Day 2 in Room 15

Today has been a nice day. A good day at school I attended my first faculty meeting today. I love how the teachers collaborate together socially and professionally. I am so thankful for the close-knit sociable community.

I am thankful that my cooperating teacher, Jane allows me to work with the students a little more each day. I am excited that Jane has allowed me to take over the roll every day, along with the class novel, and my all time favorite, Charlotte’s Web.

I have really enjoyed observing how Jane allows the students to lead the classroom during poetry. The students take full control it is amazing to watch how well students learn together in Room 15. It is very interesting to see how Jane has scheduled the school day in a way that there is no such thing as down time. It is constant learning from bell to bell. I love it!!

Today we played a few indoor/outdoor games with tennis balls. It was very interesting to watch the students and their sports skills or should I say lack of. It was very interesting to observe how students in New Zealand have a hard time catching the ball and basic hand-eye coordination. It was interesting to see that the girls could catch the tennis ball more easily than the boys. There is no such thing as… “You throw like a girl” in NZED!! For the girls are much better at throwing and catching than the boys especially in Room 15. It is obvious that many of the parents do not encourage outdoor recreation and play instead they are sitting in front of their MACBOOK all afternoon.

I have already seen so much in classroom with Jane. There are “heaps” of similarities and also differences between our two school systems. Behavioral issues and harsh discipline systems are not very prevalent here. Maybe it is because I have been placed with the sweetest teacher in the world but I haven’t witnessed any major tiffs.

Jane gave me a ride home in her car. I got lost on the ride home and we took a tour of Auckland! haha…The streets are so confusing and driving on the wrong side of the road just throws me out of WACK!!!

My teacher is allowing me to teach a lesson on a New Zealand tradition of Maori Weaving also known as flax weaving. I have created a powerpoint that I will use to teach this lesson. Maori Weaving is where the Maori people would tear the flax off of flax bushes and weave it into a basket or even clothing. I am now off to prepare for my lesson tomorrow. She will also be absent tomorrow so I am sure there will be lots of time for me to gain teaching experience.

Food of the Day: Milo (New Zealand Hot Chocolate) YUM YUM