Friday, August 10, 2018

PREPARING FOR A NEW ADVENTURE

I often look back fondly on a previous teacher exchange that I participated in when I was much younger! I was very fortunate to spend a year in Ontario, Canada, as part of a Commonwealth exchange programme. This was my first experience living in someone else's home, alongside assuming their teaching role at school too.  In hindsight, it had shades of what I now see as an 'almost' AirBnB scenario, at least on the home front. I arrived to a fully functioning home away from home, equipped with every single thing I could ever possibly need. At school, it meant walking into a classroom that was set up and in those days, all I needed was the hard copies of all my necessary syllabus documents before I got my teeth stuck into the Waterloo Catholic District School Board's mandated curriculum. 

Times sure have changed and I knew the moment I heard about an exciting new prospect presented to me at ASB in 2017 that applying for an exchange to CAC in 2018 had my name written all over it. 

After much dialogue with John Smithies and establishing my commitment to being one hundred percent ready, willing and able to be a part of another exchange, the process then meant interviewing and being matched with Trillian! It was a moment of pure joy and immediate thoughts of all that I would learn and devour in my time spent in another early childhood classroom across the seas became a reality. 

Trillian and I participated in pre-visits to our new destinations and I gathered much information from my time at CAC in March 2018. It was an opportunity to observe, make connections and get first hand knowledge of what to except as we embarked on this exciting renewal programme.  Highlights included meeting my future teaching assistant and spending time in Maadi, which I knew immediately on arrival, would be a perfect place to live, work and use a base for exploring all that Cairo has to offer.

ARRIVAL AND ORIENTATION

I arrived in Cairo to be met by Julie Jackson-Jin, escorted home and then the real settling in began.  Trillian had very kindly already shown me all of the local shops, so I retraced our steps and found a beautiful little Fair Trade shop around the corner and made a few purchases.  Trillian has a gorgeous apartment that I feel so comfortable in.  It is a six minute walk to school and I have everything I need, which is such an added bonus when you are adjusting to life in a new home.

The warm and effusive welcome from all members of the CAC team went a long way towards setting the scene for an upcoming year of new sights and sounds.  It is clearly a very strong community who devote time and energy to making sure people feel as if they are indeed part of the larger CAC family.  Getting to meet a whole new set of people from all around the world and touring the beautiful campus made a lasting impact on my first impressions.

The orientation has been fabulous and our first three days together have proven to me that our decision to partake in this experience will be instrumental in taking my teaching and travelling 'skills' above and beyond my wildest dreams. 


It's always a wonderful sign when there is a healthy balance of socializing, presentations and information sharing sessions for your first three days in a new land.  It is at this point that I am eternally grateful to the cast of thousands, particularly John and Julie, that have made this opportunity possible.

                                                                                         ~ Samantha
Landing in Cairo

My fantastic gift - a new school bag!


1 comment:

  1. Sam, great to read your reflections as our journey begins. I am thrilled to have you and Trillian taking this international opportunity with our schools and it is reflection of your willingness to learn, explore and have fun! Julie

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