God Bless Socialism

Haha. No seriously, socialism is a wonderful thing when you're feeling lazy. I mean, where else can one have a 35 hour work week and like 2 months of paid vacation a year, as well as pretty much free medical coverage. The drawback is that you only take home about 1/2 of what you earn.

But my reason for blessing socialism is a result of my first day at my new school. Lycee Paul Lapie (http://www.ac-versailles.fr/etabliss/plapie/ if anyone wants to see it. The website is a bit hokey and yes, I realize its in french. but if you go to this site, you can see pictures of it: http://www.ac-versailles.fr/etabliss/plapie/index2.html) in Courbevoie. Its just outside of the city and really will not take me that long to get there. The neighborhood is normal; not sketchy at all, but not super class or anything. Its nice, with of course a couple boulangeries within the block where I can pick up lunch from time to time.

Its nice because the school itself just renovated (hence the pictures on the site) so everything is really nice and clean and new and high tech. Very cool! Its all self contained too, which will be fabulous on rainy days not having to slog across a huge campus.

I meet the principal, and promptly forgot his name (thats one of the things I have the hardest time with is remembering french last names after they've said it one time to you. I'm just not used to them!). And then filled out some paper work and had a sort of introductory meeting with the pricipal and my sort of sponser teacher named Jean-Pierre (seriously. I don't you could get any more french than that). He's really nice and funny. Speaks great english, but we spoke mostly in french while he showed me around the school and introduced me to about 30 other people who will remain nameless in my head. I meet the other some 5 english profs (high school teachers are called profs here) and they are all delighted to have me work with their students.

Apparently, what I will be doing is taking the kids in level 2 (thats like sophomore year. the class levels are backwards meaning that your freshman year is 3, your junior year is 1 and your senior year is your prep year for the bac, or major end-of-high-school test. Does that make any sense? Nope, didn't think so) and having them in groups of 8 for conversation and cultural enrichement. Should be fun! No exact curriculum. I guess I'll just make it up as I go along - find articles to read and discuss, watch some american movies and talk about them, bring in examples of english music, talk about slang etc. I'll get lots of kids - I meet with one group for an hour and then wont see them again for another 2 weeks, so I can reuse my 'curriculum' many times.

I met some of my future students, a group of 15 year old girls, who looked at me with awe and a little trepidation when i started speaking english with them. The profs have already warned me that some kids will be so glad to be learning english and will be great in class and others will not give a rip. In which case I can "fire them" (they use the same verb for "to fire" and "to get sent to the principals office". I thought that was funny).

So, the best part of my job is that I'm only there 3 days a week for a total of twelve hours! True, my paycheck does reflect those hours, but Its still pretty sweet. I have to be there one day at 8 but the other days not til 10 or 11. Niiiiiiice.

So, my general impressions are very very positive. The teachers seem very helpful and friendly (a rarity in france) and really happy to have me there. Everyone seems to really want to be there and even the kids - at least the ones that I met - seem eager to pick the brain of a young and (dare I call myself) cool foreigner.

I start next week! I'm moving this weekend! So much to dooooo!