There is Good...

Some days I feel like I did everything wrong...
I need to remember to find the good, and try again tomorrow.

Teaching is hard.

Lately, I have been having a rough time with work and life. I am not sure what's bothering me... is it the struggle that most students aren't understanding the material? Is it the image I placed on having a perfect class that is making me feel bad? Is it that I am being too hard on myself about my lessons? Am I focusing on the little things rather than the big picture? Today, I gave myself permission to make mistakes. I know no one is perfect, and yet I was giving myself a hard time. I am my worst critic. I always struggled with finding positive things to say about myself, and maybe that was part of my upbringing... but it's not healthy... It's my first year teaching in PUBLIC SCHOOL. There's a whole lot of stuff I do not know... I have faith that things will get better, and I will learn how to adjust my lessons to meet the needs of my students. I also need to give myself room to breathe and not be so hard on myself. I need to remember to ...

Lesson Planning is FUN!

Dining/ Work Table

This was my table this afternoon as I was working on my lesson plans for tomorrow. It looks a bit overwhelming, but don't fret... it was the perfect set up for me. I have a nice open window that looks out to several trees, a river, the big blue sky, soft fluffy clouds, and two main roads. It turned out to be a nice day after all.  I should have worked more, but I took a break and went Labor Day shopping. Oh my... the stores looked like a tornado went through it!!! Thankfully, I was able to make it out with the items I purchased for my home and for my work without being tossed around too much. This is going to be my third week staying in this condo. It's quite nice, and I have a lovely neighbor who I hope to go on evening walks with. She owns several vending machines in Bellevue and stocks them on Sundays. I was able to go swimming yesterday at the local community pool, and it was amazing! Swimming is such a great exercise. I hope I can go at least once a week... The pool is actually located right next to where I work. The only thing is that the times for lap swimming are a bit later in the evening on the weekdays than I would like... I don't think I would like to stick around after work for 3 hours... We'll see what happens. Maybe I can make it a Friday and Sunday thing to do. 

Did I mention how my first two days of teaching went? Well, the first day was chaotic! Students coming in and out. Students lost. I was lost, and I didn't even need to change rooms. :) Overall, it was not the worse... Day 2 went more smoothly and it was really nice to get to see students again and get to talk to them a bit more. I think it'll get better as time goes on... granted there will always be an off day here and there. Cheers to finishing two days out of 180 school days! 

Bring on Week #2 of teaching!!! :)

Life in South Seattle

Sunrise from my home.

I moved into my new home in south Seattle on Sunday, August 23rd, and the next morning there was a lovely sunrise. I can also see Mt. Ranier... It's not pictured in the photo, but it's to the right of the tree. :) I went shopping everyday after work this week... Monday - Ikea & Costco. Tuesday - Target & Ross. Wednesday - Trader Joe's. Today... I'm planning to go to the Chinese supermarket called 99 Ranch Market. Tomorrow I'll probably end up going to Ikea to get some things I forgot or didn't realize I needed from my first trip. 

My Classroom!!

Yesterday I finished THREE full days of planning curriculum and assessment for my 6th grade math classes. I am so grateful for the math department. Everyone is so welcoming and easy to talk to and soooooooooo funny!!! I feel very comfortable with my team, and it feels like I've known them for years. Above is a photo of my classroom when I walked in. I did some rearranging yesterday... The desks take up a lot of space because the chairs are attached! I like to have a horse-shoe layout... and I tried that yesterday, and it was a bit difficult. I also moved my desk to the back of the room. Look out for before and after photos. They will come later... Maybe next week. Oh, I start teaching next week! Next week Thursday is the first day of school. Yes, it's before Labor Day, which is quite strange for the U.S. Public Schools here usually start after Labor Day... Not this year. It's a unique year... Speaking about 2015... On Monday, my department did a get to know you activity where you draw a penny from a bag and whatever year that is on the penny you need to share something significant from that year... Guess which year I got? Yep... 2015. So many changes this year, and it's not even over yet... hahaha. The best part of 2015 is just about to begin... teaching middle school math! I can't wait!!!!!

Back to Public School Teaching

Did I mention I will be working at Showalter Middle School? I will be teaching 6th grade math in Tukwila School District. It will be my first full-time teaching position in the States AND I am beyond excited and looking forward to it. I am grateful for the many experiences and learning opportunities while I was teaching in Kawagoe, Japan. I am ready for this next chapter.

These last two days I have had new hire training at the district office, which is to the right of this photo. :) The school district consists of 3 elementary schools, 1 middle school, and 1 high school. How amazing is that??? It's one of the most diverse school districts in the nation. There are over 80 world languages spoken within this district. The training had lots of information divvied up to all the new hire. There was so much information that was covered it's hard to say what exactly was covered. ha! I found it beneficial to see that the district is proactive in making changes to improve and better itself for its student population.  Change is scary and people will be resistant to it, but when we get out of the comfort zone that is where we are allowed to grow and expand.

Cheers to the 2015~2016 school year to all the educators/ mentors/ advocates/ parents/ students/ administrators/ everyone involved in creating a more equitable education for all students around the world. Keep up the great work.

Back in the U. S. of A.

I had an amazing opportunity to travel to Hong Kong, Vietnam, and around Japan after I finished teaching. It was great!! I will miss the opportunity to travel around Asia... but it won't be the last time I travel there.

I returned April 1, 2015. Being back in the U.S. was a lot smoother than I thought it was going to be. There were moments of culture shock during the first month of being back, but I got over it. I was looking forward to being back in the U.S., so I think that helped. Luckily, I got a summer job at the partner university that I worked with in Japan. I was surrounded by people I have worked with before and around students who I am familiar with. It couldn't have been any better than that!!

My summer in Oregon is coming to an end, and I have been fortunate to work, to see friends, to see family, to have health insurance, to exercise, to go out to eat, to find a job, to go camping, and much much more. I do not know what I have done to be so fortunate. I feel so privileged. I am grateful for everything that I have and yet I want more. I'm working on following my dreams of ... traveling and teaching middle school math. Soon I'll be in a public school teaching middle school math. I hope to teach abroad again someday... and knowing me I will strive for that dream. I'm content with my current situation and I am eager to see where I will be 5 years from now... 10 years from now... Inshallah.