Progressions

Oh... where to start... where to start?

Well, I guess the very beginning is a popular place to start :)

Following a couple of INSET days (in which, amongst other things, we constructed a "snow den", for two small children to use, out of some bin bags, a bag of old newspaper and a roll of sellotape), we had some initial training in college. This included a cracking session on "Design and Technology" which culminated in a practical session using cardboard to build various mechanisms along with several introductory sessions on planning, behaviour management and what to expect from the primary experience as a whole.

Then, after a weekend to recuperate (hah!) it was time for some actual classroom experience. Monday was... let's call it entertaining. I'm training in a class that's... well... let me quote my head (and GTP mentor) when I call them "squirmy". But I'm getting my head around things, slowly. I think I've managed to learn all of the children's names, now (first name, at least) and I'm starting to get a firm grasp of the challenges ahead - now all I need is a little more of a grasp on the strategies I can use to meet those challenges :)

Three days in school and we're back in college for a break... *ahem*... for further training. More news from there over the weekend (hopefully).