Well it is time to post my last blog for this chapter in our lives. I can not believe we are coming up to the 12 month anniversary of our departure from Australia. It has been a monumental year as this video will attest too:

There has not been a single second during this year that we have not felt so extraordinarily lucky that this opportunity was afforded to us. Now while I know we need to thank the two schools involved profusely, more than anything, it is the Wismer family we would like to acknowledge. Here they are:

We knew we wanted to go on exchange, we knew it was the right time for our family, so going was easy. I still can not believe the Wismers said YES!!!!

I mean think about it, some complete strangers contact you from the other side of the world asking to take your job, live in your house, drive your car, use your stuff and kill all your plants (oh yes…. sorry about that!) and Mark and Ulrika said… YES. It had not been done at their school before, they were not copying someone else, they had no barometer for how it would turn out and still the said YES!

And so, for the last 12 months we have slept in their beds, worn some of their clothes, driven their car, assumed their phone numbers and phones, and made our own bum dents in their couch!

I’m typing on Ulrkia’s computer now, as Shem works on Mark’s computer. The kids are asleep downstairs with beds full of Cormack and Stella’s Soft toys (not Dibs of course he is far too cool for that!) It is quite surreal if you think about it too much, and yet they said YES. These are people we hardly know, yet we feel like we not better than anyone else. So our biggest thank you goes out to them, their kindness, sense of adventure and willingness to see the value of experience over possessions.

Shem, the kids and I have experienced so much, not only in terms of exploring a snippet of this amazing country (My God it is big!) but also in the relationships we have forged over this time. How have we grown?

Kids Sport.

Well firstly, I was pretty arrogant when we first arrived, believing that Australian kids were more physically fit and tough and did more sport than anywhere else in the world – boy was I wrong. So much more is expected of kids here at a young age. Here is our boy pre-Canada.

Here he is now!!!!

The difference makes me feel like Aussie kids are wrapped up in cotton wool – it was quite a shock to begin with. Junior swimming in Australia involves swimming 50m in each stroke. In Canada it involves all distances in all strokes and this last weekend Dibs just broke the 200m Fly record for the club – WHO SWIMS 200 fly at 10 years old!!. The school was the same – they host a  monthly school wide run where all students K-7 run 3km. Grade 4s are training for a 10km race and regularly running 8km at lunch time and no one here finds this remarkable. I do however, and I am certainly bringing tougher children back home.

Pro D.

Professionally, Shem and I have grown beyond our wildest expectations. Shem’s understanding and use of 21st Century learning techniques, problem based learning approaches, social media and Canadian History have exploded this year. A new school means new subjects,new students, new colleagues, new computer, new operating systems, new classrooms, new content, new organisational quirks. It was true to say I thought Shem was going to implode with the overwhelming newness of it all when we first arrived – especially after 10 years at GGS becoming very comfortable. Check out one of his 21st Century students awareness campaign -its amazing:

For me it was teaching k-12, a new school each day, new classes, new subjects. It was classroom management skills refresher on steroids. It was coming to terms with not knowing what you will be doing day to day and waiting for a call each morning. It was learning to make the most of the opportunity to see so many different teaching environments and styles – quite a unique insight really. Would l like to do it for more than 12 months – absolutely not, some young teachers here do it for 7 years waiting to get a permanent position.

Globally, Shem and I have increased our understanding of the world around us and the people in it. The children have got to understand that the world is filled with people different from us. They flew on a plane for the first time, and ventured into a non-English speaking Provence. They learnt about First Nations People and embraced cultural experiences that were different from home. They saw some amazing natural and man made wonders and met some incredible people.

George Bonner Elementary.

I think I have spoken about the kids school George Bonner Elementary before, but it is worth a mention again. Dibs, Jemima and Chloe for the first time arrived at a place where they knew no one and were fully embraced by the school community.

The school has been a really special place for me also as a large proportion of my teaching this year was done there. The value of the school came down largely to the get up and go of the staff. Dibs, Jemima and Chloe were able to experience so much more than a classroom education. A school musical production, Drama Challenges, TC10km running challenge, Kilometer running challenges, multiple field trips into the amazing local environment, chess club and Hul’qumi’num club. There was not a day that went by when I was in the staff room that one of the teachers wasn’t talking about the next activity, event or club they were going to run. The students don’t know how lucky they are. So as the Canadians say a ‘Shout Out’ to George Bonner Elementary where our children have truly flourished.

 

Duncan Stingrays Swimming Club.

I also want to reflect on the Duncan Stingrays Swimming Club who willingly took us on for a year. It has been a fantastic experience for us in seeing a very different approach to junior swimming and the kids have been challenged beyond what I would have ever thought they were capable. The have grown in skill and confidence which is awesome. To top it off Dibs now has his name up on the Club Records Board at the local swimming pool – a bit of Oz left behind!

Vancouver Island and Mill Bay.

What a beautiful and special place. Physically breathtaking, spending a year in this environment has been good for the soul. The campus itself is simply stunning, nestled in a protected bay overlooking the Saanich Peninsula and the snow capped top of Mt Baker in USA.

Vancouver Island reminds me a great deal of Tasmania, with its overwhelming volume of natural beauty. Hikes, lakes, Islands, skiing, beaches (not the Australian type) and the locals are really good at getting out and making the most of it. I think we can happily say we made the most of this too.

We have been taken back by how friendly people have been in Canada, nothing is too much trouble and we found ourselves constantly surprised by how nice people are. For example I asked at a swimming pool if there was a microwave anywhere I could heat up some pasta for my kids dinner – thinking it was a completed long shot given the pool has its own cafeteria and the lady behind the desk said, “no, but give it to me and I’ll heat it up in our staff room.” This type of helpfulness was experienced time and time again in many different situations.

Friendliness however can lead to some frustrations, for instance, dropping into the local supermarket Thrifty’s to pick up a few things quickly is out of the question  because at the checkout the lovely staff have a wonderful conversation with every customer as they casually and without any hurry ring up your items. Shem was driven to distraction on many occasions – not quite ever adapting to ‘Island Time’! But overall it has been a refreshing insight into the benefits to a happy to help, can do community attitude.

Brentwood College School.

 A school so similar yet so different to Geelong Grammar School. We have had such a wonderful time getting to know staff and students here and will take away some amazing memories, experiences and lessons. We have really enjoyed the amazing group of kind, friendly and happy students who truly love their school. We have loved the all encompassing nature of the school which sees day students integrated into boarding houses and regularly sleeping over.  We have loved being a part of Ellis house, where the students are so proud and happy to be part of what is a sensational community. The sense of community that is fostered through frequent social, competitive and community based events that bring the students together and make campus a thriving place to be during the week and on weekends.

Ok, time to stop ranting I guess. This blog is about bedding down memories, so we have been busy taking photos to make sure we have with us lots of images to draw us back to what will be a once in a lifetime opportunity. I have put it together into a video because it is more fun!