Hi everyone! Katie here. I hope you enjoyed watching my first teacher vlog. I know that some teacher UA-camrs prefer to show clips of themselves teaching or classroom tours, but for now I’m happy just to share my thoughts, daily routine and some general teacher chit chat! Feel free to ask me any questions about international teaching down here. Let me know where you teach, and what age! Thanks for watching and stay posted for the next video! ☺️
I absolutely loved your first vlog video and I can’t wait for more. So lovely to see other teachers teaching in different parts of the world. Thank you for showing us you daily routine.
Thank you for the kind words! It’s amazing that UA-cam is bringing together teachers from different parts of the world. I loved filming a day in the life video but I have to admit it was hard work! I’ll definitely be making another vlog soon :)
That was a really good vlog. Looks like life teaching in Hong Kong is very interesting. Nice artworks and the alien crime scene lesson was excellent. Well done and thanks for sharing.
Loved this. I'm currently doing my PGCE in the UK so came across your channel searching for British teachers, as most I've found have been from the US, so it's great to have found your channel to get a more relatable insight! Yours and Ryan's videos are so inspiring and helpful. You both seem incredibly down to earth and genuine and your friendship is lovely! I would absolutely love to teach abroad one day so it's great to see a glimpse of what life is like teaching abroad! Would love to see more vlogs like this :)
Hi Katie! Awesome video. Can you share a little about the whole process of getting your job abroad? I am starting my NQT year in September but working abroad is something I’d like to consider in the future. Thank you :)
Hi Emily! Of course I can share this - I’ll address your questions fully in my next video! Until then I can give you a basic idea. After three years of working as a teacher I applied online for my job abroad. I had interviews online and one in London. I received my job fairly late - I wish I’d been proactive and applied sooner! But it all worked out in the end ☺️ working abroad is amazing and I’d absolutely recommend it to anyone! I know most schools will ask for 3 years experience but I know friends who have secured jobs after 2 or even 1. Stay in touch and feel free to message me with any questions about your NQT year etc- I’m happy to help!
You’re just adorable! Great video. I really appreciate you sharing this. I have so much respect for teachers and they do not get the appreciation they deserve in my opinion. Thank you for all that you do!
Such lovely and supportive feedback! I agree that teachers are often forgotten. Thankfully it seems I have connected recently with lots of people who have respect for the progression. I’ll upload some more teacher vlogs in the future ☺️
Really nice first vlog. I was awesome to see Hong Kong and a little bit of your classroom. It seems to be a beautiful place! Can't wait to see the next one. Will Ryan do one too? ;)
Thanks for taking a look! Hong Kong is such a wonderful place and I truly love teaching here. I think Ryan is planning on filming some of his trip next month (he’s flying to MIT) so you might see more of him like this too! I wonder if he spends more time on his hair than I do?
I would love to have you visit! Thank you for the feedback. It didn’t feel natural at the time but looking back I do feel like it’s an accurate representation of my day ☺️ thank you for the encouragement. Hope you can visit sometime! X
This was very helpful and interesting to see! Thank you so much! For the next vlogs, could you post more time stamps on your videos to see how long your workdays are? Thank you again!
Sure! My working day is 7.45 - 4pm. I sometimes stay late and i'm allowed to leave at 3.30 on a Friday. I also get to work earlier most days (7.30.) It's different for each school. There are some "free" lessons throughout the week, which is a bonus compared to the UK. Hope this helps!
I loved this video! The part where you dressed up was so relatable! I’m a trainee and on a recent placement made my boyfriend dress up as one of the three little pigs to set up an investigation regarding which material was the best to build a house out of and it was great. You both seem like lovely people and I’m sure the children you work with benefit so much from your creativity and enthusiasm! There’s so much negativity right now around teaching in the UK so thank you for helping to inspire me to continue my teaching journey. :)
Thank you so much for the lovely feedback! It means so much to have other teachers on board. And yes dressing up is such a huge part of teacher life for some reason 😅 we set up the channel to try and bring some positivity to teaching and to help support people on their journey to find a work life balance. It is amazing to know that it’s being well received! How did you find the channel? Tell us about yourself, where are you from etc. Ideal year group. We want to build a community!
Wow thanks for replying! I know you must be really busy so I really appreciate it! I found the channel when I was looking for some information about teaching in international schools. I am really interested in travelling so it seems like a great career option for me but all of my lecturers seem to think it's completely unobtainable. Would you say that it was difficult to get a job overseas? I am a third year student on a BA teacher training programme, specialising in 5-11 at Nottingham Trent University! Ideally after graduation I would love to work in a year 3/4 class as that was my most recent placement and I loved every minute of it. Your channel has been a great source of inspiration for me so thanks again and definitely keep doing what you're doing!
Just a few questions: 😂 Did you find your current job through an agency? If so, how did you find the process? How you manage the inevitable language barrier, both in school and in the public? What did you and Ryan do to start building relationships and making friends in Hong Kong? Do you spend most of your leisure time with other expats or with locals? In hindsight, what would would you have brought with you (or left behind) for your home in HK? Are you able to find all the ingredients you are used to using, or have you had to significantly adjust the way you cook? What has surprised you about living / working abroad? What made you decide to start teaching internationally in the first place? Can you envisage yourself working abroad long-term?
Okay so I just recorded my responses to this and will be adding them to a future vlog! So for more detail, check that out when it uploads. But i'll give a quick response now: Did you find your current job through an agency? If so, how did you find the process? I used TES. There are many pros and cons to using an agency (which I discuss in the video) but I would recommend an agency if you are more open with your country choice. I was more specific, so the agencies didn't help me much. How you manage the inevitable language barrier, both in school and in the public? Hong Kong doesn't have much of a language barrier as lots of people speak English! In other countries this might be an issue, but I find it's fine. I do feel bad being unable to communicate with the locals sometimes though so I have a huge respect for them using English to speak to me. Friendly gestures and a smile help a lot! What did you and Ryan do to start building relationships and making friends in Hong Kong? Do you spend most of your leisure time with other expats or with locals? We have a little group out here so we are never stuck for people to hang out with! It depends what kind of person you are as well. I'm more happy to join fitness classes with the locals. There are lots of ex-pat groups out here if you'd like to connect with people from home. In hindsight, what would would you have brought with you (or left behind) for your home in HK? Mostly products. The shampoo out here has sulphates added that make my hair sticky. You can post online and ask about what is good to bring to a new country. Whenever I go home I stock up on products I can't get much of out here! Are you able to find all the ingredients you are used to using, or have you had to significantly adjust the way you cook? I don't cook much which is a shame as I used to cook all the time! The food here is expensive so sometimes it works out cheaper to buy food out. I'll show you a picture of my kitchen in the video so you can see how small it is... What has surprised you about living / working abroad? I combine this with the last question in the video. I explain what I love about it here and how the work-life-balance compares to the UK! I have no idea how long i'll be here, but I can imagine it'll be a fair bit longer :) I hope this helps! I'll let you know when the video goes live. It'll be called "Teacher Vlog Ep.2" or something like that! Thank you SO much for these questions. They're really useful both to me and for our subscribers! Katie
This was great!!! It was so interesting to see some of the sights of Hong Kong and get a glimpse of your lifestyle there. Thank you so much for this and well done on your first vlog! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼 I loved your expression when you spritzed yourself in the morning! 😆
Thank you for popping by to watch! I love working internationally and i'm happy to be finally sharing some clips of my Hong Kong life with everyone. I'll definitely try another vlog soon. I can see why teachers like to record their ideas in this way! I appreciate the support :)
More of these videos please! It looks like you have an amazing work life balance, could you address this? It seems that teachers who work abroad in international schools are far less stressed and usually a lot happier!
Hi Lottie! Yes... it's true. I DO find I am able to maintain a much healthier work life balance out here! That's not to say I don't still have a lot of work on. I am still busy and I work hard as a class teacher and take on many extra roles within my school. Next year i've been promoted to English co-ordinator! Plus, teaching is never "easy" especially with an unpredictable group of children. In Hong Kong there is much more parental involvement which can add to the stress level if I allow it to. The main difference I think is that the workload out here seems to be more purposeful. I find in the UK there is a LOT of box-ticking and form filling for seemingly little purpose. I like to think that almost all the decisions I make out here directly benefit the children within my care. Such a wonderful feeling when I remember the loooong work hours in the UK. Another bonus of course is that some subjects out here are taught by specialists, so I can take some time to catch up. Eg. P.E, Art, Music etc is taught through a specialist. So to answer your question directly, I am still challenged out here. Every day is different and I apply my energy in purposeful ways. But yes, I do manage a much better work life balance out here! Any more questions about teaching abroad? I'd be happy to help :) And thank you for dropping by!
Really love this Vlog!!!! Love the day you shared and I think it must influence more teachers want to come to HK for teaching. And I will speak a little bit Chinese to you everyday and then you can speak with the bus driver and also our children!!! More Vlogs please really enjoyed watching your channel now!!!
Thanks Lucky! I want to learn some of the language so much. I would love to be able to speak to the bus drivers and children a little bit more ☺️ thank you for always supporting our videos. We love reading through your constructive comments! X
If there are robots to be found, Ryan will find them! And he seems to find them everywhere 😅 Hong Kong is great for technology. There are a few centres that have loads of amazing STEM resources available so we are going to go at some point to have a play around!
It might be worth noting I have a BA Honours Primary Education (with QTS) degree and currently 7 years of teaching experience. Most international schools will only hire BA or PGCE equivalent so you won’t be able to get these jobs without the ‘full’ qualification. TEFL won’t usually make the cut for the international schools. But it’s great that you’re heading in that direction! Let me know if I can help out with anything or if you have questions :)
@@ForTeachersChannel Wow!! You have a great resume! I am doing my American certification now (equivalent to QTS). I meant I am just an English teacher now at a South Korean academy. I was wondering what the easiest countries to break into would be. I assume China, India, and UAE? My certification is for high school math and business.
Thanks for checking it out! I’m going to make some more vlogs exploring Hong Kong soon. I really love the lifestyle out here despite the humidity 😅 where in the US do you live?
Thank you! I’m happy to finally be able to share my international teacher travel life with others. I appreciate you popping along and supporting my content ☺️
This was so exciting to see! I’m going to be an NQT this year and I already want to teach abroad. Couldn’t believe you were having such a chilled out evening in Starbucks by 5:30pm. I’m still in school at that time! Would you please make a video about the differing work/life balance in Hong Kong with the UK?
Hello! What is your name? I really hope our channel is helping you out a bit. We used to work flat out in the UK. We left work extremely late every night and didn't have much of a work life balance! Of course teaching abroad can be tricky too, there is a lot more family involvement and pressure to get things right - especially if you work in an international private school! But we are enjoying it so much. I actually made a second vlog which is going live next Sunday and I did a UK compared to International teaching mini Q&A at the start so hopefully that will help you too! If you have any more questions just post them here and i'll help out. We want to get to know our community, so where are you from/where do you want to teach? What age do you want to work with? And if you don't mind me asking, where did you find our channel? Thank you for your support :) Katie
My name is Jemma :) I’m 21 years old and I live in Scotland. I found your channel through twitter and have found all of your videos to be so helpful, positive and inspiring. There is a lot of negativity surrounding being a teacher at the moment and I thank you for showing the positive sides. I’m very excited for your next video involving the Q and A. I have enjoyed upper, middle and lower year groups so I don’t necessarily have a preference at the moment :)
It’s really good that you’re showing willing when it comes to working with different year groups! I’ve had success in the past when interviewing by being willing to teach different ages. Thank you for the feedback. We are going to make updated versions of the videos soon to target more specific areas of teaching. It’s lovely to have you as part of the team while we grow! If you want any advice about moving abroad in the future message us on here. Until then just enjoy the content. We love having you as a subscriber ☺️ Katie & Ryan
Love this style of video Katie, really enjoyed watching it and comparing your teaching day to mine! I wonder if you could help me?! I have an interview coming up and I need to teach a 30 min lesson and then a presentation titled a nurturing approach to key stage 1 teaching and learning! HELP!
Hi Georgie! Let me try to help you. So if you've been given the freedom to teach 30 minutes of whatever you want, it's actually trickier than being given a brief in my opinion! First, let me know your strength or favourite area to teach and I will give you some ideas of some lessons that you could plan to fit around that. Might as well go for strengths during an interview! For the second part of your question, I would definitely focus in on the word nurture. You could take a look at P4C (philosophy for children) as this is HUGE in schools at the moment. It's all about helping children to connect with one another, allow a safe space for debate and gives children somewhere to develop themselves morally. I'd recommend basing your entire presentation around this. You could show some videos that have an "open" discussion ending (I can try and help you find one suitable) and you can say how this helps to create empathy in Key Stage 1 children. In my opinion this is the perfect link to nurture! Get back to me and we can take it from there :) I'm happy to help you plan this out!
For Teachers ahhh thank you so much! I know it is definitely tricker having so much freedom! I’m tempted to use a book as I am very passionate about children reading! But 30 minutes doesn’t seem long at all! Thank you for all the input regarding the nurture presentation. I will definitely look into the areas you have suggested. Xx
30 minutes isn't long at all! But a book would be a great way to fill the time - even if you just read a short extract and allow discussion time. Definitely check out P4C regardless of what you choose as it's such a wonderful way to help little ones with BIG decisions! Stay in touch and most importantly - Good luck :)
I’ve been here for almost two years and not planning on returning to the UK just yet. Maybe one day! Or perhaps will move elsewhere to see how schools work around the world. Thank you for popping by and for checking out my first vlog ☺️☺️
Hey I wanna do this when I graduate. Took 2 gap years to travel of uni in septmeber I’ll be 20 so 24 after degree n masters. I want to teach music any good places for it do you know of? Or in general what countries do you recommend that you can have the best experience Alsoooo how busy are you as a teacher what’s your schedule will I have time for example to perform on side I wake at 5 am an early bird hahha sorry for the big para x
Hi Conrad! The curriculum for Ryan is the same - British Curriculum. For me it's different. I teach the PYP IB curriculum, At first I thought it was really difficult to understand and full of difficult to remember vocabulary but it's starting to win me over now. It's a very global curriculum and it focuses a lot on child-lead inquiry. I'm actually going to make a video exploring the differences between the two at some point. Are you considering teaching abroad?
Thanks so much Amy!! I have spent all weekend and today recording some new content to upload soon. Teacher outfits, more vlogs etc. I really hope you’ll pop over to view those too when they’re up :) tell us a bit about yourself! Where are you from? What age do you teach (if you’re s teacher!) we want to get to know our subscribers as we build our community ☺️
Thank you for popping along. I have plans for some different videos in a couple of weeks so stay tuned. Are you a teacher too or just popped along anyway?
Do they provide free housing ? I see some in China provides free housing. Or some that provides housing in apartments that’s on campus! I am in the US & am anxious to get started
I get a bursary towards my housing. It doesn’t cover the whole cost though! There is a more recent version of this video that highlights the pay a little better. Good luck with the move!
I'm actually not learning mandarin or any form of Chinese. I feel terrible about it (I know I should be learning something) but I find it extremely difficult to pronounce words in Chinese and the language is so hard to use. I try to immerse myself in the culture and learn about the country instead. Meet people etc. Normally you will be expected to teach in English out here if you work as a teacher. Is that your plan?
@@ForTeachersChannel It does seem like a particularly difficult language to learn. I'm hoping to teach EFL in china after I graduate, then depending on how that goes come back and do the PGCE. From everything I've seen, learning the language isn't essential, but I'm sure I'd feel more comfortable living there knowing at least a bit of the language. Thanks for the reply! I've just found your channel and I'm sure I'll have many more questions for you in the future haha
I might be going to an international school and I’m not sure about it. Do all the kids speak English and do all the teachers speak English? Is it like regular England school just in a different country? Sorry for asking a lot of questions. Loved this video! ❤️
The children do mostly speak English yes. I have a playlist called ‘teaching abroad’ which may be useful for you to check out ☺️ let me know if any more questions after you’ve seen the videos and I’ll happily help! X
It is! I truly love international teaching and Hong Kong is a great place to be based. In the future I’d love to travel to new countries and see what life is like there. Where are you based?
Schools in Hong Kong generally start a little earlier than they do in the UK! Plus, my hour long commute means I have to set an early alarm. I actually don't mind it at all as i'm an early bird and I enjoy the journey. It helps me to wake up! To answer your questions, I teach a mix. I would say it's probably 60% chinese, but at my current school there are children from the UK, Australia, India, Japan, France... the list goes on! So, my class is very diverse. I LOVE this as it makes for wonderful discussion and allows us to share our own experiences as either locals or ex. pats. Any other questions about international teaching? And thank you for watching!
That's fab! Thanks for answering... I'm curious about teaching abroad, just doing it in the UK at the mo. Are you on a fixed term contract? Thanks for your great videos! Xx
See even though I’m not a teacher I did enjoy the video 😍😍 I would be so scared to leave my home and go miles away to teach. Great vlog (from Facebook)
Thank you! We are hoping that it won't just appeal to teachers but hopefully will appeal to others too as we include lots of travel and lifestyle references in our videos. We appreciate you popping by :)
For Teachers Absoultly, I've got connections in Abu Dhabi but I'm in the middle of a Master's so can't doing anything until I'm done with that. I imagine it's tough but being in a beautiful place like Hong Kong must make it easier. X A fantastic vlog xx
Wait until the masters is done then plan it in! I’m sure you’d have an incredible time. I’m actually travelling to dubai in two weeks for teacher training and will be making a vlog of the journey ☺️
Hi everyone! Katie here. I hope you enjoyed watching my first teacher vlog. I know that some teacher UA-camrs prefer to show clips of themselves teaching or classroom tours, but for now I’m happy just to share my thoughts, daily routine and some general teacher chit chat! Feel free to ask me any questions about international teaching down here. Let me know where you teach, and what age! Thanks for watching and stay posted for the next video! ☺️
Thank you! If you need a song to end your class with, you can try this one, ua-cam.com/video/SM7_690xar4/v-deo.html
I absolutely loved your first vlog video and I can’t wait for more. So lovely to see other teachers teaching in different parts of the world. Thank you for showing us you daily routine.
Thank you for the kind words! It’s amazing that UA-cam is bringing together teachers from different parts of the world. I loved filming a day in the life video but I have to admit it was hard work! I’ll definitely be making another vlog soon :)
That was a really good vlog. Looks like life teaching in Hong Kong is very interesting. Nice artworks and the alien crime scene lesson was excellent. Well done and thanks for sharing.
Loved this. I'm currently doing my PGCE in the UK so came across your channel searching for British teachers, as most I've found have been from the US, so it's great to have found your channel to get a more relatable insight! Yours and Ryan's videos are so inspiring and helpful. You both seem incredibly down to earth and genuine and your friendship is lovely! I would absolutely love to teach abroad one day so it's great to see a glimpse of what life is like teaching abroad! Would love to see more vlogs like this :)
Hi Katie,
Thanks for the lovely vlog! I would love to see a Q&A Series about working in an international school!
As a senior in hs who is not aspiring to become a teacher I LOVE your videos lol they’re the best
Hi Katie! Awesome video. Can you share a little about the whole process of getting your job abroad? I am starting my NQT year in September but working abroad is something I’d like to consider in the future. Thank you :)
Hi Emily! Of course I can share this - I’ll address your questions fully in my next video! Until then I can give you a basic idea. After three years of working as a teacher I applied online for my job abroad. I had interviews online and one in London. I received my job fairly late - I wish I’d been proactive and applied sooner! But it all worked out in the end ☺️ working abroad is amazing and I’d absolutely recommend it to anyone! I know most schools will ask for 3 years experience but I know friends who have secured jobs after 2 or even 1. Stay in touch and feel free to message me with any questions about your NQT year etc- I’m happy to help!
You’re just adorable! Great video. I really appreciate you sharing this. I have so much respect for teachers and they do not get the appreciation they deserve in my opinion. Thank you for all that you do!
Such lovely and supportive feedback! I agree that teachers are often forgotten. Thankfully it seems I have connected recently with lots of people who have respect for the progression. I’ll upload some more teacher vlogs in the future ☺️
Really nice first vlog. I was awesome to see Hong Kong and a little bit of your classroom. It seems to be a beautiful place! Can't wait to see the next one. Will Ryan do one too? ;)
Thanks for taking a look! Hong Kong is such a wonderful place and I truly love teaching here. I think Ryan is planning on filming some of his trip next month (he’s flying to MIT) so you might see more of him like this too! I wonder if he spends more time on his hair than I do?
Great first vlog! Seems so natural. I LOVED seeing Hong Kong made me want to look up flights right now.
I would love to have you visit! Thank you for the feedback. It didn’t feel natural at the time but looking back I do feel like it’s an accurate representation of my day ☺️ thank you for the encouragement. Hope you can visit sometime! X
This was very helpful and interesting to see! Thank you so much! For the next vlogs, could you post more time stamps on your videos to see how long your workdays are? Thank you again!
Sure! My working day is 7.45 - 4pm. I sometimes stay late and i'm allowed to leave at 3.30 on a Friday. I also get to work earlier most days (7.30.) It's different for each school. There are some "free" lessons throughout the week, which is a bonus compared to the UK. Hope this helps!
I loved this video! The part where you dressed up was so relatable! I’m a trainee and on a recent placement made my boyfriend dress up as one of the three little pigs to set up an investigation regarding which material was the best to build a house out of and it was great.
You both seem like lovely people and I’m sure the children you work with benefit so much from your creativity and enthusiasm! There’s so much negativity right now around teaching in the UK so thank you for helping to inspire me to continue my teaching journey. :)
Thank you so much for the lovely feedback! It means so much to have other teachers on board. And yes dressing up is such a huge part of teacher life for some reason 😅 we set up the channel to try and bring some positivity to teaching and to help support people on their journey to find a work life balance. It is amazing to know that it’s being well received! How did you find the channel? Tell us about yourself, where are you from etc. Ideal year group. We want to build a community!
Wow thanks for replying! I know you must be really busy so I really appreciate it! I found the channel when I was looking for some information about teaching in international schools. I am really interested in travelling so it seems like a great career option for me but all of my lecturers seem to think it's completely unobtainable. Would you say that it was difficult to get a job overseas? I am a third year student on a BA teacher training programme, specialising in 5-11 at Nottingham Trent University! Ideally after graduation I would love to work in a year 3/4 class as that was my most recent placement and I loved every minute of it. Your channel has been a great source of inspiration for me so thanks again and definitely keep doing what you're doing!
Wow that view from where you live is gorgeous. This was so cool to see a day in your life in Hong Kong!
I really love living by the ocean! It wakes me up every morning. Hong Kong is such a fab country. Thank you for taking a look!
Just a few questions: 😂
Did you find your current job through an agency? If so, how did you find the process?
How you manage the inevitable language barrier, both in school and in the public?
What did you and Ryan do to start building relationships and making friends in Hong Kong? Do you spend most of your leisure time with other expats or with locals?
In hindsight, what would would you have brought with you (or left behind) for your home in HK?
Are you able to find all the ingredients you are used to using, or have you had to significantly adjust the way you cook?
What has surprised you about living / working abroad?
What made you decide to start teaching internationally in the first place? Can you envisage yourself working abroad long-term?
I’m going to record my answers as a video right now! And I’ll post a brief overview here when I’m done. Thank you for the questions!! ☺️☺️
Okay so I just recorded my responses to this and will be adding them to a future vlog! So for more detail, check that out when it uploads. But i'll give a quick response now:
Did you find your current job through an agency? If so, how did you find the process?
I used TES. There are many pros and cons to using an agency (which I discuss in the video) but I would recommend an agency if you are more open with your country choice. I was more specific, so the agencies didn't help me much.
How you manage the inevitable language barrier, both in school and in the public?
Hong Kong doesn't have much of a language barrier as lots of people speak English! In other countries this might be an issue, but I find it's fine. I do feel bad being unable to communicate with the locals sometimes though so I have a huge respect for them using English to speak to me. Friendly gestures and a smile help a lot!
What did you and Ryan do to start building relationships and making friends in Hong Kong? Do you spend most of your leisure time with other expats or with locals?
We have a little group out here so we are never stuck for people to hang out with! It depends what kind of person you are as well. I'm more happy to join fitness classes with the locals. There are lots of ex-pat groups out here if you'd like to connect with people from home.
In hindsight, what would would you have brought with you (or left behind) for your home in HK?
Mostly products. The shampoo out here has sulphates added that make my hair sticky. You can post online and ask about what is good to bring to a new country. Whenever I go home I stock up on products I can't get much of out here!
Are you able to find all the ingredients you are used to using, or have you had to significantly adjust the way you cook?
I don't cook much which is a shame as I used to cook all the time! The food here is expensive so sometimes it works out cheaper to buy food out. I'll show you a picture of my kitchen in the video so you can see how small it is...
What has surprised you about living / working abroad?
I combine this with the last question in the video. I explain what I love about it here and how the work-life-balance compares to the UK! I have no idea how long i'll be here, but I can imagine it'll be a fair bit longer :)
I hope this helps! I'll let you know when the video goes live. It'll be called "Teacher Vlog Ep.2" or something like that!
Thank you SO much for these questions. They're really useful both to me and for our subscribers!
Katie
I love where you live. You’ve obviously worked hard to get where you are today
Hard work really does pay off. But you also have to enjoy working with children!
This was great!!! It was so interesting to see some of the sights of Hong Kong and get a glimpse of your lifestyle there. Thank you so much for this and well done on your first vlog! 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼 I loved your expression when you spritzed yourself in the morning! 😆
Thank you for popping by to watch! I love working internationally and i'm happy to be finally sharing some clips of my Hong Kong life with everyone. I'll definitely try another vlog soon. I can see why teachers like to record their ideas in this way! I appreciate the support :)
More of these videos please!
It looks like you have an amazing work life balance, could you address this? It seems that teachers who work abroad in international schools are far less stressed and usually a lot happier!
Hi Lottie! Yes... it's true. I DO find I am able to maintain a much healthier work life balance out here! That's not to say I don't still have a lot of work on. I am still busy and I work hard as a class teacher and take on many extra roles within my school. Next year i've been promoted to English co-ordinator! Plus, teaching is never "easy" especially with an unpredictable group of children. In Hong Kong there is much more parental involvement which can add to the stress level if I allow it to. The main difference I think is that the workload out here seems to be more purposeful. I find in the UK there is a LOT of box-ticking and form filling for seemingly little purpose. I like to think that almost all the decisions I make out here directly benefit the children within my care. Such a wonderful feeling when I remember the loooong work hours in the UK. Another bonus of course is that some subjects out here are taught by specialists, so I can take some time to catch up. Eg. P.E, Art, Music etc is taught through a specialist. So to answer your question directly, I am still challenged out here. Every day is different and I apply my energy in purposeful ways. But yes, I do manage a much better work life balance out here! Any more questions about teaching abroad? I'd be happy to help :) And thank you for dropping by!
hi Katie, the clip very nice
Really love this Vlog!!!! Love the day you shared and I think it must influence more teachers want to come to HK for teaching.
And I will speak a little bit Chinese to you everyday and then you can speak with the bus driver and also our children!!! More Vlogs please really enjoyed watching your channel now!!!
Thanks Lucky! I want to learn some of the language so much. I would love to be able to speak to the bus drivers and children a little bit more ☺️ thank you for always supporting our videos. We love reading through your constructive comments! X
Ryan those robots look amazing!
If there are robots to be found, Ryan will find them! And he seems to find them everywhere 😅 Hong Kong is great for technology. There are a few centres that have loads of amazing STEM resources available so we are going to go at some point to have a play around!
Hoping to get into more robotics with my new class next year! Super stoked, do you use robots in school?
I'm a TEFL teacher doing my Certification Course now. Watching you guys have Starbucks gives me motivation. That's a lot of money...
It might be worth noting I have a BA Honours Primary Education (with QTS) degree and currently 7 years of teaching experience. Most international schools will only hire BA or PGCE equivalent so you won’t be able to get these jobs without the ‘full’ qualification. TEFL won’t usually make the cut for the international schools. But it’s great that you’re heading in that direction! Let me know if I can help out with anything or if you have questions :)
@@ForTeachersChannel Wow!! You have a great resume! I am doing my American certification now (equivalent to QTS). I meant I am just an English teacher now at a South Korean academy. I was wondering what the easiest countries to break into would be. I assume China, India, and UAE? My certification is for high school math and business.
*I really enjoyed this. It was interesting to see the clips from around Hong Kong and how different things are from here in the US!*
Thanks for checking it out! I’m going to make some more vlogs exploring Hong Kong soon. I really love the lifestyle out here despite the humidity 😅 where in the US do you live?
Humidity is the worst! I was born and raised in the state of Michigan and then my family and I moved south to Kentucky almost 3 years ago!
I'm still getting used to the weather! 2 years in and I still feel like my face is constantly melting. I'm sure i'll get used to it soon...!
Iv always wanted to see Behind-the-scenes of a Teacher Great Vlog x
Thank you! I’m happy to finally be able to share my international teacher travel life with others. I appreciate you popping along and supporting my content ☺️
This was so exciting to see! I’m going to be an NQT this year and I already want to teach abroad. Couldn’t believe you were having such a chilled out evening in Starbucks by 5:30pm. I’m still in school at that time! Would you please make a video about the differing work/life balance in Hong Kong with the UK?
Hello! What is your name? I really hope our channel is helping you out a bit. We used to work flat out in the UK. We left work extremely late every night and didn't have much of a work life balance! Of course teaching abroad can be tricky too, there is a lot more family involvement and pressure to get things right - especially if you work in an international private school! But we are enjoying it so much. I actually made a second vlog which is going live next Sunday and I did a UK compared to International teaching mini Q&A at the start so hopefully that will help you too! If you have any more questions just post them here and i'll help out. We want to get to know our community, so where are you from/where do you want to teach? What age do you want to work with? And if you don't mind me asking, where did you find our channel? Thank you for your support :) Katie
My name is Jemma :) I’m 21 years old and I live in Scotland. I found your channel through twitter and have found all of your videos to be so helpful, positive and inspiring. There is a lot of negativity surrounding being a teacher at the moment and I thank you for showing the positive sides. I’m very excited for your next video involving the Q and A. I have enjoyed upper, middle and lower year groups so I don’t necessarily have a preference at the moment :)
It’s really good that you’re showing willing when it comes to working with different year groups! I’ve had success in the past when interviewing by being willing to teach different ages. Thank you for the feedback. We are going to make updated versions of the videos soon to target more specific areas of teaching. It’s lovely to have you as part of the team while we grow! If you want any advice about moving abroad in the future message us on here. Until then just enjoy the content. We love having you as a subscriber ☺️ Katie & Ryan
Great vlog
Love this style of video Katie, really enjoyed watching it and comparing your teaching day to mine! I wonder if you could help me?! I have an interview coming up and I need to teach a 30 min lesson and then a presentation titled a nurturing approach to key stage 1 teaching and learning! HELP!
Hi Georgie! Let me try to help you. So if you've been given the freedom to teach 30 minutes of whatever you want, it's actually trickier than being given a brief in my opinion! First, let me know your strength or favourite area to teach and I will give you some ideas of some lessons that you could plan to fit around that. Might as well go for strengths during an interview! For the second part of your question, I would definitely focus in on the word nurture. You could take a look at P4C (philosophy for children) as this is HUGE in schools at the moment. It's all about helping children to connect with one another, allow a safe space for debate and gives children somewhere to develop themselves morally. I'd recommend basing your entire presentation around this. You could show some videos that have an "open" discussion ending (I can try and help you find one suitable) and you can say how this helps to create empathy in Key Stage 1 children. In my opinion this is the perfect link to nurture! Get back to me and we can take it from there :) I'm happy to help you plan this out!
For Teachers ahhh thank you so much! I know it is definitely tricker having so much freedom! I’m tempted to use a book as I am very passionate about children reading! But 30 minutes doesn’t seem long at all! Thank you for all the input regarding the nurture presentation. I will definitely look into the areas you have suggested. Xx
30 minutes isn't long at all! But a book would be a great way to fill the time - even if you just read a short extract and allow discussion time. Definitely check out P4C regardless of what you choose as it's such a wonderful way to help little ones with BIG decisions! Stay in touch and most importantly - Good luck :)
i love it ,you made learning just like fun, i really inspired by you and your way of showing courage for Teachers,You will get more,,, (Y)
Thank you for your kind words! I want to share my teaching journey with other educators from around the world ☺️
Subscribed my lovely! This was really interesting, how cool that you are teaching in Hong Kong, what an experience! xx
I’ve been here for almost two years and not planning on returning to the UK just yet. Maybe one day! Or perhaps will move elsewhere to see how schools work around the world. Thank you for popping by and for checking out my first vlog ☺️☺️
For Teachers wow two years! You must really like where you are! Xx
wow youre nice vid i love viewing your blog
vlog
Thank you for the kind words! I appreciate you taking the time to view my content. Where are you from?
your welcome your so pretty by the way im from philiphines
Was this your first teaching job? Or did you have any experience?
Hey I wanna do this when I graduate. Took 2 gap years to travel of uni in septmeber I’ll be 20 so 24 after degree n masters. I want to teach music any good places for it do you know of?
Or in general what countries do you recommend that you can have the best experience
Alsoooo how busy are you as a teacher what’s your schedule will I have time for example to perform on side
I wake at 5 am an early bird hahha sorry for the big para x
Also this was my other question haha is their a certain age limit you can do it till? And can you move permanently if you chose
Thank you
Fantastic vlog. It's great to see what it's like as a teacher abroad. What is it like teaching in Hong Kong is the curriculum different?
Hi Conrad! The curriculum for Ryan is the same - British Curriculum. For me it's different. I teach the PYP IB curriculum, At first I thought it was really difficult to understand and full of difficult to remember vocabulary but it's starting to win me over now. It's a very global curriculum and it focuses a lot on child-lead inquiry. I'm actually going to make a video exploring the differences between the two at some point. Are you considering teaching abroad?
I really enjoy your videos!
Thanks so much Amy!! I have spent all weekend and today recording some new content to upload soon. Teacher outfits, more vlogs etc. I really hope you’ll pop over to view those too when they’re up :) tell us a bit about yourself! Where are you from? What age do you teach (if you’re s teacher!) we want to get to know our subscribers as we build our community ☺️
Loved this video ! Interesting :) Keep going!!
Thank you for popping along. I have plans for some different videos in a couple of weeks so stay tuned. Are you a teacher too or just popped along anyway?
I saw your channel on the group ! :)
Really a nice video.
Thank you so much! I can’t wait to make more teaching vlogs ☺️
Your fantastic
Do they provide free housing ? I see some in China provides free housing. Or some that provides housing in apartments that’s on campus! I am in the US & am anxious to get started
I get a bursary towards my housing. It doesn’t cover the whole cost though! There is a more recent version of this video that highlights the pay a little better. Good luck with the move!
Are you learning mandarin? I'd like to teach in China/Hong Kong one day and I've been considering taking lessons
I'm actually not learning mandarin or any form of Chinese. I feel terrible about it (I know I should be learning something) but I find it extremely difficult to pronounce words in Chinese and the language is so hard to use. I try to immerse myself in the culture and learn about the country instead. Meet people etc. Normally you will be expected to teach in English out here if you work as a teacher. Is that your plan?
@@ForTeachersChannel It does seem like a particularly difficult language to learn. I'm hoping to teach EFL in china after I graduate, then depending on how that goes come back and do the PGCE. From everything I've seen, learning the language isn't essential, but I'm sure I'd feel more comfortable living there knowing at least a bit of the language. Thanks for the reply! I've just found your channel and I'm sure I'll have many more questions for you in the future haha
I might be going to an international school and I’m not sure about it. Do all the kids speak English and do all the teachers speak English? Is it like regular England school just in a different country? Sorry for asking a lot of questions. Loved this video! ❤️
The children do mostly speak English yes. I have a playlist called ‘teaching abroad’ which may be useful for you to check out ☺️ let me know if any more questions after you’ve seen the videos and I’ll happily help! X
This is so cool! It must be amazing living in Hong Kong x
It is! I truly love international teaching and Hong Kong is a great place to be based. In the future I’d love to travel to new countries and see what life is like there. Where are you based?
That's amazing that you love what you do! I'm from Southampton, in Hampshire :)
Can u please make a vlog of HK and all about the hong kong
Howwww do you get yourself up so early!? Bravo! Question: Do you teach British or Chinese children? or a mix? Just curious really! Xx
Schools in Hong Kong generally start a little earlier than they do in the UK! Plus, my hour long commute means I have to set an early alarm. I actually don't mind it at all as i'm an early bird and I enjoy the journey. It helps me to wake up! To answer your questions, I teach a mix. I would say it's probably 60% chinese, but at my current school there are children from the UK, Australia, India, Japan, France... the list goes on! So, my class is very diverse. I LOVE this as it makes for wonderful discussion and allows us to share our own experiences as either locals or ex. pats. Any other questions about international teaching? And thank you for watching!
That's fab! Thanks for answering... I'm curious about teaching abroad, just doing it in the UK at the mo. Are you on a fixed term contract? Thanks for your great videos! Xx
See even though I’m not a teacher I did enjoy the video 😍😍 I would be so scared to leave my home and go miles away to teach. Great vlog (from Facebook)
Thank you! We are hoping that it won't just appeal to teachers but hopefully will appeal to others too as we include lots of travel and lifestyle references in our videos. We appreciate you popping by :)
Amazing 😍
It means a lot to have you pop by and check out the vlog! Would you ever consider moving abroad to teach?
For Teachers Absoultly, I've got connections in Abu Dhabi but I'm in the middle of a Master's so can't doing anything until I'm done with that. I imagine it's tough but being in a beautiful place like Hong Kong must make it easier. X
A fantastic vlog xx
Wait until the masters is done then plan it in! I’m sure you’d have an incredible time. I’m actually travelling to dubai in two weeks for teacher training and will be making a vlog of the journey ☺️
For Teachers Fantastic! I'll keep an eye out for it. :)
Great vlog❤
Thank you so much! Where are you from?
How much do you earn per month?
I am working in a school can you spear some time to my students in India on occasion of world children day
Do you make good money as a international teacher
I do. I make a very reasonable salary working in Hong Kong. I can’t speak for others countries though!
We need your help to improve the communication skills of my students
If you are interested to teach, please reply us
Upspeak is annoying.
You're kind of cute