Firstly-apologies for disappearing. Again. It probably goes without saying by now that consistency is not a strong point of mine-even more so when it comes writing things. And when I'm busy and tired. And when it's winter and all I want to do is hibernate (this is turning into a list of excuses, and I really hope you're buying them).
Anyway-I'm back now, albeit momentarily. I'm on a 2 week break so I really have no excuse not to write something here (and I feel quite guilty for doing little more than drinking wine and watching Netflix all holiday). So-here's a little catchup on what I've been doing since we last spoke:
1. I started my new job as a teaching assistant. And I have to say-I'm relishing both the challenges and the rewards it brings. Can't write about it too much, of course (for child protection reasons etc.)-but I can tell you that it's going well. Even if I do have to listen to at least 30 different renditions of 'Let it Go' all day, everyday; and relate to this article more than life itself right now.
2. I've done Christmas, along with most of the rest of you. This year I had a competition with myself to see how many mince pies I could eat on a socially acceptable level in one day (think I managed 5) and enjoyed Turkey and gin with the best of 'em. Not particularly groundbreaking-but then Christmas isn't really meant to be. Hope yours was as Merry and Bright as mine.
3. Perhaps most importantly in the context of this blog-I've finished my TEFL course!
How I feel inside right now.
It's always nice to finish something-especially something that you've put time and effort into-and even more so when there's been some notable challenges along the way (such as going away for a month and having hardly any time to sleep, let alone study. And failing one of your assignments FOUR TIMES before eventually passing.) In many ways, I feel like there's still so much more to learn-and most of what I need to learn will only come with experience-but I'm still pleased to get this little qualification under my belt. Just in time for the end of the year, too! (Ask anyone and they'll tell you that my timing always has been impeccable. Honest).
I hope that in 2015 I'll be able to put the many hours spent learning about gerunds, irregular verbs and PPP lesson plans to good use-and will somehow secure my first proper TEFL job. If, by any chance, you have any ideas of where to go or which companies to apply for, get in contact. The TEFL job market is an absolute maze, and I literally have no idea where to start; and all I know right now is that I quite fancy working in Italy or Spain. A little guidance would go a long way, and I'd be eternally grateful.
Anyway, before I sign off for the year-I just wanted to say a big thank you to the many, many people who've helped make 2014 great in some way or another. I've had an action packed, super enjoyable, super challenging time-and it's definitely not a year I'm going to forget in a hurry. Now to make 2015 even better (sorry to be cheesy-the Christmas Stilton is clearly starting to take its toll).
Happy New Year to each and everyone of you lovelies-I'll be back soon!
So I'm quite aware there's been a big old gap between my last post back in September, and now. I wish I could come up with a decent excuse for this, but the main reason for the long silence has been apathy (one of life's little monsters) and just a general sense of my life not being interesting to blog about lately. Which, seeing written down, seems a little bit sad really! In all honesty, I was living in a bit of a no man's land for a while- firstly waiting patiently for my job to start, then freaking out and wondering if it was the right thing for me to be doing, and eventually quietly determining (after a few internal and external tantrums!) that it will be right, even if only for a bit. Anyway-I finally started my new role as a classroom assistant this week-and so far, so good! Everything is, of course, a massive learning curve right now, but I'm finding that really fulfilling after such a quiet Autumn. Will keep you updated as best I can.
Anyway-today's blog is going to be about one of the best things about starting my new job; moving back to Aberystwyth! Initially however, I had really mixed feelings about moving back to my university town; mainly because I didn't want to taint my memories of life here with the inevitable trials and tribulations of working life. It felt that by coming back, I would stop seeing Aber as a place for lazy beach days, ridiculous nights out and the occassional bit of studying, and would instead see it as a more permanent home. And it would be harder to leave....or perhaps I would never leave...perhaps I'd never leave the bubble again and all those possibilities that lie before me now would have been just that, possibilities, and I would always think how sad it was that I never lived and travelled in the way I used to dream of.
But then I told myself to pipe down and stop being over-dramatic, because the truth is that I can leave at any moment if I really want to. And, of course, there are positives a plenty to staying here-namely:
a.) I will never get lost on the way to work (always a plus when you're trying to make a good impression)
b.) I can see old pals for the odd chinwag and a coffee
c.) The Arts Centre ('nuff said)
d.) The Sea ('nuff said)
e.) I can now classify myself as a 'young professional' within the town's demographic (which sounds much more snazzy than a student)
f.) I know where to go if I need some wine (SPAR)
So basically-I can take all the best bits of my old life here, and include them in a brand new and hopefully super fulfilling lifestyle! (By 'lifestyle' I mean that I want to take up jogging and maybe find a new hobby...anyone got any ideas of what it could be? Answers on a postcard please).
But yes. If you're in the same boat as I am (it's called the HMS Graduate if you're unsure) and you're thinking about moving back to your university town after graduation, my advice would be not to feel bad about it. You have your whole life ahead of you to explore this little spherical globe of ours, and taking your time to try some things out in a place that feels familiar isn't going to hold you back in the long run-it will simply prepare you for things to come. At least, that's what I hope I'm going to prove over the next few months.
Anyway-that's it for now! I shall put up a TEFLy-related post in the next few days to fill in on my recentish progress.
I'm aware that it's been a while since I last posted...and the main reason for this is because most of tiny pea brain's energies have been fed into finding a job! Since the start of this month, I have filled in hundreds of application forms, have painstakingly squeezed out cover letter after cover letter, and have literally tweaked my CV millions of times (note slight exaggeration in this sentence, but this is genuinely how it's felt in my weakest moments). I'm sure most graduates can relate to this feeling...and in many ways, it's been a bit of a new one for me. I mean, I've done the whole job hunting thing before, but last time it was small fry in comparison...just looking for temporary summer work, etc. This time, it's felt like a much bigger deal; the performance following the dress rehearsal, if you like (please humour me, I'm a drama graduate). And, just like any performance, it's been a bit nerve-racking at times...but also quite exciting! Especially when things start to go your way...
Emma S knows how I feel.
So-the good news is that I now have two jobs! One is short term and theatre related, and the other is a more long term role working in a Primary school. I feel really grateful to have been offered these opportunities; because I know how difficult it can be for graduates to find work, and still have friends who are really struggling to find anything that's right for them. My advice would be-don't lose heart! Cast your net wide! The world's your Lobster! And grasp every opportunity that comes your way. You will get there eventually, even if it takes a little while. (I know this is very easy for me to say, but I thought I'd try and be encouraging).
Anyway-I'm quickly learning that job-related battles don't end when you actually get the job (World says: obviously Hope, duh). My first battle is that I haven't actually started either of my jobs officially yet, for admin reasons etc. Anyone who knows me will know that I am truly terrible at being patient (waiting rooms are literally my idea of hell), so not being able to start straight away has been a bit of a struggle for me. Also, as I'm basically a free agent right now, I don't have much of a structured life routine, so every week and every day is different-and although this can be quite fun, it can also be a bit much for my frazzled brain to figure out at times.
A few things have got me through the frazzledness-namely a sparkly new graduate diary (great things! You should get one!), biscuits (tasty things! You should eat one!) and my brand new invention: TEFL evenings. Okay, so I'm not sure if I can quite claim to have invented these, exactly, but I may patent the concept as it is raaaaather a good idea (and this could possibly earn me some extra dollar). Basically-I'm trying to do a TEFL unit each evening, to give myself a bit more of a sense of routine. Although you may question whether filling your brain with teaching resources is the best way to sooth its frazzledness, the consistency of doing this alone seems to calm me down a bit. Also, I get to write my progress in my great graduate diary, which makes me feel super productive, and I get to treat myself to a tasty biscuit, which makes me feel a bit like I'm treating myself like a loyal and well-behaved dog, but is also delicious (obvs). So it's a win-win situation all round, really. Of course, there's a big likelyhood that this routine will fall to bits when I actually start working properly-but it can at least keep me going, for now.
Anyway-I'll keep you updated with the success of the TEFL evenings concept (trademark:it's now patented), and of course with all my other plans! Next week, my theatre job is taking me to the Lake District...which is going to be quite the adventure as I've never been there before. So I'll update you here with tales of woe and joy!
Big Love,
Hope xx
P.S Bit hyper tonight. Don't know if you can tell.
So I know I disappeared for a while there (seeing as my last post was in July). This really wasn't intentional; I went up to Scotland meaning to blog throughout my month at the Edinburgh Fringe. In fact, I was (totally naively!) under the impression that I'd have TONS of time to write and share my version of the world's largest arts festival with you.
Of course-this wasn't the case! I ended up working 12 hour days every single day of the festival, as a Front of House team member for Pleasance. Needless to say perhaps, this is the hardest I've ever worked and the least I've ever slept (especially when you factor in all the socialising and partying too!), so I really didn't have time to TEFL, let alone blog. Apologies guys.
However-now that I'm back in sleepy old Pembrokeshire, I've had a little bit of time to process the whole experience. Whilst it's pretty difficult to sum up such a crazy month in a single blog post, I thought I'd fill you in on my best bits and also how I survived! Here goes...
My Top 10 best bits at the Edinburgh Fringe, 2014 1. Meeting these lovely people...
What a cracking bunch.
I think it's fair to say that if it wasn't for my fellow Front of House team members, I would have been driven completely insane by the end of the festival! Anyone who's ever done a Front of House job will know that it's not always easy...it's pretty high pressure and whilst 90% of the general public will be lovely to you, they'll always be the odd one or two who go out of their way to be grumpy or rude (and the number of such people increases if it's raining...which, in Edinburgh, is pretty much all the time!). Luckily, these guys were always there to offer chocolate, laughs and post-shift archers and lemonade when the going got tough. So thank you, my lovely fellow yellows!
2. Dinosaur related wake-up calls!
As I've already mentioned, I didn't get a lot of sleep over the course of the festival due to the super long days. However-one of the earlier shows we did Front of House for was called Dinosaur Zoo-AKA the world's ultimate wake-up call! If you were a sit-in on this 11am show, then you'd be responsible for hundreds of children (and their parents!) as they were introduced to a whole host of puppety dinosaurs , which gradually increased in size and volume as the show progressed. By the end of it, you'd feel like you'd had about 20 redbulls and whole dose of cute!
3. Discovering the joys of BBL
Another morning related one...but I genuinely couldn't have got through the festival without this amazing Scottish cafe and its lovely selection of treats (particularly the sausage and egg morning rolls which always sorted me right out). Thank goodness they were just outside my venue, or I probably would have died.
4. Seeing Eddie Izzard live
So this happened-and it was a massive deal for me, having been brought up listening to audio recordings of Eddie's legendary comedy in the car on long journeys (Jazz Chicken, anyone? Just me? Okay then.). He was amazing, and such a presence. Oh, and he made a joke about how when people try and do the Welsh accent, it sounds Indian-which I've been saying for years but no-one's believed me. Until now, seeing as Eddie has spoken.
5. Halfway Party!
So-anyone who's worked the festival before will know that getting halfway through is a bit of a milestone (mainly because it seems like a lifetime has passed), so Pleasance always have a big party to celebrate. This year, it was 80s themed, and there was karaoke and a live band. I think Axis of Awesome performed and Al Murray was on drums for a while, but I can't really remember due to all the discount cider. It was a lot of fun, though (and Dino Zoo inevitably shook off the hangover the next day).
6. Visiting Biscuitland
One of my favourite shows was Backstage in Biscuitland, which featured Jess Thom, who has Tourettes syndrome. She had the most genuine, incredible, and uplifting spirit that I witnessed in any performer, throughout the Fringe, and really opened up my eyes to what living with a disability is like. She also gave us all actual biscuits in ode to her most notable tick, which definitely made her my favourite (mine was a Malted Milk so not bad) ! I can't find any clips of her show online, but she did give this Tedx Talk last year which is pretty inspiring in itself. So watch if you can!
7. Getting on stage with Stuart Bowden
If you go to the Fringe, you will almost definitely end up on stage at some point. For me, this moment came when I went to see Stuart Bowden's 'Before Us' at Underbelly.After making me laugh until I cried, sad until I cried, and being completely ridiculous and bonkers the best part of an hour, he then made the entire audience go and crawl around on stage with him whilst holding singing his performance's refrain. Bloody hell, Stuart. Way to treat an audience. The whole experience was, however, truly life-affirming, so this was without a doubt my absolutely favourite show from this year's Fringe (and I saw 40 odd, so this is praise indeed).
8. Celebrity Spotting!
Okay, so I'm not a fan of name-dropping, but the Pleasance Courtyard is known to be a bit of a Celeb 'hub' so my Celeb spottings can't go unmentioned here. Highlights included-Frank Skinner pushing a buggy, Ian Hislop sitting on someone's garden wall whilst reading a review of Paul Merton's show, Dara O'Brien being lovely and Irish, Simon Amstell saying Hi and Sue Perkins chilling in the Theatre Bar. Oh, and I got a selfie with Neville Longbottom (AKA Matthew Lewis), which was v.v.v.v. cool.
My face only demonstrates about 10% of my inner happiness at this point.
9. Doing 'the Shuffle'
So this was a little queueing manouvre that I had to do about 50 times a day! Occassionally you'd get some stubborn queues, but it was very satisfying when it worked like a dream. Here's a link to a little video made by my fellow FoH colleague Faye, with some FoH members, to demonstrate!
10. Finishing the get-out
After a whole month of no sleep and several days of heavy lifting to take everything down, I was kind of relieved when our site manager stood on top of a skip and announced that our work was done. I must admit, I'm pretty proud of myself for proving my stamina and endurance, and for keeping my sanity, in what has been one of the most crazy, hard, amazing months of my entire life. It's always nice to realise that you're stronger than you thought.
That's it for now...I'll be back to more TEFL-y related things soon (need to jump back on the wagon bigtime!). But I hope this goes some way to describing the wonderful madness of the past month to you guys.
So, firstly...massive apologies for the long silence. The reason I haven't posted in so long is because:
a.) The weather's been amazing,
b.) I've been a busy little bee, and
c.) I've been busy GRADUATING!
Chose this photo cos it's like a game of Where's Wally. Copyright Keith Morris.
Yup, last week I officially received my BA (Hons.) in Drama & Theatre Studies, which was all very exciting. It was fantastic to celebrate an amazing 3 years of life in a seaside town which completely captured my heart and soul. I already miss it, but I have a feeling this is not the end of my relationship with Aber. I will definitely be back-as alumni, a tourist and perhaps even as a resident. Who knows what the future may hold?!
One thing that I wasn't expecting about graduation, however, was how emotional the whole experience was. I thought I'd already said my goodbyes to student life here; and had done enough sobbing to last a lifetime. But it turned out there was still a little more water left in the barrel, and I consequently found myself bawling throughout most of the graduation ceremony. That may have well been the Vice President, Gwefyl Pierce Jones's fault, though...her speech was lovely and was virtually built to increase Kleenex sales! She was also a babe for quoting the amazing Maya Angelou, who once said the following...
'Your destiny is to find the courage to flesh out the great dreams. To dare to love, to dare to care, to dare to be significant and to admit it. Not by the things you own, or the positions you hold, but by the life you live.'
I was a blubbering snotty mess after she'd quoted that. But I'm going to stick the quote up on my wall, and use it by a motto to live by; especially at this time that feels like so much like a new beginning.
Anyway, away from the floaty cloud of graduation and onto what has recently become the slightly stormy cloud of the TEFL. This is because, in amidst all the excitement and success, I've failed a couple of TEFL assignments recently. To be honest, I was slightly surprised. Up until now, TEFL has been a bit of a breeze really-I've had a couple of tricky moments, but I've always got through them. I certainly wasn't expecting to fail anything.
But it's actually acted as a really effective wake-up call. Looking back, I was definitely getting complacent and not respecting the qualification (tip: doing a Unit Quiz whilst sunbathing might sound a good deal, but it's not the one). I've realised that if I want to do well at this, I need to keep my degree-level diligence up. Which, granted, is bloody impossible after just graduating, but I'm at least going to study in a quiet room, sitting at a desk, from now on. My future potential students deserve that much; and, as Angelou says so beautifully, I should 'dare to care' about them.
Anyway-congratulations to everyone who's just graduated; whether on my course or otherwise. I know that great adventures await every single one of us in the Class of 2014-if we dare to be significant, and to admit it.
So-this week (in between going away for a few days) I've started my second TEFL module, all on Teaching Methodologies. I have to say that I'm already enjoying this one more than the last, but that's not hard to achieve given the fact that grammar is the spawn of the actual devil! It's a longer module, and there's actual written assignments to pass along the way, but it feels as though I'm actually getting some useful tools towards being a teacher-which is pretty satisfying. Anyway...as the title of this post suggests, I have a little(ish) confession to make. Since starting this blog, I've received some really lovely comments and feedback (which has been such an encouragement, so thank you). One thing that you guys seem to like the most is the blog's name. I really like it too-wouldn't have chosen it if I didn't!-but I have to tell you all something before I begin to feel like a bit of a fraud... I didn't come up with it. In fact, I've stolen it from another website.
I'm sorry, Benedict. I never meant to hurt you.
So now you all know that I'm not quite as good as alliteration as you thought I was. However-the original Tiny TEFL Teacher website is great (almost as good as this one, har-har). It's got loads of resources for teachers and students alike, and it will help you with the dreaded grammar, too! You can visit it here (she also has a Facebook Page and a YouTube Channel too, if you fancy taking stalking up as a hobby).
Anyway-I love the name for a number of reasons, but mainly because it reminds me of two things-
that 1.) Yes, I am physically tiny (well, short, slim and young looking)
and 2.) No, that should not stop me from aspiring to be a teacher.
For a while, I wondered if learners would take someone who looks 16 rather than 21 seriously as a teacher; for example, would business English learners who run a corporation take a small Welsh girl seriously? In all honesty, I've never had a problem with my height or stature; but my (albeit limited) experience of the 'big bad world' demonstrates that it occasionally holds my height against me, particularly in professional situations. Perhaps, in terms of initial appearance, I don't exactly appear authorative or powerful; and from past experience, that puts me at an immediate disadvantage when trying to apply for jobs which demand a certain amount of authority or respect.
Of course, I could let this fact get me down-and it would be a lie if I said that it hasn't wound me up royally from time to time. But increasingly, I'm learning to see my physicality as my greatest weapon; a device with which to surprise people! Because, whilst I may appear to still get the bus to school every morning, I'm actually a soon-to-be graduate who is independent, capable and (from time to time) pretty fierce! Being small has actually pushed me to be all the more confident and sure of who I am, and to work harder to get what I want-perhaps because I've had to prove to people that I'm more than capable. These days, people often pick up on my motivation and energy; and (without sounding full of myself, I hope!) that's something that I'm really proud of.
With this in mind, I'm going to continue to polish my character-so that it makes a lasting impression and fills a space, even when my physicality doesn't.
After a few days of blogging absence, I have some brilliant news to share with you all...
I'VE PASSED THE TEFL GRAMMAR MODULE! (just doing a little dance to celebrate).
It's been a pretty tough ride, but I'm glad I've managed it. I'll certainly never look at the English language in the same way ever again (I now deconstruct every sentence in the search for phrasal verbs, gerunds and indefinite articles, amongst other treats. Please note sarcasm.)
Anyway-I'll give a full evaluation of the module at a later date, but for now I really want to forget about grammar just a little bit. So instead-I thought I'd give you a little account of my experiences on the TEFL Classroom course, which was a far more enjoyable experience all round!
As I've said before-if you have a weekend (or a few weekdays) to spare to do the classroom course, I would wholeheartedly recommend that you do. Why? Because it'll act as a real motivator to get out there and fulfill your TEFL dream, whatever that may be. On my course, there were literally people from all walks of life, and each one of them had a different idea about what they wanted to do with their qualification-from internships in China to retreats in Nepal, to German-based adventures and trips to Thailand. It really got me excited for my own future adventure, and made me realise that doing this qualification will open so many doors and opportunities (I'm aware that this is all getting a bit cheesy now, so I'll move on swiftly).
Whilst our course leader, Steve, was keen to remind us that a TEFL qualification is well within reach, it was also clear that you can't really get there without some serious hard work and committment. Although the weekend course is only two days long, it's also two days of solid TEFLing- with the course running from 9am-7pm on the Saturday and 9am-6pm on the Sunday (it's meant to be even longer than this on paper, but in reality it seems that most tutors understand that there's only so much a student can take in). You get an hour or so for lunch and a morning coffee break (20 mins or so), but that's it. So my advice is-come prepared! Drink water, sleep well, stay nearby etc. Otherwise you might die.
Contrary to what this image suggests, your fellow TEFLers won't actually try to kill you.
However-there was a really friendly and informal atmosphere to our course, and it wasn't really anything like I imagined it to be. I was expecting a pretty conventional classroom set-up, but it wasn't like that at all; in fact, parts of the course actually more closely resembled a drama workshop, with a real emphasis on interactivity. I laughed a lot and got to know my fellow TEFLers really quickly; which is just what's needed on such an intensive schedule.
In terms of the course content itself-you'll get a lot of information thrown your way.There's a lot of things to get through in a short space of time, so parts of the course feel quite rushed, and it's clear that you're only learning the bare basics here. But Steve was really open about the fact that it's impossible to train someone to be a teacher in a single weekend, and actively encouraged us to seek out further teaching experience when the course was over to further our training. Topics covered included-Classroom Management, Lesson Planning, Teaching Skills, Grammar (everyone's fave) and Phonology. Sounds dull and dry, but it was actually really enjoyable most of the time. You also get a lovely course booklet to take home with you, with loads of lesson ideas and top tips. Some are more amusing than others-I don't think I'm going to be 'entering a classroom with socks on my hands' to create a talking point anytime soon!
Most importantly, the course gives you a chance to actually try out your constantly developing teaching skills, as you'll plan a 15 minute lesson (usually with a partner) each day. For me, this was by far the most beneficial part of the course. Though a bit nerve-racking, it made me realise that I actually think this is something I might enjoy doing, as it really is rewarding to witness others getting involved in your activities. The first lesson I planned was based on ordering food in a restaurant, and the second was based on debating the issue of internet safety. I'm pleased to say that both went down well, which was a great source of encouragement to complete the rest of the online course, and get out there!
At the end of the course, I felt completely exhausted, but happy. Leaving with a heap of new resources, a few potential language school contacts (courtesy of Steve) and a new-found passion for teaching, my TEFL dreams feel closer than ever!
Anyway, that's it for now. If you've ever been on a TEFL course, please feel free to share experiences of any kind below. It's been lovely to see TEFLers springing up from all over the place!
