I might be great at completing my lesson plans on time, but I have failed miserably at updating my blog. In my defense, it only means I've been busy, and I have been posting photos frequently (so I'm not dead to the world). So much is going on in my life right now. Here's the sparknotes version:
1) Miss, Miss, Miss, Miss...Miss! I have just completed week seven of my student teaching. Only five more weeks to go...wow, that was fast. I'm currently teaching 75% of the time for the next four weeks, and then the last week will be me giving the teaching time back to my teacher. So far, I have taught one art unit ("talking textiles"), two literacy units (Greek mythology and a poetry/fairy tale unit revolving around Snow White and the Seven Dwarves), swimming (yes, you read right...we go swimming every Wednesday. By law I cannot get into the pool with the students, so I instruct from the ledge, something I find very difficult after three summers of being a hands-on swimming lessons instructor), and a religious education unit (perspectives of the Bible). For the rest of the term, I will be teaching maths (metric mass, data, application, calculations), science (the life cycle, which includes reproduction...yes...I will be saying sperm + egg = a baby), more literacy (recounts), and design and technology (toy-making).
If you ask me, teaching is a challenging occupation. No matter how much work I get done in a day, there is always something else on the do-to list. Lesson planning, differentiating (I have a huge range of abilities in my class: some of my students are working on properly using quotations while others are still learning how to begin each sentence with a capital letter and end with a "full stop"), prepping, teaching, assessing, grading, reflecting...it's a "vicious" cycle. However, there is no greater feeling than seeing your students "get it", especially my low-attainers. As each day passes, I see that teaching is my calling; it's what I'm meant to do.
2) Traveling provides you with experiences that will forever remain locked in the scar tissue of your mind. Part of being abroad is seeing what's out there. In addition to seeing the beauty of Liverpool (note: if you do fancy coming to Liverpool, it can be done in about a day, or even an afternoon if you powerwalk), I've done a daytrip to Chester, Cheshire, a weekend in London, and--drum roll please--a backpacking excursion to Ireland, Scotland, and The Netherlands with two American student teachers.
a) Chester: a really old city with really old Roman ruins...that's about it.
b) London: After almost four years, I made my return to one of my favorite cities in the world. The coolest part for me was seeing a monument, site, painting, or street, and my memory would trigger to something that happened on my last visit, things I haven't thought of in years. The trip itself: there were six of us, three American girls and three German guys. We all shared a room and shower in the shittiest hostel in all of London (our hostel adjacent to a graveyard, meaning that when you opened your window and looked down, you saw about 400 headstones...I can't forget to mention the grafitti of Tina Turner on the walls). I laughed at how outraged some of our traveling companions were with our accommodation. We only paid 22 quid for two nights! I cannot forget to mention spending time with a beloved American, Mr. Ian A. Lathrop. It was so nice seeing a familiar face and walking at a pace too fast for my legs. Overall, it was a good weekend with good people.
c) Dublin, Edinburgh, and Amsterdam: For our trip, Whitney, Ali, and I each picked a city we wanted to see. Ali chose Dublin, I chose Edinburgh, and Whitney chose Amsterdam. Each city had its highlights and lowlights, but I was happy to explore each city. My favorite experiences had to have been when we traveled outside of the cities. In Ireland, we took a tour of the Irish coast and the County Wicklow ("The Garden of Ireland"). In Scotland, we traveled over 400 miles in about 12 hours, going as far as Loch Ness (Scotland will never cease to impress me with their lochs and mountains, and no, Nessie did not show her face). I'm sad to say we never made it out of Amsterdam, and no, it's not because we were high the entire time, nor is that the reason we went to Amsterdam. We were too busy paddle boating in the canals and enjoying our houseboat (there's no other way to stay). Backpacking is always an adventure, and in my opinion you learn more about your friends and, most importantly, yourself. I could go on for days about backpacking, so if you'd like to know more, schedule a coffee date now -- I've got some great stories.
I'm going to have to stop here today, because I'm sure most people stopped reading after point one (I take no offense, because I'm great at rambling). I will be sure to update at least two more times before my student teaching is over. I'm sure I'll have another story or two to tell. Cheers.
1) Miss, Miss, Miss, Miss...Miss! I have just completed week seven of my student teaching. Only five more weeks to go...wow, that was fast. I'm currently teaching 75% of the time for the next four weeks, and then the last week will be me giving the teaching time back to my teacher. So far, I have taught one art unit ("talking textiles"), two literacy units (Greek mythology and a poetry/fairy tale unit revolving around Snow White and the Seven Dwarves), swimming (yes, you read right...we go swimming every Wednesday. By law I cannot get into the pool with the students, so I instruct from the ledge, something I find very difficult after three summers of being a hands-on swimming lessons instructor), and a religious education unit (perspectives of the Bible). For the rest of the term, I will be teaching maths (metric mass, data, application, calculations), science (the life cycle, which includes reproduction...yes...I will be saying sperm + egg = a baby), more literacy (recounts), and design and technology (toy-making).
If you ask me, teaching is a challenging occupation. No matter how much work I get done in a day, there is always something else on the do-to list. Lesson planning, differentiating (I have a huge range of abilities in my class: some of my students are working on properly using quotations while others are still learning how to begin each sentence with a capital letter and end with a "full stop"), prepping, teaching, assessing, grading, reflecting...it's a "vicious" cycle. However, there is no greater feeling than seeing your students "get it", especially my low-attainers. As each day passes, I see that teaching is my calling; it's what I'm meant to do.
2) Traveling provides you with experiences that will forever remain locked in the scar tissue of your mind. Part of being abroad is seeing what's out there. In addition to seeing the beauty of Liverpool (note: if you do fancy coming to Liverpool, it can be done in about a day, or even an afternoon if you powerwalk), I've done a daytrip to Chester, Cheshire, a weekend in London, and--drum roll please--a backpacking excursion to Ireland, Scotland, and The Netherlands with two American student teachers.
a) Chester: a really old city with really old Roman ruins...that's about it.
b) London: After almost four years, I made my return to one of my favorite cities in the world. The coolest part for me was seeing a monument, site, painting, or street, and my memory would trigger to something that happened on my last visit, things I haven't thought of in years. The trip itself: there were six of us, three American girls and three German guys. We all shared a room and shower in the shittiest hostel in all of London (our hostel adjacent to a graveyard, meaning that when you opened your window and looked down, you saw about 400 headstones...I can't forget to mention the grafitti of Tina Turner on the walls). I laughed at how outraged some of our traveling companions were with our accommodation. We only paid 22 quid for two nights! I cannot forget to mention spending time with a beloved American, Mr. Ian A. Lathrop. It was so nice seeing a familiar face and walking at a pace too fast for my legs. Overall, it was a good weekend with good people.
c) Dublin, Edinburgh, and Amsterdam: For our trip, Whitney, Ali, and I each picked a city we wanted to see. Ali chose Dublin, I chose Edinburgh, and Whitney chose Amsterdam. Each city had its highlights and lowlights, but I was happy to explore each city. My favorite experiences had to have been when we traveled outside of the cities. In Ireland, we took a tour of the Irish coast and the County Wicklow ("The Garden of Ireland"). In Scotland, we traveled over 400 miles in about 12 hours, going as far as Loch Ness (Scotland will never cease to impress me with their lochs and mountains, and no, Nessie did not show her face). I'm sad to say we never made it out of Amsterdam, and no, it's not because we were high the entire time, nor is that the reason we went to Amsterdam. We were too busy paddle boating in the canals and enjoying our houseboat (there's no other way to stay). Backpacking is always an adventure, and in my opinion you learn more about your friends and, most importantly, yourself. I could go on for days about backpacking, so if you'd like to know more, schedule a coffee date now -- I've got some great stories.
I'm going to have to stop here today, because I'm sure most people stopped reading after point one (I take no offense, because I'm great at rambling). I will be sure to update at least two more times before my student teaching is over. I'm sure I'll have another story or two to tell. Cheers.
Fun to read, Miss F!! MDY
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