Half time

Hi all,

Just in case any of you are on tenterhooks regarding the score line of the Valencia v Atletico Bilbao match that I went to watch yesterday, it finished 2-0 to the hosts (full game available on YouTube).

Right, on to serious matters. Week 2 was a mixed one for me. If I had written this on Thursday, it would have been a lot darker as I was feeling pretty despondent about things following my four hours in school that morning. I am struggling with the fact that the teachers just want to use me for speaking practice for the students as this isn't really conducive to planning meaningful lessons. However, I managed to teach two lessons on Friday, one completely off the top of my head (students talking about what is good and bad about Spain), and the other somewhat more planned (gender stereotypes). I wouldn't consider either of them a fantastic success, but they could have been a lot worse; and frankly, it was good just to be doing something useful.

I don't know what the Spanish for 'lesson planning' is. I'm beginning to think that there isn't a direct translation because the concept doesn't appear to exist over here. It would be very interesting to see the outcomes if some of the teachers did CELTA!

I'm putting together a Valencia 2017 Spotify playlist. So far I have 'Que Sera Sera' by Doris Day and 'Ain't Your Mama' by J Lo. So if you've used any songs in your lessons then let me know. I'm sure we'll end up with an eclectic mix.