It has been three months of teaching in two/three different capacities. I may be due a reflection or two at this point.
1. Substitute teacher at a single school. You may be asking yourself, but wait. Don't substitute teachers usually circulate within a school district? How does it work?
I am what you call an internal-sub. Because I only work at one school, I have the benefits of better understanding the discipline system and the methods behind the madness consistent throughout the school. If a teacher has planned a personal day ahead of time, they may e-mail the principal or me directly to ask if I have the time to substitute. If it's the principal, he either texts me or writes an e-mail--depending on the length of time preceding the request. Often I have gotten called at 6:30 in the morning because a teacher wakes up and feels terrible. Once I had to drive over around noon since a teacher went home sick.
Because of this tremendous opportunity, I have been able to teach 6th-12th grade across all subjects--Special Education, Intervention, Math, Science, English, and Foreign Language classes, specifically.
I haven't subbed for a history class yet, but I'm looking forward to it.
2. Volunteer English teacher at a refugee employment-education store. For 12 weeks, a class of between 18-30 refugees study Retail and Janitorial skills; through this experience, they learn English related to the job, and spend some time developing Employment skills as well.
I love these guys. They're amazing. I basically go here to get inspired (and my employee's discount--25% off)
3. Baby-sitting. Cu-u-u-u-ute. I have a few families, and I get to play with kids--professionally!
My favorite part: reading bedtime stories. One of the favorites is a book called "The Sun" which is about-- you guessed it--the sun. When the kid tries to touch the sun, he pulls back his finger and says "ouch! That burns!". Adorable.
Showing posts with label Personal development. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Personal development. Show all posts
Monday, November 21, 2011
Monday, September 19, 2011
Waiting (6/7 months to go)
Ah, yes. The infamous in-between time. The time when you've been nominated, are frantically scrambling to get any possible information about your medical help together, and almost forget a minor linchpin of the Peace Corps application:
What have you been doing since you've been nominated that should make us vote for you? I mean, invite you..
It is a critical period in the whole process, because prior to the nomination a large segment of the applicant population is finishing up university. What makes you, who has now graduated, a relevant applicant? What have you done that makes you a competitive character? Or, another way--what consideration should we give to you, a highly experienced/well-educated post-college person? What have you done to make you Worthwhile?
For some, it could be a few months. For me, it was almost a year from nomination to invitation. At my primary interview, they asked me what I predicted would go on over the following year. I told them, I probably will be attempting to get a job, move into a new community, volunteer some, and if education (it was either education or business) was the option, I'd go get an English Teaching license.
They said, good. Go do that. So I did, more or less...
At the moment, I'm back home after a year away teaching in an after-school program for children of low-income families.
Now, I'm about to start volunteering at the African Community Center that welcomes in new immigrants and settles them in/explains this INSANE culture; Nannying, that will turn into substitute teaching for middle/high school students in a week; practicing at an Arabic Language meetup group weekly; taking Capoeira twice a week; doing Yoga as often as possible--and maybe, when I have the time, salsa dancing.
Because I have these 6/7 months of free time, I decided to take up a few areas of study that have always interested me but I've never had the opportunity. Those are: American Sign Language (ASL) and Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Between the two of them, I'm being driven into the ground--but every day is exciting, and I definitely enjoy the study.
The schedule doesn't leave much room for error, but I'm the kind of person that has to keep busy. Every so often there's a bit of down time, and that's enough for me.
P.S. 5 DAYS!
And, for a feel good moment:
What have you been doing since you've been nominated that should make us vote for you? I mean, invite you..
It is a critical period in the whole process, because prior to the nomination a large segment of the applicant population is finishing up university. What makes you, who has now graduated, a relevant applicant? What have you done that makes you a competitive character? Or, another way--what consideration should we give to you, a highly experienced/well-educated post-college person? What have you done to make you Worthwhile?
For some, it could be a few months. For me, it was almost a year from nomination to invitation. At my primary interview, they asked me what I predicted would go on over the following year. I told them, I probably will be attempting to get a job, move into a new community, volunteer some, and if education (it was either education or business) was the option, I'd go get an English Teaching license.
They said, good. Go do that. So I did, more or less...
At the moment, I'm back home after a year away teaching in an after-school program for children of low-income families.
Now, I'm about to start volunteering at the African Community Center that welcomes in new immigrants and settles them in/explains this INSANE culture; Nannying, that will turn into substitute teaching for middle/high school students in a week; practicing at an Arabic Language meetup group weekly; taking Capoeira twice a week; doing Yoga as often as possible--and maybe, when I have the time, salsa dancing.
Because I have these 6/7 months of free time, I decided to take up a few areas of study that have always interested me but I've never had the opportunity. Those are: American Sign Language (ASL) and Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Between the two of them, I'm being driven into the ground--but every day is exciting, and I definitely enjoy the study.
The schedule doesn't leave much room for error, but I'm the kind of person that has to keep busy. Every so often there's a bit of down time, and that's enough for me.
P.S. 5 DAYS!
And, for a feel good moment:
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