term 2 - term poo or term woo?

Jesus Christ guys, here we are at the end of an 11 week term. I sit here with a crisp coca cola after a beautiful brunch with friends. Life in Punmu is feeling much more settled, I’m really starting to feel like I live here and I am finding lots of magic in day to day things.

The primary reason I haven’t been writing is because I am filling my weekend by filling my cup. This term has been so much more social for me and I am much happier in general.

The main updates from this term are as follows:

I now enjoy camping and being outdoors
I am having a good time at school and am generally much more relaxed here
My eczema has gone, thank you steroid cream
Head lice is no longer a worry as I now have no head (and no hair)
I am feeling sexy and beautiful and not like a little, fat and worried goblin
I have made lots of new friends that I am hanging out with on the weekends
I now have lots of new sourdough equipment
I have tan lines on my feet from wearing flip flops
I have started vaping again (thank God)
I am much braver with animals and have held some different ones this term

Character development arc

I truly think these past 3 months have been the biggest learning curve in my professional and personal life. I feel so immensely proud of myself for sticking with the job. On some days I did not know how I was going to get through it.

The first pivotal change was in my teaching practice. My mum gave me some really good advice essentially stressing that children learn, even when they are having fun. Acknowledging my very Western way of teaching the students actually helped me realise that a lot of my practice didn’t work for them. The beauty of my school is that the class sizes are small. You do not have 30 new students every hour where there needs to be a tight ship or you just lose your mind. I learned to be more fluid with my class, much more relaxed and most importantly responding to their needs of the day. While I am still implementing maths and English everyday, it often includes outdoor learning, less regimented learning and generally being less strict.

Not only has this allowed me to have lots more fun at school, the students are also having much more fun which is in turn helping them learn. I no longer dread going to school, some days I actually look forward to it! It is such a blessing to be in this place, with these students, at this time in my life. I am just revelling in the everyday so much more.

Another important development is being able to pull myself out of slumber. I have a really good support system around me and I have learned to utilise them when I am feeling down. Reaching out when I am struggling has really helped me. Even this weekend I was feeling so tired and unproductive, but I listened to all my favourite Beyonce songs and GOT THAT SHIT DONE!!! I am loving having the time and space to explore more creative things and being able to get in a good routine. Being able to notice signs in myself when I am struggling has been a major life shift for me. I am also keeping my cool at school which is beneficial for everyone. I’m feeling very mature and grown up.

As previously mentioned, having my mum here was a huge boost. She understands me more than I understand myself. She grew me since I was a seed (her words). This term I had a pretty big blow up with one of my colleagues which I found really upsetting. But it taught me a lot about my power, my character and my agency. It is the first work conflict I have had to navigate as an adult in a proper job (avoided previously by being good vibes all around). Being able to detatch from how she made me feel, act professionally and now accept our relationship as only professional rather than friendly has been a really important skill to learn.

Dedication to my mother

In Australia there are no half terms, so I have now been here for 11 weeks this stint. My mum came on about Week 5 and there could not have been a better time for her to come. Tensions were high, patience was wearing thin and she really felt like a breath of fresh air. My mum is the definition of a social butterfly in its truest form and having her here was such a gift. We went for walks everyday, started stretching on the lake and were eating GOOD. She reitterated the importance of having fresh food out here and everyday we were eating something tasty and healthy. Everybody absolutely adored her and really missed her when she went. The students still talk about her today. I feel so lucky that she got to enjoy this experience with me.

Favourite moments include:

taking my whole class to pick her up from the airport (the students had made welcome posters, mostly addressing her as ‘Miss Lottie Mum’
cooking lamb chops together
going to running waters
holding hands and having cuddles
journalling together and having deep chats
doing face masks
deciding to turn off the music while we have dinner so we can have a proper natter
feeling like a teenager at a sleepover before bed, giggling away
sitting outside all the time on my deck
some people thinking she was my sister (I think she will appreciate this one on the list)

school improvement arc

Went on the barrel train for the first time this term! This is essentially the school bus in Punmu.

I had a particularly difficult situation (multiple situations actually) with one student in my class. Through a combined effort of school staff we have managed to get her back on board and enjoying school. It has also been a major life lesson. ‘Building relationships’ is a term which is always flung around in school lingo but I never really understood the importance of it until now.

It is truly a blessing to have the time to get to know my students on such a personal level. I am in such a cool spot where we can actually explore their interests together and share my interests in response. I have introduced Map Mondays where we learn about a new country each week. I have found a load of Geography stuff like atlas’ and globes and the students get reaaaallly excited about Geography. A pretty cool legacy to leave.

I really do love every single one of them. My favourite part of the day is chatting with them in the morning at breakfast, catching up about their evening. It feels very special when they put a hand on my shoulder or give me a high 5 or a first bump. The best part is when they leave school with a smile on thier face (very cliche, I know). They are so kind, funny, interesting and intelligent people. I really hope to come back to Punmu in the future and see them when they are all grown up again. Today we actually had a call with their old teachers (who they adore) so hopefully that is possible too at some point for me!

Building relationships has not only helped me understand students but has also allowed so much trust to be built between us. I am feeling such a closeness and a bond between us as a class now, which is not something I have really experienced before. I feel very responsible for them and the pride I feel as their teacher is immense. I can’t even imagine what it’s like when you are with a class for their whole school experience.

Getting students on board to the point that they WANT to come to school because its a fun and safe place for them is such a great feeling. There are some students that do not come to school in any place other than Punmu (my students move around A LOT). While learning at school is fundamental, I have learned that my students learn best when they are having a good time - a lesson I will take with me for the rest of my life. I always imagined learning and school in such a rigid, time specific and essentially very Western way, so I am taking every opportunity to learn all that I can from my students here. They are just brimming with knowledge and I’ve only just started to listen!

Outdoor learning

Camping

The school used to take students out camping alllll the time but due to a lot of changes at the school, they are few and far between now. I felt very proud to take my students out this term. It was a bit of a faff and a fair bit of organising but so worth it. It was so cool being on Country with both the adults and students teaching me how to do stuff. The boys went out hunting for wintigiji (lizards) and found 5 of them. They were frolicking around for hours, it was just a beautiful experience. They even managed to take the trailor on and off by themselves. We got waru (fire) and had a really good feed. Laying out under the stars was one of the most surreal experiences of my life. I felt like all roads had led me to this point. I was feeling so proud of myself not only for organising the trip, but training to be a teacher, coming out to Australia by myself, getting the coolest job ever and making a life for myself here. I also realised that the relationships I’ve built can only be achieved when you live somewhere and people trust you. It put a lot of things into perspective for me and helped me realise that all the hard moments have been worth it.

Unfriendly Critters Update

Spider bite - nurse really didn’t seem too concerned.

Nurse seemed much more concerned about my eczema and gave me some steroid cream which has really changed the game.

The kids force me to hold lots of animals which is making me so much more brave. Don’t know what I’ve always been so afraid of. The kids think it’s really funny that I’m scared of animals.

This term I found 2 headlice in my hair but luckily that was it. I must’ve caught them on day one. Was very handy when mum was here to comb through my hair. Shouldn’t be a problem now I’ve braved the shave.

A huntsman (classic house spider in Aus) and a red back (very dangerous). The huntsman ended up eating the red back. Tasty one.

A worm at the Ranger Station which one of the students put on his head

extra curricular activities

This has definitely been the term for outside of school FUN. I have literally been having the best time.

Running waters

By pure chance my mum happened to be here on a bank holiday so she got to come on a trip with us teachers. Running waters is one of the most beautiful, magical and special places I’ve ever been to. It’s about a 5 hour drive from Punmu.

Quiz night

Bingo Night (with an italian flair and alcohol free wine)

bread making

The best part about bread making is the fun toppings. Please see bolognaise with sprinkles of parmesan and lemon zest. Don’t knock it before you try it!

Painting

Crafternoon

Having friends over for dinner

Homemade sourdough, homemade garlic and rosemary butter. Absolute treat.

waru (fire) cook up - one of my favourite nights

Wanti (lady) Sundays - tea and cake and forgetting i’m in punmu

breakfast/brunch

walkies

book club with katy in melbourne

big chop

punmu chaos - notable mentions

diptheria

There was a really severe diptheria outbreak here LOL. For those of you who don’t know, diptheria was essentially eradicated in Australia. Until now… Luckily a lot of people (I think 95% of people) got vaccinated and I haven’t heard of anyone getting too sick. I remember every single child at school was SO sick at the beginning of the term. My classroom was literally a cespit and this was before people knew there was a diptheria outbreak. As far as I understand, if you are healthy enough it isn’t so severe. But in Punmu there are lots of very young and very old people, issues with overcrowding and overall a lack of access to healthcare so it was a bit of a panic. However it seems to have passed now and I kind of forgot about it at the time. It was only when I was telling my friends in England or Melbourne about it, how absolutely insane it sounded.

Bush fires

We had a pretty insane situation earlier on in the term where a (clearly not well in the head) man intentionally started a load of fires around community. This is obviously extremely dangerous in this landscape because fires catch so quickly. While there is planned burning here (to manage the land and also act as a fire break for when there is a natural bush fire), this was unexpected. Again, things here seemed pretty chill and I kind of forgot about them while they were happening. Martu know land and fire so well, and you only panic when they panic. While they were really close, people were on the ball with making roads wider and essentially went hunting straight away. Community were closely monitoring the fires and I was actually not stressed at all. It was a really cool thing to witness (and smell).

Quotes without context - Term 2 Edition

I put a little bit of your love in my salad dressings
Can you ask Chat GPT to make it naughty
2 holes 1 hole
Invisible forces rearrange furniture - 43
Who was the first one born in the world? IT WAS MEEEEEE! Who was the first one to walk on the moon? IT WAS MEEEE!
This is my pashmina
What is the poo story today? Another little poo next to the toilet?
Just go to sleep Lottie
It’s HELL Corrie… HAHAHA

Concluding thoughts

As you might be able to gather, there has been a bit of a perspective shift in my being here. Firstly, I would like to thank everyone for their support. It really has been my friends and family that have been my sounding board out here. Amongst all the amazing experiences is the lonliness and the isolation, but having kept in touch with so many people has been really lovely out here.

It is a good feeling knowing I am exactly where I am supposed to be, and I have the tools to navigate a lot of situations (though I am not naive enough to assume there are many challenges coming my way). I mentioned before that my character development this term have been astounding and have the capacity to shape the rest of my life (my mum has said this the whole time). The biggest lessons I have learned are perseverance, adaptibility and courage, which are 3 pretty amazing ones to be shaped.

I’m not going to lie, I am counting down the seconds until I am in a camper van with Grant in wine region in Perth but I feel that I am fulfilling my promise of doing everything I can to look forward to coming back. Squeezing out all the drops (as my mother would say).

7. Term 2 REcap