Michael Magee

Cavehill Primary School

School website: www.cavehillps.co.uk
Subject or primary school year: Vice Principal/P7 teacher.
Your place of birth: Belfast.
Studied at: Stranmillis College Belfast.
First job: Retail.
What it taught me: The importance of developing strong relationships and communication skills.
Family/status: In a relationship. Two children: Eoin (6) and Aodhán (9 months).
Best advice you could give someone thinking of a teaching career: The main priority when you have your own class is to form strong relationships with the children, find out what makes them tick and build your learning from there. If the children trust you then they will work for you. Don’t forget to have fun, though, because kids deserve an excited adult who is able to teach them in fun and interesting ways. Be prepared to teach differently, think outside the box and enjoy yourself. The children might not always remember what you taught them, but they will always remember how you made them feel.

I studied History and Politics in Queen's before moving on to complete my teaching degree in Stranmillis College. From there, I moved to England where I taught P5 and P7 for three years before moving back home. I taught in Bloomfield Primary School (Bangor) for seven years before taking up my current Vice Principal post in Cavehill Primary School this year while teaching P7. I have been extremely fortunate to have worked alongside so many amazing teachers, classroom assistants and staff in all my schools who have helped me develop as both a teacher and a person. It has been... interesting, to say the least, being involved in teaching over the past 15 years, so it is exciting to see what the next 15 has in store!