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Being back is great! New challenges

-New challenges lie ahead- 

I am back in England! Not in East Leake, the village I visited two years ago, but I am not too far away from there. This time I stay in a small town near Lincolnshire which is just one and a half our away from Judith!

Last March I applied to work as a teaching assistant and I am really happy that I got the chance to come back to England and help secondary school children to improve their German.
To get a place in a school in England I had to apply in a written manner and I had to pass an entrance test which was like an interview. They asked me several things about how I would teach German and about myself and prior journeys. Moreover, they questioned me about German politics and my general knowledge. I made it and I am ever so happy. Since June, I know the region I am now working in.

I had a long journey coming by Eurostar from Brussels to London. Namely the journey was from London to Lincolnshire and it took me 10 (!!) hours to get to the family but I am every so happy with my choice to live in an English family instead living on my own in a students house. The family I am staying with is really open and friendly. The family consists of Elaine, Andy and their two children Maddie and Lewis. Maddie is nine years old and Lewis is 7 and they treat me as if I were their sister. It's really nice to be in a household with two little ones because anything is always going on here. It never gets busy! Moreover, Elaine and Andy are open-minded, they travelled around the world for two years (when they were younger) and they are really interested in Germany!

I am the only German language assistant in school but there is also one girl from France and another girl from Spain. I must say they are both really nice! Marie is the French girls, she has worked in the same school before so she is kind of independent and she rather likes to be on her own. Rocio, the Spanish girl, is more open-minded and communicative. I really like her!

I just have to teach 12 hours per week so that is really simple. The teachers say what they are doing in their lessons and I help them with it. My tasks is to look for worksheets or texts to study with to help the students to get better grades in their upcoming exams. With the pupils I need to talk German but it's good to have a family around with which I can speak English. The staff is also really helpful: I can also talk Enlish in my free periods and within lunch break.

Next to the school there is a big leisure centre in which you can do several classes and they even have a big swimming pool and a sweatbath! So this is really cool. Rocio and me joined the leisure centre so now we can go to any class we would like. We tried a step class yesterday which was really funny!
We got a student discount so it only costs us 22 pounds per week which is really cheap.

Working just 12 hours per week is really fuss-free. Today (Wednesday) I had school from 8 to 12:30 and I have Friday off! I am really pleased about that. This leaves enough space to read, to plan trips and to do whatever I want to do! I hope that I will have enough time to write this blog and keep you all updated. The school in which I am working is a grammar school which is kind of unusual for England. Normally, every public secondary school is a comprehensive school, but this school is for the very bright and talented children. Children who want to go to this school need to pass a test and need to show good grades to receive this special education. Therefore, the children are really polite and eager to learn. It is fun to teach them!
Bildergebnis für queen elizabeth high school gainsborough
This is the school from outside. It is a really big school which is not really visible in the picture but there are 1200 students going to QEHS.

Next weekend I might go to Lincoln and explore the city a little bit. It has been two years since I have been to Lincoln. Due to that I am really excited to visit the city again I only have good memories of my daytrip.... On top I am planing a trip to Wales or the Peak District by the end of this month and I hope I will meet my best friend from Germany there for some days.
But let's see!:)

I will keep you updated. Lots of Love

Antonia xxx

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