great!’
Jeanette McCallum passed by, and Katie grinned. The other teachers had laughed at her, going to do her face and hair for the infant class, but Cornish winds and weather had wreaked havoc with both and the kids definitely didn’t need to start their school lives with a teacher who looked like Snow White’s wicked stepmother.
Katie stared at her reflection. Her long dark hair hung loose and her make-up wasn’t quite hiding the anxious expression. She was a teacher, though - she could act.
There was a murmur of voices coming from inside her classroom and Katie hesitated at the door. Fifteen five-year-olds were waiting for her to appear, plus however many parents had decided to come along. She pushed herself through the door.
Instant silence fell as soon as she stepped inside. About forty people were sitting round the big crafts table near the door, parents behind the children, and they were all staring at her with expressions ranging from interested and welcoming to just plain scared. Most of the parents were mothers, and Katie felt her eyebrows rise as she looked round the assembled women. Every single one of these women might have stepped out of a glossy magazine. The dads looked a little more neutral, and the children seemed all sizes, from a big, burly boy head and shoulders above the rest, to a frightened-looking waif of a child wearing a large school headband. This must be the newest addition the Head had talked about.
‘Good morning, everyone!’ In spite of her nerves Katie’s voice rang out confidently. ‘Welcome to Polpayne Castle Primary. And now... let’s get started!’
She fetched the pile of folders from her desk and sat down at the table, smiling round the group.
‘My name’s Miss McLure, and I’m your teacher,’ she said, deliberately addressing the children only. ‘And this is Alison, our classroom assistant.’ She nodded towards the student who was completing a work placement at the school.
‘Now, I have a folder here for each of you. I’d like to know your name and where you live, and maybe if you know any of the other children. Who wants to tell me first?’
There was a second’s pause, then to Katie’s relief, the child sitting beside her waved a hand in the air and said, ‘I’m Julia and I live at St Mary’s Castle and I’m five and I know Ian and Martin and Amy and Melanie and Aiden.’
The mentioned pupils giggled self-consciously and the adults all laughed, including Katie. These were the children who’d come from the pre-school section, and thank goodness, a little light relief to start them off.
‘Well done, Julia,’ said Katie, handing over the folder. ‘Let’s just go round the table, shall we?’
The next child was the slight little girl with the headband. Her mother, heavily pregnant and looking very uncomfortable perched on the miniature chair, leaned towards her daughter.
‘Hailey Marshall 4 Castle Gardens Polpayne and I’m five and my birthday’s on the fifteenth of August,’ the child said in one breath, smiling shakily, her eyes sliding up to her mother’s face. To Katie’s surprise, the woman frowned at her daughter.
‘Very good indeed, Hailey,’ she said quickly, pulling out the child’s folder. ‘Do you know any of the others?’
Hailey shook her head.
‘We only recently moved to Polpayne,’ said Mrs Marshall, looking more relaxed, and Katie nodded.
When they had been round the entire table, Katie took the children to their desks and left Alison to help them put stickers on the folders while she went back to the parents. The fifteen mothers and seven fathers had reassembled round the big table, and Katie grinned at the group.
‘This first term is very much a settling-in time for the children,’ she said. ‘We want them to be happy here, and learn to work in a relaxed atmosphere. They’ll have homework in their folders most days, but please don’t let them spend more than fifteen minutes on it. Messages from the school
Jeanette McCallum passed by, and Katie grinned. The other teachers had laughed at her, going to do her face and hair for the infant class, but Cornish winds and weather had wreaked havoc with both and the kids definitely didn’t need to start their school lives with a teacher who looked like Snow White’s wicked stepmother.
Katie stared at her reflection. Her long dark hair hung loose and her make-up wasn’t quite hiding the anxious expression. She was a teacher, though - she could act.
There was a murmur of voices coming from inside her classroom and Katie hesitated at the door. Fifteen five-year-olds were waiting for her to appear, plus however many parents had decided to come along. She pushed herself through the door.
Instant silence fell as soon as she stepped inside. About forty people were sitting round the big crafts table near the door, parents behind the children, and they were all staring at her with expressions ranging from interested and welcoming to just plain scared. Most of the parents were mothers, and Katie felt her eyebrows rise as she looked round the assembled women. Every single one of these women might have stepped out of a glossy magazine. The dads looked a little more neutral, and the children seemed all sizes, from a big, burly boy head and shoulders above the rest, to a frightened-looking waif of a child wearing a large school headband. This must be the newest addition the Head had talked about.
‘Good morning, everyone!’ In spite of her nerves Katie’s voice rang out confidently. ‘Welcome to Polpayne Castle Primary. And now... let’s get started!’
She fetched the pile of folders from her desk and sat down at the table, smiling round the group.
‘My name’s Miss McLure, and I’m your teacher,’ she said, deliberately addressing the children only. ‘And this is Alison, our classroom assistant.’ She nodded towards the student who was completing a work placement at the school.
‘Now, I have a folder here for each of you. I’d like to know your name and where you live, and maybe if you know any of the other children. Who wants to tell me first?’
There was a second’s pause, then to Katie’s relief, the child sitting beside her waved a hand in the air and said, ‘I’m Julia and I live at St Mary’s Castle and I’m five and I know Ian and Martin and Amy and Melanie and Aiden.’
The mentioned pupils giggled self-consciously and the adults all laughed, including Katie. These were the children who’d come from the pre-school section, and thank goodness, a little light relief to start them off.
‘Well done, Julia,’ said Katie, handing over the folder. ‘Let’s just go round the table, shall we?’
The next child was the slight little girl with the headband. Her mother, heavily pregnant and looking very uncomfortable perched on the miniature chair, leaned towards her daughter.
‘Hailey Marshall 4 Castle Gardens Polpayne and I’m five and my birthday’s on the fifteenth of August,’ the child said in one breath, smiling shakily, her eyes sliding up to her mother’s face. To Katie’s surprise, the woman frowned at her daughter.
‘Very good indeed, Hailey,’ she said quickly, pulling out the child’s folder. ‘Do you know any of the others?’
Hailey shook her head.
‘We only recently moved to Polpayne,’ said Mrs Marshall, looking more relaxed, and Katie nodded.
When they had been round the entire table, Katie took the children to their desks and left Alison to help them put stickers on the folders while she went back to the parents. The fifteen mothers and seven fathers had reassembled round the big table, and Katie grinned at the group.
‘This first term is very much a settling-in time for the children,’ she said. ‘We want them to be happy here, and learn to work in a relaxed atmosphere. They’ll have homework in their folders most days, but please don’t let them spend more than fifteen minutes on it. Messages from the school
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