This week, teachers in the Seychelles have a week to set up the classroom and get school ready to welcome students in the following week. Already, we are starting to notice a few things we wish we’d have brought rather than relying on searching the islands for a product or waiting on someone back home to post it! Here’s our top 10 things a British teacher needs when working internationally:

1. A laptop! Don’t rely on school having the budget to provide you with technology just because they are a private school. Luckily we were told this in advance, so came prepared with Macs ready to do work on, as well as Netflix binges – some things don’t change, regardless of where you are in the world!
2. Two HDMI cables/adaptors to connect your laptop to the projector rather than relying on a network. Keep one as a spare. They are hard to get in different countries, and difficult to procure in countries that don’t necessarily have Amazon access …
3. Classroom display resources like velcro, laminate, pre printed colour copies of display resources. Deliveries of ink cartridges are few and far between and there’s no Cartridge World to get quick refills!
4. Carpet squares! Getting any classroom furnishings is expensive and there are limited options for your future pupils.
5. Sports equipment. Neither Adam nor I considered packing a snorkel or mask so have had to pay tourist prices! Ouch! Shipping them from an online store is as or even more expensive too. We should have thought about this when moving from city centre Sheffield to a tropical island paradise, but didn’t consider it as we spent time boxing and packing things we already owned. Make sure you do more research into different location activities and come prepared for when the school day finishes!
6. More books in my carry on luggage. We’re still waiting on our shipped boxes and a few more books to read in the meantime would have been nice. Adam finished his before we even set off, and is now waiting on crates to save rereading his book again …
7. So much suncream even customs is asking questions! I burn easily and buying suncream in a tourist hot spot is expensive plus you can’t get the brands you trust so there’s be some trial and very painful error! We’ve found that suncream here is expensive, and not necessarily waterproof, so big shout out to Adam’s mum for posting some through as our skin acclimatises to the equatorial sun.
8. More contact lenses in our carry on luggage. Yes we planned ahead and bought a 2 year supply knowing they’re hard to get out here … however … We put them in the shipping boxes which we are still waiting for. Fail!
9. More bite cream or Witch Hazel blemish sticks. Both are fab for soothing insect bites but we didn’t realise how quickly we’d use our supply. Thankfully, it’s mother-in-law to the rescue with supply parcel on the way.
10. Birthday cards and Christmas cards. These do not seem to exist on the islands so sorry to everyone who doesn’t get a card this year!

Obviously every country has a vast range of different products, and availability of different things. We were super lucky that our house came with towels, beddings, and kitchen equipment, but not everyone new to the island has had this, so ask more questions about accommodation while packing, so that you don’t have to acquire blankets etc once you’re off the plane! Equally, check with your school to find our what classroom resources have been pre-ordered and if there are any must have items missing.

Equally, as teachers we pride ourselves on our quick thinking and creativity. Our weighing scales are stuck in our shipping so we improvised. Who says you can’t make an accurate balance scale out of a a coat hanger, 2 carrier bags and a water bottle filled to the required weight!

Overall, we have the majority of things that we need for a comfortable and fantastic life here, but some things have been an awakening in terms of what we should have done differently!

Let us know in the comments any other items you would have brought!