so we have a seminar course every thursday night, which is basically 40+ student teachers bitching about stuff and excruciatingly boring
every day i get critiques and constructive criticism from my cooperating teachers, which i take notes on so i can remember what to improve and how
so here are my notes from my first week of full-time teaching
all in all, i’m having so much fun! i actually get up at 6am excited about going to work/school and that feeling lasts all day
Week 1 Reflection
This week I took over teaching 4 classes: 2 US History, and 2 Psychology. There have been ups and downs. Even though I have created unit plans for the next 2-3 weeks, I still felt like I was planning every day for the next day, constantly making changes and revising the plan. The following are my day-to-day reflections.
Monday 3/23
Psychology
Mrs. O says reading aloud is too easy, not challenging enough, and that I need to teach college skills. Still, they were quiet and attentive, they volunteered to read and answered my questions. Plus they were polite and thanked me for the cookies!
- Do I need to have an assignment for every class?
US History
Mr. S says I got stuck behind the desks and I lectured for too long, need to get students more involved. I tried to change it up during 6th and he said it was better.
- focus on learning students’ names and getting out from behind the desks
Tuesday 3/24
US History
(The lesson was flat and felt disconnected, I was bummed)
Mr. S says there was no clear reason for the lesson – foggy
Need to make clear connections – what’s the objective? Reinforce the objective with the class
Remember they hate history, and to make better connections to what they already know. Remember that kids like the dark side of history.
“Education is to take what they know and connect it to something they don’t know”
- Use their names more
- work on transitioning from small groups to whole class
- must address side conversations during 6th hour
- remember it’s difficult to divide and regroup
- increased and more effective questioning
- establish routines for collecting and distributing papers
+ good proximity to students
+ better at involving students in lecture/conversation
Thursday 3/26
Psychology
- taught some good internet research skills
- need to notice and reprimand re: dress code violations
- got almost all their names memorized
- felt pretty good about handling questions and challenges from students, comfortable dealing with questions and provocations
- Mrs. O thinks extra credit assignments are stupid because they should focus on completing the “real” assignments
- A student challenged me about the supposedly discriminatory nature of the “what is abnormal?” worksheet – solution: planning a lesson for Monday on respecting cultural diversity and diagnosing with appropriate attitude
Mrs. O’s Lessons for the week for me
1. make connections between lesson
2. balance content and skills
3. slow down!
4. remember that this is all new information for them
5. Repetition is the best teacher (repeat and review and repeat = scaffolding)
6. Don’t be too friendly with the students
US History
- proud that I memorized all their names already
- need a new seating chart to enforce in 6th period to address chatting
- Mr. S says to expect more challenges to my authority as the weeks continue
- Remember to use some kind of guide or assignment to pair with movie clips
- Mr. S’s quote of the week: “your teaching, well, it’s not horrible… but its not amazing either”*
- Good first week, showed improvement
- Plan further in advance
- Don’t allow for any free time, plan for more than 45 minutes just in case
* this just blew my mind, i mean, how ridiculously unhelpful is that? don’t you think most people fall somewhere between horrible and amazing with almost any task they attempt? was that supposed to be encouraging? just think about it – neither horrible nor amazing…
Filed under: Uncategorized
so i started student teaching last week, and tomorrow i take over the classes full-time for 9 weeks
i have 2 sections of Psychology with Mrs. O and 2 sections of US History with Mr. S (i also volunteered to run set design and construction for the high school musical because i apparently want to work even harder than necessary for no money!)
i have to write weekly reflections for class every thursday night so it seemed like a good time to start blogging again.
today i baked 100 cookies for my students; i don’t know why exactly but when i get anxious i bake.
i’m actually very excited to start teaching – to grade assignments and watch presentations, to lecture and quiz…
it’s gonna be great! (but really i just want them to like me!)
Filed under: Uncategorized
Carla from Top Chef
Sideshow Bob
…
am i the only one who sees it?
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: food, high fructose corn syrup, stupid commercials
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYiEFu54o1E
(my brtoher and my sist-erin-law are the key players, I was sound and camera crew, costume design and creative consultant)
ok, so life has been a little turbulent around here…
breaking up with Bear, going through a couple jobs, awesome vacation in northern Michigan, and now the flu, plus finding out that Bear already has a new little Bunny…
so i was having dinner with Mom and Sis-in-Law and little Twiggy (and little Eggbert, the latest addition to the family who’s still in the embryo phase)
and we were talking about all this drama, and then Elizabeth Gilbert’s “Eat, Pray, Love” came up.
Mom gave it to me for my birthday but I just started reading it over the weekend. I haven’t finished it yet, but Mom was spot on with this pick.
Gilbert’s tale begins with a spiritual longing brought into sharp focus by depression and despair stemming from marital difficulties which eventually result in divorce. Gilbert is a travel & food writer.
So I was saying to Sis-in-law how much I identified with Gilbert’s approach to relationships, and her spiritual search and then I said “yeah and she gets to work through all this stuff while traveling around being a writer!”
And Sis-in-law says “you could be a travel/food writer!”
which of course i dismissed because there are seriously so many bloggers in the world who want to be food/travel writers…
and then I was telling Sis about the Omnivore’s Hundred and how surprised I was that even though I’ve only left the country once (Scotland last spring) I’d eaten so many things on the list.
And she said “So are you going to try to eat the rest of the list?”
And I thought “Hmmm…”
So here’s the idea, we’ll call it “Eating the Rest of the List”
- I will attempt to eat the remaining items off the list and write about each experience
(bonus points if I travel first and eat the item in it’s native surroundings)
- I will consume as many of these items as possible outside of Chicago
- I will take the best pictures I can of these experiences
- I will try to finish within a year (August 19, 2009)*
- I may or may not post these on this blog… but I will write about all of them
Here are the remaining items in no particular order, with one of their native lands:
1. Nettle tea (UK)
2. Steak tartare (France)
3. Carp (In Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia and Poland, a shachlo of carp is a traditional part of a Christmas Eve dinner)
4. Epoisses (France)
5. Black truffle (France)
6. Pistachio ice cream (probably upgrade to gelato… Italy)
7. Brawn, or head cheese (UK)
8. Bagna cauda (Italy)
9. Cognac with a fat cigar (France… or Cuba?)
10. Curried goat (Jamaica)
11. Fugu (Japan)
12. Prickly pear (southwestern US/Mexico)
13. Umeboshi (Japan)
14. Poutine (Quebec)
15. Carob chips (unfortunately, only in America)
16. Sweetbreads (France)
17. Currywurst (Germany)
18. Durian (Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia)
19. Louche absinthe (France)
20. Gjetost, or brunost (Norway or Sweden)
21. Baijiu (China)
22. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant (maybe New York City?)
23. Kobe beef (Japan)
24. Horse (still ew… very popular in Tonga, a place I’ve always wanted to visit… China tops the list in production)
25. Criollo chocolate (Central America, the Caribbean islands and the northern tier of South American state)
26. Rose harissa (Tunisia/North Africa)
27. Snake (US/China)
I think a trip to Asia is definitely in order! Maybe during winter break… is it warm there in early december?
Maybe then I’ll hit the UK, France, Italy, and more of Europe next summer…
and i definitely foresee a long weekend in Montreal sometime soon!
Mo, you’d better help me out with some of this!
*I swear it’s a coincidence that this would have been my 4-year anniversary with Bear, but what a nice way to commemorate it!
Filed under: Uncategorized
i’m still here peeps! Just been hit over the head with work and vacation and now sickness… I’ll do a real post soon I promise!
The Omnivore’s Hundred is an eclectic and entirely subjective list of 100 items that Andrew Wheeler, co-author of the British food blog Very Good Taste, thinks every omnivore should try at least once in his life.
He offered this list as the starting point for a game, along the following rules:
1. Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten
3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating. (‘m not bothering with this since I’d try anything once!)
4. Optional extra: post a comment on Very Good Taste, linking to your results.
I think it’s kind of a weird arbitrary list, but whatever, here goes:
1. Venison (YUM!)
2. Nettle tea (?)
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare (been meaning to try it…)
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp (ewww… reminds me of the giant armor-plated carp that live in the Chicago River, processing so many metals that their scales become several inches thick and strong enough to repel bullets!)
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Phở
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses (random raw-milk cheese)
17. Black truffle ($$$)
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes (apple, cherry, plum, pear…)
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream (?)
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese (next time i go to the UK!)
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda (Italian anchovy dip… i do like anchovies!)
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl (don’t know why it has to be in the bread bowl…)
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float (just had my first one this summer!)
36. Cognac with a fat cigar (had cigars… not too excited about cognac really…)
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail (in soup, thanks Pedro!)
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/€80/$120 or more (oh hells yeah!)
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine (I can’t wait to try this – a canadian masterpiece of french fries topped with fresh cheese curds and smothered in brown gravy!)
60. Carob chips (gross)
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads (working on it)
63. Kaolin (is this even really a food? but technically yes i’ve consumed it…)
64. Currywurst (one more reason to go to Germany)
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette (took me a minute to realize they meant chitlins!)
71. Gazpacho (not a big fan)
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe (a special kind of super-authentic stuff)
74. Gjetost, or brunost (Norwegian cheese)
75. Roadkill (instinctually almost wrote that this is the one thing i’d never try but… remembered that i once ate pan-fried robin’s breast after we hit it with a car while doing field work for our Field Ornithology (aka Birdwatching) course… I’d like to say it was the prof’s idea, but I certainly said it first after considering the prof’s long history with eating all kinds of crazy birds in the past… He’s Canadian…)
76. Baijiu (extra-strong Chinese booze)
77. Hostess Fruit Pie (thanks to my Dad who loves gas station food and shared that love with me)
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant ($$$ someday, someday…)
85. Kobe beef (another $$$ item)
86. Hare
87. Goulash (at a fantastic Serbian restaurant in Milwaukee)
88. Flowers (nasturtiums are my particular favorite)
89. Horse (very hard to imagine ever eating this… but never say never)
90. Criollo chocolate (from Wikipedia: Representing only five percent of all cocoa beans grown, criollo is the rarest and most expensive cocoa on the market)
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa (definitely need to up my harissa intake)
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake
Well I’ve got 73 out of 100, so only 27 more to go!
This is a totally weird list and while I feel kinda cool for having tried so many of these things, I am certain that I have been aided by the vast variety available in my fabulous city!
Filed under: Uncategorized
so Sequin and I, Jersey Knit, had another fabulous evening watching Project Runway in Boystown
This time we managed to finish about 1.5 pitchers of margaritas during the episode so progress was definitely made.
We were so glad that ruffle dress girl Emily got sent home because that dress was pure FUG. The best part was when her dress walked down the runway and they showed her picture and i said “it would be a lot better if she had done flat stripes or something instead of ruffles” and Sequin and I also concluded that the dress itself should have had more movement in it, like a swingy skirt with bright streaks going through it or something… and then when it was Judging Time Nina said the exact same thing!!!
sweet!
in other news and reviews:
Blayne totally surprised us! his picture was such a neon rainbow riot that we gasped in fear of what he would make but this:
was actually kind of fierce!
sweet little Jennifer… we didn’t think this was so bad actually
sure it’s conservative, not too sexy… reminds me of Charlotte from Sex in the City, like going out to dinner or the symphony and not the clubs
and seriously I can’t for the life of me picture Joe in my mind, but i remember loving this dress, except i was concerned about the little train thing in the back…
I had called the Loser’s Edit on Keith early in the episode and I certainly didn’t waver when i saw this piece of “serious ugly” walking down the runway
and also, this model needs to calm down a bit, you can almost see the desperation in that pose sweetie
Kenley, girl, your designs have been pretty darn good but on the real – no way this weirdness would have won if you hadn’t had the FIERCEST model in the history of the show!
Shannone – just keep doing what you do so well!
I don’t know what to say about Leanne – the dress seemed really boring, but Sequin and I figured that it must have looked better on the runway than for the camera… we did agree that the styling of the model was perfect though, and that Karalyn is another model to watch for sure!
after the show we did karaoke, including a couple numbers picked by some of our new friends… yes okay i admit it, we sang for shots! it was a brilliant brainwave on my part, at least it seemed so at the time…
I believe Sequin kept track but from what i can remember we sang: I Want It That Way by the Backstreet Boys, Hey Mickey, Truly Madly Deeply by Savage Garden, and to my deep utter delight one of our new friends chose “Picture” by Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow
I also did a solo rendition of “Mercedes Benz”
oh AND I got hit on! TWICE! by straight men!! in a gay bar!!!
hahahahahahahahaha
and did you know that i’m an awesome dancer?!!
what a great night…
Filed under: Uncategorized
when you’re cleaning out your brother’s apartment
i just hope Raphael has a spare set…
Filed under: Uncategorized
the green city farmer’s market in lincoln park has some super awesome stuff
not just produce, but the great prepared food stalls too
these are the smoothies available, before they are blended
just apple cider and fruit (strawberry and blueberry on the left, strawberry and rhubarb on the right)
then they blend it up and it’s the best thing ever! beats jamba juice on its ass!
i also had a Heartland Elk burger the other day which was fantastic, nice and lean!
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: chad michael murray, dawson's creek, dreams, fantasies, joey potter, lucas scott, one tree hill
so i have a confession to make – i’m in love with Chad Michael Murray
First he made an appearance on Dawson’s Creek, my favorite high school drama (i identified strongly with Joey Potter back then, not sure why…)
Then I met his doppelganger, my best friend’s friend, and my infatuation grew as i got to actually spend time with an incredibly awesome Chad Michael Murray facsimile
and then One Tree Hill hit the airwaves and hasn’t quit since!
my dreams, my fantasies – from the steamy to the completely mundane (shopping at target, walking to class together) – are all fulfilled by this gorgeous man…
