Today would have been Sophie da Silva's 15th birthday.
Our school is truly international. Sophie was born in Zimbabwe in 1995 and immigrated to Portugal with her parents in 2005.
She was a great kid with a big smile. In addition to being a fab student she was a daughter, sister, dancer, swimmer, sailor, Christian, animal lover, friend. . .
It says a lot when an almost over the hill chick living in a foreign country looks for a new job during a global recession - hahaha. Today was the last day of school and my last day at the school. I'm movin' on.
It's been a hell of a year with too many students and too little support. I had an unreasonable workload and the senior school administration turned a deaf ear. There were so many things that I had to do and so many students that the rhythm of my week was exhausting. I never had time to develop my teaching practice and be innovative in my classes. I ran out of steam and patience by Wednesday. What a shame.
Even as a child I would sit back and wait for the other kids to play nice. You can only push me so far and then I reach a point that I quit banging my head against the wall to try to understand and accommodate others. I would take my doll and go on home and play alone if need be. But not before telling you just what I think about you. I'm still like that - lol.
My Yearbook 2009/10 was a huge success with everyone saying that it was the best yearbook yet, so I finished the school year on a high note. I left on good terms with new owners (the school was bought by a business group 2 years ago), women in the admin, and the current principal.
I take with me 3 years of MYP experience, lots of memories and enough stories to keep me blogging for a long time to come.
