Update, Update, Oo-Ha-Ha

Things have been very chaotic since I've last posted that I can seem to never find the time or the energy to ever post on here. 

Right now, I'm proctoring yet another test. All the testing is so draining, I can't even imagine how my kiddos keep their stamina. Just last month many of them were involved in the HSGQE exam retake and now a majority of the same kiddos are participating in the Work Keys exam. I'm pooped with testing. Since moving up to highschool with my ELL "title", I have become one of the designated test proctors for the school. Due to the fact that I have my certification in K-12 ELL, I get to test all the ELL kiddos at Chevak school. 

Last month I was sent on my first "training" for LEP (Limited English Proficient/ELL) Data and LEP testing. I was very nervous at first because I thought that there was going to be a TON of expectations for me to come back to Chevak with. I am also not comfortable or confident with anything that has to do with data so I was worried that most of the items that was going to be presented was going to be too confusing and overwhelming for me to understand. It turned out that the training was a breath of fresh air. Right away at the beginning they went over all the things that I studied, practiced and trained while I was in college. Everything was coming back to me and I was starting to feel confident in bringing the information back to Chevak. It was also nice because I was able to help my coworker that came with me, as she started to feel overwhelmed with all the information.

Volleyball is under way and that has brought along more work, stress and excitement to my already full plate. Last weekend we traveled to Hooper Bay (which was a first for me) and played in 5 matches. It was the girls' first game and it took them some time for them to get comfortable and work the kinks out. Once they started to get comfortable the really shined. We left Hooper Bay 3-2 and with a new respect for each other as a team. This weekend we will be hosting a small tournament here in Chevak with Kalskag and Hooper Bay. In the next weeks to come there will be lots of weekend traveling. It's an exciting opportunity for me because I'm getting to experience new places that I would never have had the chance to experience otherwise. It's also fun spending time with the girls and getting to know them better.

There are other things that I want to post but I'm going to do them separately. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers as there are some things going on right now that are making things very stressful for me. 

 

Let the challenges continue...

Before I write about teaching..here are some pictures since I've been back in Chevak...

                               Jo was attempting the "Gallon Challenge"...he failed

                       Kiddos we ran into when we went out by boat! The found baby ducks

 I was blessed to be asked to go to camp with a family here in Chevak. We took a 4 hour boat ride to get to "Moose Heaven" were we set camp. We picked 60 gallons of blackberries in one day. That night I went to bed seeing berries..

                                          Some of the berries that we picked...

     Teacher work day we went to Old Chevak. On the way there, one of the boats              caught a seal.

Okay now to teaching...

Whoever said "Oh, you'll get the hang of things sooner or later" was a liar. I really don't think that I'll ever get the "hang" of teaching the older kiddos. 

BUT- that's what makes it exciting for me. I NEVER have any idea on what to expect. It's like a constant surprise. I usually had a good idea on what the day would hold when I was teaching the little kiddos, it's a completely different ball game now. 

Tomorrow begins the third week of school. Technically it's the second week of actual 'teaching' since we had sea week and tundra fest one of the weeks. It's like I started a completely new profession. 

I am very thankful that I came into this already having a relationship established with many of the students I'd be working with. It has helped tremendously with the general attitude of the classroom. 

Right now, my kiddos are doing a lot of journaling and a lot of reading. That's one of the things I love the best about teaching the older kids, I get to read books that I love with them. The junior high kiddos aren't sold on reading books yet but I'm getting A LOT of excitement from the high school kids.

I'm doing a project with 2 of my classes. The sophomores-seniors are reading "The Freedom Writers" and they love it already. We just finished the first section (which is only about 50 pages) and they're anxious is reading more. Some of them have seen the movie and have realized that the book is much better because it has more of the story. Both of these classes have started journaling, using the book as their model. We have decided that we are going to make our own 'Freedom Writers' Chevak style. It's going to be different because my students aren't 'fighting' racial issues but I'm still excited for them! 

Quyana Agayun 

My Wish...

I don't know if you'll ever see this. I don't really know if this would even make any sort of difference if you did. But, sometimes I just need to get my feelings out. Maybe it's selfish of me but I know that if I were to tell you this, I don't think you'd realize the value to what it was I was trying to convey. 


Dear (___________),

  There are many things in life that don't seem to make sense. I see that many times you are questioning why all these things are happening to you. I wish that there was a way that I could answer you. Or at least try to help you understand that everything you're going through is the main reason why you've become some of the strongest people that I've come to know. 

  I hope that you realize the potential that you have. You're the people that the younger kids are going to depend on when their lives get tough. You're the reminder now that when things seem bad, it can't even be compared to some of the stuff that you're dealing with.

  I wish that you wouldn't think of yourself so negatively. You are loved. You are important. You are worth more than what those terrible people make you seem worth.  

  There aren't many people that are capable of leaving footprints on other peoples lives. You however, are those people. The people that have kept fighting when all else seemed lost. You're the people that plant seeds of hope in other peoples lives. 

  Always remember that you're braver than you believe and stronger than you seem! 

-Falon

One BIG change....

It's amazing how things can change in the blink of an eye.

Let me explain....

All this year while I was teaching first grade I began looking into the opportunity of furthering my education. I started toying with the idea of going back to school while teaching. I started contacting one of the local colleges here and registered for the introductory class to the counseling program. Well that lasted a good three weeks. I was too overwhelmed with the stress of the class on top of teaching my kiddos all day.  

Then I decided that I was going to do something more with my degree. I am certified K-12 in ELL which meant that the options were pretty much endless. I was going to sign up to take different praxis tests to make me qualified in others areas in the upper grades. For whatever reason that fell through and I only ended up taking a elementary ed praxis test. 

So, I found out that I was going to be staying in first grade for the next school year. I started getting materials ready for them, I was gathering data and making goals for each of them. 

AND THEN...

I was approached with the idea to be a junior/senior high reading teacher. I would be working with the older kids on a new program to help with their reading. 

I kinda started to get a little excited about the idea of doing something different. I was thinking of how I could incorporate what I learned with new 'kiddos'. So, I prayed about it. I mean as excited as I was, I was still a nervous about the idea of teaching the older kids. 

Well next year, I will officially be the 7th-10th grade reading teacher/specialist. I am super excited and still a bit nervous about the idea. In August I will get to go to Oakland California for training on the program. Never would I have thought that I would be going from 1st grade to Jr/Sr High. 

Quyana Agayun! : )

There's Always A Plan

So I've been meaning to right about this for a while, but I wanted to wait until I knew all the details before I went and posted about this. 
As many of you may know, I was very unsure about what I was going to do next year. Part of my heart was telling me to come back to Chevak and another part of my heart was telling me that it was time to end this journey and go back home. I debating all the options for about 2-2 and a half months solid. I wanted to make sure that I was making the right decision, so I took a lot of time to really think about my future. 

There's a quote that goes something like this...

"Many things about tomorrow
I don't seem to understand
But I know who holds tomorrow
And I know who holds my hand."  

I finally just realized that it wasn't so much about the decision because I knew that whatever happened that there was a plan. I think that's part of this crazy life we live. No matter what choice we make, or what path we take there is ALWAYS a plan. Once I realized that there was a plan regardless of the decision that I made, I was able to really see where my heart was lying. 

So, around the time that contracts came out it was like everything became so clear. I realized that there were many reasons for me to stay here. There were many things that I don't think are "finished" yet. 

SOOOOO...I'm coming back next year. 

It's going to be different and exciting though. I had made a request that I wanted to loop again with my kids and with how everything worked out, it was better for me to stay in first grade. I was pretty bummed about it at first. However, I started to realize that I would have taught 3 different grades in the 3 years that I've only been a teacher. There was a chunk of time spent this year trying to figure out and plan first grade. Now I have peace knowing that I can really 'perfect' my teaching in first grade. 

My kiddos were bummed about it when I told them I wasn't going to be their teacher next year. I had to reassure them that they could ALWAYS come and visit me next year (they'll be just right down the hall) and that I'm still going to love them. 

I'm starting to get excited about the kiddos I'll have next year! Let the planning begin...

Quyana Agayun :)

Cultural Heritage Week

This past week was Cultural Heritage Week at our school. We got to spend Wednesday-Friday doing different activities that were culturally relevant! It was a TON of fun!
Wednesday my kiddos got to wear their tie-dye shirts all day. The got many compliments about their shirts and they were super excited to show them off. They looked so much better than lasts years! 

                             And of course we had to do a silly face :)

We also got to go on a day trip to qiluq hill and got to go sliding! It was the first time that I had been out their and it was a blast! We all had a ton of fun!

                     On our way out to qiluq hill. Kiddos all crammed in the sled

                                               Another sled hauling some kiddos

                 And the race to the top begins! It was a very STEEP hill..

I decided to give it a go and climb up too. Only all the kiddos were in front of me and they kept slipping and knocking me over, sending me right back down to the bottom. After about the 5th time, I gave up and settled for 3/4ths of the way.

                                 Gripping the snow for dear life...

Some of the highschoolers showed up to go sliding too! They were racing up and down the hill with no problem! Making some of my kiddos a bit jealous! Son, in the orange ended carrying some of the kiddos up on his back.

Loading up the sleds again to head back to the school! We just wanted to stay and play more though..

I also learned how to crochet while my kiddos were off doing other activities. The lady that was teaching us was so nice that she let me bring the yarn and crochet needle home so that I could keep practicing! My mom has tried to teach me many times and I only was able to make the initial "chain"...I finally learned how to add on to the chain. 

I started making some eskimo yo-yo's as well. I'm not quite done with that project but it was fun to do that with some of the older kids too.

Quyana Agayun for a awesome week! :) 

Tie-Dying part 2

I was debating for a long time whether or not I was going to do tie-dye with my kiddos again this year. I just really didn't think that they'd be excited about doing it again since we did it just last year, but I finally decided to go ahead and go for it right in time for Cultural Heritage week! I'm glad that I did decide to do it because my kiddos were more than excited this time around! :D

We aren't going to be wearing them till this Wednesday for the start of our Cultural Heritage week, but here are the pictures from them actually dying their shirts. More pics will come next weekend...