This afternoon it’s mainly sunny and 54; though with the wind it feels colder than that!

With Rocío’s classes first and last hours we talked a bit more about MLK, actually we just listened to the song we listened to last week about equality. Of course we had to listen to it a couple of times and then try to sing it, which didn’t really work because it’s a fast rap…it was even hard for me to follow in some places. She then had then make/decorate posters with peace words on them which they’ll hang up in the class.

I reviewed numbers one through fifty with 1B. It was the first time they’d reviewed them all together like that and most of them knew them! They must forget them over the years, though, because there are some upper levels that get some confused or just plain can’t remember. After that they did a worksheet where they had to match the weather words to the pictures and color some clothing based on the instructions.

I read 2B a story about this boy, Lee, who goes to the zoo with his mom. They did a couple of listening activities and later had this mini review quiz where Analen asked them to color certain objects different colors.

With Marina’s 5A they started a new unit about places around the city (so they’re a little ways behind Rocío’s classes…I think she started that unit right after we came back from Christmas break). I read the vocab to them (restaurant, ice rink, shopping center, etc) and they repeated it. Later, we said this tongue twister as well. Marina also passed back their exams at the end so she said I could leave her class a little early.

After class this afternoon I need to look for Groundhog Day activities. Personally I don’t think it’s worth “celebrating”. Mention it; maybe talk about it for five minutes? Yes. But plan a whole class around it? I think not! But what Rocío wants Rocío gets, so I shall “get my search on” later.

Xoxo,

Court

¡¡¡FELIZ DÍA DE LA PAZ!!! → HAPPY PEACE DAY!!!

Today it’s clear and 48…though it doesn’t feel like it; the wind is FREEZING!

With 6A and C this morning we did the same as with B on Thursday…watched the end of the movie “Hair”. Before we watched, however, we analyzed the lyrics to the song they sing “Let the Sun Shine In”. That actually took a while because the lyrics were a bit difficult, combined with the fact that it’s Monday so their brains were a little fuzzy.

Analen corrected several activities with 4A and I explained their homework at the very end of the class.

With the three-year-olds in the afternoon we had them color a peace sign (some are already excellent colorers, others scribbled randomly…). Ana and I then taped straws onto the back and they were able to twirl it around and show it off. I was really surprised also that when Ana asked them why today was special, a few actually knew it was Peace Day! Impressive, I think, for three-year-olds!

I went to eat with the Monday group at Casa Francisco after school. I wasn’t planning on it but first hour Marilu was like “Are you coming? There’s a group of teachers from Ireland visiting Carmen Arias (the semi-private primary school here) this week and they’ll be there”. I guess I was under the impression that we’d be one big group and so I thought I’d go to chat, but that wasn’t so. We were at two different tables and didn’t converse at all! The food was super good and I ate a TON (which I’m not used to…so much so that my stomach hurts now) but I only went because I thought I’d get to talk with the Irish, so I could have saved ten Euros and a stomach ache…

I threw a load of clothes in the washer when I got home and had class shortly thereafter. Now I’m really tired…I could totally fall asleep anytime. I would have some coffee but I’m too full!

Xoxo,

Court

It was an on and off sunny/cloudy day…50 degrees; it was alright.

Yesterday I was a lazy pile and did almost nothing, with the exception of going to the post office in the morning to mail Steph’s package and to Western Union some money home. After that, I spent the entire day watching movies and shows and exploring Facebook and Pinterest. I was finally able to join Pinterest yesterday and it is quite addicting, to say the least!

Today I decided I had to be more productive and since it was my weekend to clean, that’s where my productivity went. I always put off cleaning because I hate the idea but after I get started it’s really not that bad…I need to remember that!

I also went to mass this evening and it was rather crowded! I never know when there’s gonna be a lot of people and when not; I actually had to sit the front row! I don’t think I’ve ever sat in the front before…like EVER. I’ve never like the idea of sitting in front, like everyone else, I suppose, but it wasn’t that bad. Not that I’ll do it again if I have a choice, but I was “closer” to God today!

Xoxo,

Court

HAPPY WEEKEND TO ME! Plus I got paid today, so that makes it even better!

It’s a very sunny 52 today! It actually feels warmer than that though…it’s quite nice!

Five-years “A” was a bit annoying today…talkative that is. I read them the Carnival story I read “B’ yesterday and that’s about it; it took a while because they were talking and up and around, grabbing a Kleenex, some were bothering others and others were tattling on the botherers. Both Ana and I were glad to get out of there.

I read four-years “B” the story of Hippo in the park one last time and we followed that with a worksheet in which they had to color all the pictures that were in the story and cross out the ones that weren’t. Then on the back they drew a picture of Hippo playing with his favorite toy.

2A has an exam tomorrow so we first reviewed their weather vocab and then played “Telephone” (is it also known as “Chinese Whispers”?, that’s what Ana called it). We played until they got rowdy and apparently too competitive, because one kid called this girl “silly” because his team lost a word. So Ana made them sit down and we ended up going out for recreo a few minutes early.

Since our time in four-years “A” is so short, we did this quick handout that had pictures of Ellie, Poppy, Hippo and Mouse. They cut the pictures so they could be folded over more pictures of toys and then they could lift up the flap and see what toy each was playing with. Does that make sense? I don’t know, I’m finding out that it’s hard to explain…

When I got to 6B they were finishing an exam, so we didn’t have that much time. Because Peace Day is coming up, we watched a clip from the movie “Hair”, (I don’t know anything about the movie…never seen or heard of it before) the ending actually. There’s also a song and something else Marilu has to look at, but there wasn’t time.

I have class later on and then I need to go to the bank and deposit my check! I need to go to the store but I haven’t decided if I’m going to do that today or tomorrow. I’m also going to Carmen’s last class tonight to help out. Oh! And I brought my Christmas M&M cookies today and everyone loved them!

Xoxo,

Court

Today it’s a beautiful and clear 54 degrees; the wind isn’t even that bad!

First hour after doing the usual review to start off the day with 1A, we made a picture list with flashcards of foods that come from plants and animals. Then on their worksheet they were shown pictures of food and had to circle the plant based foods with green and the animal based ones with red. That was easy because they had the lists to look off of on the board. Down on the bottom they then had to draw their three favorite foods and write where they come from.

Second and last hours I had the third levels. I read to them about invertebrate insects and nasty creepy crawlies. To get practice with pronunciation, I would stop every sentence and have a different student repeat. After we read they took notes over the page.

To five-years B I read an Ellie story about carnival (which is in a little less than a month). Monkey was a police officer, Mouse was a pirate and Ellie was a ghost and scared everyone! After I read it we watched it on the computer.

I literally sat in 4B and silently stared at the wall the entire hour while Analen corrected a few activities with the class and had them translate some sentences. This one kid was like “Corni, say something, you’ve been quiet the entire hour.” I looked at him, said “no” and said nothing else. I still don’t know why Aurora said I have to go to that class. Last year I had a free hour, but apparently that’s not an option this year…

I don’t have class today, so I’m going to make the cookies pretty soon. I was going to mix them up yesterday but the butter was super hard, so I didn’t. I left it out overnight and stuck it in my room this morning where the sun always shines in and now it’s nice and soft! It’s just so hard to work with things like butter if it’s not at room temp since I have to mix everything up by hand!  I hope they turn out well!!!

Xoxo,

Court

My weather thing says it’s 48 right now, but it feels so much warmer than that! It was quite chilly on the walk to school this morning, but without a wind (or only a slight wind) it feels so much warmer!

Well it’s Tuesday, which means I had all the fifths today. First hour we talked about the MLK story that we didn’t get to last week. While they were coloring some of the pictures I looked for more quotes for Peace Day and also some photos of the authors.

With 1A, Marina stuck flashcards on the board and played this pointing game (she actually has this pointed finger on a stick) where I would say a word and the student had to point to the card quickly. If they got it wrong the whole class was like “OHHHHHH!!!” It was funny. Then they did this worksheet where they were given a picture and had to chose the correct word and write it.

2A first did this tongue twister. I don’t remember it exactly but something like “Hello, I’m Harry and it’s hot”. I mean it wasn’t that easy, but H was the emphasis. Later on their worksheet they were given pictures of the weather and had to write “It’s raining/snowing/windy…” next to it.

Fourth hour Marina’s class had an exam so I was free and was going to look up more peace info but the video room computer was gone, so I basically twiddled my thumbs.

Last hour the computer still hadn’t appeared and Rocío was mad! That messed up our plans a bit because some things are saved onto the computer and not on my flash drive. That class only had half of the story left to discuss so afterwards that we listened to and sang “Imagine”.

I hit the store on the way home because I decided to make some super delicious M&M cookies tomorrow! I figured I should make them soon since they’re Christmasy. I have class this afternoon and then need to go find something big enough to send Steph’s present in…

Xoxo,

Court

Today it’s super sunny and 48, though the wind makes it feel a lot chillier!

With the sixth levels we did the same as with 6B last Thursday—read and discussed the MLK story. Those classes didn’t have as many questions as 6B did (or maybe they were just less interested in getting off track) so we were able to finish the story/worksheet. There was even time left over to watch an excerpt from his speech and a mini bio.

I sat there in 4B and listened while Analen had them translate sentences. With a few minutes left in the hour we half listened to John Lennon’s Imagine (gearing up for Peace Day, next Monday). I say half listened because the volume on her computer won’t or couldn’t go up very high. Plus they were talking quite a bit, so that didn’t help.

Pilar Cano (the sixth level teacher who left last year to have a baby) was there during recreo and apparently she’s coming back to teach on March 7…which means Marilu is out :(. Don’t get me wrong, Pilar is awesome, but I love Marilu! Mari told me that and I got really sad, but she was like “Criptana’s not that far, you can still come sometimes!” I know she still has several weeks, but it just won’t be the same without her…

With the three-year-olds in the afternoon, I reread them the story of Baby Duck looking for Mummy Duck. “A”, the first class, had a bit more time than “B” so they did this sheet (or rather Ana and I didn’t it for them) in which we punched out a picture of a sleeping baby. On the flap to fold over there was a picture of a crying baby (because Baby Duck kept crying in the story since she couldn’t find her mom). So, you had crying baby, and then flip the flap and you had sleeping baby. They loved it and when Ana asked them who wanted to take one home, they were all like “YOOOOO!!!!!!!!”

I have class with Javi in like an hour. Now I’m going to eat and do a few squats if I have time!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s clear and 55 today…this has been one mild winter—so the locals say!

Yesterday I met up with Carmen and she helped me look for a baby for Steph (because I had no idea about the baby shops around here!). I got her, or should I say the baby, a super cute overalls set. The overalls are sort of a dark gray with white and red polka dots and have a red bow and ruffled pocket in front. The matching little shirt is silky soft and white with gray and red polka dots. I wanted to get a pair of little shoes also but they didn’t have any in a newborn size, so I settled for red socks instead. It’s so adorable! I wish I could take a picture of it, but the saleslady wrapped it.

Carmen asked if I would come to her adult class on Thursday and help out a bit. She said she told her students about me and apparently they’ve been asking when I would come, so Thursday it is. I’m kinda excited; I’m used to being with kids so it’ll be something new…and fun too, I think!

I watched Something Barrowed in the afternoon (one of my Christmas presents) and LOVED it…awesome movie! I went to mass also last night and went to chino after that to look for an envelope to send Steph’s gift in. I’m also sending a selection of turrón and mazapán so I need a rather large one. The only extra large one they had had the sticky stuff ripped off the top of it so that was kind of a bummer. I mean, I can look elsewhere, but they’re always the cheapest.

I left chino and fiveish minutes later I realized I left my mittens there! Those are really nice Columbia mittens and I’m sure that anyone would be glad to find them so I hauled ass back. Luckily I’d left them on a shelf semi out of general view and they were still there!

I woke up this morning with an irritated throat :(. I think it’s the start of a cold—my throat is usually bothersome for a day or two before the other cold symptoms set in. I’m not surprised; with it being winter and all the germy littles at school, I’m actually surprised my body has held out this long…especially compared to last year!

I watched Eat, Pray, Love (a Christmas present from last year that mysteriously disappeared in February and magically reappeared nine months later, in October…and I finally remember to watch it! Good also, by the way.) This morning and I’ve been drinking tea all day and that soothes my throat (for a short while, at least). I’ve also got Halls lozenges on standby. I just hope it goes the usual cold route and the irritation will be gone in a couple of days. A stuffy nose I can handle but I HATE HATE HATE full blown sore throats!!!

Xoxo,

Court

Today it’s 50 and clear, but a tad on the windy side.

I made my weekly trip to Ahorra Más this morning—I usually go on Fridays and then Mercadona some other day, lately it’s been Thursdays. I also went to the post office to pick up my package (which I got notice for yesterday…thanks mom and dad!!!). I went to the bank first though, just in case I had to pay again to receive it. I didn’t, though (thank goodness!) so I’m still confused as to which items warrant extra payment…

Included in this package was:

·         A really pretty purplish beaded bracelet (LOVE purple!!!!!)

·         A 5x7 church picture of Mom and Dad (love it…now I can “see” them every day!)

·         Key chain with my name on it (there’s a word for that, isn’t there?)

·         An oil fragrance diffuser thing (smells really good!)

·         Christmas M&Ms (for cookies!...which I’ll prolly make next week)

·         Some gum picks/massage thingies (SWEET!)

·         More Lindt balls (I think there’s a variety…that’s what the different colors mean,  right?)

·         Two tide pens (which, yes, I’d asked for!)

·         A little medal thing with the Serenity Prayer on it (awesome prayer!)

I think that’s everything…I hope I haven’t forgotten anything! Thanks again, Mom and Dad!!! I feel like I had two Christmases this year! Well, truth be told, any time I receive a package it feels like Christmas!

I have Eloy’s club tonight. I really don’t want to go because I keep remembering how boring it was last year. That’s totally the wrong attitude to have, I know, but I can’t help it! However, I made a commitment, so I shall honor that…even if I believe it’s possible to die from boredom…

Xoxo,

Court

This afternoon it’s 50 and clear…a bit chilly, but overall not bad!

With five-years “A” we did a workbook page that corresponded with the story I read them last week about Ellie and Hippo in the park and Hippo was too big to do anything. They had to cut four pictures out and glue them in the correct order on the next page. I explained the activity several times and pointed to each picture and said the order, but there were still several who mixed it up. It was kinda funny because Ana got tired of correcting the order so she just started drawing sad faces on their pages!

Second and fourth hours were with the four-year-olds. We always have more time with “B” in the morning, so after our usual songs/greetings, we did this worksheet in which they had to place flower stickers over the faded out pictures on their sheets. It was super simple; there was a lot of time left over to play with some play dough! Fourth hour we didn’t have nearly that amount of time, so we played a memory game instead, with toy vocab.

Third hour I read 2A the story that I read 2B before, the one about Charlie and the weather…it snows, they have fun and play and the next day their snowman melts. We then did a class reading, in which each student was a different character. I think it was their first time doing a reading because some didn’t know what to do and it took forever!

Last hour was 6B and we read/discussed the MLK story we did for Rocío’s class. It took a while because we kept getting off topic with different questions, so we didn’t actually finish, but we had some good discussion!

I went by Mercadona after school to pick up a few things I can only get there, like six packs of tuna! I came home and had my lesson with Javi and now I’m going to peel some carrots I bought at the store. Oh, that’s another thing! Mercadona’s the only store that has kilo bags to carrots! Happy weekend to me though…time for some relaxation!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s clear and 50 today! A bit chilly with the slight wind, but super sunny as well…I didn’t even wear my scarf home!

We reviewed a lot in 1A this morning (like, everything, as usual) so we only had about 15 minutes left to do a worksheet. That was the plan, I guess, because it was really simple: Match the food with the correct word, breakfast, lunch or snack and then check whether pictures were fruits or vegetables.

Second and last hours with 3A and B we started a new unit about rooms of the house; we listened to a story about a haunted house and the kids trying to find the ghosts. Afterwards I asked them comprehension questions, which some understood and some didn’t. Lastly they copied down the new vocab, the rooms of the house and things like chair, bed, table, bath…

Third hour with five-years B we did the same thing as with “A” last week; the punched out game boards from their books, then Ana and I punched a hole in the middle so they could stick a pencil, crayon or something in there to make it spin. We never have a lot of time with that class—it seems like “breakfast” starts earlier each week.

4B actually wasn’t as bad as USUAL. I mean, they still were worse than any other level has ever been, but I didn’t hate the class as much today! I went over some adjectives with them (happy, lazy, hungry, thirsty, etc) and then spent the rest of the hour trying to work with this wild child doing some pages out of the workbook. He has a first grade level of English because he never does ANYTHING! No, I take that back, he likes to make noise and disrupt everyone in everything they do. I tried to get him to draw pictures of some animals but he must be ADHD or something…it didn’t go to well.

I don’t have class this afternoon, so lots of free time…oh what to do, what to do???

Xoxo,

Court

It’s nicer than yesterday; 45 and mostly cloudy, but at least it’s not raining!

Classes were even more chill than yesterday. With Rocío’s classes we talked about MLK with the little short story I found. We then listened to part of his speech with the subtitles. Oh and we also took a look at a couple of Husker videos and she had them draw a uniform.

I went to Marina’s class second hour and Pilar, the regular 1B teacher, said she wasn’t there so I was free that hour and fourth as well. I looked for peace quotes for posters we’re going to make in honor of Peace Day on the 30^th.

Third hour I reviewed the alphabet with the class and then Analen asked me to look for activities for Peace Day. I really didn’t find anything though; I don’t think it’s as widely celebrated as other holidays. Like, do we even have that in the US?

I have class with Javi at 4:30 and I’m thinking of taking a nap afterwards. I was more tired today than I was yesterday! What’s up with that? Maybe because the extra sleep from the weekend wore off—is that possible?

Xoxo,

Court

HAPPY MARTIN LUTHER KING JR DAY!!! Hope everyone's enjoying their day off! :)

It’s kind of poopy today…43, cold and rainy. Thankfully it wasn’t raining when I left this morning or on my way home¸ but the sky is heavy with clouds and it looks like it could start at any time. It rained for much of the day yesterday also.

Today was pretty laid back and easy. In the sixth levels we spent the entire hours talking about our weekends (what their vocab is about). The vocab included things like going to the swimming pool, restaurants, the cinema, staying home and other leisure activities.

...

Before third hour I ran into Rocío and the topic of MLK came up. She said she hadn’t had time to find anything and I volunteered to look for some activities (mainly because I had 4A that hour and had no desire to go and stay there). So I went, read them a short story and then asked Analen to leave class early.

I was “in the zone” looking for activities and I didn’t want to stop until I’d found a few things, so I asked Ana if I could come late to the three-year-old classes. I ended up missing the first one and arrived about ten minutes late to the second class, last hour. I was able to find several activities/MLK materials, though—a PowerPoint, an excerpt of his speech with Spanish subtitles, a word search and a short little 15 sentence story about his life. Mission accomplished!

I have class with Javi at 4:30. I changed our Friday lessons, so now they’re Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, all at 4:30. I could have sworn when we talked last Wednesday he said we’d meet at 5:30 on Fridays but he showed up an hour early last Friday. It was a surprise. Anyway, no conflict with Eloy’s club, so that’s good…or is it? I kinda want to have an out depending on what movies he chooses; if they’re boring I don’t wanna go!

Oh! I applied to OPS yesterday! Two positions: Spanish and ELL, both secondary. They were posted back in November, so I’m not sure what kind of apps they’ve received so far, so we’ll see. If course Lincoln’s still my number one, but I may have to settle for something else (I’m praying not, though!).

Xoxo,

Court

Today it’s a mild 54 degrees; the wind isn’t bad and the sun pops out every now and then!

My class with Javi yesterday afternoon was super simple: he brought this easy reader he’s reading in class and he would read a paragraph and then we would translate it. We’re going to have class for an hour every Monday, Tuesday and Friday. I forgot though that Eloy’s English club starts tomorrow (and I already told him I’d go…even though last year it was a bit boring, but he really wants to have a native there and I’m too nice to say “no”. So yeah…). I can’t change tomorrow’s lesson but the following Fridays I’m gonna ask to switch days or hours

Today wasn’t too bad. With five-years A, after the usual start-of-the-day activities, I read them a story…although now I can’t remember what it was about! Afterwards we played this “game” in which the kids spun this top thing on a board with all their vocab pictures and they had to say the word it landed on. They were supposed to get their own boards and tops to take home and play, but they were kinda loud and weren’t listening too well so Ana said no!

To the four-year-olds I read a different story about Ellie, Hippo and Mouse, who went to the park. Hippo couldn’t swing, go down the slide or use this toy car because he was too big. Poppy then swoops in magicked (I don’t know a real word!) up a huge swing for all of them to fit on. The morning class then had time to draw a picture of the park, but the afternoons didn’t.

With 2A third hour we introduced some new vocab about the weather (which I don’t quite understand because even the three-year-olds know the weather…maybe they’re going to focus more on writing the words and pronouncing them…). I read the vocab and they repeated it. I then put the pictures on the board and called them up individually to stick the correct word with its picture. Lastly they copied, drew and colored the vocab in their notebooks.

6B was pretty laid back; we spent the hour discussing our parents’ jobs. It took a long time because we went one by one; we didn’t get finished, only a little over halfway. Marilu and I would ask things like “How many hours do they work a day? What does your mom cook? (There were A LOT of stay-at-home-moms) Does your dad work here in Socu? (Many didn’t, I was really surprised at that…like they only come home on the weekends!)

I picked up a few things at the store on my way home and now it’s time to relax…Happy weekend to me!

Xoxo,

Court

It was super foggy again this morning when I left for school. It’s partly cloudy now and although my weather thing says 54, with the wind, it feels about 40ish…BRRR!

I don’t know why, but all the kids were kinda annoying today; they were loud and didn’t want to listen…some were obnoxious too. Almost every teacher was like “Wow, they’re terrible today!” It wasn’t so much first and last hours as the in between hours.

First we reviewed body vocab and hygiene phrases and later we reviewed a bit from their newest unit, fruits and vegetables. We did a worksheet in which they had to stick fruit/veggie stickers in the appropriate column; they then had to draw their favorite fruit/veg.

Second and last hours, with the third years, we reviewed the alphabet and that was followed by spelling classroom objects and animals. Later we started a new science unit about vertebrae and invertebrate animals. I read them a couple of sections from the book and then we repeated sentences one by one.

Five years B was pretty annoying...but I’ll cut them some slack though, because they’re so small. We sang a couple of songs and I reviewed some toy vocab with them, but they were rambunctious little ones. We also did this simple worksheet where they had to stick on three stickers. I was pretty happy today that we always finish early in that class so they can eat “breakfast”.

4B was annoying as ever today. Aside from the two minutes I spent introducing their new vocab (which I had to stop literally every three seconds for because they kept talking) I sat there and stared blankly at the wall. Some of the kids tried to talk to me but I just ignored them. I really detest that class.

I have a lesson this afternoon! Marina (1A/B) told me that her cousin needs classes, or rather his mom wants him to have classes. His name’s Javi and he’s in high school; 16 or 17 I think Marina said. He’s coming here at five and from what Marina said it should be pretty easy for me…he’ll be bringing his books/something to work on and I basically have to be there for assistance. That I can do!

Xoxo,

Court

It’s a sunny 52 degrees outside. It was rather chilly this morning because it as super foggy but that cleared up midmorning.

With Rocío’s fifths first and last hours we were back in the video room learning more about Nebraska again. She found some info from the Nebraska State Historical Society about Native Americans so we have a sheet about that, also a fill-in-the-blank worksheet about state facts and a city word search. There are also a couple of coloring sheets (different than last year, thank goodness!), but those look kinda boring. Of course I got to class and she was like “Let’s (meaning me) look for videos on YouTube. She wants a general one about Lincoln (which I actually found!) and one with the Huskers. Why she never tells me what she wants before class starts, I’ll never know…

In 1B we reviewed toy vocab (doll, car, ball, etc) and then played a memory game to further ingrain everything into their brains. They then did a sheet in which they had to color the vocab objects; it’s pretty much the same every week.

I went to 2B third hour and Pilar De Leon is back!!! She’s so sweet! She was the 1B regular teacher last year but left before the year ended because she had problems wither her neck. I thought she was gone for good. She’s been in Madrid recuperating for a while and says while she feels better; she’s still only 70% well. Anyway, I read the class a story about the weather (in which it snows, the kids have a snowball fight and build a snowman and then wake up the next morning and it’s all melted). We then sang a song about sun, rain, wind and snow.

Marina’s 5A is a little behind Rocío’s, so we stayed in the classroom and they finished up a couple of worksheets about their food likes and dislikes. They were all like “How do you say _____?” and so Marina would tell them. I would have been like “Guess who’s your friend? Mr. Dictionary!”, but it wasn’t up to me…

I’ve got to update my LPS profile this afternoon. I got an email last night saying they’re closing out the 2011-2012 profiles as they are gearing up for listing 2012-2013 positions (yay!). I’ll prolly have to apply for general positions again, like I did back in September. Kelly emailed me my Spanish recommendation a few days before Christmas and I emailed Valorie about the ELL one last night, so she should be doing it within the next two weeks. My profile will be more complete soon!

Xoxo,

Court

Today it’s super clear (we’re talking totally blue skies as far as the eye can see) and 48…a bit chilly with the wind, but overall it’s not bad.

Back to school today! It was basically a nothing day, but that’s how it usually is first day back after Christmas. With the sixth levels we went around the room and talked about what we received from either Santa or the Three Wise Men. We were supposed to start the new unit after that, but it took longer than anticipated, so that was all we did.

Third hour I reviewed some vocab with 4A (orange juice, fruit, milk, cake, etc) for like five minutes and then talked to José Carlos, the regular teacher, for a while. Analen usually has them copy some vocab, so that keeps them busy most days when I’m there.

I was with the three-year-olds for the afternoon classes and those went pretty quick. I read both classes a story about Baby Duck who couldn’t find Mama Duck, so she went looking for her. On her way she found Monkey, Hippo and Ellie, who finally took her back to Mama Duck. Fourth hour had time to do a coloring sheet but last hour didn’t so we watched the story I’d just read on the computer.

Now I’m really tired; as expected from days of staying up and sleeping in late! I can’t decide, though, if I should take a nap or just have some coffee and turn in early…

Xoxo,

Court

It’s 48 and clear outside; not bad for January!

I know it’s been several days since I’ve posted; there just hasn’t been that much going on over break. I finally finished reading The Help though! I started it way back in September when I came. I read on the plane and a couple of days after that but I then kinda stopped…not really sure why. But I again last week and finished Friday. I had downloaded the movie several weeks ago but decided I didn’t want to watch it until I had read the book. I watched it last night. Such a good movie…and book! I’ve moved on to Heaven is for Real now; that shouldn’t take too long to read, it’s so short.

Well, tomorrow it’s back to school and my posts will go back to normal. It’s been a relaxing break, but I’m ready to go back!

Xoxo,

Court

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!! And whoa, it looks weird to see 2012 written there!

Weather’s not bad today, 54, although it is cloudy. It could be a lot worse for January (seems weird to write that!) though; wouldn’t it be great if it didn’t get too much colder?

Good news today! I got a package from home…MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ME!!! Thanks Mom and Dad!! I so enjoyed opening up the box and unwrapping all the presents (thanks for wrapping everything so nicely, Mom, it felt just like Christmas …kinda). I think I would have enjoyed it just a tad bit more, however, if I wouldn’t have had to pay 40 Euros to receive it! Something about there being a Customs tax because of certain items inside. Don’t ask me which items were taxed though, because I have no idea. I’m not really sure which items warrant a tax; I have had to pay before, but not every time, so it’s a little confusing. Is it not enough that the sender has paid? I mean, come on now!

As annoying as that was, it didn’t ruin my “Christmas”! I’m surprised by how much I got!

·         TWO scarves (well, technically one’s a shawl, but no need to be picky!)

·         Something Barrowed on DVD

·         TWO books: Water for Elephants and Heaven is for Real

·         NINE packs of gum: peppermint, spearmint and cinnamon

·         A bottle of lotion (Sensual Amber!!)

·         THREE little Bath and Body Works hand sanitizers

·         An iTunes gift card

·         A Lindt chocolate bear

·         Some Lindt milk and white chocolate balls (thank you, stocking tradition!)

Looks like I’ll be busy reading, watching, chewing, listening, eating, looking good and smelling good for a long time to come! Thanks again Mom and Dad…and I can’t wait to be in the flesh next year!!!

Xoxo,

Court