Where are you?
I finally have more news. I received my 'arrêté de nomination' aka 'work contract' from my school district. This single sheet of paper withheld vital information, what town I would be living in! I will be living in a small town called Saint-Amand-Les-Eaux (sant-amon-lehz-oh) close to the Belgian border about 30mins by car from Lille. It's a town of about 17,000 known for its natural springs, including hot springs. They still bottle their mineral water and are known as a type of old style spa town. It's in the middle of a regional forest park. I'm going to be teaching at two middle schools in the town, ranging from 11-15 years old. In France the grades count down instead of up and finish with a serious sounding 'termination year', the kids I will be teaching are in 'levels' 6-3. I'm trying to stock up on cool American style teaching supplies, ones I know I won't find over there like Dr.Suess themed items and fake US currency.