modern script to make the soliloquy's and monologues much more comprehensible for such a young audience; even if some had not yet studied it. The portrayal of the witches, in their full stereotypical "wicked witch" garb and cauldron brewing chanting were entertaining.
The characters of the witches, and their service in the role as the exciting force and master manipulators is enhanced by their "invisible" presence on the stage during a variety of group scenes.
The sexual manipulation by Lady Macbeth on Macbeth was carefully and tastefully done for a young audience. There were times where I felt the character of Lady Macbeth could have been more evil; conversely I felt that the role of Lady Macduff was not quite portrayed as "good enough."
The role of the Porter was brilliantly acted - a true jester-like character; complete with physical comedy and some great "knock-knock" jokes.
Truly I was very impressed with the overall performance of this play and look forward to sharing the experience with my students back home, as I purchased a DVD of the stage production - albeit a different cast.
Our Fairfield students were very well behaved and seemed to have been well entertained by the production.
Above photo from the S4K publicity site.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
"In Flanders' Fields"
Today, November 11th, is Armistice Day in the UK and Veteran's Day in the United States. Both celebrate the remembrance of the men and women who have protected the right to democracy and freedom for our countries, and in the process lost their lives or sustained life altering injuries.
My first encounter with the differences on this day between the US and the UK came on the way to school today as I stopped at the petrol station. I noticed a sign stating that if you were at the station between 10:55 and 11:05, dispensing petrol from the pump, the dispensation would gradually slow until a complete cessation would be experienced at 11 a.m., for a minute of silence. I thought this was quite good; little did I know that the full poignancy of the day was yet to be experienced during a school wide assembly at Fairfield.
The Headmaster, Chris Barker, spoke to the staff and students beginning at 10:50 which culminated in a moment of silence precisely at 11 a.m., coinciding with the end of his talk. I thought I would paraphrase his talk, but as it progressed it became apparent that paraphrasing would not do it justice, so I asked him if I could post the full entirety of what he said on my blog and he kindly agreed.
I will say that this assembly was one of the most profound emotional moments - a positive one - since I have arrived in the UK, and it is quite worth remembering and making note of it. As I looked around I was impressed with the solemnity of the silence observed by the students, from ages to 11 to 16, they were silent and thoughtful. There were some staff with tears in their eyes as they perhaps remembered loved ones affected by any of the conflicts. I was struck by the fact that the entire nation was at a standstill and it was profound.
Often times, in the US, I think we forget as Americans the full force of what sacrifice was made, and continues to be made, by the men and women of our Armed Forces because we have never had a major conflict fought on our own soil. We have the entire day off, but how many people, especially our young people, have an understanding of why they don't attend school on this day?
Upon returning to the classroom I shared my impressions of the assembly with my Year 11 students and conversation ensued about friends, relatives, loved ones off to war at the moment or grandfathers and great-grandfathers who had been involved in WWI & WWII; I was treated to some good stories of these men's lives and their families.
What follows is the text of Mr. Barker's talk during the moment of silence held today at Fairfield High School. I sincerely thank him for allowing me the privilege of publishing it on my blog.
At 11:00 a.m. on 11th November, the eleventh month of the year, the guns ceased firing all over Europe in 1918. Since then we have remembered those who gave their lives so that we can be free; so that we can live our lives as we choose. The last soldiers from that war have now died and there is no-one left who remembers taking part in that terrible slaughter. In 1915 John McCrea wrote a poem because he noticed poppies growing in the disturbed earth which were the graves of his fellow soldiers who had been killed.
"In Flanders' field the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place: and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw the sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders' fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe;
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high,
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders' Fields.
Hence the poppy is the symbol of remembrance and we wear it with pride and all the money raised is spent by The British Legion on looking after injured and sick soldiers.
The men and women who fought in the Second World War are now old too.
There are new conflicts and our soldiers with thousands of American ones and troops from NATO countries are fighting in Afghanistan. In all other wars and conflicts those who have been killed have been buried where they fell but this is the first conflict from which our dead are being brought home. They all arrive back in Wooten Bassett, in Wiltshire. Many are asking should we be in Afghanistan and why are we there? Whatever you may feel, one thing is certain; our politicians believe that the world is a safer place because we are there. Underground trains and buses have been blown up in London, trains have exploded in Madrid, passenger planes have been hijacked and crashed into skyscrapers in New York and countless other atrocities have been carried out around the world by young men trained in camps in Afghanistan. Those camps do not exist at the moment.
On Armistice Sunday, I watched the ceremony from the Cenotaph and at one point there was a list of those, with their ages, who have died in Afghanistan. Most of the soldiers are in their 20's and 30's, but I was struck by three consecutive names who were aged 18, barely two years older than many of you in this room. Whilst thousands of 18 year olds are still at school, some are dying for us in desolate, foreign places.
As Big Ben prepares to strike eleven, without talking,will you stand .... and we will join the rest of the nation in the work-place, on the pavement, in cars pulled over to the side of the road in silence to remember:
"They shall not grow old as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them."
I pray to God that none of you are involved in such an awful thing as war.
Sonnet 130 My Mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun
Teaching poetry to really young students... challenge 1million and one. You know how, as a teacher, every so often you have moments in the classroom that really stand out? The kind that if you were keeping a book of all these wonderful moments you would add it in? The kind where you say that you SHOULD be keeping a book of all these wonderful moments? Well today I did indeed have another of those moments.
Ironically, it happened during a lesson with my Year 8 Monnow. A group of children where ability levels and behaviors vary greatly...generally, on the whole most of my lessons with these students have gone smoothly. Inquisitive, shy and very quirky they have been a good group to work with.
Today, while introducing them to the basic rules of sonnets, and having them write them all down in their exercise books, a very philosophical discussion began with simple questions : Why do we have to all these rules, why can't you just write a poem and be done with it? Who gave it this name and these rules? Why do we have all these different types of poems? Can I create my own form of poetry and call it the "jake" ? Who would think that these questions could spark such discussion - to which I felt very ill-equipped to respond, except to cop out with this: Someone much wiser and much smarter than I decided this name and it has existed for a very long time. I learned poetry this way, and now I am teaching it this way to you too. But the discussion just went round and round in a circle...it was quite funny.
I filled them in on my jealousy that they could brag "ownership" of the Bard, to which I was informed I could "have him," and still another comment that I "could buy him." This group brilliantly, and on first pass, fully understood Sonnet 130 on the most basic of levels and could answer all the questions without help! Brilliant!
When talking about the rule for sonnets which require the theme to be one of "love" I had several boys audibly groan and comment: "I suppose we're going to have write our own." Precious. I assured them that not always do sonnets have to be written about "mushy" love - and then I instantly realized my mistake as the lesson then digressed to a conversation about mushy peas and the best fish and chip shop around that I must surely go to, and the driving directions to get there!
The lesson ended with a comment from one student who simply said, "Miss DeJong, do you have to go home to America? You're funny."
One for the books...
Ironically, it happened during a lesson with my Year 8 Monnow. A group of children where ability levels and behaviors vary greatly...generally, on the whole most of my lessons with these students have gone smoothly. Inquisitive, shy and very quirky they have been a good group to work with.
Today, while introducing them to the basic rules of sonnets, and having them write them all down in their exercise books, a very philosophical discussion began with simple questions : Why do we have to all these rules, why can't you just write a poem and be done with it? Who gave it this name and these rules? Why do we have all these different types of poems? Can I create my own form of poetry and call it the "jake" ? Who would think that these questions could spark such discussion - to which I felt very ill-equipped to respond, except to cop out with this: Someone much wiser and much smarter than I decided this name and it has existed for a very long time. I learned poetry this way, and now I am teaching it this way to you too. But the discussion just went round and round in a circle...it was quite funny.
I filled them in on my jealousy that they could brag "ownership" of the Bard, to which I was informed I could "have him," and still another comment that I "could buy him." This group brilliantly, and on first pass, fully understood Sonnet 130 on the most basic of levels and could answer all the questions without help! Brilliant!
When talking about the rule for sonnets which require the theme to be one of "love" I had several boys audibly groan and comment: "I suppose we're going to have write our own." Precious. I assured them that not always do sonnets have to be written about "mushy" love - and then I instantly realized my mistake as the lesson then digressed to a conversation about mushy peas and the best fish and chip shop around that I must surely go to, and the driving directions to get there!
The lesson ended with a comment from one student who simply said, "Miss DeJong, do you have to go home to America? You're funny."
One for the books...
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Remember, Remember the Fifth of November...
The Gunpowder Treason and plot;
I know of no reason why Gunpowder Treason
should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes
'Twas his intent
To Blow up the King and the Parliament.
Three score barrels of powder below.
Poor Old England to overthrow.
By God's providence he was catch'd,
With a dark lantern and a burning match.
It is the 5th of November, and from the hill there are the sights and sounds of fireworks to behold. If not for the cold wind whipping around outside I'd be out there enjoying the view over the valley. Ironically, fireworks here celebrate the retention of the monarch, whereas in America we light fireworks to celebrate our independence from the monarch on the Fourth of July!
This night, also known as "Bonfire Night," held in the United Kingdom, commemorates the Gunpowder Plot which was partly led by Guy Fawkes; the man in charge of actually carrying out the explosion beneath Parliament. He was arrested a few hours before the planned explosion in the cellars of Parliament in the early hours of November 5, 1605 - prompted by an anonymous letter warning of the danger to the King.
Guy Fawkes belonged to a group of Roman Catholic restorationists from England, whose aim was to displace Parliament rule by blowing up the Houses of Parliament while King James I and the entire Protestant, and even most of the Catholic, aristocracy and nobility were inside.
Upon his arrest Guy Fawkes was tortured for days and ultimately he was found guilty and punished by being hanged, drawn and quartered! Fawkes was 35 years old when he died.
Traditionally this night, and well into the weekend, is celebrated with huge bonfire parties and plenty of fireworks, along with an effigy burning of Fawkes' image.
Currently, as I write this, the sounds of fireworks are pervading the air outside and many local villages will be hosting huge bonfire and fireworks parties tomorrow and Saturday night. I am planning on attending one such celebration, tomorrow evening at Mel's house.
There is etymology behind the word "guy." Students in English class back home, who may be working on their etymology projects, would be interested to learn that the term "guy" originates from the name Guy Fawkes. In 18th century England it became a tradition for children to display a grotesque figure of an effigy (likeness) of Guy Fawkes, termed "a guy," as part of the Bonfire Night celebration. The "guy" would be burned on the bonfire at the end of the evening. "Guy" came to mean a man of odd appearance. In American English, the term "guy" lost its negative connotation and simply became a reference to any man. - source: Wikipedia
Fawkes and his story have long been immortalised in poetry through writers such as Milton. He has often been associated with demons and devils in many pieces of Puritanism literature. Over the years his reputation has been restored and today he is often toasted as the "last man ever to enter Parliament with good intent."
Source for this blog post: Wikipedia & BBC
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Buzzing of the Blue Flies...
Those of you that know me well know that Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities is one of my all-time favorite novels. I especially like the metaphor where the buzzing of the blue flies is used to compare the buzzing of the gallery when viewing trials of the 18th century at the Old Bailey. While I have not yet visited the Old Bailey or Tellson's Bank - I have met my very own "blue flies" here in Wales; except not metaphorical...literal.
My last night of term break was spent meeting and having to deal with a little critter known as a "cluster fly"- except I was privileged to meet hundreds upon hundreds of them and it was not fun!
Cluster flies are apparently indigenous to the UK and helpful websites abound with information about their habits and various methods used to combat their infestation. Their name refers to their common habit of "clustering" when hibernating - often in slate roofed buildings - such as the one in which I currently live - during the autumn months. Cluster flies are field flies, and as the weather becomes cooler they seek out shelter in nooks and crannies of buildings and houses. They typically seek out previous hibernating areas year after year.
It is important to note however, that while cluster flies are a nuisance...and I speak first hand about this... they are not considered a risk to human health and are not considered as evidence of poor hygiene. They are simply a fact of life for most people who live in this area of the UK.
It all started with the innocent spraying of one wasp and a fly in the bathroom hovering near the ceiling light, so Micaela could take shower. It was all down hill from there, as I can only guess that the bug spray on the ceiling light penetrated to the attic where the flies were awakened, and... seeking a way to escape the poison, managed to squeeze their way through the attic crawl space gap and enter the house. I sprayed and hoovered hundreds of these critters up and still they kept coming...it was not fun. Finally, after two hours of non-stop buzzing, spraying and hoovering I exhaustedly sought help from the neighbor who was kind enough to provide me with much stronger bug spray and taped up the gap around the attic crawl space in order to keep the flies held captive in the attic.
Thankfully this worked and I was able to vacuum the remainder dead flies and clean the bathroom from all the dead flies that had found their way onto the floor and bathtub. The captive flies were none too happy however, and angry flies do make for noisy flies... and they were trying their hardest to make it out of the attic space and kept us awake most of the night. If not for the visions of a horror movie in the making with flies attacking us in our sleep we may have had a sound sleep; as it was we slept in the same bed that night.
Micaela, thoroughly annoyed and quite frantic over it all, spent the night at a friend's house on Monday, leaving me to face the battle of the buzzing blue flies on my own as I returned from school. Thankfully, there were not too many to be found, most were corpses, but they did manage to break through the tape along the gap of the attic crawl space during the day. Persistent little buggers!
Mercifully the blue flies , aka "cluster flies", have all but disappeared as of today and I may sleep restfully. What an adventure this is!
My last night of term break was spent meeting and having to deal with a little critter known as a "cluster fly"- except I was privileged to meet hundreds upon hundreds of them and it was not fun!
Cluster flies are apparently indigenous to the UK and helpful websites abound with information about their habits and various methods used to combat their infestation. Their name refers to their common habit of "clustering" when hibernating - often in slate roofed buildings - such as the one in which I currently live - during the autumn months. Cluster flies are field flies, and as the weather becomes cooler they seek out shelter in nooks and crannies of buildings and houses. They typically seek out previous hibernating areas year after year.
It is important to note however, that while cluster flies are a nuisance...and I speak first hand about this... they are not considered a risk to human health and are not considered as evidence of poor hygiene. They are simply a fact of life for most people who live in this area of the UK.
It all started with the innocent spraying of one wasp and a fly in the bathroom hovering near the ceiling light, so Micaela could take shower. It was all down hill from there, as I can only guess that the bug spray on the ceiling light penetrated to the attic where the flies were awakened, and... seeking a way to escape the poison, managed to squeeze their way through the attic crawl space gap and enter the house. I sprayed and hoovered hundreds of these critters up and still they kept coming...it was not fun. Finally, after two hours of non-stop buzzing, spraying and hoovering I exhaustedly sought help from the neighbor who was kind enough to provide me with much stronger bug spray and taped up the gap around the attic crawl space in order to keep the flies held captive in the attic.
Thankfully this worked and I was able to vacuum the remainder dead flies and clean the bathroom from all the dead flies that had found their way onto the floor and bathtub. The captive flies were none too happy however, and angry flies do make for noisy flies... and they were trying their hardest to make it out of the attic space and kept us awake most of the night. If not for the visions of a horror movie in the making with flies attacking us in our sleep we may have had a sound sleep; as it was we slept in the same bed that night.
Micaela, thoroughly annoyed and quite frantic over it all, spent the night at a friend's house on Monday, leaving me to face the battle of the buzzing blue flies on my own as I returned from school. Thankfully, there were not too many to be found, most were corpses, but they did manage to break through the tape along the gap of the attic crawl space during the day. Persistent little buggers!
Mercifully the blue flies , aka "cluster flies", have all but disappeared as of today and I may sleep restfully. What an adventure this is!
Twelfth Night & Feste!
What is most wonderful about this entire exchange experience is the ability to "practice what we preach" as teachers - to be a lifelong learner. While I was certainly prepared for a culturally enriching experience with my journey to the home of The Bard, a.k.a. William Shakespeare, I was not prepared for how educationally rich it would also be.
Micaela and I journeyed to this beautiful village by car, a relatively short distance by US standards; only a 1.5 hour journey. The distance to school on a daily basis is just shy of 30 minutes the travel distance to Stratford, so I have more than enough experience driving over English roads to make this journey. Amazingly, a bus ride to this little town was going to take 5 hours and cost me over $130.00 USD for the two of us. It's not rocket science to figure out that driving made more sense. Armed with some fairly decent driving directions, thanks to the UK version of mapquest, I was confident I would make it there easily - and indeed I did.
I opted to spend an extra day and night in Stratford at my own expense, so I splurged on an additional night at the Shakespeare Mercure, directly in the center of Stratford and the same hotel where the British Council was paying for our accommodations the following night. This hotel is a four-star hotel and stays true to its English Tudor style, post-and-beam, white-washed architectural charms. All the rooms are named after characters or places familiar in Shakespeare's plays. Our room was the Antioch room - and was directly next door to the Shylock room. A kingdom run by an incestuous king and a man who demands a pound of flesh as payment for a debt... glorious!
Micaela and I spent a great evening walking around the town, which was in the process of having its Christmas lights strung up. We tread upon cobblestones walked on by The Bard, himself, ate dinner at the oldest inn in town, the Garrick Inn, and enjoyed an evening of entertainment on a ghost tour...it was, after all the eve before Halloween. We were entertained with stories of witchcraft, murder, fire and deaths all having taken place in and around the home of William Shrieves, an archer to King Henry VIII. The home was once owned by King Henry VII and was bequeathed to the archer for his service to the king. The building has borne witness to plaque, fire, treason, murder and withcraft so it is a prime location for ghost storytelling. The best story we heard had to do with a little girl named Lucy, who died in the house but whose spirit will seek out the hand or jewelry or purses of people involved with children...I kid you not but I got instantly cold and chilled as this story was being told. Micaela was especially freaked out by a story of a rapist and murderer who is said to have followed young attractive women out of the building on occasion unless you ask for William Shrieves' protection!
In the morning we toured the historic homes all involved in the Shakespeare story. The Nash House on the site of New Place, where Shakespeare died; the Hallscroft House, home of his daughter and her husband a renowned physician and we went to the Trinity Church to visit Shakespeare's grave. Later in the afternoon we met up with all our fellow US Fulbrighters for a pre-performance talk and presentation of Twelfth Night, the Royal Shakespeare Company performance we had journeyed to Stratford to see.
It was great to meet up with everyone again and catch up with our experiences; although it was just one more time for me to regret that my experience, while just barely having begun, will be over in a short while, and my fellow teachers will remain for an entire year. (It is the single regret I have and a learning experience I will take away as a Fulbright alumna...follow the advice given you and only do this for a full year. By the time you adjust and feel confident it is time to go home. ) Not to mention all the places in the UK I have yet to be able to visit... and probably won't get a chance to. Bright outlook though - one can always do this again!
The young woman associated with the Shakespeare Center, which adjoins the home of Shakespeare's parents and is now known simply as "the Birthplace", who led our pre-performance discussion was very knowledgeable. The pre-performance talk included everything, from a summary of the play, to a history of its different dramatic presentations and interpretations by multiple directors and actors having taken part in its various productions. I listened to her pose thought provoking questions, challenge us with things to observe in the play and the experience of just listening to her share her knowledge made me feel like I was a student in an Advanced Placement Shakespeare course... it was discussion such as I have not been part of since my university days. It made me eager to see the performance later that evening. It also made me slightly jealous of her knowledge about Shakespeare and seemingly all things Shakespeare related!
After the talk we ventured on our tour of the "Birthplace" which began as interactive video experience. All the homes owned and operated by the Shakespeare Trust are kept in a true state as they would have been furnished and used in the Elizabethan Era. The multiple admission ticket Micaela and I purchased got us in to each home and on Saturday, as we drove out of town we visited Ann Hathaway's Cottage - the place where their courtship would have begun.
The performance of Twelfth Night did not disappoint. The director chose a Turkish marketplace as a main setting for the performance which, while initially surprising, lent the production to an upbeat theatrical and musical production. The character of Feste was especially entertaining, as was the interpretation of the "box tree". Following the performance, Micaela and I enjoyed our first taste of Chinese food since arriving in the UK, as we opted for the take away service across from the hotel. I will say, we were pleasantly surprised by its authenticity and tastiness.
The next morning, we joined our Fulbright friends for breakfast and a post-performance discussion back at the Shakespeare Center, featuring our same instructor from the previous afternoon, and the actor who played the part of Feste from the RSC. Again, this discussion was intellectually stimulating and provided some great information to take back to the classroom when working with Shakespeare's plays. I am now anticipating returning home to teach Macbeth, equipped with some powerful information!
All in all this was a fabulous weekend in another historically rich and quaint English town. The Avon river, and its swans is a sight to behold for any lover of historically rich countryside locations.
Micaela and I journeyed to this beautiful village by car, a relatively short distance by US standards; only a 1.5 hour journey. The distance to school on a daily basis is just shy of 30 minutes the travel distance to Stratford, so I have more than enough experience driving over English roads to make this journey. Amazingly, a bus ride to this little town was going to take 5 hours and cost me over $130.00 USD for the two of us. It's not rocket science to figure out that driving made more sense. Armed with some fairly decent driving directions, thanks to the UK version of mapquest, I was confident I would make it there easily - and indeed I did.
I opted to spend an extra day and night in Stratford at my own expense, so I splurged on an additional night at the Shakespeare Mercure, directly in the center of Stratford and the same hotel where the British Council was paying for our accommodations the following night. This hotel is a four-star hotel and stays true to its English Tudor style, post-and-beam, white-washed architectural charms. All the rooms are named after characters or places familiar in Shakespeare's plays. Our room was the Antioch room - and was directly next door to the Shylock room. A kingdom run by an incestuous king and a man who demands a pound of flesh as payment for a debt... glorious!
Micaela and I spent a great evening walking around the town, which was in the process of having its Christmas lights strung up. We tread upon cobblestones walked on by The Bard, himself, ate dinner at the oldest inn in town, the Garrick Inn, and enjoyed an evening of entertainment on a ghost tour...it was, after all the eve before Halloween. We were entertained with stories of witchcraft, murder, fire and deaths all having taken place in and around the home of William Shrieves, an archer to King Henry VIII. The home was once owned by King Henry VII and was bequeathed to the archer for his service to the king. The building has borne witness to plaque, fire, treason, murder and withcraft so it is a prime location for ghost storytelling. The best story we heard had to do with a little girl named Lucy, who died in the house but whose spirit will seek out the hand or jewelry or purses of people involved with children...I kid you not but I got instantly cold and chilled as this story was being told. Micaela was especially freaked out by a story of a rapist and murderer who is said to have followed young attractive women out of the building on occasion unless you ask for William Shrieves' protection!
In the morning we toured the historic homes all involved in the Shakespeare story. The Nash House on the site of New Place, where Shakespeare died; the Hallscroft House, home of his daughter and her husband a renowned physician and we went to the Trinity Church to visit Shakespeare's grave. Later in the afternoon we met up with all our fellow US Fulbrighters for a pre-performance talk and presentation of Twelfth Night, the Royal Shakespeare Company performance we had journeyed to Stratford to see.
It was great to meet up with everyone again and catch up with our experiences; although it was just one more time for me to regret that my experience, while just barely having begun, will be over in a short while, and my fellow teachers will remain for an entire year. (It is the single regret I have and a learning experience I will take away as a Fulbright alumna...follow the advice given you and only do this for a full year. By the time you adjust and feel confident it is time to go home. ) Not to mention all the places in the UK I have yet to be able to visit... and probably won't get a chance to. Bright outlook though - one can always do this again!
The young woman associated with the Shakespeare Center, which adjoins the home of Shakespeare's parents and is now known simply as "the Birthplace", who led our pre-performance discussion was very knowledgeable. The pre-performance talk included everything, from a summary of the play, to a history of its different dramatic presentations and interpretations by multiple directors and actors having taken part in its various productions. I listened to her pose thought provoking questions, challenge us with things to observe in the play and the experience of just listening to her share her knowledge made me feel like I was a student in an Advanced Placement Shakespeare course... it was discussion such as I have not been part of since my university days. It made me eager to see the performance later that evening. It also made me slightly jealous of her knowledge about Shakespeare and seemingly all things Shakespeare related!
After the talk we ventured on our tour of the "Birthplace" which began as interactive video experience. All the homes owned and operated by the Shakespeare Trust are kept in a true state as they would have been furnished and used in the Elizabethan Era. The multiple admission ticket Micaela and I purchased got us in to each home and on Saturday, as we drove out of town we visited Ann Hathaway's Cottage - the place where their courtship would have begun.
The performance of Twelfth Night did not disappoint. The director chose a Turkish marketplace as a main setting for the performance which, while initially surprising, lent the production to an upbeat theatrical and musical production. The character of Feste was especially entertaining, as was the interpretation of the "box tree". Following the performance, Micaela and I enjoyed our first taste of Chinese food since arriving in the UK, as we opted for the take away service across from the hotel. I will say, we were pleasantly surprised by its authenticity and tastiness.
The next morning, we joined our Fulbright friends for breakfast and a post-performance discussion back at the Shakespeare Center, featuring our same instructor from the previous afternoon, and the actor who played the part of Feste from the RSC. Again, this discussion was intellectually stimulating and provided some great information to take back to the classroom when working with Shakespeare's plays. I am now anticipating returning home to teach Macbeth, equipped with some powerful information!
All in all this was a fabulous weekend in another historically rich and quaint English town. The Avon river, and its swans is a sight to behold for any lover of historically rich countryside locations.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Term 2
Term 2 at Fairfield High School began today, although tired and exhausted from a restless night's sleep after engaging in the epic "battle of the flies", Micaela and I made the journey to Peterchurch as if we had been doing it for years. The day began with the cheery smiles of Year 7 students who were very eager to share their exploits of their week off.
My confidence was at a fever pitch with my Year 11 as we began a unit on writing to argue, persuade and advise. This is one of the areas where I feel my talents shine: teaching HOW to write and the process of writing - so I eagerly embraced the opportunity to do my homework on this portion of the GCSE exam and had the task firmly in grasp with powerpoints and lesson plans to get the students prepared for this piece of writing. Overall, I was quite pleased with the progression of the days lessons on this topic.
My Year 9 group was bright eyed and eager to advance with their newspaper unit and we had a great lesson on the use of emotive language in articles, and headlines today. They are eagerly anticipating organizing themselves into groups to create their own newspapers.
I was introduced to a new group of Year 10 students as each set group rotated to a different teacher to study a different piece of literature. This is a bit different than the US system, where students remain with the same teacher all year long and we teach multiple pieces of literature to the same year group over the course of the year. This group of students, all six of them, were quite delightful, inquisitive and very sweet. Although I can see that teaching a small group of six may have as many challenges, albeit different, as teaching the former group of 37 students posed, it is a challenge I will embrace enthusiastically. Repeating a unit on Great Expectations with this smaller group of students will need to be done a bit differently; but I am looking forward to getting to know these young people.
Year 7 students began a unit on poetry in which they will put together an "anthology" and Year 8 students will begin the same thing tomorrow, except different focus and different poetry.
Overall, term 2 began on a good foot. It is hard to believe that we are half way through our exchange experience and will be home by Christmas. BBC Radio One played Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas" tonight as I was driving home... are they rushing it? Odd to be in England and hearing the first Christmas tune of the season and its not even Thanksgiving yet... oh wait...they don't celebrate that one here do they??? Never fear, there will be a few Brits who discover the tradition of the Thanksgiving Feast this year!
My confidence was at a fever pitch with my Year 11 as we began a unit on writing to argue, persuade and advise. This is one of the areas where I feel my talents shine: teaching HOW to write and the process of writing - so I eagerly embraced the opportunity to do my homework on this portion of the GCSE exam and had the task firmly in grasp with powerpoints and lesson plans to get the students prepared for this piece of writing. Overall, I was quite pleased with the progression of the days lessons on this topic.
My Year 9 group was bright eyed and eager to advance with their newspaper unit and we had a great lesson on the use of emotive language in articles, and headlines today. They are eagerly anticipating organizing themselves into groups to create their own newspapers.
I was introduced to a new group of Year 10 students as each set group rotated to a different teacher to study a different piece of literature. This is a bit different than the US system, where students remain with the same teacher all year long and we teach multiple pieces of literature to the same year group over the course of the year. This group of students, all six of them, were quite delightful, inquisitive and very sweet. Although I can see that teaching a small group of six may have as many challenges, albeit different, as teaching the former group of 37 students posed, it is a challenge I will embrace enthusiastically. Repeating a unit on Great Expectations with this smaller group of students will need to be done a bit differently; but I am looking forward to getting to know these young people.
Year 7 students began a unit on poetry in which they will put together an "anthology" and Year 8 students will begin the same thing tomorrow, except different focus and different poetry.
Overall, term 2 began on a good foot. It is hard to believe that we are half way through our exchange experience and will be home by Christmas. BBC Radio One played Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas" tonight as I was driving home... are they rushing it? Odd to be in England and hearing the first Christmas tune of the season and its not even Thanksgiving yet... oh wait...they don't celebrate that one here do they??? Never fear, there will be a few Brits who discover the tradition of the Thanksgiving Feast this year!
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