More flowers

That arrived in the post yesterday, but were intended for today. The tulips were interesting as they arrived bulb attached (see extra) which I obviously had to remove before I put them in water. I will get them potted up when it’s warm enough in the potting shed.

A day of playing CD’s, some of them vey old!!! Male singers today, the ladies can wait for another occasion. The new one is Neil Diamond with the London Symphony Orchestra, a recent Christmas present, Genesis, Queen, Bruce Springsteen and Status Quo. I used to have these sort of sessions when B was away tutoring and I was home alone sewing. 

You never expect that teenagers will be familiar with the old songs. When R was teaching she arranged a weekend away at another school for intensive English tuition. It involved a small group of students who were struggling with this subject and risked not getting the grade required for the next stage of study for their chosen career. 

It was providing a blank canvas for them to show new teachers what they could do when they were focussed, and it really mattered. 

I saw a video taken by someone sitting in the back of the minivan of the group singing Sweet Caroline with great gusto. I think that their musical abilities were on par with their English, needing improvement,  but they were just so happy. R was driving and knew that I would love it as it’s one of my favourite songs.

The outcome of the weekend was that they all got the grade and some amazed themselves at what they could achieve. There was no “Miss, but I’m no good at English”. You only achieve what you believe, so inspiring learners to believe in themselves goes a long way. 

Every time I hear Sweet Caroline I hear “the choir” in the background giving it welly !!!