Welcome to Relief Teaching

In New Zealand, substitute teachers are called relief teachers.  I came in assuming that the positions were virtually the same, but discovered that the expectations for relief teachers are slightly different from what I was used to as a substitute teacher back home in Canada.  I have been told it is quite common for classroom teachers to take a leave of absence without providing any plans, activities, or direction for the relief teacher, and as a result of this, relief teachers must be prepared to step in and lead a whole day’s worth of learning activities for students.

With this in mind, I headed to my first relieving assignment at an all-girls school, prepared with some backup activities in the areas of math, English, and social studies.  With competencies in a number of areas, I figured that pretty much whatever subject I was given, I could at least teach something or help the students with their work.   Of all the possible subject areas, I was teaching Maori that day, the language of the Native peoples here in New Zealand, and what was more, the teacher had left zero plans or instructions for the day.

I quickly recovered from the initial shock of being given a task I felt so unequipped for, and figured the best way to make it through the day would be to get the students, who were obviously the experts in the field, to teach me what they know about the Maori language.  I was pleasantly surprised with the eagerness of the students to enlighten me about Maori history and culture, and teach me some Maori phrases.  They taught me about the significance and traditions surrounding the Marae, the Maori “place of meeting.”   I even learned a couple Maori songs, one of which goes like this:

Ma is white,

Whero is red,

Kakariki, green,

Pango is black, Mango is too,

A, E, I, O, U

Kowhai, yellow,

Paraka, brown,

Kikorangi, blue,

Parakaraka is our orange

A, E, I, O, U

The delightful students were also keen to learn about Canada, and were intrigued by the vast size of Canada, as well as the large mall in Edmonton.  I was also asked several times if I knew Justin Beiber.  Oh teenage girls.

Overall, I would say that the day went over better than expected, and I really enjoyed my experience teaching at an all-girls school.  Most girls in the classroom were quite enthusiastic, and I enjoyed the zest with which they wanted to learn and share their learning.  Though the day looked a bit scary in the beginning, it turned out to be a great experience, and both sides came away enlightened.

Karikari

Last Sunday, we had a great day adventuring with our friends Leoni and Nathan.  We first met this very kind and hospitable couple while they were visiting their daughter, who works as a doctor in Edmonton, in the winter of 2008.  Leonie and Nathan were the only people we knew here prior to our arrival in New Zealand, and it was so wonderful to spend time with some familiar faces.

After going to church with them, we went back to their house, which Nathan (a retired architect) had designed.  We were welcomed at the front door with a Canadian flag, a thoughtful and heartwarming guesture.  We enjoying a nice meal and hangout at Leonie and Nathan’s beautiful home, before setting our sights on Karikari beach, on the west coast of the island.  The rugged and strong Tasman Sea that surrounds the west coast is much more dangerous than the calm Pacific to the East.

The whole afternoon, Nathan was a source of interesting historical facts about the land and the Maori people that had lived on that land years ago.

We first hiked up a path trough the jungle to view the beach from above, then down to the stunning black sand beach.

There were massive cliffs behind us and boulders on either end of the beach. It is really hard to describe and justify the beauty that exuded from that place.

The water  was warm, and the waves were terrifying.

The dark black sand mixed in parts with a lighter sand to form mesmerizing patterns.

The landscape is so different from anything we have experienced before.  The forest is a jungle, it is so humid and lush, and the rugged cliffs and caves within tell of years of history.

The splendor of Karikari and the company of some kind and familiar faces did indeed make for a memorable adventure.

At the barre

When I saw the poster for the “Intro to Ballet” class at City Dance, I knew this was the opportunity I had been waiting for.  For some time now, I have been wanting to branch out in my dance training and grow in developing my technique in other dance styles.  Don’t get me wrong- I still love hip hop, but there is just a huge realm of dance and movement that I want to explore.  As a good friend of mine put it, developing one’s skills and technique in other dance styles gives one the vocabulary to speak a whole new language, yielding a new range of expression when it comes to movement.

Proudly sporting my Canada pride knee-highs, I was pumped to have the opportunity to get in on this introductory ballet class.  There were about 10 other women there, ranging in age from their mid-twenties to early forties.  The instructor, Ione Barczak, did a fabulous job of introducing us to the foundations of ballet in a simple and non-threatening manner.  I was surprised with how much of the terminology I was familiar with already, but enjoyed the thorough explanations of technique, structure, and history of ballet, along with the chance to perform some basic movements to relaxing music.

Performing my demi plies at the barre by the window, while the sun shone in and a cool breeze blew through the open window that looked out to a vibrant Queen Street below, I felt incredibly thankful to be here in this place.  There have definitely times when I have missed the company of family and friends and the familiarity of life back home in Canada, but there have also been some really awesome moments when I have a strong sense of peace with being here.  This was one of them.

Hearts to Canada

This post goes out to all of our loved ones across the Pacific.  To our dear family and friends in Edmonton, Vancouver, Saskatoon, St. Albert, Calgary, Red Deer, Cochrane, Lloydminster, West Quaco, Muscatine, Winnipeg, Windsor, Saint John, and everywhere else in between, know that you are in our hearts.  From the shores of New Zealand, we send our love.

The World’s Fastest Indian

We recently gathered with a couple hundred Kiwis on a gorgeous summer evening on a hill in a park to listen to some live music and take in the New Zealand film, “The World’s Fastest Indian,” under the stars.

Entertaining us with their musical talents was the indie band Collapsing Cities, a band whose members are all Kiwis, but are now based out of Britain.  I have to say, I quite enjoyed Collapsing Cities, and invite you to check them out.

As the sky dimmed and the stars began to emerge in the sky, the feature presentation began to roll.

“The World’s Fastest Indian” is a true story about New Zealander Burt Munro (played by Anthony Hopkins), a motorcycle, and the realization of dreams.  Need we say more?  In the film, Burt Munro travels to the other side of the world to set a new land-speed record with his Indian motorcycle.  Finding himself in a strange new land, the adjustments Munro must make upon arrival in America were well understood and empathized with, having recently been through the process of learning to drive on the other side of the road and living life in a foreign place.  Enchanting and heartwarming, with its delightful Kiwi flavor, it is a film we would both recommend watching, should you ever get the chance.

My First Day of School

My first day of teaching in an Auckland school came as a result of a God-orchestrated encounter at a primary school near where we are living.  After introducing myself and leaving my CV, I was on my way out when the principal randomly asked if I taught dance.  I enthusiastically replied yes, and she proceeded to explain that they were in need of someone to choreograph some dance pieces for their students.  I couldn’t think of a project I’d be more well suited to, and excitedly accepted their invitation to return to the school for a few days the following week to teach dance.   Both parties were thrilled with the outcome of my impromptu visit that day, and felt that it was a definitely an answer to prayer on both ends.

The project I took on involved choreographing dances to 13 songs, which the children would perform while singing, when a professional camera crew comes in a few weeks to create a “music video” of each class.  The hours of prep were many, but it was definitely rewarding to see the dances come together, and a good challenge for me to choreograph to new genres of music.

I was pleasantly surprised by the attentive and well-mannered nature of the children.  Teachers seemed to have fairly high expectations for classroom behavior, which made my job rather easy and pleasant.  Students responded enthusiastically to the opportunity to learn some new dance moves, and both the kids and myself had a great time bustin out to tunes like S Club 7’s “Don’t Stop Movin’”, Bryan Adam’s “Summer of ’69,” and “Uptown Girl.”  Oh yes, and “Yellow Submarine.”

The school had a caring and peaceful atmosphere, and though the campus was on the older side, there are many brightly colored murals that brightened things up.  In pretty much all of the schools here in Auckland, children wear uniforms, some more strict and formal than others.  The uniforms at the school I taught at were on the casual side and included a teal colored polo shirt, your choice of navy bottoms and shoes, along with a hat.  Interestingly, this school also has a school cat that wanders in and out of classrooms and takes naps on chairs in the teachers’ lounge.  I tried to find out the cat’s name, but was unsuccessful.

The principal requested that I come back three more days next week to continue working with the students on their routines, an offer I was happy to oblige.  I am SO thankful to have this job teaching dance right now.  It’s amazing to be given this opportunity to get my foot in the door of a terrific Auckland school, when I am still relatively fresh off the boat.  A lot of the agencies that employ relief teachers want you to have a certain amount of teaching days in Auckland schools before they will hire you, so this will definitely help me with that process.  I am trusting that more doors will continue to open at the right times.

I am also curious to learn more about the Auckland school system, and am interested to see how it compares to the way this are in Canada.  I feel like I probably don’t even know what I don’t know yet, but I’m sure I will be enlightened along the way, and as I get into more schools.

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Good One

We recently uncovered a new gem of a coffee shop here in Auckland.  “Good One” is a cafe located off Ponsonby Street, which possesses a unique flavor all its own.

With its stacks of National Geographic Magazines, tables sorted with an array of artistic literature, unique decor, chill tunes and friendly staff, we couldn’t help but feel at home in this trendy cafe.

Good One is in the front of house of Coffee Supremes (a roaster and coffee goods parts and service provider) Auckland headquarters. They purposefully have a smaller menu than most cafes and offer other brew methods such as chemex and pour over filter available, shifting the focus of their cafe back to coffee rather than food. I got talking to the barista and found out that the ‘boxer’ blend they were using had robusta beans in it. For those of you who are not coffee fanatics, robusta beans are typically a significantly lower quality bean with a much higher caffeine content. He explained to me that many coffee roasters in NZ have begun using robusta in their blends, because they can get better results using the higher end robusta beans which cost equal to or less than using the lower quality arabica beans. I was a little scared by this so I decided to have the espresso in a cap instead of straight up. I will try it though, sometime. The cap was good but I think that the espresso by itself may be a a bit of a punch in the face. I think thats why they call it ‘boxer’.

We are looking forward to getting down to Wellington sometime, which is, from what we hear, the coffee capital of NZ.  The Coffee Supreme guys down there at Customs Brew Bar have a Slayer and feature 9 single origins with four brew methods available. Sexy! Mojo headquaters are down there as well and I guess they are doing some real good things. More coffee ramblings to come.

A Communal Experience

We were a little skeptical about moving back into a dorm before we arrived in Auckland, but it has been a great thus far.  When we arrived here, there was a family from Vancouver who had been here for a couple of weeks.  About a week after we came, another family moved in from Kansas City, and just the other day, a couple from Seattle arrived.  Everyone has to go through the same sort of steps when moving to the other side of the world; find a vehicle, look for a place to live, figure out what to eat and how to communicate to loved ones back home, etc. It has been actually somewhat comforting going through this process while others are going through it as well.  We have it somewhat easier than our friends because we do not have to consider schools for children or waiting for stuff to arrive that’s currently on a ship in the Pacific, although we do have the added pressure of looking for a job for Mel.  There is a kind of kinship we feel with these families, whom we have not known a very long time, but have a level of common understanding of the emotions, stresses, and joys involved in moving here.

It has really made me think about how when people are able to share at least a little bit of the burden of change with others it is incredibly easier. Just knowing that there are others going through the same things. Even though the effort involved in helping one another is small, the amount of help it seems to be is quite significant.

A few snapshots of life in the East Wing of Laidlaw College…

our dorm room

East Wing lounge

kitty s&p shakers

new friends

communal kitchen

South Eastern Excursions

We took an afternoon to explore Auckland’s South Eastern Beaches.  A postcard with some exceptionally attractive beaches caught my eye, and when I discovered that these beaches were located a mere ½ hour away in South East Auckland, we made plans to go check them out for ourselves at the next prime opportunity.  Maraitai Bay and Magazine Bay were on the list, along with any others that we happened to stumble upon.

It was a prime day for beach explorations; warm and sunny with a slight breeze, and our first stop was Omana Bay.

We found this cool tree overhanging the crystal clear water on Omana Bay.  Breno decided to sloth in it.

We stopped for lunch and a nap on the soft, sandy shores of Maraitai Bay.

Around the corner from Maraitai Bay, we found Magazine Bay.

It was indeed a beach straight from a magazine.  Picturesque in every way.

We took the scenic route home through the New Zealand countryside, and after stopping to say hello to a few friendly-looking farm animals,

we happened upon a vineyard just off of Twilight Road.

Neither of us had been to a vineyard before, and we were eager to see what goes on at one.  Large bunches of luscious grapes hung from row upon row of lush vines, some covered with nets already already so the birds don’t eat them.

We went inside to meet Joy, who owned and managed Twilight Vineyard along with her husband, Bruce.  Joy kindly offered us the opportunity to taste a few of their home-grown wines, so we sampled two lovely sparkling wines, an unoaked chardonnay, and a cabernet sauvignon, malbec, merlot blend.  All were excellent.  We decided to take home a bottle of their Sparkling Diamonds and Pearls, a unique light and fruity wine with notes of pineapple and melon.

We had a refreshing day setting foot on the sands of Auckland’s South Eastern beaches, as well as a good taste of some of the marvelous things going on in the New Zealand countryside.