The Highs and Lows of NZ

So, it’s been a while since I’ve posted to the blog so here is a summary of the highs and lows of life in New Zealand.

Highs:

Getting my nerd on at the Weta Cave. The Weta Workshop is the company that produced all the props and materials for Lord of The Rings, Avatar, The Chronicles of Narnia, and District Nine. The story behind the Weta Cave is that people kept showing up at the Weta Workshop wanting to see props from the movies. But most of the props and technology is cutting edge and they didn’t want any trade secrets getting out. So due to demand, Weta Workshop built the Weta Cave, which has a handful of props and merchandise to deter people from wandering into the Workshops. In typical Kiwi fashion the Cave is very understated and completely un-promoted. There is one small street sign showing you where to turn, and even then you have to meander down a road to get there. It could easily be a huge theme park or museum type building, but instead it is a low-key shop, which is staffed by Weta employees.

Lows:

There really aren’t many lows. The only low I’m dealing with right now is the temperature. This morning it was 22 degrees in Upper Hut (the city where my school is), and miserably cold in the classrooms and hallways. There is no heating in the corridors during winter, and all the doors stay open for “safety reasons.” I can literally see my breath as I walk down the hall to class.

But life continues. I have two weeks of teaching left; I can’t believe how fast time is flying!

Truth There is Balance in the World

After posting about my wonderful lesson with the year 9 class, the next day I did that same lesson with a different year 9 class and it bombed hard. Really hard, painfully hard. Thank god for long weekends, this Monday is Queen's Birthday. Which is odd because her actually birthday is in April, but New Zealanders celebrate it the first Monday in June; they're an odd breed down here.

I did manage to go for a hike and take some pictures of the area around were I live...

I tried to go up even further to get a better view but the trail turned a bit muddy...

Teaching Grammar with Blackalicious

I just had a great day at school, I am exhausted but sort of exhilarated as well. My associate teacher was sick today so I took all her classes, on my own. It was awesome, ironically my favorite class is also the group that gives me the most trouble. But today they really got into the lesson. We were learning about rhyme and alliteration, so I played them Alphabet Aerobics by Blackalicous (click here to listen). They were really into it, they had to find all the examples of alliteration. Then they split into groups and were each given a tongue twister to read to the class, then they made their own. At the end we had a speed race to see who could read theirs the fastest. It was really a cool lesson. What I love about this class is how social, enthusiastic and creative they are. What drives me crazy is their wild behavior, which I think comes from the fact they are so social and creative. What I have learned is that group work is the key, plus a little hip hop never hurts;)