Week 1:
Torbay Primary School

November 18, 2013

This first week at Torbay School has been such an incredible learning experience for me. I arrived early on Thursday morning, which gave me a few days to settle in and experience some amazing opportunities. My first day here I met my immediate host-family, which consists of Vanessa, a hilarious teacher with some incredible baking skills and her equally hilarious and energetic nine-year-old son, Jacob. Shortly after they picked me up from the airport we dropped Jacob at school, which gave me a chance to see the classroom I would be working in and meet some of my colleagues. The rest of that day was spent trying to adjust to the time difference using loads of coffee and one long nap. Since it was Halloween I went out Trick-or-Treating with Vanessa’s sister-in-law and nieces. It turns out the only people in New Zealand who like Halloween are the children and the candy companies, so we were met with a lot of “NO TRICK-OR-TREATERS” signs. The rest of my weekend was spent exploring Auckland with Vanessa’s parents, and going on an overnight boat trip with the deputy principal and her family

My first week of teaching was amazing! I am in a Kindergarten (or year zero) class. Students in New Zealand start school on their fifth birthday, regardless of what time of year it is so the class I am in this week is the first class they come to. Eight of the children from this class have been in school long enough to move up to the next class and I will be moving with them. One of the first things that struck me about the New Zealand school systems is the relaxed atmosphere with plenty of down time. Students are in school from 9-3 and they get a “morning tea” break along with an hour for lunch. I was happily surprised that teachers are encouraged to sit down and drink tea together during this time as well. Despite the relaxed atmosphere being in a class of new-to-school five year olds requires a lot of energy. I credit my discussions in Cornell classes and also my prior student teaching experience for reminding me of the importance of being flexible and always being able to  think on my feet. These two skills have been used more than ever in my short time here.