Don't knock Knox!

Hi all,

Today, we went into Knox to meet some staff, ask a few questions and walk around the site. Wow. It is huge! It is going to take me at least a year to learn my way around.
Before I make any teachers who may be reading this, jealous, I'll start with the negative. There is not enough room for all staff to park in the school car park. Your very own car parking space is earned as a rite of passage. 2-3 years at the school and your loyalty is rewarded with a personal car parking space! This is not a wind up! The school is amazing yet staff have to park in the surrounding streets! Still, we learnt today that this is a very small price to pay.
I have my own classroom! Yep, you heard right - no more nomadic teaching and Neanderthal style walking from room to room, carrying a box full of books and resources. No more back ache or knuckles dragging the ground from the weight of the box. My room is clean! It has a carpet that is attached to the floor - no carpet tiles which have peeled themselves away from the floor and rejoice in tripping you up at every opportunity. I have a huge white board and more techno gadgets than you can shake a stick at! It is air conditioned! It does not leak! It does not smell! There are enough chairs for every student! But that is not all...There is an English Department staff room with a kitchen, scanner and fax machine. I have my own desk and book shelf! I kid you not.

Nathan's surroundings in science are not quite as luxurious but still a vast improvement on what he is used to. The school is undergoing a huge rebuilding programme; part of this will be a new Science Block with super labs. There will also be a new library and an extended English suite. So he'll only have to 'rough' it for a little while.

Every morning we are provided with tea. The staff room has a tea lady who apparently prides herself on learning your name, your face and memorising exactly how you drink your tea and coffee. There are Knox cups and saucers and Knox napkins! We spent about 3 hours at the school today, talking about the curriculum and the school. I am both excited and intimidated. It is all so huge and I feel like an NQT all over again. For so long I have been in control and known everything like the back of my hand. I hope it doesn't take me too long to learn the ropes again! Everybody we met loves working at the school and talked about how lovely the students are.

After this, we looked into renting property for when our furniture arrives. This is our next priority. Oh, and last but not least, Nathan bought some Australian stamps for his stamp collection. Oooh, he is a sexy philatelist!