Everyone has been asking me how my job is going, so I thought I'd do a little blog update. I started working a week and a half ago and I have to say, I was absolutely exhausted after the first day! My body went from laying on the couch most of the day to spending the day walking all over a school (somehow the classroom I'm in just happens to be on opposite ends of the school from the special ed. room). I came home thinking... "what am I doing???!" But since then it has gotten a lot better. I'm still tired every day, but I like that it gets me out of the house and I'm starting to tell myself the walking all over the school is good exercise! I am working with the same kids I had last year, so instead of being in kindergarten we have all moved up to first grade. The adjustment from kindergarten to first grade is difficult because these kids aren't used to staying all day long. By the end of the day they are so tired. But we're working through it!
I'm also happy to report I am over the morning sickness phase. Yay!!! I haven't thrown up in a few weeks and the nausea is gone (for the most part). I started feeling better about 2 days before school started. Seriously an answer to my prayers. I knew If I was sick there'd be no way I could work. But now I feel good, just tired. Some foods are starting to sound better and I had my first real pregnancy craving this week. I woke up from a nap and all I could think about was a Digiorno stuffed crust pizza! Something I have not had in years. I just kept imagining the stuffed crust and it's the only thing that sounded good. So Dan and I ran to the store to get some. It did satisfy my craving, but tasted way better in my head.
And lastly, a little story from work... so I was walking a boy back to class and he said to me "Miss Michele, I think you got taller over the summer!" and I said "oh yeah? What about fatter?" he replied "nope, you still look skinny to me!" Then I proceeded to tell him I was pregnant and that in a few months I might not look so skinny. However, I don't feel skinny anymore, but everyone keeps telling me I don't even look pregnant yet. I definitely have more of a belly than I've ever had in my life though! But I'm fine with being small, otherwise I can't imagine how I'd be by 9 months.
Showing posts with label teaching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label teaching. Show all posts
August 25, 2012
August 22, 2011
Life is Good!
Everyone has been asking how my new job is going and it's good! So far I am really liking it. Last week I helped out in the special ed. classroom b/c the kindergartners had not started yet. I had a lot of fun working with this one 3rd grade girl. She is really cute and we have become good friends. I will still get to see her every day because I am always her lunch buddy. On Friday we even had a princess party with the 2 girls that were there. We watched "Tangled", made necklaces, and colored Disney Princesses. The whole time I was thinking "I actually get paid for this???"
Today I spent my time in the kindergarten with the kids I will be helping from now on. I help one little boy in a wheelchair get around the classroom and the rest of my time is spent as an aid helping out the whole class. The day went well and I'm excited to get to know the kindergartners better.
I am loving working just part time! The hours are really fabulous. It's so nice to be able to come home and relax (and sometimes clean & run errands). It is exactly what I wanted. I can't wait til we move and I can walk to work!
As for our house, it is going to be done this week! We checked it out yesterday and the inside is basically finished. They are now working on the landscaping. We do our final walk through on Friday to make sure everything is how we want it. We are getting so excited! I think our plan is to move Labor Day weekend.
I know I already posted about it, but we had a great anniversary! The restaurant we went to was awesome. We loved it. It's a steakhouse but they also have fondue. Dan got steak and I got shrimp and scallops. We cooked them on these 700 degree rocks at our table. It's neat because every bite is warm and you can cook your food to the doneness that you want. We also tried the chocolate fondue and loved it! I think next time I just want to go for the fondue :).
We've been super busy lately, actually. Just this past weekend we had some good friends stay with us and we all went to Zions together. It was an awesome trip! I will have to post pictures soon. Other than that we are just focusing on working and moving.
Today I spent my time in the kindergarten with the kids I will be helping from now on. I help one little boy in a wheelchair get around the classroom and the rest of my time is spent as an aid helping out the whole class. The day went well and I'm excited to get to know the kindergartners better.
I am loving working just part time! The hours are really fabulous. It's so nice to be able to come home and relax (and sometimes clean & run errands). It is exactly what I wanted. I can't wait til we move and I can walk to work!
As for our house, it is going to be done this week! We checked it out yesterday and the inside is basically finished. They are now working on the landscaping. We do our final walk through on Friday to make sure everything is how we want it. We are getting so excited! I think our plan is to move Labor Day weekend.
I know I already posted about it, but we had a great anniversary! The restaurant we went to was awesome. We loved it. It's a steakhouse but they also have fondue. Dan got steak and I got shrimp and scallops. We cooked them on these 700 degree rocks at our table. It's neat because every bite is warm and you can cook your food to the doneness that you want. We also tried the chocolate fondue and loved it! I think next time I just want to go for the fondue :).
 |
| Dan cooking his steak. |
 |
| Yummy fondue!!! |
August 2, 2011
new job
I got a job! Since I moved here during the middle of last school year, I decided to wait until this school year to find a job. As much fun as sitting around the house trying to stay busy for the last 7 months have been (ok I really actually have stayed pretty busy... thanks to all our great visitors!), I am looking forward to a change in my routine.
I knew I really wanted to work at the school near our new house because I liked the idea of being able to walk/bike to work (especially here where I don't have to worry about cold/snow days). Plus it's a great way to get some exercise! Last year I got very sick of the 25 min. drive to the school I worked at, so for me proximity was a high priority.
After checking the Washington School District (only school district down here) website almost daily, I finally saw a posting at that elementary (it's called Bloomington Hills, in case you are curious). I was super excited! It was to be a reading specialist and work with all of the low readers. I applied and just a few days later got a call from the principal. I had an interview and felt it went really well. I really got along with the principal (probably b/c we have the same name) and she told me I would definitely be hearing from her.
A few days later the principal called me and mentioned she had a new position open up. It was to help in the kindergarten. Since I already had experience in a kindergarten she thought I might be interested in the position (which I was). We discussed it a little further and she told me I had to turn in another application (kind of ridiculous, but still had to do the district procedure). Last week I turned in the application and finally today I heard I got the job! I figured if the principal called me and told me to apply, then I would get the job. But it was still nice to officially hear an offer from them.
I will be working in both morning kindergarten classes, but will probably focus more on the kindergarten class with the special ed kids. I will only work about 3 hours each day. Sounds so perfect to me and is exactly what I wanted! I will be done by noon every day and even earlier on Fridays.
I know a lot of people wonder why I haven't applied to be a real teacher. I do have a degree and a valid teaching license, but I have never really had the desire to be a full time elementary teacher. I actually went into Early Childhood Education thinking one day I would teach my own preschool. I still do want to do that, but I'm thinking I'll have to wait until our basement is finished before I try to teach preschool out of our home. For now aid jobs are perfect for me. I enjoy being in the schools and working with the kids, but I still have free time to pursue other interests. In fact I'm already thinking of taking photography classes in the fall and possibly even starting a little craft business where I sell crafts at the local outdoor market.
And I'm sure even more people wonder why we don't have kids yet (although a lot of you already know)... believe me, we would LOVE to have kids. We just haven't been able to yet, but we're working on growing our family and are seeing a doctor to hopefully help us work towards that goal too. I guess I don't really have to explain myself, but now you know. So yes, I am having to come up with a Plan B for my life. I never planned on working much, so it's been interesting trying to figure out exactly what I want to do with my life.
Lots of changes coming my way! Can't wait to be in a new house with a new job :).
I knew I really wanted to work at the school near our new house because I liked the idea of being able to walk/bike to work (especially here where I don't have to worry about cold/snow days). Plus it's a great way to get some exercise! Last year I got very sick of the 25 min. drive to the school I worked at, so for me proximity was a high priority.
After checking the Washington School District (only school district down here) website almost daily, I finally saw a posting at that elementary (it's called Bloomington Hills, in case you are curious). I was super excited! It was to be a reading specialist and work with all of the low readers. I applied and just a few days later got a call from the principal. I had an interview and felt it went really well. I really got along with the principal (probably b/c we have the same name) and she told me I would definitely be hearing from her.
A few days later the principal called me and mentioned she had a new position open up. It was to help in the kindergarten. Since I already had experience in a kindergarten she thought I might be interested in the position (which I was). We discussed it a little further and she told me I had to turn in another application (kind of ridiculous, but still had to do the district procedure). Last week I turned in the application and finally today I heard I got the job! I figured if the principal called me and told me to apply, then I would get the job. But it was still nice to officially hear an offer from them.
I will be working in both morning kindergarten classes, but will probably focus more on the kindergarten class with the special ed kids. I will only work about 3 hours each day. Sounds so perfect to me and is exactly what I wanted! I will be done by noon every day and even earlier on Fridays.
I know a lot of people wonder why I haven't applied to be a real teacher. I do have a degree and a valid teaching license, but I have never really had the desire to be a full time elementary teacher. I actually went into Early Childhood Education thinking one day I would teach my own preschool. I still do want to do that, but I'm thinking I'll have to wait until our basement is finished before I try to teach preschool out of our home. For now aid jobs are perfect for me. I enjoy being in the schools and working with the kids, but I still have free time to pursue other interests. In fact I'm already thinking of taking photography classes in the fall and possibly even starting a little craft business where I sell crafts at the local outdoor market.
And I'm sure even more people wonder why we don't have kids yet (although a lot of you already know)... believe me, we would LOVE to have kids. We just haven't been able to yet, but we're working on growing our family and are seeing a doctor to hopefully help us work towards that goal too. I guess I don't really have to explain myself, but now you know. So yes, I am having to come up with a Plan B for my life. I never planned on working much, so it's been interesting trying to figure out exactly what I want to do with my life.
Lots of changes coming my way! Can't wait to be in a new house with a new job :).
July 26, 2011
3rd week of August
A few people have been asking me how our house is coming along... so... here is the latest picture:
It looks like it's made of concrete! But... I guess that's what they put on it before the stucco. I heard today they were putting the tile in, which I would really like to see. Most of the home building process has gone along smoothly, except for the tile! We've had to choose tile 3 times now. For some reason every tile we choose gets discontinued by the manufacturer. It's not Ivory's fault, but we did tell them to find a new tile place. Although the tile has worked to our advantage, our realtor has felt bad about the little tile fiasco so he upgraded our tile to better tile for free (and by better that means bigger... 14x14 instead of 12x12 or something).
As of now the house is scheduled to be finished the 3rd week of August. Which also happens to be the week of our anniversary. Sounds like a great anniversary gift to me! :)
In other news, I applied for a job and interviewed last week. It's at the school right down the street from our new house. I'm hoping to get it so I can just walk to work! The interview went well, but I'm still waiting to hear from the principal. I would basically be the reading specialist for the school. I would work 3 hours a day with the lowest readers in the school (mostly grades k-3). Sounds perfect to me :). I would follow a reading program they have, but still have the flexibility to do some of my own lesson planning. Let's hope it works out!
It looks like it's made of concrete! But... I guess that's what they put on it before the stucco. I heard today they were putting the tile in, which I would really like to see. Most of the home building process has gone along smoothly, except for the tile! We've had to choose tile 3 times now. For some reason every tile we choose gets discontinued by the manufacturer. It's not Ivory's fault, but we did tell them to find a new tile place. Although the tile has worked to our advantage, our realtor has felt bad about the little tile fiasco so he upgraded our tile to better tile for free (and by better that means bigger... 14x14 instead of 12x12 or something).
As of now the house is scheduled to be finished the 3rd week of August. Which also happens to be the week of our anniversary. Sounds like a great anniversary gift to me! :)
In other news, I applied for a job and interviewed last week. It's at the school right down the street from our new house. I'm hoping to get it so I can just walk to work! The interview went well, but I'm still waiting to hear from the principal. I would basically be the reading specialist for the school. I would work 3 hours a day with the lowest readers in the school (mostly grades k-3). Sounds perfect to me :). I would follow a reading program they have, but still have the flexibility to do some of my own lesson planning. Let's hope it works out!
November 10, 2010
Lately
I went to work today! Hooray! The kids were so funny, they asked me questions like "Mrs. Deceuster, why were you sick?" and "Mrs. Deceuster, how did you get sick?"... etc...
Anyway, just thought I'd put up a post about what we are really up to. As much fun as it is to blog about random things I want to buy, events I want to go to, and stores I love, it's time for a real update.
Let's see, we move in less than a month! It's crazy because I feel like we haven't gotten anything done and we are not ready to leave yet. But, we'll figure it out. Lately we have been debating whether we want to hire movers to do all the work for us, or just get a truck and do it all ourselves. My vote goes to movers, but still not sure if it's worth the price.
We found someone to live in our condo too! We're actually having Dan's brother, Ethan, and his wife & baby live here. It's quite a relief to have someone live here that we know and trust.
Dan has already started working for his new company. He works from home and I can tell he is sick of being at home all the time. He's a very social guy, so I think he is really looking forward to working in an office again. He also spends lots of time on the phone trying to work things out with his co-workers in St. George. It'll be much easier for him to work once we get down there. But... I think he likes his new job.
As for my job, my last day is Friday. I am excited and sad. I will miss those cute kids, but there are some aspects of the job I will not miss. The next two days will be spent training the new person. Once I get to St. George I haven't decided what I'm going to do. I will probably wait to look for a new job after the holidays.
We are getting excited to move, but I will really miss being close to family and friends. Luckily St. George is not too far away. I will also miss Gap, Zupas, and Carrabbas... three places not in St. George. I am however, looking forward to warmer weather, having a pool, and a change of scene. It'll be an adventure, for sure.
Anyway, just thought I'd put up a post about what we are really up to. As much fun as it is to blog about random things I want to buy, events I want to go to, and stores I love, it's time for a real update.
Let's see, we move in less than a month! It's crazy because I feel like we haven't gotten anything done and we are not ready to leave yet. But, we'll figure it out. Lately we have been debating whether we want to hire movers to do all the work for us, or just get a truck and do it all ourselves. My vote goes to movers, but still not sure if it's worth the price.
We found someone to live in our condo too! We're actually having Dan's brother, Ethan, and his wife & baby live here. It's quite a relief to have someone live here that we know and trust.
Dan has already started working for his new company. He works from home and I can tell he is sick of being at home all the time. He's a very social guy, so I think he is really looking forward to working in an office again. He also spends lots of time on the phone trying to work things out with his co-workers in St. George. It'll be much easier for him to work once we get down there. But... I think he likes his new job.
As for my job, my last day is Friday. I am excited and sad. I will miss those cute kids, but there are some aspects of the job I will not miss. The next two days will be spent training the new person. Once I get to St. George I haven't decided what I'm going to do. I will probably wait to look for a new job after the holidays.
We are getting excited to move, but I will really miss being close to family and friends. Luckily St. George is not too far away. I will also miss Gap, Zupas, and Carrabbas... three places not in St. George. I am however, looking forward to warmer weather, having a pool, and a change of scene. It'll be an adventure, for sure.
September 16, 2010
Shoes
Today I wore shoes that look like this...
I got many compliments on them! Of course, all of the compliments came from 5 year olds :). I had two different girls in my class tell me they liked my shoes. Then a boy told my I had "cute shoes." And my favorite compliment of the day from a boy... "Mrs. Deceuster, those diamonds are beautiful!" hahahaha.... so glad the kindergartners approve of my fashion!
I got many compliments on them! Of course, all of the compliments came from 5 year olds :). I had two different girls in my class tell me they liked my shoes. Then a boy told my I had "cute shoes." And my favorite compliment of the day from a boy... "Mrs. Deceuster, those diamonds are beautiful!" hahahaha.... so glad the kindergartners approve of my fashion!
August 30, 2010
First Day
Today was the first day the kindergartners came to school. Even though the whole thing kind of wore me out, I think it was a pretty good day. No injuries, no criers, no accidents... which definitely means a good day. There was one little boy I had to tell to sit still about a million times though, he probably thinks I am the most annoying teacher ever! haha. And the cutest thing that happened today, after being in class for about 30 minutes one little girl raised her hand and said "I really like Mrs. D." haha. That's me :). So cute!
August 19, 2010
back to school
Wow, thanks for all of your nice comments on my last post! I guess I left out a few details (sorry i was typing fast last night so we could go out and celebrate). Anyway... I didn't even mention the school's name! Haha. I will be working at Noah Webster Academy in Orem. Technically they call me a paraprofessional.
So today was my first day. After sitting through some long training that really had nothing to do with me, I got to help set up the classroom. Pretty much I just do whatever the head teacher asks me to do. She already has lots in mind to keep me busy. She was so funny, every teacher she introduced me to she said... "this is Michele, she's my new aid and she's a certified teacher! how did i get so lucky???" It made me laugh. Glad I'm now using my degree :).
I also walked into the office today and the new secretary had just started as well (the original position i had applied for). She was super busy answering phones, helping teachers, etc. I kind of laughed to myself b/c I didn't envy her position at all. Hehehe.
Tonight is back to school night, then training tomorrow, kindergarten assessments next week, and then real school the following week. It should be a lot of fun/busy. One last thing, I was looking at the school year calendar and there are so many vacation days. I was kind of excited :). Pretty much every month I get at least a few days off. I think this job is going to be great!
So today was my first day. After sitting through some long training that really had nothing to do with me, I got to help set up the classroom. Pretty much I just do whatever the head teacher asks me to do. She already has lots in mind to keep me busy. She was so funny, every teacher she introduced me to she said... "this is Michele, she's my new aid and she's a certified teacher! how did i get so lucky???" It made me laugh. Glad I'm now using my degree :).
I also walked into the office today and the new secretary had just started as well (the original position i had applied for). She was super busy answering phones, helping teachers, etc. I kind of laughed to myself b/c I didn't envy her position at all. Hehehe.
Tonight is back to school night, then training tomorrow, kindergarten assessments next week, and then real school the following week. It should be a lot of fun/busy. One last thing, I was looking at the school year calendar and there are so many vacation days. I was kind of excited :). Pretty much every month I get at least a few days off. I think this job is going to be great!
August 18, 2010
New job
I'm so excited, I got a new job today! For the past 6 months I have been working for Dan's company writing (part time... very part time...). While working for his company I have casually been looking for jobs. I pretty much just only applied for jobs I was really interested in. I really wasn't desperate, but I did want to find something eventually. Anyway, the summer got busy and I put the job search on hold. Then... the past few weeks I started looking again. I had an interview at one school to work in the office, but I didn't get the position. I was a little frustrated, but continued looking. So... yesterday I found a post on Craig's list for office help in an elementary school in Orem. It didn't even say what school it was, but I figured, why not? So I sent in my resume. That afternoon they called to see if I could interview that night. Wow, that was quick! Haha... I said yes. So, last night I went and met with a lady that worked in the school's administration. It turned out the school was a charter school. I talked to her and we got along great. Once she found out my degree was in Early Childhood Education she asked if I'd be interested in working in a classroom because they had a couple of aid positions open (in special ed. and kindergarten). I was so excited to hear the position was in kindergarten, I love that age group! I told her I'd be happy to work in either position (office or classroom). Anyway, I went home last night feeling good about the interview.
This morning I had an interview to be a secretary with another company, it went ok, but I was hoping to hear back from the school. Right after I got out of my interview I got a phone call from the school! They wanted me to come in for a 2nd interview and a proficiency test. I went in this afternoon to do the skills test and then I met with the director (charter schools don't have principals) and I met with another lady from the office. After talking with the director he asked me if I had to choose would I rather work in the office or the classroom. After deliberating I said the classroom sounded a little more fun. He then sent me down to the kindergarten classroom to meet the teacher to see if we would be a good match. We started chatting and I found out she is from Davis County, just like me! She was super nice and our teaching styles seemed similar. My first interviewer lady then came in and talked to the kindergarten teacher and the teacher said "i think she would be a great fit!" So they offered me the position on the spot! I then gladly accepted.
I am so excited to start working in kindergarten! I think it is going to be an awesome experience. Plus the hours are fabulous (done by 3 every day and done by 12:30 on fridays). Anyway, I start tomorrow. It's so crazy how quickly it all happened! Tomorrow is back to school night and I get to meet the kids too. Yay!
This morning I had an interview to be a secretary with another company, it went ok, but I was hoping to hear back from the school. Right after I got out of my interview I got a phone call from the school! They wanted me to come in for a 2nd interview and a proficiency test. I went in this afternoon to do the skills test and then I met with the director (charter schools don't have principals) and I met with another lady from the office. After talking with the director he asked me if I had to choose would I rather work in the office or the classroom. After deliberating I said the classroom sounded a little more fun. He then sent me down to the kindergarten classroom to meet the teacher to see if we would be a good match. We started chatting and I found out she is from Davis County, just like me! She was super nice and our teaching styles seemed similar. My first interviewer lady then came in and talked to the kindergarten teacher and the teacher said "i think she would be a great fit!" So they offered me the position on the spot! I then gladly accepted.
I am so excited to start working in kindergarten! I think it is going to be an awesome experience. Plus the hours are fabulous (done by 3 every day and done by 12:30 on fridays). Anyway, I start tomorrow. It's so crazy how quickly it all happened! Tomorrow is back to school night and I get to meet the kids too. Yay!
September 18, 2009
preschool
So it's my 3rd week in the preschool and so far i'm liking it. Sometimes the kids drive me crazy and sometimes they can be really cute. Just wanted to share an experience this week where one of the kids was cute...
On Wednesday Mr. Brad (the head teacher) shared a story about smiling. He then talked about things that make him smile. After that he showed lots of pictures of people smiling and had the children discuss why they thought the people were smiling. For example, he had pictures of people eating, swimming, with family, etc... all reasons to smile. He then showed a picture of a bride and groom on their wedding day and asked "why do you think these people are smiling?" Instantly a little boy yelled out "because they're going to the temple!"- haha adorable :)
On Wednesday Mr. Brad (the head teacher) shared a story about smiling. He then talked about things that make him smile. After that he showed lots of pictures of people smiling and had the children discuss why they thought the people were smiling. For example, he had pictures of people eating, swimming, with family, etc... all reasons to smile. He then showed a picture of a bride and groom on their wedding day and asked "why do you think these people are smiling?" Instantly a little boy yelled out "because they're going to the temple!"- haha adorable :)
February 23, 2009
back to school
So i started my co-hort today (teaching in the schools) and i now want to change my major! haha... this is so sad, but i really did not enjoy myself. i think it's because i am in 2nd grade and i really just like teaching preschool. the kids are too old in 2nd grade! that and i just sat and observed for 6 hours, so it got a little boring. i like the teacher though. i am just ready to get this semester over with! anyway, i guess i can't judge it all just by the first day. hopefully tomorrow will be a little better....
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)