The End of the Beginning

Well, it’s over. The horrid first year of teaching that everyone warns you is the “worst you’ll ever have” is officially done. I am so glad. It really sucked. Not just the hectic teaching and putting together lesson plans from scratch. Not just the crazy (and I mean CRAZY) behavior issues I had to deal with over the course of the year. Not just the adjustment to a new job instead of school (where I get the grade). But just being out on my own in the world. It’s quite an adjustment. This year has definitely been the hardest of my life. I thought last semester was the worst due to the shock of the new job and being all alone on my own. Then this semester happened. Better at school in some ways, but ridiculous in my personal life. Lots of bad things seemed to start happening all at the same time. However, there is always the light at the end of the tunnel. Time heals all wounds. There are other fish in the sea. Ya know…and May 25th was my last day of official work until August! *Sigh of relief*

So the summer lies ahead. I wonder if I can keep this updated this time. I should probably have a day of the week designated on which to write. Going back to why I never do…I was doing these daily reflections on work last semester thinking I should do that to grow. It didn’t last long. I tend to talk my feelings out, so then writing them down again was just too much of a hassle. Now that I don’t feel pressured, hopefully I can keep this up. It may not always be interesting, but that’s a matter of opinion.

Most important updates since August…hmm. Well, two happy things of late actually. I finally got my own dog, rather spontaneously, on May 8th (the day after I turned 23). And I finally met my favorite band ever on May 22nd. That would be Hanson, for those of you that are uninformed. Here are some photos:

Chatting with Zac. Jamie thought this was an “intimate” moment. haha

Meeting Isaac. One of those moments in life when you think, What do I say? You know you’re going to tell the story later. So I actually asked Zac- in the previous photo- how they knew Derek Webb (another of my favorite musicians). It was a nice little conversation.

Then there’s Layla, who actually came before Hanson, but whose photos were not as easily accessible. Sorry, girl. (Of course she reads this!)

Okay, not a great photo. But the small dog is Layla. Don’t be deceived. She and Sasha are not the best of friends.

So that’s pretty much an update of the here and now. I’ve also started watching How I Met Your Mother. I’m currently on season two. Thankfully Marshall and Lily are back together! I’m also on the hunt for a new apartment where Layla and I can be together! I think I may have found one today, but it’s a little sketchy. Cheaper though! We shall see.

In the end, life may suck on occasion. But as my brother reminded me not too long ago, God is good.

Goodnight.

First Week on the Job

Well, I actually survived my first week teaching. First day- I wanted to cry by lunchtime. One of my mentors (the first grade teacher) gave me lots of encouragement. She said she had a horrible day as well. For someone that has taught 30+ years, I took that as a sign of hope. It’s not just me. First days can be hard. The second day was much better. I changed things that didn’t work, and the kids seemed to be better listeners. Thursday was another rough day. It made me realize that I have to stay on top of those kids the whole time. If I let my guard down or lose my cool, I lose control. With determination, Friday was the best day yet. I had structured and hands-on activities for the kids to enjoy and the nerve to stay in control of my class. It is hard though. I know what it takes, but it certainly is draining to be a good teacher. Emotionally, physically, and mentally- I’m already exhausted at the end of each day. I’ll be glad when it doesn’t take as long to plan because I’ve taught the material before. So…without further ado, I’ll try to include some pictures of my classroom.

The first few are what it looked like when I got the keys to Room 11. The last several were taken the other day, after my first week was over. Enjoy.

I’m a picture person…

This is my little area of the classroom, including my desk, bookshelf, and computer/T.V. that I don’t quite know how to work yet.

This area is mainly used for centers or lessons where the kids team up in small groups. Very handy.

This is where I keep most of the books and supplies. The long purple bookshelf is also where the kids turn in their papers.

This is the view of the front of the room complete with “Welcome, Star Students” bulletin board on the left and Calendar Time area on the right!

Miss Jessica’s view from the front.

My new hero. Horton visits students that are listening and working very well. It seems silly, but it works (so far).

Hello world!

Well, this is it! My first big girl blog! I just moved into my first apartment last weekend, so I felt the need to start a new chapter with a new blog. Hopefully, this will be the place where I can rave about how well school is going in the fall or just complain about how crazy my students are making me. I will be teaching second grade. Woo…it will be a challenging year.

For now, I’m just working at the public library, which is about a two minute walk from where I live. It’s kind of a boring job sometimes, but it’s awesome in terms of stress. A lot less than working with kids like I have done for the past three summers!

Earlier in the summer, I went on several trips. The first was to RUF Summer Conference in Panama City Beach, FL. It was amazing!! Beach, Bible, and babes (as Justin says). After that I stayed with my friend Julia in Memphis one night. We went to a local Theatre Festival, which was pretty neat. Something small towns don’t have much of. Soon after that, I went to Chicago to check out the Harry Potter Exhibition at the Museum of Science and Industry. Then of course, I had a 10 day trip to Ukraine and Austria with my church college choir. It was busy, but lots of fun! Since I love taking pictures, there are hundreds from these trips alone. I’ll just try to attach a few below to give you an idea of my summer thus far. Enjoy

We ate out during Summer Conference at Margaritaville!

We enjoyed lots of free time on the beach!

I got this done at the Theatre Festival in Memphis.

They had facepainting too!

David & I took several pictures of the bean at Millenium Park in Chicago.

Here’s an ad for the Harry Potter Exhibition inside the museum.

These are a few of the kids we worked with all week in Ukraine.

Our choir’s last concert at Hope Church in Dnipr

This is the Belvedere Palace in Vienna.

This is a shot in St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna.

We had lots of fun in Europe and even saw a symphony!