Here's a pic of the Pocket Diesel and I in NYC.
Monday, February 27, 2006
Busy, Busy
I leave approximately two weeks from today (Monday) and I'm getting very excited. I still don't have a place to stay yet, but I've emailed the deputy principal at Morningside and I asked her if there are any hotels/hostels or rentals in the area that I could stay at, at least until my housing is set up. Hopefully I'll find out soon. I'm having a lot of trouble trying to find anything on the web. I can barely find Morningside, let alone a hotel there!!
I've been pretty busy the last couple of days. I'm trying to get everything out of my apartment in Iowa City before I leave, which is no small task. For now everything is getting moved into my Mom's place back in Des Moines (thanks mom) and that is where it will stay for a while. Don't worry though, Dustin (aka the Pocket Diesel) is taking some of it when he moves into his new place, so it won't be that big of a burden for her.
I'm also in my second full week of head teaching at Prairie View. It's a lot of fun and I'm excited to get to do this for the rest of my life (or at least the next 30 years or so). I'm enjoying the time I spend with the students and the relationships that we are developing. It's truly an amazing experience, although not at the stage that I have with my students at Lemme (but I was there a lot longer).
Speaking of Lemme, I'm sad to say that my last day there will be the 10th of March. I was hesitant to do this and to be honest, I'm pretty sad about it. I really have enjoyed the last three years that I spent with those buggers. I know that I'm going to cry a ton when I leave and that day is going to be really hard. They've taught me so much and prepared me for teaching.
On a happier note, it's great to see people leaving comments. Thank you so much for checking out the site. I'm going to try and update it more when I'm in Australia and Egypt, since I won't exactly be a phone call away!!
God Bless,
--Bill
I've been pretty busy the last couple of days. I'm trying to get everything out of my apartment in Iowa City before I leave, which is no small task. For now everything is getting moved into my Mom's place back in Des Moines (thanks mom) and that is where it will stay for a while. Don't worry though, Dustin (aka the Pocket Diesel) is taking some of it when he moves into his new place, so it won't be that big of a burden for her.
I'm also in my second full week of head teaching at Prairie View. It's a lot of fun and I'm excited to get to do this for the rest of my life (or at least the next 30 years or so). I'm enjoying the time I spend with the students and the relationships that we are developing. It's truly an amazing experience, although not at the stage that I have with my students at Lemme (but I was there a lot longer).
Speaking of Lemme, I'm sad to say that my last day there will be the 10th of March. I was hesitant to do this and to be honest, I'm pretty sad about it. I really have enjoyed the last three years that I spent with those buggers. I know that I'm going to cry a ton when I leave and that day is going to be really hard. They've taught me so much and prepared me for teaching.
On a happier note, it's great to see people leaving comments. Thank you so much for checking out the site. I'm going to try and update it more when I'm in Australia and Egypt, since I won't exactly be a phone call away!!
God Bless,
--Bill
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Finally......
Well, it's finally happened. My placement for Australia has gone through!!! I'm headed for the land Downunda! I can't truly tell you how excited I am. I just got off the phone with the Deputy Principal, and she sounded so nice.
I've been placed in one of the suburbs of Brisbane, Morningside. I'll be at the Morningside State School starting on March 22nd. At first I was going to be with younger students (ages 7-9) but after talking to her, she might put me with older students (where my interest lies). They might put me in a couple different classrooms, which would be really cool. She said they are doing a lot of great things in their classes right now so it should be interesting.
The one drawback is that they don't have a place for me to stay yet. So as of right now, I may have to find a cheap hotel in/near Morningside. I was told they are working on it, so I'll just have faith and assume it will get taken care of.
I'm so excited!!!!
I've been placed in one of the suburbs of Brisbane, Morningside. I'll be at the Morningside State School starting on March 22nd. At first I was going to be with younger students (ages 7-9) but after talking to her, she might put me with older students (where my interest lies). They might put me in a couple different classrooms, which would be really cool. She said they are doing a lot of great things in their classes right now so it should be interesting.
The one drawback is that they don't have a place for me to stay yet. So as of right now, I may have to find a cheap hotel in/near Morningside. I was told they are working on it, so I'll just have faith and assume it will get taken care of.
I'm so excited!!!!
Sunday, February 12, 2006
A day of Planning
I have been clearing out my apartment for a little over a month now. I'm taking stuff back to Des Moines to store in my mom's basement while I"m gone (her basement is huge and empty). On the trip yesterday, I hung out with my buddy Dustin and his girlfriend Sara, as well as a friend from high school.
We ate at Chili's and had some snacks. Unfortunately, I ate too much of a variety and was very sick last night and didn't feel well for most of the day today. The bad news is that I skipped SI and youth group because I didn't feel good. The good news is that I took the entire day to plan for the week, which means I wrote lesson plans literally all day. How boring that can truly be. I still have some lessons to type 8 or 9 lessons, but most of the others are done. It has taken me most of the day.
I do have some good news to report. I purchased my ticket for Australia!! Although they haven't told me where I'm going to stay or what school I'll be at. One way or another, I'm going to Australia on the 13th of March. I won't actually arrive until the morning of the 15th (Wednesday). I'm pumped!! Brisbane here I come.
As for Cairo, I'm starting to learn a little bit more about Egypt and it's really calming me down about the whole trip. I'm not as nervous as I was before. I'm starting to get pretty excited about that one too, but one experience at a time.
Until next time, ma'as salama,
Bill
We ate at Chili's and had some snacks. Unfortunately, I ate too much of a variety and was very sick last night and didn't feel well for most of the day today. The bad news is that I skipped SI and youth group because I didn't feel good. The good news is that I took the entire day to plan for the week, which means I wrote lesson plans literally all day. How boring that can truly be. I still have some lessons to type 8 or 9 lessons, but most of the others are done. It has taken me most of the day.
I do have some good news to report. I purchased my ticket for Australia!! Although they haven't told me where I'm going to stay or what school I'll be at. One way or another, I'm going to Australia on the 13th of March. I won't actually arrive until the morning of the 15th (Wednesday). I'm pumped!! Brisbane here I come.
As for Cairo, I'm starting to learn a little bit more about Egypt and it's really calming me down about the whole trip. I'm not as nervous as I was before. I'm starting to get pretty excited about that one too, but one experience at a time.
Until next time, ma'as salama,
Bill
Monday, February 06, 2006
The BIG news.....
With a new month, surely comes new drama. Student teaching is going well, although I have a ton of lesson plans to write each week. It feels like a huge waste of paper because I also have to print everyone of them out!! I start my unit on Community this week and I also get to start teaching math to the students. Throw in the fact that I pick up another reading group this week, and you've got a busy teacher.
However, the good news came on Friday. I went to an international job fair up at UNI last weekend. It felt like a giant dog show to be honest. You wait in line and then finally you get to step up to the table with the judge and try to request an interview. They look you over, briefly talk to you, check out your resume and then they either invite you to the center circle, or reject you back into the stands. It's so uplifting!!
In the end though it became a blessing. I ended up applying with a school that I wasn't planning on. Five hours later, I'm the new 4th-6th grade English and Social Studies teacher at Nefertari American International School in Cairo, Egypt. That's right....Egypt baby!!!
To be truthful, I'm a little freaked out about this one. I've never been somewhere that I didn't at least know one person. I also have never been somewhere that doesn't really speak English. Egypt is 94% Muslim, which also makes me a little nervous. I'm going to try and embrace the culture and I'm going to try and learn a little Arabic. That should help me out a little bit.
Until then, I'm student teaching in CR and I'm still planning on heading to Australia over spring break. Till them...
ma'as salama (goodbye)
Bill
However, the good news came on Friday. I went to an international job fair up at UNI last weekend. It felt like a giant dog show to be honest. You wait in line and then finally you get to step up to the table with the judge and try to request an interview. They look you over, briefly talk to you, check out your resume and then they either invite you to the center circle, or reject you back into the stands. It's so uplifting!!
In the end though it became a blessing. I ended up applying with a school that I wasn't planning on. Five hours later, I'm the new 4th-6th grade English and Social Studies teacher at Nefertari American International School in Cairo, Egypt. That's right....Egypt baby!!!
To be truthful, I'm a little freaked out about this one. I've never been somewhere that I didn't at least know one person. I also have never been somewhere that doesn't really speak English. Egypt is 94% Muslim, which also makes me a little nervous. I'm going to try and embrace the culture and I'm going to try and learn a little Arabic. That should help me out a little bit.
Until then, I'm student teaching in CR and I'm still planning on heading to Australia over spring break. Till them...
ma'as salama (goodbye)
Bill
Sunday, January 29, 2006
Up to my ears...
Currently listening to.....Mike Shonoda...I think, it's one of the Linkin Park guys from a CD my buddy Brad made me. It's amazing. He has a song about Manzanaar, the Japanese internment Camp in the US during WWII. Apparently his grandparents and his father were there....great song. It would be good to play during a WWII unit....
I'm up to my ears in planning, papers and grading. I'm attempting to create a unit based around the idea of "Community" for my 3rd graders and it is very difficult. I have to plan roughly 20 days of lessons and they can't be simple little time fillers. I'm finding that I have to really plan this out right and incorporate a variety of activities to keep the students interested and to make it a good unit. Pile all this on top of applying to a couple of other schools and the job fair up at UNI at the end of this week and I'm a busy boy.
Speaking of job fair, I've emailed two more schools about their vacancies. I'm hoping to hear from a school in Egypt and Myanmar soon. I may have applied to a third, but to be honest I can't really recall. I've looked at so many schools and I've applied to so many that it's mind-boggling. I almost applied to the same school again today, without realizing it. I don't even remember if I've applied to this school, but maybe I have. I know I've checked out their website. Oh well, I'll talk to them up there.
I'll try to keep everyone posted....eventually.
God Bless,
Bill
I'm up to my ears in planning, papers and grading. I'm attempting to create a unit based around the idea of "Community" for my 3rd graders and it is very difficult. I have to plan roughly 20 days of lessons and they can't be simple little time fillers. I'm finding that I have to really plan this out right and incorporate a variety of activities to keep the students interested and to make it a good unit. Pile all this on top of applying to a couple of other schools and the job fair up at UNI at the end of this week and I'm a busy boy.
Speaking of job fair, I've emailed two more schools about their vacancies. I'm hoping to hear from a school in Egypt and Myanmar soon. I may have applied to a third, but to be honest I can't really recall. I've looked at so many schools and I've applied to so many that it's mind-boggling. I almost applied to the same school again today, without realizing it. I don't even remember if I've applied to this school, but maybe I have. I know I've checked out their website. Oh well, I'll talk to them up there.
I'll try to keep everyone posted....eventually.
God Bless,
Bill
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
The Waiting game....
...that is what I am playing. I've contacted four schools about teaching overseas next year. I've heard one thanks but no thanks (blasted Cyprus) and two "we'll talk to you in Waterloo" (thank you China and Virgin Islands!!). I'm still waiting to hear from Korea. I did receive emails from a school in Taiwan and Colombia that are begging people to interview, the question is, do I really want to live there?? I considered the Taiwan school, but I can't remember why I didn't email them. It could have been the money (or lack there of) but I don't recall.
Speaking of money, it reminds me of a great line I heard in a song today. "....it's not about the salary, it's all about reality and makin' some noise." For some reason this simple phrase and line has stuck in my head all day. Maybe I'm being told to not worry about the pay and just go....somewhere. Who knows.
I'm in full swing at Prairie View. I started grading papers and handwriting today (yes, I'm grading cursive and script handwriting, scary huh?). I also get to plan a unit on Community and a poetry unit (awesome!!). I'm pretty excited about the units. If any of you have any ideas, let me know, although keep in mind, I work with 3rd graders.
Well, I have units to plan and sleep to catch up on.
--Change the World
Bill
Speaking of money, it reminds me of a great line I heard in a song today. "....it's not about the salary, it's all about reality and makin' some noise." For some reason this simple phrase and line has stuck in my head all day. Maybe I'm being told to not worry about the pay and just go....somewhere. Who knows.
I'm in full swing at Prairie View. I started grading papers and handwriting today (yes, I'm grading cursive and script handwriting, scary huh?). I also get to plan a unit on Community and a poetry unit (awesome!!). I'm pretty excited about the units. If any of you have any ideas, let me know, although keep in mind, I work with 3rd graders.
Well, I have units to plan and sleep to catch up on.
--Change the World
Bill
Saturday, January 21, 2006
The Big Problem
So I've submitted all my information for a job fair up at UNI and I can finally start communicating with schools that are going to be there. The only problem is that almost every school requires or prefers someone that has at least 2 years experience teaching in a classroom setting. My question is this: If all schools want someone with experience, how can anyone really get experience?? Do I have to apply to some dinky school in Iowa and then leave them in two years to do what I really want to do? Is teaching in Hills, IA really going to prepare me for teaching at an international school in Shanghi, China?
Thursday, January 19, 2006
In the beginning.....
How does one really begin an online journal about their experiences? I'm confused as to where to start. I began student teaching yesterday and found that I'm lost in the whole thing. I don't really know what I'm supposed to be doing in class. Am I supposed to be actually teaching? Am I supposed to sit in a corner and just observe? I've decided to do what I think is right and I'm up and assisting the students as much as possible.
As I've started student teaching, I've also found out about an Overseas job fair that is in two weeks. After much stress and a ton of help from some great people (thanks Susie, Alice and Holly!) I've managed to get all the materials completed and sent in a day before they are do. It should be processed tomorrow and tomorrow night I should be able to start contacting schools that will be there. I'm looking to interview with schools in Europe and the Far East (Asia). For some reason, I really have a desire to go there and teach, I don't know why, but it's just there in my mind.
Other than all this fun stuff, I'm still living the single life, still looking for someone to sublease my apartment and still waiting to hear on Australia....seriously, I don't know ANYTHING yet. Hopefully soon.
--God Bless,
Bill
As I've started student teaching, I've also found out about an Overseas job fair that is in two weeks. After much stress and a ton of help from some great people (thanks Susie, Alice and Holly!) I've managed to get all the materials completed and sent in a day before they are do. It should be processed tomorrow and tomorrow night I should be able to start contacting schools that will be there. I'm looking to interview with schools in Europe and the Far East (Asia). For some reason, I really have a desire to go there and teach, I don't know why, but it's just there in my mind.
Other than all this fun stuff, I'm still living the single life, still looking for someone to sublease my apartment and still waiting to hear on Australia....seriously, I don't know ANYTHING yet. Hopefully soon.
--God Bless,
Bill
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