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Tuesday, December 3, 2013

International Prac at Merrylee Primary in Glasgow, Scotland !

I have not yet written a post about my teaching experience at Merrylee Primary, so this one will describe a typical day (and how much I enjoy it!).

I have been placed in Primary 5, which is made up of 9-10 year olds, and I split my days between the two classrooms since Mrs. B and Miss R do some of co-teaching. In my P1 in first grade at St. Columbkille, the teachers co-taught as well, so I have seen it before. There are 31 students in Mrs. B's class and 27 in Miss R's. Their classrooms are located in the pods, since the school's population has increased significantly since the new school building opened a few years ago. The school is building an addition to create more space, but for now the Primary 5 children are outside of the main building. The facilities are beautiful! The school building is 2 floors, and hosts classrooms for Primary 1-7 (equivalent to Kindergarten to 6th grade). In the back, there's a playground and a football pitch (so British!), as well as a "nature area", filled with a few rolling hills and loads of trees, plants, and mini-beasts (aka insects) for the children to explore. The school also houses a cafeteria and a gymnasium!

The school day starts at 9am. I usually arrive at 8:30 to help the teachers prepare, but they usually arrive an hour before I do, and are already organized for the day! Each Wednesday consists of 3 main teaching blocks. 9-10:45, break, 11-12:15, lunch & recess, then 1-3. During the break at 10:45, all the students in the school have a brief recess on the fields and playground in the back. Meanwhile, all of the teachers take a break for a cup of tea. I really enjoy this mid-morning catch-up. It allows the teachers to socialize with each other, where most of the discussion revolves around school-wide events or different lessons the teachers have been trying. The break allows the students to catch some fresh (usually rainy) air and to stretch their legs. The first block is maths, then reading is after the break before lunch. After lunch, we have alternated between social studies and science lessons, depending on that week's projects. The students then finish the day at 3pm. Mrs B and Miss R get some co-planning done before they head home.

This is just a quick introduction, but I will include more details about the days and lessons in a following post!

2 comments:

  1. Hi Mary Kate! I really enjoyed reading about a day in your life at school in Scotland! Merrylee Primary sounds like a wonderful place! At my school in London, the teachers also take a mid-morning break to have tea and biscuits. Similar to your school, all of the students also have recess at the same time. I think this is a great system so that the teachers can take a break all together. I hope the rest of your school visits have gone well, and I can't wait to hear more about your prac!

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    1. Hi Morgan :) I think the breaks really do allow all of the students to re-focus on the lessons following the recesses! Interesting to hear you had a similar schedule!

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