Oh Canada

Canada day & hot; Allan  has no idea I'm supposed to be here in her class & obviously busy with swimming costume practice...can I go & do something constructive then? Spending the morning looking at three-year-old arses not my idea of professional development. Am sure there are a number of sad sacks out 'there' who would be trolling the internet for a job like this though.

Observers peer in as I'm sat here watching a la Rolf Harris as entire class drops trou. 1st impressions!

Lunch = curry rice...one kid trying to eat jelly with chopsticks becomes one of my instantly unforgettable highlights of this experience ! Can I do 5 mins at 2:35? Meanwhile, what to do? Hate the after eating/still messy/do play dough limbo.

Directed to blue room for the afternoon; found distraction helping iLeader drain the pool with a blow job. Which needs clarification! Drain lip is higher than base of pool, so it needs some serious syphoning action.

And lo, 30 odd bits & pieces on view here as well, getting changed for the pool in class. Good job I trust me in this environment.

Jelly with chopsticks? Too easy!

ONI unchi seems to be the first song today with A-chan on pianola, plinking away merrily & co-teacher M leading the arm flailing! Excellent combo, these two.

Feb 15 sat is music day, apparently, and now all energies directed at making that a success. Organizing of new micro-groups, within classes, very exciting. This represents a re-drawing of a lot of territories & alliances, removing leaders & importing rivalries etc.

A medley from me for 1/2 hr. No need pre-teach - just leap in & see what they can do :). A-chan pats her bum oh so provocatively during wheels on the bus and then no chance to beep her horn. Tragedy!
Wheelbarrow practice means trusting your partner not to dump you on your face (or worse)

Class swap for lunch 50% to pink. Moaned at for not sitting in a stress position. Salmon steak & purple rice. Kid eating jelly with chopsticks was my highlight for the day. Disappeared to find goodreads :) as I did not want to roam the corridor as a punching bag; later watched A-sensei & Grumpy do some gymnastics. Elsewhere, M-sensei explains nicely about Setsubun-no-hi & tomorrow making Mochi

Informed I am to 'teach a song' to 60+ on Thursday. OK. Something to think about!

Shin pads please

Can we finish this?

 For some reason the increasingly chilly mornings affect my memory; totally forgot to bring a Hallowe'en mask I made last year :(

I also forgot my chopsticks, and was worried I'd not get any lunch - now I know how the tiddlers feel when mummy forgets something important!

Today was another round of giant robot painting in the big hall, with every class having a turn to do a bit - but not finish anything. Large bits & pieces everywhere, with vivid colours being slapped on as well as a fair amount going astray.

Do as I say!

Although I did get lunch, I also got fed up with the violent & unconstructed after-lunch melee. Had enough of being hit, stabbed, poked and shouted at. Some amused themselves with felt-tips & nendo (plasticine) but it's the odd behaviour of a fair number of the boys in S-sensei's class which worries me. This afternoon, one lad again trying to kiss his friends, aggressively, before progressing into a general attempt to do K1 on anyone within reach - regardless of chairs etc in the way. Some of the boys actually barricaded the day with them. A few girls colouring in the corner & the teacher painting hands with blinkers on.

Recycled robots

As for hand-eye practice with soft balls in the hall, after some bouncing & catching it developed into another free for all, again with kicks aimed at my shins. Not happy with this at all, and to top it off it rained all the cycle-ride home and my raincoat was with my chopsticks on the stairs at home :(