GREAT (Needed) Break

 This last semester of school was probably my hardest yet. It was great and I learned a lot. A good friend in the cohort and I were able to evaluate a rubric for our teacher work sample next semester for the Professors. Unlucky for us, we are in the program at the hardest it has ever been - according to our professors. Over the years, the faculty has been adding and implementing more great ideas and we have received the most of it. So, they are trying to scale down. They asked us to email them our thoughts about the program. I guess only myself and my friend did because that is why we were asked to evaluate the rubric. It was a neat opportunity to be able to collaborate our ideas and thoughts to the wise Dr's. of the program.

I'm excited and nervous about student teaching. I have a unique situation, don't know whither it's a blessing in disguise or if I missed out on opportunities, but I have had the same adviser the past three semesters and this last semester I was placed in a 1st grade class from the same teacher as my first semester and I'm doing my student teaching there this next semester. So, unlike most in our program, I have only had one Professor (Dr. Matsubara) observe me teach in the schools and grade me, and I will have only been with two teachers from the school district in 1st and 3rd grade. Fortunately, the teacher I have been placed multiple times is awesome and we get along really well. She understands that I need to see other teaching styles and allows me to observe her whole team - which is awesome.

This next semester, starting on Monday, they are breaking our cohort up because there are some people who have deferred and so there will be about 37 of us and that is too much for one professor to take on to grade our work etc. I'm going to miss these guys so much. We all wish that we could open up our own school together :). My friend and I have a three year plan  - teach for three years and then start a masters! We will see how that turns out :). 

Red Cohort - Graduation Date of May 2012. Picture taken here because COLLEGE is soon to be long gone - University status is coming this summer.

 
Over this last semester all that really went on was school, homework, school, homework, and work, work, work. However, over Thanksgiving we painted the Frostop boy and the building. Everything is looking so spiffy - it's great!

Soooooo high up! We were at the top of the sign and didn't dare look down.

Bullet had been spreading office garbage all over the room while I'm gone because one day I left a candy wrapper in it. Anyways, I was soooo sick of garbage getting all over that I made him sit in the can. He listened very well and didn't get out until I told him to. He hasn't gotten into the garbage since. 

Christmas Break has been WONDERFUL! 


Five Christmas's ago, my parents gave us this moving thinking it looked good. We started watching it and turned it off after the first ten minutes because it was so lame. Anyways, they wouldn't take it back with them so I've been waiting for the perfect opportunity to re-gift this sucker. I wrote Part II on the title and wrapped it. On Christmas Eve I told my parents I had a gift they needed to open because we could use it tonight. It was dark and so they really thought I had found Part II of The Winter Stallion. Brad and I were rolling on the ground laughing. They soon realized I had written it. I guess we should have finished Part I if they really made a Part II ;).

We brought Bullet up with us so Brad's sister didn't get stuck with him over Christmas. Brenner LOVED him.

Ping Pong wars! This year no lights were broken - hooray. On Christmas my dad got a dart board and so that was fun too.

Nick, my brother, thought he was so kind to shovel the driveway. He sure shoveled alright, all onto our car!

Brad surprised me with a beautiful picture of Christ. I love it.

We had a great Christmas and appreciate our awesome family and friends.

I'm sure there are a lot of errors and typos- but, I've had my fair share of revising and editing this semester. I'm leaving this post the way it is :).