英语博客:Going back to teaching

Beginners.

This year I have some free time. My youngest child goes to preschool four mornings a week, so during that time, I can do many things. I decided¹ recently to put my application in for being a substitute teacher. That is a teacher who takes the place of a regular, full-time² teacher who is ill, or who cannot make it to school for some other reason. Sometimes a teacher has a training day to attend, so someone else needs to take his class. Often, especially around flu season, a teacher might wake up ill, or have an ill child to take care of; that's when I step in. I have been a substitute teacher before. It is a good way to experience many different schools in a short period of time. Generally, a substitute teacher, or 'sub', as they are called, will work in a different school each day. Before I went to university to get my teaching degree, I subbed for a year in our town. It showed me that High School is my preferred place of teaching. I enjoy the company of the older students, even though the teenagers can be quite a challenge at times. As I plan to eventually go back to teaching full-time, subbing is a good way to introduce myself to the school district and all it's staff. Let's hope that they like me!

Grammar notes.

Useful expressions: full-time, part-time, to step in.

She has just got a full-time job and is thrilled. A fourty hour week will really help to pay the bills.

I'm hoping to job share. A part-time position would be convenient for me at this stage in my life.

The house was devastated³ by the storm. Thankfully, the neighbors all stepped in to help clean up the next day.

Advanced.

I'm really excited about getting back into the school system. It has been a few years since I last subbed, about nine actually. I suppose I'm a little nervous as well. Things have changed in nine years. Now there is an on-line application to fill in. We never had that before. It's not a problem, of course; it's just an extra step involving technology. Also, now I can look for jobs in advance on the internet. There is a specific site for subbing jobs which I can log on to and search. That way I can plan ahead and have a job or two lined up for me, instead of being called at five thirty in the morning to see if I am available. That is a definite improvement! There is certainly more paperwork involved, though. More forms, more information, more warnings even. There is a misconduct form which is new. It is required by state law from everyone who works in the schools. It also is a good idea. It basically protects the students from anyone who acts or has acted inappropriately towards youngsters⁴. I'm glad that these regulations exist. They keep my children and all the students safe. Another thing that has to be done before subbing is fingerprinting⁵. I went down to the school district office to have my fingerprints⁶ done. It is a simple procedure, but I ran into a problem. Some of my fingers didn't have prints! How did that happen? The lady told me that gardening without gloves on will do that. The prints will actually get worn down! Well, I learned something new that day. But it all turned out okay in the end. I had enough prints for the police to check out my record. It turns out that I'm not a criminal.

Grammar notes.

Vocabulary and verb practice: inappropriate, on-line, website, 'to require'.

Exs:

The man acted so inappropriately at the wedding; he was very drunk and rude!

Checkout⁷ the new on-line store. It sells shoes really cheaply.

I will have a new website soon that I think you will find very interesting.

Three years of study are required to get that qualification.

All living things require food.

The law requires traffic to move slowly near schools.

 

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

3 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

4 youngsters   

n.孩子( youngster的名词复数 )；少年；青年；年轻人

参考例句：

• We followed the youngsters at a more sedate pace. 我们跟在年轻人后面，步子稍慢一点。
• The camp is for youngsters aged 8 to 14. 这次夏令营是为8至14岁的少年儿童安排的。

5 fingerprinting   

v.指纹( fingerprint的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Institutions from banks to pawnshops are fingerprinting to authenticate transactions. 从银行到当铺，都在使用指纹识别对交易进行验证。 来自互联网
• In addition, a digital fingerprinting algorithm based on binary codes is described. 介绍了一种二进制指纹编码方案。 来自互联网

6 fingerprints   

n.指纹( fingerprint的名词复数 )v.指纹( fingerprint的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Everyone's fingerprints are unique. 每个人的指纹都是独一无二的。
• They wore gloves so as not to leave any fingerprints behind (them). 他们戴着手套，以免留下指纹。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 checkout   

n.（超市等）收银台，付款处

参考例句：

• Could you pay at the checkout.你能在结帐处付款吗。
• A man was wheeling his shopping trolley to the checkout.一个男人正推着购物车向付款台走去。