Last night I dreamed I was on the wrong train and it veered off track into a brick building. The train slowly lit up in flames and I escaped calmly through the window because I knew I had the time to take before I caught fire. Dreams have a tendency to set the mood for the day and they often predict actual events. I am happy to say that today the train stayed on track and I did not have to evacuate out the window.
As I write this blog, it is a Saturday night and lashing rain on the tinny roof. (Update from previous blog: umbrella has been removed from roof and high-tech wooden boards are now slated across our acreage). I also am recovering from Week 1 of the CELTA course in Dublin and just now finding time at midnight to transcribe my scattered thoughts from the week into a somewhat coherent blog. I apologize in advance, as it is two hours past my bedtime and I am getting cranky with myself.
Day 3 of CELTA felt like day 300, and Day 5 felt like an entire Bachelor degree earned from a university. The amount of knowledge that entered my brain this week is overwhelming and exciting. I am use to sitting back in class and absorbing info, so actually reversing that role is refreshing...but really... it is frightening.
The most difficult part of the course so far? Printing. The first round of papers I printed for my lesson came out double-sided. The second, stapled. I didn't want to wreck more trees, so I wasted 5 minutes of lesson prep de-stapling with my nails because I always do things the hard way. Is this what being a teacher is like?
An hour after printing, I took center stage in the classroom. The students welcomed me as much as I welcomed them. We were both foreigners here and they could smell the fear on me. I did not faint or cry, nor did I make any major mistakes by telling them 2+2 is 5 (because it's not a math class, that's why). No one left the room bored either. Several times I felt like leaving because I thought I was boring them. Lesson learned today: don't be so hard on yourself. And go home, eat ice cream and plan your next lesson.
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