RUGBY and DANCING

It is almost the weekend! I am ready for a relaxing day on the beach. Bre and I will be heading out to the Bay of Plenty, which has amazing sand beaches and a relaxing atmosphere. Taking time to stop, relax, take a breath, and reflect is essential for teachers. I am learning this VERY quickly. I am so happy that I am in New Zealand right now because it is such a beautiful and perfect place for teacher rejuvenation time. I hope to share photos of the beautiful ocean once I get back.

Today was an excellent day of learning for the students. We had a special visitor come speak to the class. His name is Norm Hewitt and he played rugby for the New Zealand team, which is called the All Blacks. He is such an inspiration to the students because he was a professional athlete and he is part Maori. He did not come to Green Bay Primary to just share his story about playing rugby with the students, but to also promote the SPCA.

The SPCA is like our Humane Society back home. He told the children that over 18,000 animals go to the SPCA each year for supplies, vet care, or a new home. New Zealand has had to deal with a lot of cases of animal abuse recently and Norm spoke about how animal abuse directly links to other types of violence. The students learned that Norm's dad used to beat his mother and animals were his only comfort while growing up. His message was very serious and "hit home" for some of my students and impacted all of the students. Norm Hewitt was also on New Zealand's first version of Dancing with the Stars and he won the competition. I think that sent a good message to my male students because right now they are trying to identify what's "cool" for men to be doing. The special visitor event taught me that the most essential learning doesn't happen in the classroom, but through real-life interactions and special occasions that students may not get to experience within a normal school day or at home. My students are dealing with "real life" situations and academic skills are probably one of their last priorities. Norm connected with the students and probably impacted them in a way that applies to the major issues many are dealing with at this time in their lives.

Week 4

It is week four at school already! Where did the time go? Some of my big projects are starting to take off and I am learning more and more about the students everyday. My students have a large range of abilities and talents and I am now finding how important it is to differentiate in the classroom. Small groups are a great way to differentiate and Green Bay Primary focuses on placing students in groups for most subjects. I believe that this is best for the students and I am learning how to best organize small group activities.

This past weekend Bre and I stayed in Auckland. The highlight of our time off was on Friday night when Bre and I made dinner for her host family. We struggled with the idea of making a "typical American meal" because we never really had to define what food is "American" before now. We decided to make BBQ beef sandwiches, potatoes, salad, and apple crisp. It turned out to be a huge hit! During the weekend we also toured downtown Auckland and went to a food and wine festival. One food that I ate was called a Whitebait Fritter. The base was a pancake-like batter with then whole little fish all stuck within them. I was fine biting into the little fishies, until Bre's host dad pointed out the little fish eyes that were looking at me inside the fritter. Whitebait Fritters seem to be a local delicacy, however I don't think I'll be trying one again soon.

I am still searching for the best classroom management style. It has only been 3 weeks at Green Bay Primary and at times I wish that the answer to best classroom management would suddenly just click in my brain. However, I doubt that it will ever be this easy. I spoke with my cooperating teacher about my small frustration in the struggle to figure out classroom management. Her response was the classroom management is probably the one thing that most educators struggle with and that she is still figuring it out and adapting it to each class. I know that my classroom management style will continue to change and I will take advantage of all opportunities that lead to classroom managements that is the best fit for me.

I am at the point of my time abroad that I suddenly forget that I am in a different country than the United States. I think that this is a good because I am feeling comfortable and am gradually becoming part of the New Zealand culture. I continue to learn new Kiwi and Maori phrases and my goal is to incorporate them into my daily language.

Today we tested our students in writing through an asTTle assessment. I am curious to see where each students stands on their writing abilities. I am going to begin the writing unit on descriptive language, but it is important for me to first assess student progress and build from there. Students will be organized into writing groups based on their writing levels. I have found that maths, reading, writing, and even physical education have students broken into groups in order for students to work at their ability level. I need to adapt my teaching to each student's need, which I believe is best for the children and also a challenge for myself.

Bre and I will be staying in Auckland for the weekend. We plan to do various activities with Bre's host family and I will be sure to update you on the adventures we experience on our time off of school.

Officially Welcomed

I am starting a new week at Green Bay Primary and I am starting to really settle into the school. Last Thursday I was officially welcomed into the school through a Maori ritual called a Pōwhiri. The entire school assembled in the hall and all new students, teachers, and student teachers made a procession into the hall. There were speeches from Maori members of the school to welcome us and the Maori club called Kapa Haka, which includes students and teachers, performed songs. Then, a new teacher gave a speech on behalf of all the new people of the school and then we sang a song for everyone in the assembly. It is also a tradition to do a Hongi, which is the the pressing of noses between those who are welcoming the new people and the new people. The Hongi signifies the joining together of two groups of people. After I pressed my nose against various members of the school then I got a take part in a small feast, which is a great way to end a welcoming ceremony.

I am beginning to organize a large unit for the students with the big idea of bullying. There is a program called Kia Kaha that has the foundation of creating a bully-free and unified environment. I am going to expand on this idea. The summative assessment will include students making anti-bullying campaigns that will be captured on video. Students will then use Movie Maker to create their final anti-bullying movie. This will be a large project and I am really excited to see where it leads.

This weekend was very exciting. I went with my host parents to the Bay of Islands, which is north of Auckland. It is so beautiful, as you can see from the pictures I posted. My favorite part of the trip was the Dolphin Encounter that Bre and I went on Sunday morning. We went on a boat early in the morning with other dolphin-passionate tourists. We saw many dolphins near and far from the boat, which was totally magical. The dolphins were swimming, jumping, and playing and it was quite a site. Bre and I even attempted to swim with the dolphins, but they were pretty fast and it was hard to keep up to their speed. I still can't believe how blessed I am to be part of such an amazing adventure!!!

Learning Everyday

It is almost the weekend and I know that I need some time to take a step back away from school and reflect. Teaching intermediate level students is such a skill. Today my teacher was not at school due to a funeral that she had to attend. My teacher let me take a lot of control over the classroom while the reliever (substitute teacher) was there. I felt confident and was ready to run through the day as if my teacher was present. There were many obstacles and bullying has seemed to already be a huge issue within the classroom and syndicate. I am upset that bullying is occurring and the classroom teacher and I will teach the students what intolerable behavior looks and sounds like. However, the reliever was so talented at sorting out the bullying behavior and organizing her expectations for appropriate behavior that I learned a lot today about managing a middle school classroom. The reliever and I sat after school and I learned about her management techniques as a teacher and how I can integrate them into my teaching style. The lesson that I am most taking away from her is that students will need to talk through conflicts with the teacher, but inevitably the students need to make a choice to do the good behavior. The teacher can tell the student that they have a couple choices to pick from and after the teacher presents the choices it is the role of the student to decide what they think is best and then take action. I plan to work on conversing and problem solving skills as the term rolls on.

This weekend my host parents are taking Bre and me to the Bay of Islands. I have heard that it is such a wonderful and beautiful area in the North Island. The activity I am most excited about is the Dolphin Encounter where we will go out in a boat and potentially swim with the dolphins. We'll see what other adventures we get to take part in....

Start to the year...

I am really getting to know my students, which is wonderful. However, my goal for this week is to work on my "firm but fair" teaching style. My cooperating teacher models this management strategy really well and it takes practice to perfect. I am now in charge of lining the students up and taking the roll. Additionally, I am now leading our morning team building Circle Time which occurs everyday. Circle Time is made for students to bond and support their classmates socially, emotionally, and academically. My teacher noticed from previous years of teaching Years 7/8 that the students tend to form cliques and socially bully other students. She decided that the best way to end these conflicts is through making her classroom a small, safe community where students are willing to share problems and jubilations with the teachers and classmates. Circle Time is a place where every student must share a "brag" and a "drag" that is occurring in their lives. Also, students share a goal for the day. It is interesting to see what each students' goal is for the day and then have the class support their classmates in reaching those goals.

I have learned that structuring the beginning of the year correctly is essential to a successful school year, which is why we are concentrating on putting procedures in place for the students.

Bre and I had a fantastic weekend in Rotorua. We went whitewater rafting (see the picture above), zorbing (rolling down a grassy hill in a giant plastic ball), luging (without any snow!), and rode a gondola. Saturday and Sunday were filled with daring adventures, but we were ready to get back into the classroom on Monday. We are already planning for the other exciting things that we want to do on the weekend.

Two days in...

I have been at Green Bay Primary for two days and I am starting to settle in and become part of the staff. I had a huge accomplishment today- I learned all of my students' names. The names here are a bit different than the names that I am accustomed to so it was a bit of a challenge. I am really starting to enjoy the year 7/8 students in my class, even though working with this age can be a little intimidating. They are young-at-heart students in big bodies and classroom management and consistency are the keys to success when working with them. My focus right now is to build personal relationships with each student so that they can learn to trust in me as a professional and an ally. Because this is a new school year we have to test the students on skills through written tests. Once we have the results then the children will be grouped into specific sections in the academic areas. It will be interesting to see how the three syndicate teachers organize this. I can't wait to start teaching!

One rule that the teachers push is that students MUST wear hats while outside. The sun is so intense and harmful that the school does not want to be held liable for skin cancer, which is why hats are mandatory. I have to start bringing my hat to school and wear it while outside to set an example for my students and, most importantly, I don't want to get skin cancer.

This weekend Bre and I are traveling to Rotorua. Many people from New Zealand have told me that it is one of the places we must see while we are here. We are booked to go whitewater rafting and plan to possibly zorb and luge. I can't wait to tell you about what we do in Rotorua once I return.

I am in New Zealand Time to teach.

Bre and I arrived in New Zealand on Thursday, January 26th at 5:30am New Zealand time. I was full of emotions when I stepped off the plane because I was uncertain of what waited for me outside of the airport walls. After going through a variety of security measures (which emphasized not having any fruits or vegetables in my luggage) I was taken to the house that will be my home for the nine weeks by my host mother.

There are many familiarities between American culture and the Kiwi way of life, but as I interact with more and more people I learn that there are also a lot of differences. I am mostly shocked by the diversity of the population. A variety of races are represented in New Zealand, and it seems that many people have the same British-type accent. Even though English is mainly spoken on the island my American accent jumps out at people when I speak. Many people ask me where I am from even if I speak one sentence. Kiwis seem to have many of the same modern conveniences that are available to me back home and there is a busy city-life in Auckland. Drivers are in their cars on the left side of the road and my host mother is hoping that soon I can drive one of her cars to school. Watch out New Zealand drivers!

Tuesday, February 2nd was the first day of school for the teachers only at Green Bay Primary. Two men facilitated the entire day for the teachers with a focus on Restorative Practices- Using a restorative approach in you school community. The information presented during the day helped refresh my beliefs on classroom management and gave me confidence to be an educator who strives to improve a child's entire well-being. The main focus on this approach states: "For students to success, they must believe you care about them, you have confidence in their ability to solve problems, and experience mutual respect. The stronger the relationship, the easier it is to resolve differences." The website with all the information is: restorativeschools.org.nz. The presentation combined theory, research, and activities which helped everyone reflect on the best management styles for students and the school community.

Tomorrow the students come to school for a brand new school year. They are coming back from about six weeks of vacation and will have new teachers and classrooms. I met with my classroom teacher, Jo, a couple of times. She is one of three teachers who work with grades 7/8 at Green Bay Primary. Because year 7/8 is at the school, it is technically also considered an Intermediate school as well. The students are 11-12 years old and once they are done with their 8th year they are high schoolers. I am a little nervous about working with the oldest group of students at the school, but I look forward to meeting all of the children/young adults on their first day of school. The students are probably a bit anxious about starting another year of school, but I hope they have a sense of excitement (just like I do!). Jo told me that she is going to be "tough" with the students for quite awhile before she starts to smile and joke around with them. I told her that I want mimic how she acts so I do not contradict the message that she is trying to send to them on the first day. I think that this will be a little difficult for me. I tend to be full of smiles when I see children- so it is time for me to bring out my "tough" face. Jo said that I can talk to the students and get to know them, so at least I don't have to act too serious or mean. New Zealand school practices and procedures are different for me, so I think it is best to just experience it for a bit and not change anything that the teacher has set up for the year 7/8 students until I know what is generally right and wrong to do.

I will keep all my dedicated followers updated on how the first day of school is very soon. Also, I can't wait to share all my New Zealand adventures that Bre and I have planned. This is the start of quite the most wonderful, life-changing experience I will have as a new teacher!