Things I learned this week:

15 hours (one way) in a bus, 156 students,  just 8 of us chaperones, on-duty 24/7, and many hours and days of skiing later, I have learned:

- This is apparently the "year of Lucy on skis".

- I do not fear speed so much as I fear steep inclines. (<-- main lesson of a week on skis)

- 11-year olds are capable of being very loud.

- 11-year olds on a ski trip always have a problem:
            "Somebody stole my thus-and-such"
            "I have a head-ache/stomach-ache/pain in my [insert any body part here]"
            "So-and-so said/did [insert pretty much anything that we might consider even vaguely annoying]."

- 11-year olds have a very quick learning curve when it comes to skiing, but a very long curve when it comes to being punished for making great amounts of noise after hours.

- Many little girls cannot recognize the Star Wars theme song within the first 10 seconds.

- How to play "Tarot" (a card game with a specific deck).

-That I have a long way to go before I actually understand Tarot.

-That it is apparently very possible for a card game to be "Very French."

- The French Alps are gorgeous.

- More ski vocabulary in french then I think I possess in english...

- Weather in the mountains can change drastically over the course of 3 days. From soup-snow on the ground, to raining, to snowing, to almost too frozen icy-grainy snow on the slopes.

- It costs about 300 euros if you have an accident on the slopes and have to be stretcher-ski'd down. (Don't worry. It wasn't me, and there was no permanent injury. A student did sprain her knee rather badly though.)

- As an "adult" I must know all the answers to all the questions. Including:
            >Where any other teacher is at any given moment (I did actually tell a kid "I haven't got a GPS tracking device programmed into my head" at one point.)
            >Where any article of clothing/equipment is, even if the student doesn't remember where they left it... the night before.
            >Any other piece of information that anyone might want at any time regardless of what my job is, where I work, or how long I have been in any one room/part of any situation/etc.

- One shouldn't get in a prank war with a French gym teacher, but if one does, be prepared.

- Double-decker buses are not fun.

- I can now sleep in buses.

- Soupy snow is no fun to ski in.

- Ski goggles should be carried at all times. (Only need to be caught on a ski lift in the snow once...)

- You never know what chaperones are up to after students have been put to bed. I am questioning all my Outdoor School chaperone memories now.

- Ski boots are heavy.

- The word virages in French. It means turns. I know it very well now.

- I need a better "authority" voice.

- How to use a télésiège and a tire-fesse. And not even fall down getting off them.

- About a dozen new french words for "kid."

- Ski instructors from France are quite similar to ski instructors from the States. Leading me to hypothesize that "ski bum" may be it's own, hitherto non-genetically recognized, race.

- How to (nearly) turn with parallel skis.

- How to stop efficiently on an incline with skis on.

- How to avoid small children on the slopes.

- How to fall down a lot on skis. Associated: How to get up, quickly and efficiently, while wearing skis on a slope, in snow of a wide range of qualities.

- How to ski down a very steep run when both feet are asleep inside the ski boots. (This is not a recommended activity.)

- That views from the télésièges (ski lifts) are stunning. Even in questionable ski weather.

-How to re-stock helmets. And how to judge a helmet size by eye.

- New respect for all teachers and chaperones.

I am hoping to get an actual written post up soon, but I wanted to jot these down so I don't forget the major things. And then I figured I'd share the list with you all. I don't know if I'll leave it up once I have a "real" post for you... we'll see.

(Was it interesting? Or should I just stick to my written posts and keep the lists to myself?)