"Don't be sad that it is over, be glad that it happened."

It is quite surprising how fast the semester goes by... Upon looking back, I rarely posted about the incredible events and moments that I would have loved to document on my blog. These moments will always be with me in my heart, and I would have been more grateful to have shared those experiences to the greater community.

The final weeks of the program were bittersweet. There were joyful and relieved faces that finals were done, yet there were melancholy faces that the study abroad experience was coming to an end... At the Graduation Ceremony this past Friday, 130 young adult Japanese college students finished an intensive 10 month American Studies Program in Salem, Oregon at Willamette University. Majority of the students flew back to their hometowns in Japan Saturday morning. Their experiences in the States will always be a part of them whether they are conscious of it or not. Their time in another country, culture, language allows them to grow and stretch in ways they would never have been able to do if they did not take that step to journey outside their safety box. I appreciate the bravery, creativity, and spirit of these students...

すみません。

こんばんは。

Good evening.

I always think about posting a new POST, and I'm not sure why I don't! So many great things happen everyday, and I learn new things about teaching EVERYDAY.

I'll give you the "quick & dirty" rundown:

• Vocabulary Class: we visited the Mill Museum, played kickball on Sparks Field
• Volunteerism Class: we interviewed the principal and coordinator at the volunteer site, volunteered with the kids in the daycare
• ZUMBA!!!
• Learning Japanese - meeting with my Japanese tutor once a week, and started a Japanese class
• Tutoring
• Building language with context is the most memorable way to learn a language
• The importance of modeling, the giving gradual release of responsibility, and scaffolding
• "Love what you do, and do what you Love."

ありがとうございます。

paparazzi photos!

Guess who's the dork in the blue on the left with her mouth wide open?? Yep!! Me!!

Officially on the TIUA Website under the Faculty Tab on the BOTTOM click GTFs!

Where's Eva? 10 points if you can find me.

This was taken back in June when we were in Tokyo for the reunion...
The Willamette University Reunion is this weekend!!! :)

A day in volunteerism class...

What a great start to the week! Today I led majority of the class time in several activities in the Volunteerism class.

We worked on predicting skills, word fluency, vocabulary, comprehension skills, identifying main ideas, and pronunciation. AND we ran out of time to review and have a closure activity. :( I will continue to finish reviewing and check for understanding on Wednesday.  Time went by so quickly!! Some activities did take longer than expected, but I am getting used to that. There are things I would like to improve in my teaching. How I word my questions, and how I check for understanding.  I think I could have done better by asking questions that show the students comprehend the article, and I could have had them fill something out as we read the article about each paragraph.  In the end they would do a summary of the whole article. Do you think that would help??? 

Anyhoo... The more that I am guiding activities in the classroom the more I am able to learn what could work and what I need to do better. In the back of my mind I am constantly thinking about what to do that could work when I am in Japan teaching. I am getting more and more excited, and with that I am still nervous!! I am very grateful for these months of training at TIUA before I head out to TIU. It is such an amazing experience!! 

New beginnings...

My apologies for the lack of posts!! The summer came and went so quickly...

Visiting Japan was absolutely a blessing! It was amazing to have the opportunity to travel and network with many great people.

Yes, the school year has started over here at TIUA/ Willamette University in Salem, Oregon... We are moving into our third week of classes tomorrow!! Who would have thought?

I am co-teaching Vocabulary Building Strategies, and Volunteerism with a Focus on Teen Pregnancy. I am working with two amazing mentor teachers from TIUA, and I am very lucky to have such wonderful mentors that are so great! The past few weeks have been a big adjustment to working with Japanese students, working with mentor teachers, learning about campus-life, getting used to my work schedule, and of course the great balancing act between work and life outside of work!  I am fortunate to live close to work and I can commute with ease. Very very lucky... I am learning a lot from my coworkers, mentor teachers, students, and administrative staff! Everyone is very helpful and want us to get a good experience working at TIUA.  I think that the experience for the fall semester is worth all the work!!! There are still some unknowns, but I have faith that all will work out... it always does... [7amdolah]

Let the countdown to Japan begin!

COUNTDOWN CLOCK WIDGET

transition phase

Here is a snapshot of my trifold from the Teacher Research Symposium! It was quite the day. It was wonderful to hear and learn about what others saw in their teaching practices. I found it beneficial to hear from my classmates and what they tried in their classrooms. :)

My oldest sister is now a doctor of pharmacy! She graduated June 8th from University of Washington in Seattle. It was quite the joyous event. Four years of studying is quite the endeavor! Congrats Cheryl!

My last day with my middle school students was on Wednesday, June 13th. It was great to send off the kids for summer. They were totally ready for the end, and so was I!! haha. It was a great experience working with these kiddos, and I am looking for a way to continue working with them in the fall school year on top of working at Tokyo International University of America (TIUA).

Speaking about TIUA, we had our first official meeting yesterday. I gave them all the paperwork, they gave us all these handouts to look at. I got to meet my whole team in one setting, which was great!  We have another meeting on Tuesday afternoon before we fly out Thursday to Tokyo. :)

Final Conference DONE!

Hey there world!

I have just completed my final conference for getting my teaching license!!!  :D It feels amazing to be on the homestretch.

The only few things left to do are...

1. Teacher Prospectus Paper
2. Teacher Research Symposium
3. Edit Work Sample
4. ML Language Arts Test

I have a job lined up right after finishing school, and it is fantastic to believe that my goals and dreams are coming true... if only my body was not feeling weak and sick. I woke up this morning heavily congested. I tried to wash it all out when I took a shower, but no good.  It has stayed all day.  I took ibuprofen in the morning, and this afternoon I took Advil.  Still feeling the pain... Hopefully, I will be better tomorrow. I have my test!

Anyhoo... that is what is happening in my little world. :)

peace.