Chip Chip Cheerio!

My school pretty much shuts down for the summer, and since I can't afford to not work, I've been looking for a summer job over the last few months. And now I've found one - in England!

Yes, Scotty will be off to Great Britain for 8 weeks this summer to teach at a summer camp!

My good buddy here in Prague Laurie told me about the job, and I have to thank her for recommending me to the school. Laurie's worked at the school for three summers now, and likes it so much she's returning for a fourth. The school is called TASIS - The American School In Switzerland - and I'll be working at their England campus in Thorpe, Surrey, about an hour or so southwest of London. Right on!

And it sounds like such a great job!

The school caters to international students, and they're mostly in the 13-18 age range. I've never really taught teenagers before, so this will definitely be a new experience for me. It sounds like such a great program and that it will be a lot of fun. The kids have English lessons in the morning until lunch time and then have sports and games in the afternoon. I've been hired as one of the ESL Teachers so I'll have my own class all morning long, and will help out with some of the afternoon activities. Evenings are spent either playing games/contests/trivia shows/school dances, or travelling to the nearby mall or cinema with the kids.

And every weekend we get to chaperone the kids on field trips around London! The British Museum, London Eye, Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, London Aquarium and many more big sites are all a part of our weekend agendas. We also take the kids to a theatre performance in the city each weekend too! Wow!

And then there's the bigger field trips! Four times per summer a few select teachers will accompany the kids on bigger 3/4-day trips. This year's destinations supposedly are Oxford/Cambridge, Brighton, Wales, and PARIS! You can bet that I'll be working my charm to the max to get in on that Paris Trip!! How cool would that be!?

On top of all this, the school gives me free accomodation and food, pays for my plane ticket there and back, and gives me a rather healthy salary as well. What a sweet job! I'm really looking forward to the experience. It'll help round out my teaching skills, I'll get to meet staff and students from all over, see a bit of England, and earn good money while doing it. Pity it's only for 8 weeks! I know it'll be a lot of work and I won't have much free time at all, but it'll be a great summer adventure for sure! The job starts in mid-June and finishes in mid-August, leaving me with a few weeks break before the school year begins in Prague again in early September. Hmmm...where should I go then?

So bye-bye Prague for the summer, and Chip Chip Cheerio to England!