Opps, it has been over a week since my last post! The main reason for my tardiness is that I have been really, really busy! Or to use a simile I have been as busy as a bee with a bum full of honey!
Tomorrow is my final day of teaching in Room 15, I still have one more week at Collingwood Area School, but next week I will take more of a back seat roll and have a wander around the other junior classrooms and see how its done there. I will still be in and out of Room 15 and will be finishing off my "Kiwis for kiwi" topic unit in the afternoons.
I have had some lessons go well (never as well as I hope), and some truly disastrous ones, like today, when my lecturer was watching... but to be honest it is the ones that go badly that you learn the most from, it gives you a chance to reflect, see where you went wrong and what you would change next time. I am in awe of my mentors Pip and Ali, and I want to be just like them when I grow up, if I still have their passion and patience in 20 years then I will be happy.
I am getting ridiculously sad at the thought of leaving! :( Today I went to tap dancing lessons to watch my niece Zoe and then I stayed on to watch some of the girls in my class to have their lesson, all I can say is WOW, I have never, and will never be a tap dancer! When I arrived, two of the girls from Room 15 spotted me and called out "Hi Miss Oates", it made me feel like a celebrity, or some other important person! It was awesome, they were so excited that I came to watch and I was happy to be there, these children have welcomed me with open arms (some literally), and have trusted me with their education, their stories and their pride, I am honoured to have this trust. This has been my best placement so far and I truly do not want to leave. As much as some of them drive me crazy sometimes (I am sure all you parents will understand), they also make me smile and laugh everyday. I am bowled over by their interest in learning, and their willingness to work hard, they ask for help when it is needed and they take pride in their work when they have done a good job, this is the highlight of being a teacher, when you see their face light up.
It is also almost the end of my degree, one more placement and then in a few months I will be hunting for a job, what a daunting thought. This time next year I could have a classroom full of bright young minds that I am partially responsible for shaping, what a terrifying idea, and yet I cannot wait! I could be anywhere in the country, far from family and friends, it really is beginning to dawn on me that my life for the last few weeks is my foreseeable future!
I am exhausted and overwhelmed by the idea of this job but I also can not wait to have my own class, I hope that I can help shape some children into the wee superstars that this class is. I am in love with this country school, home really is where the heart is.
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Half way mark!
Well today is Wednesday (Wed-nes-day... have to say this every time i write it because it is not spelt like we say it!) the 19th of March 2014 (Write up the long date in your books)! It is half way through our placement and it is also about half way through my full control period in Room 15, and I have a cold :(
I said to one of my AT's (associate teachers) today at the end of the say that my nose didn't have time to run, which is great because it has been a busy day filled with reading, writing, maths, tennis and topic (Kiwi's for kiwi). Unfortunately my nose is more than making up for it this evening, thank goodness for Kleenex aloe vera tissues (they sure do soothe a sore, red nose!).
Other than my cold (aka woman flu-very low fatality) I am feeling great, I just commented that for the first time since I started my teacher training my planning is going well, I have always struggled with planning but this time it is making sense and things are going (mostly) to plan in the classroom! I am happy, Pip and Alison are happy (or too scared to say otherwise) and the children are learning, which is of course the most important part!
I really can't say enough how awesome the children in Room 15 are! They are a fabulous bunch and they are so willing and eager to learn! Full of ideas and a great bunch of mates, looking out for each other and supporting one another (most of the time). Pip and Alison are great teacher too, they have a wonderful program set up and have been giving me some wonderful feedback that I can build upon and learn from, it is a great placement to have in the final year of my degree.
After school one day last week I jokingly said to Pip "why do we do this?" and she replied "because we love it", and it really is as simple as that. If she can love it after 20 (?) years teaching then I am in the right career! I only hope that in 20 years when someone asks me the same question, I have the same response. I think this conversation will stick with me for the rest of my life. It is my opinion that there is nothing more important in a teacher than a passion for what they do. Albert Einstein once said "I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.", I am in no way comparing myself to Einstein but I feel that this sums me up, and i hope to be able to inspire passionate curiosity in the lives of children that I am fortunate enough to teach over the course of my career.
Every day I have moments of "why on earth am I doing this??!", but more often everyday I have moments when I am truly grateful that I have finally found what I want to do for the rest of my life, I mean who wouldn't want to spend everyday with a bunch of children who make you laugh and make you proud, even if they do spit in your face sometimes when they are talking to you....
I have already started dreading the day when I have to say goodbye to the children in Room 15 at Collingwood Area School, I will not want to leave. I will cry. But thankfully that is still over two weeks away so for now I will not think about it!
I said to one of my AT's (associate teachers) today at the end of the say that my nose didn't have time to run, which is great because it has been a busy day filled with reading, writing, maths, tennis and topic (Kiwi's for kiwi). Unfortunately my nose is more than making up for it this evening, thank goodness for Kleenex aloe vera tissues (they sure do soothe a sore, red nose!).
Other than my cold (aka woman flu-very low fatality) I am feeling great, I just commented that for the first time since I started my teacher training my planning is going well, I have always struggled with planning but this time it is making sense and things are going (mostly) to plan in the classroom! I am happy, Pip and Alison are happy (or too scared to say otherwise) and the children are learning, which is of course the most important part!
I really can't say enough how awesome the children in Room 15 are! They are a fabulous bunch and they are so willing and eager to learn! Full of ideas and a great bunch of mates, looking out for each other and supporting one another (most of the time). Pip and Alison are great teacher too, they have a wonderful program set up and have been giving me some wonderful feedback that I can build upon and learn from, it is a great placement to have in the final year of my degree.
After school one day last week I jokingly said to Pip "why do we do this?" and she replied "because we love it", and it really is as simple as that. If she can love it after 20 (?) years teaching then I am in the right career! I only hope that in 20 years when someone asks me the same question, I have the same response. I think this conversation will stick with me for the rest of my life. It is my opinion that there is nothing more important in a teacher than a passion for what they do. Albert Einstein once said "I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.", I am in no way comparing myself to Einstein but I feel that this sums me up, and i hope to be able to inspire passionate curiosity in the lives of children that I am fortunate enough to teach over the course of my career.
Every day I have moments of "why on earth am I doing this??!", but more often everyday I have moments when I am truly grateful that I have finally found what I want to do for the rest of my life, I mean who wouldn't want to spend everyday with a bunch of children who make you laugh and make you proud, even if they do spit in your face sometimes when they are talking to you....
I have already started dreading the day when I have to say goodbye to the children in Room 15 at Collingwood Area School, I will not want to leave. I will cry. But thankfully that is still over two weeks away so for now I will not think about it!
Tonight's Homework!
A gift from a sweetie in my class! xx
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Miss Oates mucks up!
Today was my first day of full control in Room 15, also known as actually teaching! I was only in charge until lunchtime as we decided that it would be easier for me to start my PE and Topic units while Pip was in the classroom, and she has release time on a Thursday afternoon, so the children had Dr McKenzie as usual and they got to go for a swim so I am sure they were happy about that!
The morning started off well and we raced through spelling, handwriting and maths followed by a well earned morning tea break for all! Then after morning tea we had reading and all was going well until I got to my third group and realised I had just done their book with the second group.... so they had scored a very easy reading day! So if you Alex, Joy and Colin's parents are reading this my apologies to you and your children! Alex even tried to tell me! Bless her for being so brave as to call a teacher out, but me in my "I know what I am doing" mode, didn't listen! I have put the book they should have read into their book folders* and maybe they will enjoy reading it with you over the weekend! I felt a wee bit better when I was telling Mrs Etheredge about it and she said she is sure she has done that before too... phew maybe it's not just me!
*I got corrected several times today as apparently I am out of touch they are not "book bags" they are book folders I am told! (I also call rubbers, erasers, much to the children's disgust and amusement, they love to exclaim "they're not erasers, they are rubbers Miss Oates!" When I was their age it was the other way around!)
We also had writing and while I am no Mrs Menary I think we did ok, the children are learning to write recounts, check their spelling with a dictionary and to use adjectives as well as their own individual goals! It sounds like a lot but they are an awesome bunch and are producing some amazing pieces of writing!
Tomorrow is a new day and it is pyjama day at school as a fundraiser for the senior students, so if your child comes home and tells you they can wear their pyjamas tomorrow, yes it is true, I am looking forward to not having to choose what to wear in the morning, and I am sure I will get to see a range of onesies that will make me very jealous!
The morning started off well and we raced through spelling, handwriting and maths followed by a well earned morning tea break for all! Then after morning tea we had reading and all was going well until I got to my third group and realised I had just done their book with the second group.... so they had scored a very easy reading day! So if you Alex, Joy and Colin's parents are reading this my apologies to you and your children! Alex even tried to tell me! Bless her for being so brave as to call a teacher out, but me in my "I know what I am doing" mode, didn't listen! I have put the book they should have read into their book folders* and maybe they will enjoy reading it with you over the weekend! I felt a wee bit better when I was telling Mrs Etheredge about it and she said she is sure she has done that before too... phew maybe it's not just me!
*I got corrected several times today as apparently I am out of touch they are not "book bags" they are book folders I am told! (I also call rubbers, erasers, much to the children's disgust and amusement, they love to exclaim "they're not erasers, they are rubbers Miss Oates!" When I was their age it was the other way around!)
We also had writing and while I am no Mrs Menary I think we did ok, the children are learning to write recounts, check their spelling with a dictionary and to use adjectives as well as their own individual goals! It sounds like a lot but they are an awesome bunch and are producing some amazing pieces of writing!
Tomorrow is a new day and it is pyjama day at school as a fundraiser for the senior students, so if your child comes home and tells you they can wear their pyjamas tomorrow, yes it is true, I am looking forward to not having to choose what to wear in the morning, and I am sure I will get to see a range of onesies that will make me very jealous!
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Planning and Preparation
On Thursday I begin 12 days of full control, and when you consider this on the grand scheme of things of wanting to be a teacher for approximately 200 days a year (?) this is like loose change! But as many of you will know, loose change can sometimes make or break you. While I don't think these 12 days will break me, it is daunting as last placement we only had to do 6 days, this is a huge step up. I am really looking forward to it though, Room 15 is a group of bright, inquisitive minds full of ideas and an enthusiasm to learn that reminds me of why it is I want to do this crazy thing called teaching.
On Thursday I will start by taking over all of the routine day to day things like spelling and handwriting, I will also take maths, reading and writing before lunch. After lunch we will start diving into the topic Mrs Baker aka Pip wants us to look at which is the Kiwi, both us as a people and then in more depth the kiwi bird. In my preparation and research to go about planning how to teach the kids I think I am learning as much as they will and it is interesting stuff, I just hope that they think so too! While the kiwi is an interesting topic it is just a cover story to teach the kids skills like brainstorming and classifying information, forming questions and researching how to answer those questions, hopefully none of them see through my ruse!
We will also be beginning a PE unit on Tennis, which has the potential to be very interesting... can you imagine 18 5-8 year olds with tennis racquets and balls? Anyone want to come and parent help? :)
I take the idea of teaching and learning very seriously and I am working closely with both Pip and Alison to ensure that your children learn and thrive while I am in control of the planning as well as they would if I were not around. I am both looking forward to and dreading the feedback they give me, but for me it is all learning and I just have to remember that they are trying to help me become a better teacher!
I hope your children are enjoying having me in class as much as I am enjoying being there, which is a lot! I don't enjoy the hours of planning but it will all be worth it when they can tell me something they have learnt at the end of my time here at Collingwood Area School!
"Kiwi" unit planning (and assorted other stuff going on at the same time)
My collection of post it notes... they are going to be used when we brainstorm and classify information! But they also show that I am a HUGE nerd and I have a passion for post it notes.... you know that this is true when your friends give you post it notes as birthday gifts... Thanks Sophie :)
Time for bed or I will be grumpy Miss Oates tomorrow, and trust me, no one wants that!
On Thursday I will start by taking over all of the routine day to day things like spelling and handwriting, I will also take maths, reading and writing before lunch. After lunch we will start diving into the topic Mrs Baker aka Pip wants us to look at which is the Kiwi, both us as a people and then in more depth the kiwi bird. In my preparation and research to go about planning how to teach the kids I think I am learning as much as they will and it is interesting stuff, I just hope that they think so too! While the kiwi is an interesting topic it is just a cover story to teach the kids skills like brainstorming and classifying information, forming questions and researching how to answer those questions, hopefully none of them see through my ruse!
We will also be beginning a PE unit on Tennis, which has the potential to be very interesting... can you imagine 18 5-8 year olds with tennis racquets and balls? Anyone want to come and parent help? :)
I take the idea of teaching and learning very seriously and I am working closely with both Pip and Alison to ensure that your children learn and thrive while I am in control of the planning as well as they would if I were not around. I am both looking forward to and dreading the feedback they give me, but for me it is all learning and I just have to remember that they are trying to help me become a better teacher!
I hope your children are enjoying having me in class as much as I am enjoying being there, which is a lot! I don't enjoy the hours of planning but it will all be worth it when they can tell me something they have learnt at the end of my time here at Collingwood Area School!
"Kiwi" unit planning (and assorted other stuff going on at the same time)
My collection of post it notes... they are going to be used when we brainstorm and classify information! But they also show that I am a HUGE nerd and I have a passion for post it notes.... you know that this is true when your friends give you post it notes as birthday gifts... Thanks Sophie :)
Time for bed or I will be grumpy Miss Oates tomorrow, and trust me, no one wants that!
Thursday, March 6, 2014
Family
Yesterday I was commenting on one of my students Mum's facebook about how her daughter wrote a story that went something like this "I love my cat, I love Ethan (her new baby brother), I love my Mum, I love my Dad".... and today if I was writing a story it would go something like this....
I love my sister Shaye for being so amazing and for helping me bake and cook dinner tonight, and for promising not to tell Dad that I stalled his car... I love my Dad and my step mum for lending me said car, and because I know they would be there for me whatever I needed. I love my niece Zoe for being so excited to see me that I get a hug everytime I walk past her at school, I love my nephew Logan for being so much fun and for giving the best cuddles! I love my Aunty Jo for constantly sending things over to me with other people and for being the best support person a girl could ever ask for. I love my sister in law Lisa for picking above stuff up for me when she was in Nelson and because she said she is going to bake me a birthday cake this weekend! I love my brother for being my big brother *insert eye roll here*, and for choosing such an awesome wife and for creating some super kids. I love my Mum for being my Mum and for making me who I am (as much as I am loathe to admit it at times, I am a lot like her), and while she is technically not family (which is almost impossible on this side of the hill)I love Sophie for letting me stay with her for 5 weeks.
This list could go on for ever so I will leave it at that and cross my fingers and toes that I have included the most important people....
Basically what I am saying is that I am enjoying being in the Bay on placement, and it is great to have my family around.
I also love my new family, Room 15, what an awesome bunch of kids! You parents have 18 reasons to be very proud! And thank you to Pip and Mrs Menary for having me, I couldn't learn how to be a teacher without the help and support of teachers like you, and I quite like the symmetry of you helping me learn as a child, and now again as an adult, look how far we've come!
I love my sister Shaye for being so amazing and for helping me bake and cook dinner tonight, and for promising not to tell Dad that I stalled his car... I love my Dad and my step mum for lending me said car, and because I know they would be there for me whatever I needed. I love my niece Zoe for being so excited to see me that I get a hug everytime I walk past her at school, I love my nephew Logan for being so much fun and for giving the best cuddles! I love my Aunty Jo for constantly sending things over to me with other people and for being the best support person a girl could ever ask for. I love my sister in law Lisa for picking above stuff up for me when she was in Nelson and because she said she is going to bake me a birthday cake this weekend! I love my brother for being my big brother *insert eye roll here*, and for choosing such an awesome wife and for creating some super kids. I love my Mum for being my Mum and for making me who I am (as much as I am loathe to admit it at times, I am a lot like her), and while she is technically not family (which is almost impossible on this side of the hill)I love Sophie for letting me stay with her for 5 weeks.
This list could go on for ever so I will leave it at that and cross my fingers and toes that I have included the most important people....
Basically what I am saying is that I am enjoying being in the Bay on placement, and it is great to have my family around.
I also love my new family, Room 15, what an awesome bunch of kids! You parents have 18 reasons to be very proud! And thank you to Pip and Mrs Menary for having me, I couldn't learn how to be a teacher without the help and support of teachers like you, and I quite like the symmetry of you helping me learn as a child, and now again as an adult, look how far we've come!
Monday, March 3, 2014
Day 2
Yet again another imaginative blog title.... NOT! I will come back to it if I think of something better! But I guess that it does sum things up quite well; it is day two and I am still here! Have my desk at home (well my friend Sophie's home) all sorted so I have NO excuses not to do all my paperwork now, and boy there is a ton of it!
I am having dejavu being back at Collingwood and being on the other side of the staff room door feels very strange! There are many faces I recognise among the teaching and support staff as well as some children and many parents, there are even more surnames that I recognise on the class list. I am pretty happy to say that I know all of the students names already, yesterday I was only confident until the students moved to a different spot in the room, but today I have them.
I have been doing a lot of watching and note taking, which is freaking my associate teachers out a wee bit I think, with one of them asking me what it was that I was writing down....everything as I know nothing! I am enjoying watching everything unfold as a casual observer and I am looking forward to getting more involved tomorrow, taking a maths group to my teachers plan.
I have been fortunate enough to attend some parent teacher interviews/three way conferences and it was a great experience hearing the students verbalise their own goals and gaining a better insight into what parents think and wonder about their children's education.
Today I got a hug, and one girl told me she likes walking with me as I use my good manners, aw, bless.
I can't think of anything more of interest to write so I will leave you with this photo of my pile....
I am having dejavu being back at Collingwood and being on the other side of the staff room door feels very strange! There are many faces I recognise among the teaching and support staff as well as some children and many parents, there are even more surnames that I recognise on the class list. I am pretty happy to say that I know all of the students names already, yesterday I was only confident until the students moved to a different spot in the room, but today I have them.
I have been doing a lot of watching and note taking, which is freaking my associate teachers out a wee bit I think, with one of them asking me what it was that I was writing down....everything as I know nothing! I am enjoying watching everything unfold as a casual observer and I am looking forward to getting more involved tomorrow, taking a maths group to my teachers plan.
I have been fortunate enough to attend some parent teacher interviews/three way conferences and it was a great experience hearing the students verbalise their own goals and gaining a better insight into what parents think and wonder about their children's education.
Today I got a hug, and one girl told me she likes walking with me as I use my good manners, aw, bless.
I can't think of anything more of interest to write so I will leave you with this photo of my pile....
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