I can’t believe it’s already been a month since I arrived in Vilnius. The motivation for moving here has remained the same and I am pleased to say that I have settled into my new job as a freelance English language teacher within a private language school in the city.

I am teaching a wide range of levels: A1 – C2 adults, business English, teenagers and children. As a result, each class is different and offers me the opportunity to create new lesson plans and be creative in teaching the communicative and direct method. With teaching adults, it’s important to get to know each student from the very start, ask them questions relating to themselves, lives and experiences which they can share in class. Pair work is important along with overall group discussion. Some classes follow the school curriculum, however, this is more of a guidance and I am encouraged to use extra teaching materials such as audiovisual, interactive whiteboard, listening, role plays/ debates and iPad applications. With regard to the latter, I am excited to collaborate with a code academy, located in the city, where I will be teaching English language to teenagers who have an interest in coding and design. There isn’t much material available for this as an ESL subject, however, I am eager to explore the possibilities of combining English language with coding as a means to engage students in conversation and to practice writing code.

In other news, snow has arrived! Wet and icy weather doesn’t stop me from going out and exploring the city though. Facebook seems to be the best source of information for events and things happening in the city. There’s a page called “Foreigners in Vilnius” which is useful and usually any major city has a page similar to the name “foreigners in” followed by the name of the city. It advertised a language exchange one night where the emphasis was to learn/ share languages with new people. I’ve made a few friends who are local and I’m grateful for the hospitality provided by Lithuanian people/ students. Having a work and life balance is important when starting any job, I’ve started a routine of going to the gym and staying up-to-date with lesson plans in work which keeps me busy and active. Overall, a positive way to approach a teaching job in abroad. Finally, I’m in talks with an independent art gallery about the possibility of collaborating with them to put on an exhibition which would showcase my recent sketches produced in Lithuania.

There’s an upcoming public holiday on 16^th February 2018 to mark the birthday of restored Lithuania. This day will be celebrated with all the bells in Lithuania ringing at once at 12:30. For sure I’ll check it out since I have the day off work.

Watch this space for upcoming events and life as an ESL teacher in Vilnius.

Jordan Rodgers: I am officially qualified as a TEFL teacher/ digital artist and I am looking to creatively apply my ideas, energy/ motivation and professional development help to create an effective learning environment.

Education
BA Fine Art (Digital New Media, Contemporary Art History, Curatorship)
First-Class Honours
2009 – 2012 | Lancaster University, United Kingdom

Professional Qualifications
The TEFL Institute of Ireland  (Teach English as a Foreign Language)
2016 | Scholarship Qualification