More on working

After being offered 9 days work over 4 weeks and then being asked to work every day one week as I mentioned in my previous work post, I have been asked to work everyday since. I’m very grateful for the work and I feel as though I’m making a difference in the classes I’m working with but I’m a little tired. I gave myself a day off this week as I had an appointment. Turns out that Girl Child was not feeling well so I kept her home from school and dragged her out to my appointment.

Because I'm working out of home now, Girl Child has been dropped at school early and is being picked up around 30 minutes later than normal. Prior to this I've been very available to her and I feel that she is struggling a little. She doesn't like school sometimes and until recently would complain of a headache and / or a sore tummy (her symptoms of anxiety) at least once a week before school. On the plus side the day I took off this week is the close to the only one where she complained of feeling unwell in the last few weeks. Maybe there is some maturity that occurs in Year 4 or maybe it’s the fact she knows I’m no longer working at home and therefore am no longer at her beck and call. Whatever it is I am very grateful but I worry that she might feel abandoned by me. But then I'm a perpetual worrier.

Anyway, work is going well. So well in fact that I'm going to be getting a name tag so I won't need to wear a generic School Assistant badge. That feels like acceptance to me. I've been booked for the rest of this school term. I've also heard that I may be offered a contract for next term. I'm struggling a little with tiredness and despite managing to get my headache fairly well under control, it has flared up a bit. I'm not yet taking the migraine med but I'm back caffeine a few times a week and on pain relief at least once a day which I had stopped needing in about November.

I'm wondering how long it will take for my body to adjust to working. Working in a classroom with Kindy kids is so different to a desk job. I'm hoping I adjust to it soon.

It's Easter so I thought I'd leave you with some eggs. I hope you and yours have a lovely weekend whatever you celebrate.

 

You know those people on reality TV shows

The ones where you wonder why nobody (especially their families) have ever told them that they can't sing? I've seen them and wondered whether its best to smash your children's hopes and dreams quickly or to let them believe that they have ability and talent where there is none. This week I had to make that choice.

Girl Child is not a natural athlete. She has two strikes against her, low muscle tone and then she takes after me in the coordination stakes - she has very little.

So when she told me that she had nominated herself to try out for the area school's representative basketball team, I was a little worried. Not only has she never played competitive basketball (I'm not sure she has played much more than just shooting baskets in the backyard) she also had her heart set on being selected.

We had a few chats with her explaining that many of the children who would be at the tryouts would already play basketball competitively and that her skill level would be unlikely to match theirs. She still wanted to try out. The sports coordinator at her school had also said that she would have fun at the tryouts so off we went.

She happily lined up with all the other girls to do basic ball skill drills. There was dribbling the ball across the court and back, passing the ball under your legs while crossing the court and some basic passing and catching. Girl Chid's lack of skill starting showing in the first activity but she continued despite not being as fast or as accurate as the others. By this time my heart had broken a little seeing how uncoordinated she appeared compared to the others.

Then they were doing drills with 3 girls in each line running around each other and passing balls at the same time. It was at this point that Girl Child came over to me and asked to go home. Her reason? She wasn't having fun. She didn't care that she lagged behind the other girls or that her skill level was obviously so much lower. I told the organisers that she wanted to go home and we left. She was in tears before we had left the building. As was I. Yes, I'm one of those over sensitive mothers.

The question we have always asked our children 'Did you try your best?' Girl Child tried her best and wanted out not because her best was different to the others, but because it wasn't fun like shooting hoops at home is.

Now I'm wondering if we should break it to her that her planned singing career may not be feasible. Thankfully, I think we have a few years before we need to do that. I'm hoping the reality shows like Idol will be over before then.

Work is going well

Last post I was talking about my thoughts and feelings about work.  I had been offered some work at Murrumbidgee (an assigned name for the school where I did my prac).  It was 10 days work over 4 weeks in the Kindergarten building. Because of a public holiday I’m actually booked for 9 days. One week I work 2 days and the next I work 3. Last week was a 3 day work week and I was asked to come in for the 2 additional days to help out elsewhere in the school.  As it turned out, I ended up staying in Kindy. The first day I went to fill in for someone who was away due to family issues and on the second I was working on a class helping with a particular student. It’s possible that this student may be getting some LSA time and if that happens, I may get the work.  I’m not holding my breath because these things take time but so far I seem to have a good rapport with that child and their teacher.

I feel as though I am making a difference to the students and teachers.  Better yet, people keep thanking me. They have thanked me for being working the additional days and for being flexible. I think they like me.  And I’m feeling all warm and fuzzy.

Work...

Image from Microsoft office clipart

It's funny how life is. A week and a half ago I was out handing out my résumé and wondering whether I had done the right thing by changing career. Then there was the added hiccup of my 'real job' (the business admin role which I do from home) will probably no longer exist in the near future. While it's not full time (it’s about 15 hours a week depending on the time of year / month etc) it’s employment. . While it sometimes it drives me insane because things have to be done at certain times and I often have to work while I’m interstate  (people need to be paid), I still like the fact that I have a job. It’s a very flexible job at that. I’m proud that I work.  Goodness knows, I’m not proud of my lack of house keeping skills.

A fair chunk of my self esteem is connected to the fact that I work. I found this out when I stopped working for the government many moons ago and starting just doing the business admin role. I felt as though I had lost myself and rarely felt validated as a person. But I have managed to claw some self esteem back by being fairly good at what I do.

However, when we started discussing the demise of my job I may have just lost the plot majorly a little. Suddenly, I was saying aloud things I didn't consciously realise I thought. I'm proud of the fact that I have always worked. That is obviously very important to me.  I have been employed consistently since I before finished Year 12.  Prior to that I was retrenched from my casual weekend job at Grace Brothers (back when it was Grace Brothers and not Myer) but apart from that little glitch I have been always been employed in at least one job or other. 

I’ve been aware that my business admin role was a little tenuous as it doesn't make the company (me and the Mr’s company) money and the less staff there are, the less I’m needed.  So we will be back down to 3 staff in a few weeks and then it will be reduced to 2 not long after.  It doesn't make financial sense to keep that part running. But I was still cut up about it.

Then on Thursday I got a phone call about Learning Support Assistant (LSA) work. Yesterday I had a meeting and I have work. I'm happy, excited and nervous all at the same time. It's at the school I did my prac hours at and while it’s only a few days of work for four weeks, its a great start. They think they may have more work for me after that. Maybe I will be able to make a go of my new career choice.

In this case it seems there is something true about the saying when one door closes, another one opens.

Would you stand up and be counted?

There's been an issue been occupying my mind (and Mr E's as well) for a few months. While it is fairly minor, it has taken a lot of our focus. It appears to us and others, that someone wants to change something for what appears to be changes sake. For the rest of this post I shall refer to this person as the Agent of Change. The Agent has attempted to make this change and convinced some people that this change is inevitable. Pity that those people are very excited about it and actually don't have final say in it.

Mr E. went to a meeting about this change late last year. Things that were agreed at this meeting have not occurred and the issue of change has been pushed even further. The Agent of Change has denied any agreement at that particular meeting. Along the way the Agent has called people liars and seems to feel that if there is any less than positive discussion or comment toward the change then the only place it could have come from is myself or Mr E. However, the Agent has said that a number of people had objected to the change but it seems that we may have been the only people to sign our names to their objection.

It seems people are quite happy to object as long as they aren't identified. Someone has even gone up the chain but is afraid of the consequences so is hoping that their name isn't mentioned. Mr E has taken the plunge and written to a number of people include the Agent of Change and their superiors. After another meeting, it seems other people are more willing to stand up and oppose the change.

It remains to be seen if it makes any difference or if they are willing to put their name to their opposition. I've been a little upset about this as I received a phone call from the Agent of Change assuming that a particular negative response was ours due to being nameless. To a certain extent I've felt that other people have been gutless by not owning up to their opinions. That said, I'm probably being hypocritical because I asked (or pressured, perhaps) Mr E. to go the the first meeting. Things just snowballed from there.

Perhaps with the number of people talking about going above Agent of Change's head the issue may get dropped. What really concerns me is the number of people who seem to scared to stand up for their opinions. It's quite disconcerting to know that at least one adult has even said that they are too afraid of the Agent of Change to own their opinion.

Surely that in itself is enough to get the Agent's superiors to look at what's been going on. I'm thinking that this change is only a tiny piece of what's been happening.

Is it worth voicing your opinion if you are too afraid to own it?