Ok! Enough being lazy, dad-gummit!

I am badbad. I know. Term has been over for a week, and I have not written to you all. Not even once. I'm sorry, really, I am. I decide, ok, today I'm writing... and I end up painting. Or staring blankly at a wall. Or sleeping. It seems so hard to even think about /doing/ anything at all.

Our family is doing well. Ash is really settling into school, enjoying more and more success. She was the only kid in her GCSE science class to take the higher test. She is turning in homework, and doing well. Even her maths is going ok. She has finally remembered (though she may well deny it if you ask her) that she enjoys maths.

I have spent some time in various schools in the area. One, a 'special school' for children with behaviour disorders, left me feeling very disturbed. How can anyone expect a child with a behaviour disorder to intrinsically understand what is and is not appropriate behaviour if there is no-one there to model said appropriate behaviour for them? I simply do not understand the concept of segregating children with special needs. I see the need for extra support (though the seeming definition of 'extra support' is very lacking, in my opinion... as in non-existent.) I don't think that the way to do it is to make sure that discrimination continues by teaching all children that anyone who is different needs to go to a 'special school'. I have to be careful... I could rant about it for quite a while. Let me just end with saying that as much as I am torn by the concept of special schools, I am even more disturbed by the lack of teaching that I saw in such schools. (or at least the ones I have been to.) The kids might as well be on the street or at home. Teachers didn't really care, there were no specialists dealing with those children and their individual special needs, there wasn't even any modification of teaching to make the learning more available to different needs. Everything was 'dumbed down' and that was it. Inclusion is the big talk of the moment here... but I have yet to see places that have implemented it.

And here is something else to think about... the UK is JUST as concerned about test scores as the US is. There seems to be no escaping it. Why is it that so many educational experts see that test scores only show how well tests can be taken, and not how well a child learns? Why does the modern 1st world get so caught up in competition and test scores? (I hear all about how far behind the UK is compared to other countries based on test scores as much as I did in the US also.)

Ok, ok. Enough already of the boring AmyGripesAboutEducation thing.I want to share some of my home with you now. Be aware, none of these pictures that I am going to share with you are ones that I have taken. They are found on the internet. I swear there will eventually be pics of personal things, but just not yet.


This is just a quick map to show you where in the UK we are. Canterbury is in the southeast of England, and is one of the smallest cities in the UK. It is far smaller even than Las Cruces... I figure it is about 4 miles from 1 extreme side to the other, with most of everything in a 2 mile radius. Easily walkable. London is about 1.5 hours away by train. To see an interactive map of Canterbury, click HERE.

This is Westgate, perhaps a 5 minute walk from my house. The town used to be circled by walls, which have now been turned into what we call the ring road. There used to be a gate in each of the four directions. This is the only one still standing. It has been turned into a museum, which Ash has visited and said it was nice. I'm taking her word for it, as I have not been there yet.

If you were standing to take the last picture of Westgate, and turned around, this is what you would see. If you were really really tall, that is. This is the High Street, which is the equivalent of Main Street. All the main shops are along here, along with the library. It really is the hub of the city. The red building you see is our favourite kebab shop.


This is the Old Weaver's house on the High Street... built 1500. It is an Italian restaurant now. The River Stour runs along side, and just at the other end is the ducking stool, which they used to use to strap in and dunk suspected witches and nagging wives. (No, I haven't been on it. Meanies, the lot of you!)


This is the Cathedral, and the reason that Canterbury is a city. One of the definitions of a city is a place with a cathedral... and thus any place with a cathedral is a city. This particular cathedral has quite a bit of history, being the burial place of the black prince and the assassination spot of St. Thomas Becket. Here is the cathedral from Stephen's work:

The University where he works is at the top of what I like to call hell-hill (because that is what it feels like to climb it.) You can tell just how big the cathedral really is. It is over a mile away.

These pics are just a start of what all I want to show you. Hopefully they will make up for the fact that it has been so long since I have last posted. And here's to my getting back in the swing of posting. Love you all!