Eiffel for Paris: La Rentrée...almost

It seems odd that I should be starting to work in a school six weeks into the school year, no? But then again, I haven't even really started yet...

This week was abundantly full of activities! On Monday, all the Paris assistants were given a warm welcome by administrators from various levels within the Parisian school system. Our meeting was held at Lycée Louis le Grand, a very well-known high school in Paris. The institution has quite the history, especially considering that it was founded in the 1500s. Victor Hugo, Molière, even French president Nicolas Sarkozy (among many others) attended school there. The school is certainly not lacking in prestige! On Tuesday, I visited the schools where I will be working. At the first school, I was met by an extremely enthusiastic school director who is at the helm of an engaging group of teachers. I'm going to be working with 6 different classes, twice a week, and the ages of the students encompass 7-11 years old. Because they have had an assistant before, there were a number of resources that had been squirreled away for me. I dove right in and started organizing the few children's books, cassette tapes, teacher guides and hundreds of copies of worksheets I uncovered. I can tell that I'm going to be working hard, but I'm honestly excited about everything! The second school is conveniently located about 10 minutes away by foot (only one metro stop away). I visited with the director for a bit and he introduced me to the two teachers I will be helping. I'm at the second school for a shorter amount of time each week, so they want me to focus on helping the older students prepare for the end-of-the-year exam. The teachers at the second school seem very nice, too! The weather finally snapped (au revoir, l'été indien) on Wednesday, which is a day off in the primary schools, so I bundled up and went into the city to meet up with Susy for lunch. Her new apartment building faces a charming park (parc Montsouris) and we decided to eat lunch there - what a lovely location! Thursday afternoon and Friday morning were both filled with observations at the first school (the first part of next week will be filled with observations at the second school). On Friday night I met up with my friend Joy, a junior-year abroad classmate, for drinks and dinner. We started the evening off appropriately enough...catching up on the past 10 years over a bottle of champagne on the grounds of the UK Embassy. I was technically on English soil for a few, brief hours ('ello, guv'nah)! A misty Saturday evening was spent with new friends in the Oberkampf area (which I'd never before visited), grabbing a bite to eat and then heading to a real café-concert featuring eclectic instruments and invigorating music! Today, Sunday, was pretty relaxing and involved starting to prepare for future lessons. Susy came out to the suburbs today, as well, and I was able to introduce her to my host family and she stayed for lunch! A wonderful way to close out the week...stay tuned after the jump for a few photos!