early night?

I am heading to get ready for bed now in a desperate attempt to get a bit more sleep. We have both been a bit overtired recently and I am feeling the stress at work. It's a really busy time, revising for exams that are in May. There's a lot of pressure for the students to perform well and a lot of pressure on me to make it happen.

Ant and I ran into our neighbours as we were coming home today and we have arranged to have them over for dinner next week. That will be quite unusual; London is not exactly a friendly neighbourhood place.

And it is also getting much nicer outside. British Summer Time started yesterday, so technically it is summer now. Sarah and I cycled home from work together (half way home until our paths divide) and we talked about maybe doing some longer weekend rides over the next few months. We want to go to Europe again this summer.

awareness

Ant Stumbled Upon a really interesting advert today that is an awareness test. Go watch the advert now, and then come back to read this post.

No, really. Go take the test--it will take only 30 seconds and then come back and finish reading.

The theme of the advert really resonates with me--I wish everyone was more aware on the roads. But it also reminded me of a discussion we were having at our house group meeting a couple of Fridays ago. We were praying together that we would be more aware of what God is doing around us. I want to be able to notice what God is doing in the people around me and join in on his plan. How do I learn to pay more attention? Or maybe just wanting to notice is an effective step, like wanting to notice the ball passes in the awareness test.

happy Easter

It's snowing for the first time this year--on Easter Sunday. Amazing! Yesterday I went out prayer walking and handing out Easter leaflets in the shopping area near our church. I had some interesting (although short) conversations with some of the people I met. It was hailing and sleeting which made the hour a little less welcoming. On Friday we went to the service at the church, an interesting time in which we moved from scene to scene around the sanctuary, listening to dramatic readings, songs, and singing a few things. Then we all went out to the town hall to meet people from the other churches for the walk of witness. It was exceptionally windy and the man carrying the very large cross in front of the group had a difficult time keeping it upright. It's been a really nice, relaxing weekend so far and we still have one day to go. :)

report writing

I have a set of reports due this week--for a year group in which I teach two groups. I teach a top set and a bottom set. The top set are an enviable group--they are quite hard workers and I never have any difficulty motivating them in lessons. Also since they are progressing well their reports will be easier to write. I'll use a standard paragraph and add details of progress and grades for each child. The reports I write for the bottom set will be more challenging. It's a very diverse class with several students still learning their times tables. I'll probably spend twice the time writing that set of reports, commenting on progress, effort in class, consistency of homework, neatness, contributions in lessons, and general attitude.

Ryan has made very good progress in maths. He works consistently well in lessons and always put maximum effort into his classwork. His work is well presented and he takes notes that will be valuable for use before tests and exams. He asks and answers questions in class; this is certainly something I would encourage him to maintain. His homework is regularly completed to a high standard and handed in on time. This has allowed him to consolidate our classwork topics. He is always pleasant and polite. He works well with his peers and I’ve enjoyed teaching him this year.