I’m looking for advice on getting up to speed. I have a PGCE (juniors) and had been teaching for five years when we moved to the United States. After 10 years we are returning and I want to get back into the classroom. For the last five years I’ve been working as an educational (teaching) assistant in an elementary school so I have more recent experience. Any ideas would be appreciated.

There are some return to teaching courses that might be a way to update yourself on what has happened while you’ve been away. Check with your local authority to see if they know of any courses. The main change, as you’ll have noticed, is that jobs are not as plentiful as when you left. However, you should be able to make your experience work for you. You have an understanding of teamwork as a professional and as an aide. This should be a helpful selling point. With 10 years’ experience, you could look for more senior posts where the competition may be less fierce than for a basic classroom teacher post.