My (very recent) experience:

We ran out of suitcases for our move last week, so we used an old Rubbermaid latching tote from Walmart that we had lying around. It looks approximately like this: http://www.rubbermaid.com/Category/Page ... D=RP091417

We drilled holes before we left home (six total -- one at each corner and one on each long side), but didn't put zip ties in until we got to the airport. It worked beautifully. Two notes: If you pre-drill your holes, make sure you line the lid up properly before you start zip-tying. (My husband drilled the holes, and I -- days later -- started sealing it up with the lid on the wrong way, so the holes didn't all line up. Oops.) Also -- this is probably overkill -- we left the bag of zip ties right on top, inside the tote, in case they had to search the box at security and needed to refasten it.

We used a colored container (blue bottom and green top, 'cause we're classy like that), and taped our name and destination address to one side and the top. We measured it to make sure it would fit within the airline luggage restrictions, then filled it with shoes and all the random little things we had to pack at the last minute, and ended up a smidge under the weight limit.

Our's didn't have wheels, but we had to use luggage carts anyway.

Disclaimer: Our trip was fairly easy -- two flights and two car trips. Nothing particularly rugged.

Also, I wouldn't use dick tape. It sounds painful and unnecessary. :)

No advice (or advise), but how about some encouragement? My husband and I have similar qualifications to you -- yours might be better, in fact. We didn't attend a fair and got hired at a good school (not an "elite" school, but a tier one, I think) in a competitive region. It seems that if you present yourselves accurately and appealingly, it's just a matter of finding schools that need what you're offering. I think you guys will be great.

One question: are you willing to consider other locations? I understand having a dream location (and I'm not saying to give up on that, because i I ended up pretty darn close to mine :) BUT it does increase your odds of finding the right fit if you apply more broadly.

Good luck!

@Cheery,

He did publish his scales:

PsyGuy Applicant Scoring System:
1) 1 pt / 2 years Experience (Max 10 Years)
2) 1 pt - Advance Degree (Masters)
3) 1 pt - Cross Certified (Must be schedule-able)
4) 1 pt - Curriculum Experience (IB, AP, IGCSE)
5) 1pt - Logistical Hire (Single +.5 pt, Couple +1 pt)
6) .5 pt - Previous International School Experience (standard 2 year contract)
7) .5 pt - Leadership Experience/Role (+.25 HOD, +.5 Coordinator)
8) .5 pt - Extra Curricular (Must be schedule-able)
9) .25 pt - Special Populations (Must be qualified)
10) .25 pt - Special Skill Set (Must be documentable AND marketable)

If I'm not mistaken, you can get a total of six points from #2-10, plus one point for every two years of experience up to 10 years (which would be 5 points). So, from what you've told us, you would get:

Experience: 5
Curriculum: 1
Logistics: 1
International exp: .5
Total -- 7.5

I don't know if you should get full credit for the spouse since you both teach in the same field...

Also, you should know that some people think PsyGuy's rating system is a little dubious. They suggest that getting to know someone's personality, strengths and weaknesses, and family situation -- and then deciding whether that person would fit in well with the existing team -- can't be reduced down to a simple 11-point scale. Still, it's a concrete measure of your competitiveness, and that can be helpful.

I'm thinking about paying for a non-resident library card from one of the American public libraries with a very large e-book collection. I did a search and found that a few of you have done this as well (PsyGuy, heyteach, eion_padraig?) Have you had any trouble downloading books in different locations?

We'll be in Europe -- great Internet, but lots of copyright restrictions, if I understand correctly.

There's a seven-page thread on this organization that's been updated a few times. I will attemp to post the link here; otherwise, search for Nazarbayev.

http://internationalschoolsreview.com/v ... php?t=2271

Oy, we're in the midst of packing, too. At the moment, Husband and I have a total of four checked bags, two carry-ons, and our backpacks, but I don't know if it's all gonna fit (or at least not under the weight limit)!

I've moved a lot, and it's important to me to bring some mementos, pictures, and books that make a place feel like home. I do think I'll have to do another round of book weeding, though... :(

We are thinking about mailing some of it instead. We're lucky to be moving to a place with a reliable postal service.

Ooh, fun game -- Open a dictionary, find the first verb on the page, and fill in the blanks:

"Polish girls really now how to . and . hard."

My contribution, courtesy of the New York Times word of the day site: niggle.

"There is no such thing as DP science."

WHAT? I need to have a serious talk with my admin, then.

No, I'm kidding. Obviously I know there's not a class called DP Science. I was being intentionally general because 1) I don't think it matters which science we're discussing, and 2) Mr. B is teaching more than one of them.

Thank you all for your comments. I am really excited about having more freedom in the classroom. I was just expecting to get a much more concrete list of goals for each grade! I've been tied to a basal for the last two years... All this institutional trust is making me light-headed.

Mr. Bookshelf and I are getting nervous about our impending first year of teaching IB (DP Science for him, MYP English for me). We're coming from a district with a fairly strict, prescribed curriculum, and so far the IB documents we've looked at have been sort of... vague.

We haven't been to training yet, but we're both a little afraid that we'll show up for work and have no idea what we're supposed to be teaching. Are there scope and sequence documents? Exemplar lessons? Lists of recommended texts? Does that stuff come from our school?

We have access to the OCC and our school's online curriculum planner, but it's all a little overwhelming.

Congratulations on getting such an outstanding offer.

The average salary for US public school teachers last year was $55,418. South Dakota had the lowest average ($38,804), and New York had the highest ($73,398). Of course, starting salaries are much lower... Montana, for example, has a minimum starting salary of just $26,734. For an American teacher who's paid his own way through university and owes $30,000 or more in student loans, that's not much money.

Besides, as you said, there are other reasons to move abroad. I don't enjoy teaching in a highly regulated system that advances or retains elementary students solely because of their performance on pass/fail standardized assessments. Also, there are no librarians left in my entire district, because we can't afford them. Time to move on.

"Had the same problem once with the word "a.n.a.l.y.s.t". Don't know what's the problem. The forum doesn't seem to like the word :)"

My guess: because it says -.

Yep! Thank you prepubescent, giggly students, for priming my mind to see the dirtiness in any situation! The offending word is a.n.a.l. :D

Thanks, shadowjack! We'll definitely take those things into consideration.

SAS,

We're flying with our mini poodle mix out of Dallas this summer, so I understand your anxiety! Here are some things you might find helpful:

United and Lufthansa both have great reputations for their pet services, and they both fly to HCMC. Both of them have special vans & cargo holds, so they don't have temperature restrictions. Of the two, United seems to be quite a bit cheaper to Asia.

If you stay with the same carrier for the whole trip, Java probably won't have to go through customs. He'll be kept in a secure pet transport area, so the quarantine and disease control stuff shouldn't apply. To give you an idea, check out Lufthansa Cargo's pet transport facility in Frankfurt: http://lufthansa-cargo.com/en_de/mainna ... al-lounge/

Also, here are the crate size restrictions for United aircrafts: http://www.united.com/web/en-US/content ... ennel.aspx
So avoid United Express. From a different website, "United Cargo is having problems transporting series 700 crates on their 737 700/800 and 900 aircraft."

Can you drive to Dallas, Denver, or Phoenix for your flight? On Kayak.com, you can limit the results to only United flights, and then filter out anything that uses a regional jet (too small). So, for example, I see a flight on July 11 that's United all the way through, Denver-San Francisco-Tokyo-HCMC, all on what seem to be large-enough planes.

http://www.pettravel.com has a list of pet travel policies for 150 airlines, articles, and a forum where the "experts" will answer your questions.

Have you considered using a pet relocation company like http://www.petrelocation.com or http://www.airanimal.com? There are tons of them out there, and most of their websites have free information about airlines and crate requirements.

Hope some of that helps. :)

Fortesias, I'm pirating your thread. :)

How does one go about adding a parent as a dependent? My sister and I will both be living in the same region, and we'd really like to have Mom in our part of the world. We're not worried so much about a job, just a residence permit. Does anyone know of countries that wouldn't allow it? Does it depend on her age? Might it cause problems with our new school? She has a registered disability, if that makes a difference...

It's disabled for everyone.