2. Top 3 choices of: – Region – Size of town/city – Age groups of pupils Interview in St.Andrews – Present teaching ideas – Any previous experience – Own questions 4 days training course (in Cologne) Tips and advice from previous Language Assistants Training with other English teaching Assistants – getting to know who will be working near by/in your region. Guidance and training from German English teachers. Materials. Useful information – Insurance – Bank accounts – Accommodation

3. First 2 weeks observing. Supporting and assisting teachers in the English department – not leading full classes alone. Providing a fun element to learning English. Improving upon the oral skills of the pupils – less emphasis on grammar from myself. Using their course books as a basic guide for ideas to continue from in class topics and the British Council website. Use special occasions or seasonal topics for teaching ideas – Halloween – St. Andrews Day – Christmas – Robert Burns – St. Patrick's Day – Other national holidays – Other British traditions (music, dance etc) Altering the difficulty/content according to the age/level of the class.

4. Realschule (middle level – year 5 to year 10.) Advisor – head of English Dept. Frau Richter. Monday and Tuesday. Year 7, 8 and 10. Working in groups of 5/leading some classes Gymnasium (upper level – up to year 13) Advisor – Lang. Assistant organiser for the past 30 years. Herr Brunner. Wednesday and Thursday. Year 7, 10, 12 and 13. Working in groups of 5/leading some classes

5. Contracted 12 hours per week – usually 3 hours teaching per day Allowed one day free Bank holidays, teachers absence, classes cancelled – often 10 hours per week. €800 per month – Rent + Bills roughly €300. Health insurance Tutoring outside contracted teaching hours for extra money - €15 p/hour.

6. Travelling around Germany and to neighbouring countries Travel cards Visiting sites and museums Meeting up with/visiting other English teaching assistants and other French/Spanish assistants from same schools Oktoberfest Carnival Christmas Markets October holidays Outings with my advisor and his family. New Year “Stammtisch” Local football/ice-hockey team Shopping – Nuremberg and Munich

7. Higher level of fluency and confidence in German. Contact with the 2 schools. Contact with German, French, English and Australian friends. Chance to visit numerous countries. Interest in teaching. Still practicing German. Welcome to return.

8. www.wg-gesucht.de – flat search www.mitfahrgelegenheit.de – car share (Germany and Austria) http://www.britishcouncil.org/new – (lesson plans, teaching advice) www.studivz.de – (German version of Facebook) Don’t hesitate to contact the university or the British Council for advice and help!