Day 1: Pre-Autumn Practicum

Has a day ever felt longer? Haha.

Mr. P said once that he always bears the first day of school with an eager desire for it to end. "The kids are just...weird" on the first day, he said. I found them adorable, so I'm wondering what I am to expect of their "normal" behavior.

One little girl walked up to me halfway through the day to hand me a piece of paper. All day, kids had walked up to me to hand me their completed work, so I expected no different from this young lady. "This is for you," she said. I took it and saw the words "Miss Avila" written there, with colored polka dots punctuating the rest of the space. Awww! I said I loved it, gave her a hug, and inserted it into the back window of my practicum binder.

At the end of the day, one little man said, "Today was fun!" Ha! Would you like to know today's agenda?
1. Get to school and play.
2. Come inside and draw [make nametags]
3. Play a get-to-know-you handshake game.
4. Learn about MYD [discipline system]
5. Go back to seats and draw [name tags]
6. Go outside and PLAY "wizards and trees" [a team-building game]
7. PLAY some more!
8. Come inside, then go back out for lunch recess [PLAY!]
9. Eat lunch in the classroom, and draw/read when done
10. Read [Okay, this WAS an instance of schoolwork.]
11. Make, color, & decorate personal posters
12. Recess [Play!!]
13. Posters again
14. Go home!

My point being: of COURSE it was a fun day! It was a play day! Woo! But -- poor kids -- will they be disillusioned when the real work comes?

And, I'd like to take a few sentences here to praise Mr. P. He is so good and so patient with me. While he takes care to teach me just like he teaches his students [methodically, thoroughly], he also lets me make decisions on my own. And he does it all so subtly that I don't feel a bit like he's exasperated with me or like I'm taking up his time. I will admit that, when I first knew I would be placed with a male teacher that I did not even know, I was disappointed. But now, I see that God's hand was in it all along, and, as my mom put it, I "lucked out!" It's almost as good as working with one of my own brothers. I am truly looking forward to the rest of this practicum experience!

Peace out!
More later.

P.S. I really wish I could post pictures on here from the practicum, but -- alas! -- that would violate the students' right to privacy. Bah.

Launching Pre-Autumn Practicum

More than a few times in the past few weeks, I have had the intention of beginning a post, but I have not followed through with it until now.

After 5 days of camping and lots of family time, I find myself preparing for a teaching practicum, to begin in two days. And, seeing as how the original purpose of this blog was to serve as a place for me to reflect on teaching experiences, you can expect timely and genuine reflections over the next three weeks.

What will I do? This practicum is intended to provide me with the opportunity to see what it's like to begin the school year, from the teacher's perspective, of course!

SO, I've had the privilege of being paired with Mr. P, a 4th grade teacher in the area. Today, I helped him prep for day one as much as I could, but the first day of school is actually in two days, on Wednesday. I've been surprised at how honoring Mr. P is of my ideas! Me, a simple college student who only aspires to teach one day! He, a teacher with 6 or 7 years already under his belt! Why should he ask for my opinions? But he does, and I appreciate it. Thank you, Mr. P!

More to come. :)

Engagement Party

This past weekend, we hosted an engagement party for Jared and Ivory.

Lots of people showed up, although we invited many more. Many of those who came also brought tasty treats. [That was the general idea!]

We played a fun game that embarrased nearly everyone.

But my favorite part of the night was probably when all the little kids swam in the pool while the adults sat around the couple as they shared their story. More than a story, it's a testimony of God's sovereignty.

I'll certainly let you all know when their wedding website is published, because that will include a written version of the story.

Besides the story-telling, I also loved the fellowship.

And this beautiful woman made it all happen. Thanks, Mom!

[All photo credits: Estela Avila]

Wooooooo!

Because this directly related to the road to teaching [and that is what inspired the initiation of this blog], I MUST share!

A few weekends ago, I took a trip with four other classmates to Ellensburg, a.k.a. Central Washington University headquarters. While there, we took a test -- or, really, half of a test. This test is THE test for education majors. We CAN NOT become certified if we do not pass this test. [Why am I being so ambiguous? The test is called the WEST-E.]

Now that that is clear, I was informed today that I PASSED THE WEST-E!!!!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Actually, like I hinted at before, I only passed half of the WEST-E. I'll take the other half sometime during winter quarter. But still. :)]

Please, congratulate me.

Hehe.

Summer days

It's awesome to have so much time to just laze around!

When the blueberries need picked, we can just pick them! When the lawn needs mowed, by gosh, let's mow it! When that book needs read [haha!], let's read it!

And I'm learning more about gardening. I was going to water my garden today because the dirt looked dry. "No!" said my dad. "Look!" He bent down and brushed off the top layer of dry dirt. Underneath, it was all dark and moist. "You're overwatering it!" Woops.

I'd like to have my mom help me dig up those daisies. They almost make the garden look like a tombstone.

I am starting to like dahlias more than I used to. Being my namesake, I've almost had to will myself to like them! Thankfully, even if they weren't always my "style," they've always been beautiful flowers, so it hasn't been hard to learn to love them.

And petunias, well, not my fave, but they made for a great picture today.

My favorite flower in this garden is the soft pink carnation, but I couldn't get a good photo of it.

If I could re-do my garden, I would pay more attention to color coordination! :)

As it is, I am amazed by how beautiful each of the flowers is! They each seem to be alive somehow, flourishing even when I fail to water them [or water them too much!] I can truthfully say that I am more grateful to God for flowers now than I ever have been.

Retrospect: the anticipation

The weekend that Jared proposed to Ivory, I had my camera on me and snapped a few photos of Ivory and I at random moments [like just before going to sleep two nights before, and while driving over the pass the day before.]

[She had no idea why my smile was so large.]

Ouch.

I smother my shoulders and neck with aloe vera gel, and I think, 'This kind of hurts, but it was worth it.'

I twist my torso and feel the aching muscles, and I think, 'Man, I'm really weak. I need to keep running with Mom in the mornings!' [But that's beside the point.]

It was SO worth it!

What was? Yesterday, I joined the Gilleys for a day of rafting down the Wenatchee River. The river is practically in my backyard, but it never crossed my mind to raft down it until, a few days ago, the Gilleys invited me over the phone. You can bet I was nervous, and perhaps with good reason [I fell out of the boat!], but I compare it to riding a rollercoaster -- exhilerating! Haha. So, would I recommend it? Yes. For everyone? No. [For example, I don't think my mom would enjoy it very much.] You can read a little more about our adventure on the river here, from Bek's blog.

Another ouch came today. It was seeing my dad in the hospital, which was also another first. He's doing well, recuperating from surgery and all, but still -- seeing the strongest person I know in pain - ah! It's hard.

While visiting in my dad's hospital room, our pastor joked that sometimes, if we ignore God's call to rest, He forces rest upon us. Haha. My dad laughed.