Actually, I have been blogging all along, except on a professional blog, not here. So, it is Nov 30, 28 days from our trip to Australia. We leave on Dec 28 for Fiji, then NZ for 2 weeks and finally Melbourne, Australia. Final destination – Bendigo! Fall was very busy with a terrific trip to Germany and Denmark. Leon had his laser surgery in August so he was able to see without glasses and we’ve been working on the house renos forever. It’s not ready yet but we can only do so much. Bad enough Leon cut his thumb badly and required 5 stitches the other day. I was already back in Ottawa, so I didn’t get a chance to faint at the sight of blood!
Back in Ottawa, I am frantically getting an apartment ready for my kids to move into for a year and trying to get this house ready for my exchange partner and family. Phew!!!! Insanity!! And of course, I am still completing my last 2 grad courses. Almost done, this is the last week. 3 important assignments left to submit.
Once all this is done, I will be back here, writing more regularly and uploading some neat photos, hopefully.
Turning my world upside down! 
I have thoroughly enjoyed reading through your posts in the last few days. I have applied for an exchange to Australia (Victoria and NSW are our first two choices) for 2013 with my wife and son – would love to touch base with you at some point and glean some wisdom / advice / pointers from your own experience. I’m particularly interested in learning about the curriculum, assessment methods and reporting requirements as well as the general tone/feel of education there.
Thanks again for your generosity sharing your experiences – what an awesome time!
cheers!
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Thanks Miles! I checked out your blog and was about to introduce myself to you. I will be glad to have a lengthy discussion about Australia, the curriculum and any other exchange topics you might want to talk about. For now, it seems like you are still deciding on what exchange to choose (lucky you!). My first advice would be to check the school websites and see which one appeals most to you. I was certainly not disappointed with my placement in Catholic College Bendigo. It’s a great school! No nasty surprises there.
In terms of assessment and reporting – well, I am in the last 4 days of writing the reports for the year. So, I am very busy and rather stressed. Ottawa was nothing like this!
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