Archive for work

Part Time Holidays

08/01/2012 Joh Business, gratitude, holidays, learn, work

I’m continuing my part-time job during the school holidays. I love working there, some days it doesn’t even feel like work. My days off are more precious because they are rarer.

This week a customer came in who is converting a barn and we had a great conversation about all the challenges involved and found the perfect floor covering for her needs. I’m delivering it to them next week and will get to see the project. I meet lots of interesting people making their homes in their own ways and it’s fun to help them select the perfect floor covering.

I enjoy my drive to work. It’s about 45 minutes through really open country. Lots of people complain about the boringness of that drive, but I experience the spaciousness. The countryside changes colour with the clouds. I love it. There are a couple of spots on the way that I pay particular attention to.  Such big views! I enjoy listening to my music and making playlists for the trip.

I had big plans for the shop over Christmas. I was expecting less traffic and getting lots done. We did a bit but were busier than I expected, which is always a good thing, so there are still a few more jobs on my list. I have found a place for all our new tile samples. I enjoy maintaining the displays and getting to know each pattern, texture and size, imagining where it would best serve. Filing it away in my mind so when the right person comes I will know where to find it.

We are getting the computer program and systems into better shape. I need to learn more about MYOB. It is a different package to the one I used for ‘The Butchers Dog’ so there are things I am tweaking. The book-keeping is different. I did the book-keeping for ’Unique Furnishings’ and ‘Total Vision’ manually and I had systems in place to keep informed of the business stats. I am still working towards finding the way to get this businesses stats.

I love the freedom and responsibility my boss gives me to have a hand in all aspects of the business. It feels as though it is my own, yet I am working with a team. There is another sales person as well. We often all have different opinions and this makes for more interesting discussions.

I am immersed in home improvement. I am learning. That is what I love most about my part-time work.

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Gravity by Scot Gardner

12/12/2011 Joh reading, work

The back cover of Gravity reads “Saturday night. Nowheresville.” How many teenage regional dwellers have this to say for the place they live in? I related to this story because I was busting to get out of here when I was a young person. I’d love a massage for every kid I’ve taught that has plans of heading elsewhere as soon as… I certainly didn’t have the heavy home life that Adam (the protagonist) lived with. His mum has already shot through.

I enjoyed this book. I have been meaning to read Scot Gardner’s books for a long time. He is a local author and I want to use some texts created in our area next year with my students. He names local towns that students are familiar with. I am aiming for connection. Not just to school, but to community and place. I’m not sure I will use this novel, cause I think it would be more relevant to older students. Scot Gardner has written many books so I’ll work my way through them and find a suitable one I’m sure.

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Change of Routine

15/11/2011 Joh work

My new work life is lovely. I start and finish at different times on different days. I work six days a week instead of five but those days are mostly a lot shorter. The variety keeps me interested. My longest days are at the workplace I enjoy most. The time flies there. It’s good for me to be this busy. I enjoy my free time more.

It looks like I have a new project next year for the two days a week I’ve been relief teaching. I can’t say much more about it, because it’s not confirmed yet. What I can say is I know it will be challenging, yet enjoyable. I will have the flexibility and freedom to try out some of my ideas.

When I look back on this year, work wise, there has been a lot of change and uncertainty. Things have worked out very well though. I had brief moments of anxiety about it all. Not knowing was new for me after years of stability. The routine of staying in the one place too long had become not good for me. I was becoming lazy and disinterested.

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I have a new job

01/11/2011 Joh family, gratitude, work

I am working part-time in a new job. I love it. It was one of those serendipitous jobs. I have Judy to thank for it. I talked to my mum, that led me to call my Auntie. She asked me if I wanted a job. I said yes and drove to Sale and met my wonderful new employer. He said yes and I began last week.

I’m still working with my disengaged students on Wednesdays and at the local Secondary college Mondays and Tuesdays, so I have a full weeks work now and a very nice balance of activity.

I’ve worked Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning. I love helping people to select their floor coverings. My boss has just bought the business so whilst it is an established business there are lots of changes and improvements being made. We have an amazing range and are switching the business systems from manual to computerised. He’s also redecorating the shop and expanding the range which I’m also enjoying. He asks my opinion about everything and that keeps me interested.  I loved the ad for our business even before I met them. I know I’m going to have a lot of fun here.

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I Noticed…

08/09/2011 Joh gratitude, learn, work

This clip has stuck with me. It helped me to solve a problem I’ve been having with a group of people in my life.

I think noticing good stuff and feeding it back to the people in our lives at home, work and play can make a difference. It really is that simple.

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Using Technology Effectively in Music Classes

23/08/2011 Joh gratitude, learn, music, work

I taught at my old school today. My first lesson was a music class and the absent teacher had not left any work so Mr Harris (another music teacher) very kindly combined our classes as he was also teaching a year 7 music lesson. It was an absolute pleasure to be in the class and I learnt a lot.

I sat at the back of the lecture theatre behind the students so I could see all their screens on the individual netbooks. They never once strayed to play a game and the the rows of screens were all in the places Matt directed them to at the same time. Matt very effectively engaged the students and myself using both his entertaining style of delivery (he has a wonderful sense of humour and great presence) and the technology available. He used his voice to demonstrate so many things.  He knew his students well and made them laugh often.  I even wondered if I would be allowed to enrol in year 7 music for a year so I could fill in my gaps in my education.

He emailed students listening journals which allowed them to respond to the peice of music he played several times in media player on the screen. The journal asked about all kinds of music terms such as tempo, instruments, loudness and I learnt about how these parts of music are expressed. I have a very limited knowledge of music and always enjoy learning more. I love listening to it:).

The composer of the piece was also covered, Percy Grainger, and Matt mentioned his background and that he was Australian and told some interesting stories about his life. I had to google him then because I was curious to learn more about Grainger. I discovered a new word that I really like also: autodidact. It means a person who is self taught or without the benefit of formal education or instruction. Percy Grainger’s mother was an autodidact according to wikepedia, and she educated him.

Matt’s lesson ticked all the boxes for me. I loved it.

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The Library & Rock Eisteddfod

11/08/2011 Joh blogging, learn, reading, work

Today I got to work in the library for a period! I loved it. Having conversations with young people about books they are reading is my idea of fun. Putting books away and exploring all the new young adult titles in a different library is bliss. I got to borrow some too! I have a Scot Westerfield novel, yes only one because I have been limiting my piles lately. I can only read a couple of books at a time:).

The Professional Development shelf tempted me to take two. Will Richardson’s book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms, which I have just had a quick flick through, looks great. It’s interestesting because Will has just stopped blogging and is now tumbling. I follow his tumblr and he continues to have great insights and information about using technology in education. The other is a book by Matthew Williams, Making Real-Life Videos, which is another thing I love doing with students and there are some great ideas in it.

“Matthew Williams is Lecturer in Criminology and Criminal Justice in the School of Social Science, Cardiff University. He is currently on the board of directors for the Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR) and has been involved with the development of ethical guidelines for conducting research online.” Reader Store

It looks great. I also like making clips for my family so I hope that will enhance those skills too!

In my last lesson we got to preview the school’s Rock Eisteddfod entry. It was a colourful and energetic display of what students can do when given the opportunity. I love to see students perform, great for their self esteem.

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Learning from CRTing

10/08/2011 Joh learn, work

I have been working quite solidly this term as a CRT (Casual Relief Teacher). Most of the work has been at the ‘close to home’, local Secondary College. I’ve only had a couple of days at my old school. It’s really easy to be in my old school whether at the senior or junior campus because I know so many of the students and teachers and I know where everything is. I’m comfortable there and I tend to get classes that are in my area (English/Humanities).

At the new place I’ve been in a great variety of classes. I’ve filled in for Art/PE/Science/Food/Leadlighting teachers as well as a couple of English/Humanities teachers. I’m beginning to get to know a few students and it’s quite interesting to watch them in different subjects. Students who shine in the traditional classroom environment sometimes aren’t so keen to participate in PE or Art, giving those who are boisterous or difficult to get focussed in classrooms the chance to demonstrate their enthusiasm and leadership in PE, or their creativity in art:). It’s a shame sometimes that in Secondary Education, teachers don’t get to see students across a range of subjects.It would help to know better where they are excelling and apply those natural interests and abilities in subjects they aren’t as ‘in to’.

It’s interesting to see the ways the curriculum is delivered in other schools, but it doesn’t seem too different. It’s also hard to fully tell when teachers are probably leaving fairly simple lesson plans (as I used to). Most of it, is work from the text books. I talk to the students about what they are learning in those subjects but this is also limited as they see a relief teacher as a break from the usual routine, so probably don’t tell all.

I am still not seeing the innovative use of technology I was hoping for. I don’t personally have access to a computer at the new school, so I can’t get in and check it all out. I’m seeing the IT people in the morning.

I have a permanent day a week until the end of the year working with a small group of disengaged students off campus. I’m hoping I will be able to use technology to help re-engage them. They all regularly update their facebook pages on thier phones so they have some level of engagement with technology already… now to channel it to learning, rather than negative or at best mundane, socialising.

I’ve been working with them for a couple of weeks and I’m quite optimistic about getting them positive about learning again. Some of them just need a safe space and a new way of thinking about school.

On Monday I was at the shops and one of the new school students greeted me enthusiastically. It won’t be long till I know every kid in town!

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Photo a Day

27/07/2011 Joh learn, random, work

I am not doing it very well at all. I am out of the habit. I think about the photo at night. I am using my phone as a camera so my photo’s are pretty ordinary. Anyway… I learnt something from the year 7 students this week. They were making slideshows for an assignment and I was very pleased to see them using their laptops for more than wordprocessors and google searching:).

One of the students had a pile of photos, old fashioned, printed ones. She was holding them up to her laptop camera and taking photo’s of the photo and they weren’t too bad. She was using picassa, so I downloaded it tonight and had a go. I will put that photo on my tumblr tonight, cause it was a photo. I think I need more practice though. I also imagine the light will make a difference. If I can get it handled it looked much quicker and easier than using a scanner. The quality probably isn’t as good, but for basic jobs it would do.

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Reading & Education Websites

20/07/2011 Joh learn, reading, work

‘The Girl with no Shadow’ by Joanne Harris is The Lollipop Shoes. I felt very ripped off when I discovered ‘The Eagerly anticipated sequel to the New York Times bestseller Chocolat…. is a book I have already read. I did think it strange there was no mention of ‘The Lollipop Shoes’ on the cover. When I had it home though and checked out the cover page, it was first published as ‘The Lollipop Shoes’.

Ah well I have a mountain of books that I want to read, so really I ought to be pleased it is one from the pile that I don’t need to.

I started a new part time job today working with a small group of students who are unable to attend school. I am looking forward to it and have lots of ideas for projects. I meet them tomorrow so will have a better idea about what will suit them best after chatting with them.

I was pottering around on Government sites today trying to discover how the next phase of the Digital Education Revolution was coming along. There is just so much to read and much of it is acronym rich. I wonder how any teachers would actually find the time let alone have the commitment to do so.

One of the interesting things I discovered meandering around was My Future. It’s an Australian government career exploration site that currently has a  Video Competition for young people. The site has some interesting resources. It’s not very interactive though. They have a facebook page with a pile of posts, but nothing from outside their organisation. I wonder if anyone else is using it. I hope so cause it looks like a bit of work has gone into setting it all up. They have some tools that I’m currently playing with so I can share them with students.

The other program I am looking at is not a government program but from ‘Beyond Blue’ called Senseability. I think there is government funding involved though because they are linked to ‘Mind Matters’ which is linked to ‘Education Services Australia’ (also responsible for some of the IT funding projects). I’m also checking that out. There is also quite a bit of reading there. It seems quite sound though and has simple yet useful strategies for self awareness and building resiliance. I like that it has a variety of resources including texts, clips and activities. The entire program is available online, much lighter than the kit I was given today to check out:).

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