Song and Dance - Jeudi, 12.10.06

Jeudi 12.10.06 Song and Dance

I feel like poo this morning. I mean I feel phooey. I feel cold and I’m so weak I can’t even stand in the shower for more than a minute before I have to lie down on my bed naked, half-soaked and sort of suddy. Half an hour later I rise; less grey and more steady, yet with a dull pain in my stomach. I take one of my many tummy taming pills and set off for the bus – I am dressed at this stage! I’ve decided to get the 6,50 bus today as I was in way too early on Tuesday. The bus comes on time but it takes a full hour to get to Fort-de-France and by the time I’ve walked up to Tartenson it’s just gone 8,30.

We start with a recap of Tuesday’s session. The four hundred or so objectives of methodological teaching and the other five hundred odd stages of competence development seem to have escaped our minds, so its out with our handbooks again as Madame Bonne drills the information back into our skulls. Even the titles of these booklets tell a lot about their contents; Programme Transitoire d’Enseignement des Langues Étrangères ou Régionales au Cycle des Approfondissements à l’Ecole Primaire. Quel nom à coucher dehors! (What a mouthful!) That could beat Gethin’s tongue-twister any day!

After the intensity of Madame Bonne’s military style training we’re offered some light entertainment in the (slight) form of Madame Genevieve Lupon. She’s a tall, gangly creature with an enormous grin and a massive amount of energy and enthusiasm. True to her name she is full of life - and just a tad loopy. She springs about the place like a Jack-in-a-box, bouncing about; wildly waving her arms (or her sock-puppet, Froggy!) and making us join in with her songs, dances and rhymes. She probably is one of those people who does make a song and dance about everything…Hee-hee! I reckon her aim is to turn us into entertainers, not enseignants (teachers). Eventually she takes a breather to concentrate on our breathing and posture. Rodolfo is closest to her and he becomes even closer when she gets him up at the front and places her had on his tummy demonstrating how to breathe using our stomachs not our throats. He loved it!
After the drama class Madame Josselyne Delepine (my responsable) and her colleague, Madame Viviane Norca, both ran through some educational games. We played a culinary version of Tic-Tac-Toe, and a colourful round of The Snake Game followed. For some people the fun fever was not the order of the day. We played another game with animal flash cards where we had to guess what animal our partner had. My partner, Jill, resorted to sarcasm after about two guesses. She asked if I had a “Japanese delicacy”. It was so out of context I didn’t catch it until my fish card was back with Madame Genevieve. (You know she was inadvertently right since sushi is a Japanese delicacy!).
Lunchtime didn’t come around quick enough and we didn’t waste any time finding Pizza Mania. Rachel and I took the pizza deal which got us two decent Margaritas for €3.50 each. It was a leisurely lunch with cheap cars, Paris and stomach inflammations cropping up in our various conversations.
On the way back to Tartenson someone greeted us from their veranda. It took a second for the voice to register; it was Bex. She lives with Francesca on Rue de la Clairière. And Lola and a student from Guadeloupe just live a few doors down. Time was against us so we didn’t get to chat much but what were told was that Fran had to take their rented car back to the rental company as the windscreen had been damaged by hooligans. The girls had been driving along the auto-route when some locals lobbed bricks at the car. Some landed in front of them but one actually hit the windscreen. Thankfully the girls weren’t injured though the Police said it was most likely a racial attack. However, to make matters worse their pockets may soon ache as the rental company are trying to make them get the windscreen fixed by stating that the insurance the girls took out doesn’t cover the windows. C’est de la foutaise! The company are threatening to keep their €500 deposit if they don’t and even if they do end up getting a garage to fix the windscreen they will pay at least €300.
After the car saga I hear Rachel’s account about life in Australia before Martinique. She had already been in India for part of the summer but prior to that she was working as a Production Assistant in an Australian film company. She told me that Natalie Imbruglia was working with them during the summer. In college Rachel studied English, French and Art History, and her lucky break with the film company came while she was minding the head honcho’s children. During her last days with the family her boss offered her a job in his company. Up until then she was unaware of his job and position! Before all this Rachel had been living with her long-term boyfriend but they had recently split so it was both a providential and timely proposal on behalf of her boss.
It’s amazing to hear about the different situations and backgrounds that each assistant brings with them. For example, James is from Limerick in Ireland, though he has lived in England for the past few years. He has come here with a background in Botany, and a degree from Trinity College, Dublin, and he hopes to use the Martinique environment to further his ecological training. Heather, a Canadian, has been teaching English, at home and abroad, for the past few years after graduating from a course in International Development. There are some assistants who are still in college. Gethin, from Anglesey in Wales, is on a gap year from his Sports Management course. He’s a lifeguard and spends his summers on a jet-ski at a Welsh beach; though when he’s not in an aquatic mode he’s in attack mode as a rugby player. Some assistants like Francesca are on a study year while simultaneously doing their thesis and others are even on Erasmus, like Angela from London who is here for three months. Of course with assistants from 13 different countries it is not hard to imagine such diversity among us.
With educational testimonials fresh in our minds I’ll take you back to our present session at Tartenson where preparation and presentation are on the agenda for the afternoon. We go right down to the nitty-gritty. We even put pens in our mouths to practise diction and articulation. I feel like Princess Di who had to practise talking with marbles in her mouth in order to speak coherently and gracefully at all times - even at mealtime!
In order to hone our communication skills we’re given various poems, chants and rhymes, and asked to perform them using actions and exaggerated facial expressions. Of course some of the tasks are easier than others with Jill, Caitlin and I getting a reasonably well-known ditty which includes facial parts, senses and numbers;
SOME PARTS OF MY FACE
Two little eyes to look around,
Two little ears to hear each sound,
Two little nose to smell what’s sweet,
One little mouth that likes to eat!
After our sing-a-long session it’s down to more serious stuff as we’re paired off to plan various sequences which we have to present the following morning as if it’s a real class. Since our initial classes will involve teaching children to introduce themselves each group of assistants concentrate on a different element such as name, age or nationality. Caitlin and I pair up and focus on the name. It’s crazy just how many ideas you can wean from a single introduction. As assistants we’re expected to explore every method and manner of clear, expressive communication. For some of our kids it will be their first time encountering the English language, its cultural relevance and even a native speaker. Obviously kids also love, and relate to, songs and sounds so a lot of emphasis is put on similar activities with repetition, repetition, repetition and pro-nun-ci-a-tion being the principal concerns. On top of these linguistic competences the use of visual and demonstrative aides is crucial as kids need to relate to tangible concepts.
I’m lucky that I like drawing and arts and crafts so my talents will be not wasted here. I’m also fortunate that my school actually has maps, flags and other resources that I can use. Though I don’t think I’ll be carting a mini-oven into class to make apple crumble as our Dominican comrade, Deborah, previously did. She was an assistant here last year and since she’s a bit older, and closer to home with access to supports, aides and a car, I’m sure that’s the reason it worked for her. Some assistants will have to find alternative arrangements even for basic class materials. Rachel and Rodolfo both have been met with blank faces when they asked their respective schools about resources; even something as fundamental as a CD player does not seem to exist in their schools, and even if it does locating it is another hurdle…
The question of being reimbursed is also brought up. Obviously if a cultural culinary class is possible each kid will bring in an ingredient so as not to incur any costs on the teacher. We’re told however that we’ll be reimbursed for €60 worth of materials. It’s unclear whether this includes expenses for art and craft material, but on verra…My mean Cavan ways (It’s resourceful foresight actually!) may serve me well as before coming here I scanned in my receipts for the Irish books, CDs and other bits and pieces I bought for my students.
I leave the Rectorat with the sun beating down - and many photocopies weighing me down. At home that evening I settle down to design figures and shapes for my class. The evening isn’t round long when the clouds start to cast their own silhouettes on the ground and the rain soon joins in by throwing shapes of its own.