Meet Jade the Mermaid!

Here's a little something I finished off yesterday - another mermaid mascot. Her name is Jade ('cos she's green....) and she is ready to be put up for sale on Etsy. It's great fun making these little mascots - they don't take long and they are so effective, it's instant gratification!

Goodness knows I need something to cheer me up this afternoon. Some of you may know already that I work in an infant school part-time. On a Wednesday I teach art to the older children as part of their Enrichment afternoon. After today, I am seriously re-considering this part of my job. The class I had are average 7 years old....you wouldn't think that would be too much of a problem, especially when they are split into two groups of 15 at a time. However, in this one class there are two autistic children, one with severe ADHD and a few from dubious backgrounds who like to rabble-rowse when it all kicks off. And I am expected to deal with this all on my own......I am NOT a qualified teacher, just a special needs assistant. Within the first minute, one boy rugby tackled another to the ground while the others came in shouting, wandering about and generally ignoring me. It deteriorated throughout the afternoon, with another boy literally climbing the walls and then walking out when - after asking firmly several times - I yelled at him to SIT DOWN. Totally demoralising and I really wonder if it is worth that extra £60 per month to put up with this.......what on earth has happened to today's children? I have seen this change come about in only the past few years and it is very depressing.