Last College Assignment

Here's my last ever college assignment... a journal of my student teaching experiences here in Scotland.  This is something I have had to do every week since I've been here, but here's the last one.


Topic: CHALLENGES AND SUCCESSES!

1.     Describe how this experience has influenced your teaching or mindset as a teacher, or in general.

I have learned how to accept different ways of doing things.  It has opened my mind up to listen and accept others’ point of view.

2.     What unique teaching skills have you gained by choosing to student teach in an international setting? How are these skills unique to your experience overseas?

I have learned how to adapt my lessons to specific classes.  Since I was teaching the same thing to two classes, I learned how to plan what the characteristics of the students were and what I should teach them during class periods.  I am not sure if this experience is unique or not because at my US placement I would make sure both classes learned the same thing every day, but I also had to adapt lessons when things didn’t work.

3.     Describe any personal influences from this experience. How have you grown as an individual in your thinking and perceptions of the world? How have your perceptions of the United States changed? How will these personal influences impact your teaching, and ultimately the students in your classroom?

I have learned how to behave appropriately to match the country I’m in.  It has helped me to understand this part of the world and hold a true appreciation of it.  I was not very knowledgeable of the Scottish people before I came, but I feel I know a great deal now.  It’s been good to live outside of the US for awhile and see how people view the US.  I have seen that there’s not just one way of doing things and that although the educational system here seemed weird to me at first, now I can see its value.  This will allow me to be a more understanding and adaptable teacher.  I will be able to help my students better by teaching them in different ways and appreciating their diversity.

4.     Describe one professional and one personal success (or special moment) that you had while abroad. Tell how this will impact the way you will teach and interact with colleagues and students in the future.

A professional success happened during my first lesson to 1Y1.  I thought I was teaching the fourth lesson in the chapter, but I was supposed to teach the whole chapter starting with the first lesson.  I was able to plan my lesson quickly and teach the first two lessons in the chapter during that class period successfully.  Personally, I found myself successful getting around the UK independently.  Not having a phone or a friend with me, I was able to use maps and buses to get around to different parts of the country.  The first experience will teach me to plan better, but since I will have my own classroom in the future, that shouldn’t be a problem.  I will also be able to share my experience with my students to encourage them to go to college and study abroad.

My Last Full Weekend in Edinburgh

Well, I'm completely exhausted... it's been a long weekend.

FRIDAY
At school, the S1-S3 students participated in the Olympics!  I helped out with the biathlon (swimming & running).  Luckily I finished early and got to watch [field] hockey and football (soccer).  I really enjoyed watching the hockey and cheering for my students.  I am looking forward to seeing the results tomorrow. 
After school I went to Calton Hill.  That's this big hill with some monuments and great views of the city.  Then I walked down the Royal Mile and headed to the National Museum of Scotland.  I found that extremely boring so I didn't stay long.  Maybe it wasn't so boring, but I had been to London's wonderful museums the week before and it was 4:00 by the time I got there so I was already tired.  Then I went to Elephant House to have a mocha and a sweet.  This is where JK Rowling wrote Harry Potter.  No big deal.  There were elephants everywhere though, it was wonderful.  Then I headed to Greyfriar's Cemetary to get a proper look at Greyfriar's Bobby since last time I was there it was dark.  Then I headed back to my room and called it an early night.

SATURDAY
I spent most of my day at Cramond Island.  When the tide is low, you can walk to the island by a path or through the sand.  I walked through the sand on the way there and the path on the way back.  I saw lots of little crabs in the sand, which was really cool for me.  The island itself was not very interesting.  I sat down and read a book for a little bit.  The tide was coming in so I headed out and went back to my room for the rest of the night.  I took some wonderful pictures, but I lost my camera so unless I get it back, you will never see them.

SUNDAY
Today I went to Holyrood Palace, the Queen's Scotland home.  It was very nice.  Then I walked up Arthur's Seat, an extinct volcano.  It took me about 3 hours to walk to the very top and back down with only a couple short breaks.  It was great because I had a 360 view of the city and the firth.  Then I had dinner at World's End - haggis, neeps, and tatties and cranachan for dessert.  How Scottish of me!

I will add pictures tomorrow probably (for Friday and Sunday).  My computer is being goofy and I'm very tired.

Homesick

Well it took me about 7 weeks, but I'm finally homesick.  It's absolutely gorgeous here today (I wore a dress!) and so I sat at the park for a while after school.  When I got up to start walking back I smelled someone grilling.  Then it hit me.  All the smells and summer feelings made me miss home.  I think I've lasted so long because the weather and overall atmosphere here is very different from what it is like back home.  Now that the weather here is catching up, all I want to do is go home, sit by the pool, grill some delicious food, and drink margaritas.  Only 10 more days til I'm home!  I can't wait!

Masterchef Competition

School went just fine today.  I did get to eat lunch outside, which was awesome.  Today was the nicest weather in Scotland since I've been here!  It was in the 70s (Fahrenheit), which is about 30 degrees higher than it has been... awesome! 

The real fun, though, started after school.  I got to be a judge for the school's Masterchef competition.  There were 13 applicants (4 of my students).  The students could either choose a sweet or a savoury dish to make in 1 hour and 15 minutes.  What all did I eat?  Let's start with the sweets.  Chocolate brownies, Dorset chocolate mousse cake (finalist), chocolate caramel slice, chocolate tart (finalist), profiteroles (finalist - my student!), strawberry tart, fudgy banana muffin (finalist).  So 4 of the students who made sweets are moving on to the finals.  The savoury dishes:  cheese and bacon pasta, fish and chips (my student - almost made it), potato curry with rice (finalist), salmon and broccoli tarts (finalist - my student!), Indian chicken curry (finalist), veggie curry (finalist - my student!).  That means there are 8 people that made it to the finals.  Why 8?  Because the judges couldn't compromise on 6.  The finals were supposed to be next week but since lots of the students are in France, it's the following week.  Damn, that means I won't be here for it.  It was a fun experience, though.  Plus, I got a free dinner out of it!

When I got back "home" I checked my e-mail and I got some wonderful news.  I have been selected for the Southeast Student Spotlight!  I answered a bunch of questions about school and my life for them.  Not sure when that will be posted, but I will attach it when that happens.  Here's the link to the recent Student Spotlights so you can get a feel of what it is: http://www.semo.edu/spotlights/students.htm

A Truly Magical Day

Today I went to WB Studio Tour London: The Making of Harry Potter. In no words can I describe to you how absolutely fantastic this place is. If you in any way even like the Harry Potter movies you need to get there as fast as you can. I'm sure it will be open for a long long time though.

I got to see original sets, props, and other magical things. I even tried some [delicious] butterbeer. It is just absolutely incredible how they were able to create such a magical world.

Pictures are worth a thousand words right? (Maybe more when these are your pictures.) 

When I got back in the city I decided to check out Westminster Abbey with my spare time. I got to see it on Easter but it was great to be able to walk around and spend more time looking at the sites. I also sat by the river for a bit.

Then I went back to the hostel to pick up my suitcase.  My coach left on time but due to construction, I got into Manchester later than expected.  It worked out just fine though.  So I spent pretty much 12 hours on a coach bus.  It was awful, but cheapest way to travel I could find.

My trip was absolutely fabulous.  I am very lucky to be able to do these things (and grateful I had the money saved up).

Marvelous Museums

It's amazing how closely I am sticking to my original plan. I went to the Natural History Museum first. It was incredible (and free). I started in the volcano section which actually made me quite sad because of all the deaths they cause. Shout out to my friend Kevin for surviving one! Other natural disasters, how life began, ...and dinosaurs! I loved that. Lots and lots of fossils. It made me really want to have a Jurassic Park, Land Before Time, and Night at the Museum marathon. Ben Stiller would have had his hands full at that museum! They also had a part with mammals. The giant whale was really cool! Alright so that was about a 3.5 hour museum trip.

Then I headed next door to the Science Museum. Maybe not my best idea because I'm sure I was too tired to get the most out of it. They had all sorts of American space stuff. Why are we giving this stuff to England? I really enjoyed it but it seemed weird they had a bunch of our stuff. I went on a short 4D ride to the moon and back. Only money I spent on the museum tho besides food. The museum also had a lot of planes, trains, and automobiles (yes, I did that on purpose). There were a lot of computer activities so I wasted lots of time there. I basically skipped the fun hands-on stuff because I was running out of time and much of it was like the St. Louis Science Center. I did make it to the awesome math exhibit before the museum closed. As a math nerd, it was pretty great. Wish I could have went during my time at SEMO - it would have given me inspiration and help with my math papers and presentations. So then at like 6 or whatever time it was, the museum kicked everybody out. So thats my story of how I spent 8 hours at 2 museums.

I took the tube back. But I lost my day ticket so I had to spend an extra £4.30 on a one way ticket. That sucked. Decided I would go straight back to my hostel/bar since my feet are in absolute pain and I'm wiped out from my day.

Harry Potter tomorrow!

London, my new love

Today was a-maz-ing. I got into London at 6:45am from my coach bus. Sitting in a bus that long and trying to sleep is difficult, but it wasn't too bad. When I got in I went straight to my hostel. I changed my clothes and such and I got rid of my suitcase. My hostel is above a bar. How wild is that? Then I headed for Victoria station and bought a day ticket for the tube. I went to King's Cross station so I could get a Platform 9 3/4 picture. Success!

Then I got back on the tube and went to Trafalgar Square! This is where the Harry Potter premiere was. I know because I watched the live feed online last summer. Amazing. In the same place as all those wonderful celebs who hold a dear place in my heart. I'm lame but I know lots of you understand where I'm coming from.

Then I started walking onto my next destination: The British Museum. On my way I bought a ticket to see Jersey Boys at 3:00 today. Only £20... Not too shabby. Alright so the museum was the most incredible thing I've ever seen. The Egypt pats were by far the most astounding but the Greece parts were a close second. I spent the first 20 minutes in complete awe. Jaw dropping. And its free! Can't get better than that. I spent about 3 hours in there. Could have slowed down a bit but I was worried about making it to my show on time. Had a great lunch at a diner where I typed all this up until now :)

Rosetta Stone

Jersey Boys was great! The theatre reminded me of The Fox in St. Louis. I sat on the side sort of but it wasn't too bad. I realized I like a lot of songs by The Four Seasons so if anyone could lend those to me that would be great. After the musical I took a walk and a tube ride and walked over millennium bridge. I went to Tate Modern but that was a mistake. I do not understand modern art for the life of me. And they had way too many exhibits you had to pay for - a lot of money too. So no thanks. Then I came back to my hostel. I am in the middle of a three tiered bunk bed. I guess it will have to do for 2 nights.