Being Brave

It absolutely blows my mind that I am starting my fourth week of student teaching. The time is flying by and I am doing my best to savor every moment. My week last week was a bit of a challenge. I am teaching almost full time, which comes with a lot of responsibility and A LOT of classroom management. One of the most challenging parts of this experience is getting the students to see me as a teacher, rather than just someone who is there to help out. With that, the first part of the week was very challenging, but as the week went on I started to really gain control. I am feeling much more confident, and I think the students are starting to see me as one of their teachers. Beyond that it was a crazy week as we are preparing for grandparents days, (Thursday) and trying to accomplish the loads of other things. The students finished up all of their art work, and it is now displayed in the gym! We have also been practicing our grandparents day songs. The students are getting really excited; everything is coming together nicely. Everything at school is going really well so hopefully it continues. I am preparing some fun activities for this upcoming week to help reinforce major concepts (numbers, letters, writing etc.)
This weekend I decided to be brave and go on my first trip all by myself. I took the bus to Killarney and spent the night in a hostel. Other than missing my bus on the way there I made it there smoothly - just an hour later than I expected. My hope was that I would do the Ring of Kerry tour, BUT the weather did not allow. I did some shopping instead and enjoyed the town. I was extremely proud of myself for making it there and taking the first big step in traveling. Overall I am leaving this week feeling really confident. In teaching and life in general. I am challenging that positive energy into all aspects of my life! All smiles here :)

Pattern Game from last week

more grandparents day projects

my first hostel experience

What a wonderful week!

This week has been such a blessing. There are so many different reasons that are really hard to put into words so I will just starting by telling you about my week in general. This week I started teaching my unit on America. I dedicated a day for one major subject to teach the girls about America. Monday I did a lesson on America in general. We talked about where the states were and what they already knew about them - mind you these are junior infants (kindergarten). I was really pleasantly surprised with how much they already knew. Day one (Monday): the basics - map, flag, money. Day two (Tuesday) - the discovery of America and holidays that Americas celebrate that the Irish don't (Thanksgiving, Fourth of July- etc.) Day three - the school system - how it's different, how it's the same - different words we use for different things (example: they call a pencil sharpener, a pointer). Day four - the four seasons/weather and sports. Day five - review game! Each day I did some kind of activity with the girls to help teach them about all the overwhelming information. On the fifth day I did a review game as a form of assessment. From this assessment I learned one very important things - NEVER underestimate the mind of a young child. They proved to me how amazingly brilliant they truly are. They could remember the most amazing things and that alone was one of the most rewarding feelings. I am so happy with how much my class has learned in just a week. Its a hard concept for them to grasp seeing as almost all of them have never left Ireland, and most of them don't know what a country really is. They can now point out on a map where Ireland is, where America is, where Wisconsin is, where Italy is (Christopher Columbus birth place) and where Christopher Columbus started his journey (Spain). Beyond that they can tell you how many stars and stripes are on the American flag, how many states there are, what colors are in the America flag and the Irish flag, and so so much more. They can also tell you who the quarterback of the Green Bay Packers is (VERY IMPORTANT) :) The students LOVED the lessons and I am extremely proud of my first subject take over in the Junior infant classroom. Beyond just doing our America unit I have also taken more groups in guided reading, and we continue to work on our letter recognition. In the coming week the school is having Grandparents day - something to which the girls have been looking forward. In the junior infant classroom we have been creating special projects for them to give to their Grandparents on the day that they come! I have also finished up my robin bird project with the girls in the senior infant classroom (pictures below!) They turned out really wonderful and the girls all seem to be very proud!

Beyond just school I had a wonderful week/weekend at home. On Tuesday night, my host brother (Chris) and his girlfriend took me to a "music session" Chris plays in a band and is extremely talented. The music session was pretty much just a couple of people playing instruments at a pub and relxing. They played whatever fancied them and just went with it. I was introduced to his other two band mates and a bunch of other really nice people - all of whom were extremely talented at playing an instrument. (guitar, violin, banjo, mandolin). Thursday night I went to another one of the music sessions except this one was Trad - Irish traditional music. I can't even describe to you my amazement at how talented everyone was. I again met a bunch of really wonderful people and enjoyed the music. Friday night I went into Tralee with my host mom and sister. Tralee is about a half an hour away and it's a bit bigger than Listowel. Lisa (my host sister) plays in the orchestra and she had lessons so I rode along. While Lisa was at lessons my host mom and I went shopping. I finally spent my first real euro and did it like a pro - if I do say so myself. On Saturday, my host brother offered to take me to Dingle. The drive is about an hour and a half, but it honestly wasn't long enough. The views were absolutely brilliant. We went through something called Conors pass on the way to Dingle and stopped a few times to take in the views. We had an absolutely gorgeous day - the temperature was perfect and the sun was shining all day (which is rare here in Ireland). After stopping a few times in Conors pass, we made it to Dingle. We walked around the pier for a while and then found a dock where we ate a delicious picnic that my host dad made for us. - with tea of course. On our way back we stopped at a beach in Dingle right as the sun was setting. It was a perfect day to say the least. Today I went to church with my host family and came home and did some preparation for my week of teaching. Chris also taught me a little guitar. I can now play three chords. The Walsh's also have two friends visiting from Santa Barbara - it's nice to have some fellow America's around - they are extremely nice and I know I will enjoy there company for the next week. It was such a wonderful week, and I am very grateful for this experience. I can't help but think about how lucky I am everyday. I will leave you with some pictures from my classroom and my travels..... until next time.

Our robins! Senior Infant class

Conor Pass

Conor Pass

Conor Pass

Dingle Beach

Dingle 

Conor Pass

Look at what we learned about America...

Grandparent's Day Project

Continuing On

I have officially been in Ireland for one week. Looking back on my week I am realizing how quickly these couple of months are going to go. My first week in Ireland was wonderful. I am starting to feel pretty comfortable with my surroundings. As I mentioned before I love my school. Everyone continues to ask how I am adjusting and if there is anything they can do to help out. I am starting to feel really comfortable, and I think the students are now aware that I will be around for a while. I was able to help out in the fourth class on Thursday, which was really interesting. Fourth-class means the students are right around the ages of 9 and 10. Their teacher had to go to a meeting so I offered to watch the class while she was gone. It was really a treat. The first thing I heard when I walked in the room was "oh the American!!!" The girls in fourth class had SO many questions for me and were so curious about America. Some of these questions include, "have you meet any famous people, have you meet the president, do you know Justin Bieber, how old are you, is America safe, etc." I actually really enjoyed the brief amount of time I was there. I am hoping to pop in and say hello, and answer more questions in the near future. In the junior infant classes I am working with a number of small groups on a lot of different things. Tomorrow I am starting my five-day unit plan on America. I have planned a number of different activities for the kids to help them learn all about America. (I will try to take some pictures to show you how everything turns out). In the senior infant class we are still working hard on our robin bird project, which we will hopefully finish up this week (pictures to come). The school days go by so quickly; there just isn't enough time in the day! Other than school, my weekend was pretty relaxed. I am still adjusting to the time change so I have been very exhausted this week. I really didn't feel like doing much of anything. Friday after school I took the long way home. I wandered through town doing some window-shopping. That night my host mom, sister, and I watched a movie and then went to bed extremely early. On Saturday, I walked into town and visited my host sister at work - she works at a place called scribes, which is a little coffee shop right in town. I can tell it will be a place I will be spending a lot of my time. I spent most my day at the coffee shop reading and relaxing. I drank about two pots of tea, to which I am completely addicted. After that I walked around town and did a little bit of shopping. I spent the night working on some lesson plans for the week ahead and relaxing. My host brother was home for most of the weekend with his girlfriend. He is in a band that plays at local pubs on the weekend. I am sure in the near future we will go have a listen. He also offered to teach me how to play the guitar so I am super excited about that! Today I went to church with my host family. My host dad is a pastor at a local church just about 15 minutes away from home. I really enjoyed the service. It was about 2 hours long, which I am not use to at all, but it was very refreshing. I met a bunch of really nice people and was at church from about 11:00 until 3:00. After the service all the members eat lunch together and talk. Overall I would say that my first week in Ireland was great. I am still adjusting, but I absolutely love it. I am planning all of the places I would like to travel, and hopefully I will start this coming weekend. I am hoping for another wonderful week in Ireland!  

First Week

This is my first week of student teaching at Listowel Convent primary school in Ireland. It is an all girls school that is located in the town in which I am currently living. Primary school is what we would call elementary school in the states. I am working in three different classrooms at the moment. I am with the two junior infant classes - which would be similar to our kindergarten, and I am also working in the Senior infant class room - which is similar to our first grade. The junior infant class rooms have about 15 students each and the senior infant class has about 30 students. I switched throughout the day which I really enjoy because it offers a lot of variety. All of the girls in the school are extremely curious about me! I always laugh when I talk to some of them because my accent shocks them. I am also shocked by their accents. I feel bad because often times they talk SO fast I can't keep up so I am always asking them to repeat themselves. This week I am just working with some small groups. In the junior infant class I am helping them with letter recognition, writing, number recognition, and writing. In the senior infant class room we're working on a art project about a robin - there is a poem that we're also learning as a class. Beyond just the classroom everyone at the school is SO welcoming!! I really enjoy where I am working. I am able to spend a good amount of time with the staff during our "tea" break and also during our lunch break. Everyone always asks "how I'm getting along" or if there is anything they can do to make me feel more welcomed. The teachers that I specifically work with are wonderful. I feel very comfortable and I am learning a lot! I am so happy with my placement. Just like at school, home is wonderful as well. The Walsh's are so welcoming. I am starting to feel really at home. We eat dinner together every night and have a lot of fun. Everyday after school I walk home. It is about a 2 mile walk, of which I really enjoy. The first time I walked home - Monday, I got terribly lost. I wasn't paying attention on the way to school so I didn't know how to get home. I eventually figured it out, but it was raining so much that I soaked completely through my shoes. I now remember to bring my rain boots to school with me everyday. Tuesday however we had beautiful weather. The sun was out all day and the temperature was right around 40. With the beautiful weather we decided to take advantage. After school my family took me to Ballybunion, which is a small town just about 20 minutes from my town, Listowel. Ballybunion has beautiful cliffs and a really wonderful beach. We walked to beach and the cliffs right at sunset so it was absolutely breath taking. Ballybunion is also famous for it's golf course that is set right on the cliffs. J.P (my host dad) told me that Bill Clinton often plays there. It has been a wonderful first half a week. I am excited for more wonderful things to come! Next week I am teaching the Junior infants a five day unit on America! I am planning this week so hopefully all goes well! Picture of the things we create next week will be soon to come! For now here are some from my hike at Ballybunion. 

At one time the beach was separated by sex, they still call it the ladies beach and the mens beach

My host parents! 

I Made It!

I have finally arrived in Ireland!! It has been a long couple of days traveling, with a few hiccups, I might add. The original plan was to fly out of Milwaukee to Newark, New Jersey and make a connecting flight from New Jersey to Shannon, Ireland. This, however, did not happen. When I arrived at the airport in Milwaukee the United counter informed me that my flight to Newark was delayed 50 minutes, thus giving me no time to make my connecting flight to Ireland. I decided to fly to Newark anyway, and from there I spent the night in a hotel. I then took the next flight to Ireland (the next day at 7:30pm). I had to check out of my hotel room at 2:00pm, so I headed to the airport a wee bit early. I hung around until the flight was finally boarding. The plan ride to Ireland was actually a lot better than I thought it was going to be. I watched two movies and was served dinner and breakfast. I made friends with the girl who was sitting next to me (a college student at Limerick University, in Limerick Ireland.) She gave me the low down on what to expect going through customs and gathering my luggage. From there everything went smoothly. I found my host dad, and he took us back to my new home for the next three months. The ride from the airport to my new home in Listowel was about an hour and a half drive. I was struggling to keep my eyes open, but there was not too much to see because it was still really dark out. Upon my arrival at my new home I climbed into bed for a nice long nap - I forget how exhausting traveling is (especially when you do not sleep on a 6 hour plane ride). When I woke up I was greeted with breakfast and tea. I spent most of my first day in Ireland relaxing, which I really didn't mind because I was so tired. My host mom took me into town and showed me where everything is, including the school that I will be teaching at tomorrow. The town is adorable - I know I am going to love it. I am also within walking distance to my school so I am sure I will be walking most days too and from school :). After we got back I read my book by the fire while my host mom cooked dinner. We than ate a delicious chicken and potato dinner. It has been a long day and I am struggling to keep my eyes open, but I am excited for my first day of student teaching tomorrow! So many wonderful things await!