It's almost that time of the year again...

....and when I say "that time of year" I mean back to school. I realize that this is not the case for my far-north-North-American-residing friends, but it's true for me. I guess in all honesty I'm not too far off from what I was used to in Florida. Teachers in the Sunshine State prepare to go back for the week of pre-planning during the 2nd or 3rd week of August. Right? I'm going back the final week of July. School starts the first day of August. I think I'm almost ready.


The school year at my international school in Brazil is the same length as that of the schools I've gone to/worked in, it's just that the start/stop/vacation times don't coincide with those where I've studied/worked before. We may begin school earlier, but I'll have a month-long vacation around Christmas time versus the two-week period I've been accustomed to. It all works out in the end. I guess I just feel I need a bit of a longer break now because since I finished the school year in June, I've been busy packing and moving to Brazil and then once I got here I've been busy unpacking and settling in. However, these last couple of weeks running around preparing for work have helped me almost feel like I'm ready to go back to work. 


At least I'm going to start working here...

I am looking forward to this new adventure and after my teacher orientation last week I'm even more excited about teaching at an international school. Even though the majority of my students are of one nationality - Brazilian - they are very multicultural/international. There will be students from about 30 countries in the school - of various religions, ethnic groups, past experiences, etc. This of course is one thing that attracted me so much to the school. That and the bilingual aspect. I'm bubbling with excitement of being able to meet my students and get to know them well. I've always enjoyed teaching Brazilians (and students from other multicultural backgrounds).


Nervous as I may be (even if just a little bit, and aren't we all when a new school year begins?), I'm anxious and happy about what's to come, about meeting the other teachers, attending in-service  training, setting up my new classroom (which will be temporary because a new wing is being built for high school students, scheduled to open in September/October :), and preparing my lessons. I hope that everything goes smoothly and that I have a nice transition into this school. I became so exhausted and burned out from uninterested students, from parents who wanted nothing to do with the school and frankly couldn't care less about education, and from the lack of support from the government in the U.S. that I need to be here. Hence, part of the reason why I moved to Brazil, to work in a private school.


I am excited about the books I'll be teaching and about the opportunity I have to teach reading and writing to ESL students. I have new clothes for the new school year and already the staff and administration I've met have been fabulous, fun, and supportive. So I'm ready, right? Let the school year begin....