Em and Dave

In two short weeks Emily and Dave will be walking down the aisle to start their 'happily ever after' and sadly I cannot be there to see it.  So last night, I hosted a dinner in honour of them and their pending wedding.  I made a five course wine tasting meal that I thought actually went over pretty well (I think I am pretty good at putting my food down, although usually with good reason).   They are a fabulous couple and I am so happy to have them both in my life.

 

Girlfriends

Earlier this week my wonderful God mother sent me an email about the importance of girlfriends and sisters. It was written by an older lady and could not have been more true, where others may come and go and we grow and change the one constant in our lives forever, with no geographical limits is girlfriends.  This has been proven to me time and time again, what has gotten me through some of my darkest days is my fabulous girlfriends (a group which of course includes my sister), even though sometimes thousands of miles away they have still managed to be a wall of support.  And I feel so lucky this morning to have made some of these girlfriends here in Basel, ones I know that I can (and do) call upon when I need someone.  Last night, I had a wonderful night with some of these girls.  What is even better is that not only is Maria a truly wonderful friend but she is also a great cook, so not only did we have a great time together, we did it over a spectacular four course meal...

Mixed Ability Teaching (a total rant)

One of the biggest debates in our Maths office is about setting versus mixed ability teaching.  It is something I feel increasingly passionate about as it is just plain as day to me the negative effects that setting has on pupils, and I am not just talking about low ability but low and high.  It is really something I  intend to focus my teaching career on.  Just today (like most days), I saw the massive positive effects of having an unsetted class compared to other years where classes were set.  The motivation, determination, self-confidence and therefore results of the pupils is amazing.  And it just so happened that also today a friend and colleague forwarded me an article about mixed ability and setting.  Considering I have decided to focus my life on ending setting, I thought I would share a bit the article here:

In secondary schools, Students' experiences of ability grouping similarly suggests that setting in mathematics has a negative effect on both attainment and motivation, with the exception of slightly improved attainment for top set pupils. The authors conclude that setting promotes a more inflexible style of teaching than mixed ability classes, and creates unreasonably low or high expectations for the pupils in the lower and top sets.
The effects of ability setting on teaching practices and the curriculum in the secondary school example included:

• the best teachers being allocated to the top sets, despite evidence that high quality teaching is more beneficial to lower attaining pupils
• curriculum polarisation, which meant that moving between sets was very difficult because they followed different syllabi
• unreasonable expectations of the top sets, reflected in a fast, procedural teaching style
• a lack of differentiation within sets, leading to many pupils finding the pace either too fast or too slow.

The study found that mixed ability teaching, by contrast, encouraged teachers to see pupils as having different needs, abilities and working styles.
The study also showed that working class pupils were disproportionately represented in the lower sets, considering their Key Stage 3 scores (I CAN DEFINITELY TESTIFY TO THIS!).

Taken from http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/toolsandinitiatives/tripsresearchdigests/a0013256/themes-pupil-grouping-and-organisation-of-classes

Not as Planned

Well this weekend started off horribly, as two very good friends from the UK had to cancel their trip due to illness.  So I started the weekend, off by sulking all Friday night on the sofa.  Luckily, I have some amazing friends here in Basel that will not put up with that for long.  Emily and Dave prepared a fabulous meal on Saturday night and today has been a beautiful day spent in the sunshine reading my newest book. 

However, Emma and Steve, this does not get you off the hook and I still expect to see you here sometime very soon!

Proof Reading

I am often in a rush doing things, and this question that was part of my grade 7 review game is a good example of why I need to double check things before using them...
Whoopsie!

Time is a Flying

Now I am so use to time flying during the holidays, but I have never felt time fly during term time like I am now. I feel so busy, with school, my German and new sport activities. I feel totally out of touch with too many people so it was great last night to have some nibbles and drinks with some friends I have seen way to little of this term...

Rugby World Cup

So if I do not quite make Brazil 2016 in rowing (unlikely) then possibly look for me in the next female rugby world cup ;) That is of course if I can actually walk tomorrow after my first Monday night rugby!
Possibly the hardest two hours ever, I am definitely black and blue, but I scored a try and I loved it! (it has been pointed out to me today, that there is no world cup for touch rugby yet, and as I am not keen on cauliflower ears, I may not ever make it to professional rugby)

Happy 5773

Today I was lucky enough to join the Grisetti's in celebrating the Jewish 5773 New Year. They as usual produced a fantastic meal (that now has me sitting on the sofa feeling like a whale) and it was great to see the growing rapidly, Xander. And I must say, although different from my usual New Years, it was a bit refreshing from my regular midnight dramas ;)
And now that Xander is a bit stronger and older, Auntie Amanda can hold him without a full out panic :)

Row Row Row your Boat...

...gently down the Rhine.  Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, after for a glass of wine. 

Look for us Brazil 2016 :)

Like Mother Like Daughter

People say that after a while a dog begins to take on traits of their owner and I could not agree more (no offence Phil Butler but I always thought you and Basel are fairly similar). And I guess this also goes for me and Lola.  Everyday I walk Lola I pass loads of dogs on the same route except for the really hot days.  So today when we were walking it was just us, I guess everyone else was waiting for it to be slightly cooler before dragging their dogs out.  But not Lola, she LOVES going out in the baking heat, I guess she just takes after her mummy...

Aunty Em the Hen

Thirty glamorous women, nibbles, bubbles, salsa, clubbing and a kebab all made a night to remember in honour of Emily walking down the aisle in five short weeks. She looked stunning and as always was on top form and loads of fun. It was a great evening and I hope she had an amazing night as she deserves nothing less :)

 My rowing coach (Ellie)

 Me and my personal trainer (Mari)

 The lady of

 the night :)

 Bit of salsa

 And then out to show our moves.

A lot of laughs and  a great celebration of Aunty Em xx 

Really Fabulous Bunch

I have been so busy since starting back at school.  I have a lot of new classes and therefore an immense amount of preparation to do.  This is not a complaint, as I love my job, but a fact.  Therefore, it takes something very special now to bring me out on a school night.  And 15 fabulous ladies was a great reason to leave the house and the work behind last night.  What a terrific bunch of ladies, which I realise I say every month but it is really true, they are really great.

 

Almost but not Quite...

Last night I was thinking about how lucky I have been to find Suzanna as a flat mate.  If you dropped by our flat you would probably think we are very similar in many ways.  You would probably find us chilling on the sofa (in our tidy living room), sharing a bottle of wine in our clean (except for the odd plate in the sink) kitchen.   We are of a similar age, and have similar interests and beliefs.  We both want to travel the world, we love meeting new people, generally try to be healthy and definitely trying to make the most out of life.  And as I was thinking of all these similarities, I got up to get something from my room and stumbled upon one glaring difference...

Have a guess which room belongs to me....

We Are all Back

Lola and myself were so excited last night to have the return of Suzanna after her month long holiday.  I think she is possibly the bravest or craziest girl I know, her holiday (my worst nightmare), consisted of her running around Siberia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Beijing and NORTH KOREA!  It is great to have her back and fabulous to hear all her stories.  And I must admit, although at first I thought she was bonkers, I must say I am slightly jealous and definitely in awe of her trip.  To have an escort for five days in North Korea with no access to the outside world, living in darkness every night due to no electricity, seeing how people live, just amazing and I have now put it on my list of things to do (although unlike Suzanna I will be walking not running).