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Simon Daw
I live in the mediaeval village of Castle
Hedingham, in north Essex; most of the visitors to this site
arrive here because they're looking for information about Hedingham
and/or its castle.
I've lived here for well over ten years, but worked at Buckley-Saxon Cycles (which was located in Castle Hedingham until it closed in November 2002) for many years before that. I've also worked at Hedingham Castle for a time, but some years ago made the decision to switch career to teaching. I enjoyed my training at APU (now Anglia Ruskin University) in Chelmsford and my school experiences at Woodhall Primary, Sudbury, St Luke's Church School, Tiptree and Earls Colne Primary.
I spent the first two years of my career teaching maths and humanities at Clare Middle School in Suffolk. Although I gained some valuable experience there, and taught some wonderful children, I found Years 7 and 8 hard work, and missed the variety of primary teaching. I therefore switched back to primary in 2006; also a lucky move, as things turn out, because Suffolk County Council have now announced the closure of Clare Middle School as part of their switch from a three-tier to a more conventional two-tier system.
In any case, I've been more comfortable in my "new" school: I in fact returned to St Luke's. My first year there was an odd experience in many ways, because I taught the class I'd worked with on my teaching practice, some four years earlier! It was quite a privilege, and I was sorry to say goodbye to them in July 2007. The school is, in my opinion, extremely successful in terms of developing children's values and self esteem - things I consider to be of far greater value than test results. Have a look at some of the art work that last year's class produced during our arts fortnight. A few years ago, whilst training, I transcribed "The First Hundred Years: The History of Tiptree CE Primary School", which I found in the university library, and which is a fascinating read.
All in all,
teaching has tended to take over my life somewhat. Sometimes this can
be depressing; I don't get much time to spend with friends, or even to
keep in touch with them in the same way I once did, nor do I manage to
fit much else in during the average week. I rarely work less than sixty
hours a week, and it can be pretty grim coming home at 10pm to a house
which hasn't been cleaned and a kitchen sink that's still full of
yesterday's dirty dishes. Very often, however, something then happens
which outweighs all of that at a stroke; a child makes a comment that
brightens the day or brings you the chocolate bun they
made last night. It is a fantastically rewarding job, and I can't
imagine doing anything else now.
Although teaching limits the time I have available for leisure activities, I still try to maintain contact with Mad Dogs & Englishmen, the theatre company of which I used to be a trustee. Visit my theatre page for more information and pictures of some of their productions.
I suppose that photography is also becoming something of a hobby too, albeit that most of my photos are taken either at school or in Castle Hedingham (because I tend not to have time to go anywhere much else!) Some of my photos on Flickr can be seen in the Flickr button in the navigation panel on the left of this page.
I used to be a racing cyclist of middling ability; take a look at my cycling page for more. Nowadays the best I can hope for is the odd leisure ride when I can fit it between planning and marking, although last year I managed to get out on a few Sunday club runs with Cycle Club Sudbury. I'd really like to be able to cycle to and from work regularly - which I used to be able to do when I taught at Clare - but my commute is now nearly twenty miles, which is a bit of a problem when you work minimum ten-hour days. I do it from time-to-time, especially in the summer, but it feels rather too much of a feat to become more regular than that.
Lack of time has also meant that I've neglected my friends somewhat, but I think I still have a few left! Mike and Moo used to live close to me before moving to nearby Great Yeldham. Guy Jones now also his own website (here) about his passion for motorbikes. I have known Guy and his wife Sherry for many years, from a time when we used to race together. Finally, I met Philippa Burt when she was playing various parts in Twelfth Night and The Country Wife with Mad Dogs & Englishmen.
Please feel free to email me using the link on my navigation bar – I'm usually pleased to hear from visitors.