17 DAYS!

Only seventeen more days and I will be leaving for Kenya! I cannot wait to spend three months in the Kenyan sunshine volunteer teaching! My day will be split between teaching at the middle school level and the high school level. The schools are within walking distance of each other and the children's home! I cannot wait to meet the kiddos at the home :) I can't hardly wait to experience the Kenyan culture! This is going to be an experience of a lifetime... I just want it to be January 11th already!

Missing Skowhegan Area Middle School!

As exciting as it is to be done college and to entertain the idea of getting my own classroom someday soon, I am also sad that I wont be going to SAMS tomorrow and seeing my seventh graders and mentor teacher! Friday was so unbelievably bittersweet. It was a day of great accomplishment (finishing college and surviving student teaching), but it was also one of the hardest days I have ever survived. I had to say goodbye to a group of wonderful seventh graders and eighth graders, as well as a phenomenal mentor teacher who has taught me so much about teaching! We all had a wonderful cake and I enjoyed just hanging out with my kiddos. However, by the end of the day, I nearly lost it and started crying. I think my mentor could tell, since he asked if I wanted to have a seat. I was so thankful because the last thing I wanted to do was to cry in front of my kiddos. At the end of the class, my seventh graders all gave me hugs. I had to fight the tears back! I finally lost it on the hour and a half drive home! I miss Skowhegan Area Middle School, the students, the Somerset team, and Jason B. already! I am sad about tomorrow, everyone will be in class and I will be here at home :( I can't wait to get back there. I would love to get a teaching job in the area! I will always be grateful for all that I learned and at how welcome my mentor and my students made me feel!

Still Reaching!

My biggest fear was teaching the 8th graders. Couple that with the worst behaved eighth grade class and a crazy hectic day, and that only begins to describe today! However, I felt so accomplished that I took on my biggest fear and challenge and proved to myself that I can handle middle school. I know that I want to teach at this level and age group and now I have proved to myself that I can do it!!!

I don't want to leave this placement. I have learned soooo unbelievably much in these past eight weeks. I can't even imagine what I would have learned if this had been a 16 week placement! My mentor teacher is so phenomenal and the students are so amazing! This has truly been a positive and wonderful experience that I wouldn't trade for the world!

Not Ready to Say Goodbye...

This is my last week with my seventh graders! Things have been so amazing and I don't want to leave. After having that conversation with my mentor teacher before Thanksgiving break, about learning to have fun and find a balance between school and life, every single day in the classroom has been amazing, even when things were falling apart! Our talk helped me realize that this job is as fun as you make it! I also think that after establishing a connection with my kiddos it made all the difference. Once they saw that I wanted them to succeed and that I cared about them their attitudes toward me and my class completely changed! It is a phenomenal feeling to wake up everyday excited to go to school because you know it's going to be fun! I don't know what I would have done without this placement and my amazing mentor teacher and my terrific seventh graders! I am lucky...

Student Teaching Portfolio

I am feeling extremely overwhelmed as I am putting together my student teaching portfolio! I wish I hadn't put things off. For 3 1/2 years, everything has been building to this point. I am really excited but at the same time I am really worried that mine wont be as good as everyone else's. I know I just need to focus on getting mine done but I am feeling so overwhelmed. I didn't want it to be last minute, but there just wasn't any time. I need to just settle down, focus, and do my best...