Today, I got up and went right to Mass at 10:30 with my sister. Usually, I got to 7 PM Mass at Holy Cross with my friends but today was a special day. My cousins just bought a beach house in Newport so my family went to go visit! My sister and I stopped into this church on the way home. Mass on Sunday always helps me to remember have gratitude for the beautiful life I have been given. I’m so lucky I get the opportunity to be a student teacher and go to my dream college, Holy Cross. Every day is a blessing and a gift. My Catholic faith and my teaching vocation go hand in hand.
I made three wishes because this was my first time at this church.
My favorite song!
One of the best parts of going home is seeing my dog, Bentley. She is three.
I only live an hour from Newport so it was a short drive over. It was 55 and sunny out and we even drove with the sunroof open. We spent the afternoon touring the house and spending time together. Since they live right on the the Newport Cliff Walk, we made sure to take a walk there. It is so beautiful!
The drive was so fun!
We know we are almost there when we go over the bridge.
This is our cousins’ dog, Bailey.
Bailey is only 6 months old– she is still so tiny!
Views from the Cliff Walk.Family selfie 🙂
Then, my Grammie treated us to dinner. It was delicious. It was special to have such a fun day spent with family. I’m so grateful we got to spend the day together. Sometimes it is hard to slow down and take time for what we value in life, but I think that days like these are so important and special! I feel refreshed and ready to take on another week of student teaching.
Today I got to sleep in for the first time in a while. I went to Kimball because my sister is a freshman at Holy Cross at she has guest swipes. We both got omelets! My favorite omelet has feta cheese, tomato, spinach, and onion in it. I have not been to Kimball in months so it was fun to catch up with my sister and spend the morning together.
My dad and brother were in Worcester today and surprised my sister and I with Starbucks coffee. It was so sweet of them!
Love my little sis!
To do lists are a must for a busy day.
Then, I went back to my apartment and did some laundry. I like doing my laundry on the weekends because it makes the rest of the week so much easier. My friends and I did some homework in a study room in our apartment. I was super productive and got everything but two things done on my to do list.
The views from my apartment are the best.They were so fluffy and delicious 🙂
I baked these gluten free chocolate chip muffins for a special day that I will blog about tomorrow! The secret ingredient is coconut oil instead of butter.
My friends all met up at 6:30 PM at Chipotle. I got a bowl with lettuce, brown and white rice, cheese, mild salsa, and sour cream. So yummy!
My awesome friends part 1My awesome friends part 2We also went grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s.I got all of this stuff for $40! Talk about a bargain.
The last thing I did today was meal prep for this week. I love making my salads and washing all of my fruit ahead of time because it saves me so much time in the mornings.
After a week of rainy weather, the sun finally came out!☼After work from 8:30-12, I met up with friends for lunch. Then, I edited my resume in the library for a workshop next week.The history department always has free books for us– I always grab ones that look interesting or I could use for my new class!After a meeting with my professor, I ran into my friend, Tara, in Hogan. I voted for the Spring Concert 2019 genre!
SPUD TIME!!!
I am so excited to share about my SPUD (Student Programs for Urban Development) site, Ascension After School Program. The students, grades 1-6, go to Union Hill School and are so filled with life, love, and energy. This program truly gave me the confidence to change my major and affirm that I wanted to be a teacher. I have been going to this site weekly from 3-5 PM for four years now. We spend the first half of the afternoon playing with the kids in free time. Then, we work on homework together. Sister Pat, who runs the program, was actually my dad’s first grade teacher☺
Sister Pat is the best at decorating for every season.
The kids always want me to take pictures of them and then get shy 🙂
I love how the decorations are so festive.
The kids started playing inside…
But we moved outside because it was so nice out!
We did each other’s hair! The girls are so talented.
Basketball and tag are fan favorites 🙂
The kids played more after homework.
The math station is always popular because of the colored blocks.
An intense game of LIFE teaches the kids how to count money.
The kids love pictures and always want to be in them 🙂
Here is the motto of the program: Do unto others. The best!!!
Sister Pat always makes sure that the “walkers” make it home safely.
The Holy Cross van driver, Lynchy, always takes us safely to and from Holy Cross. Thanks Lynchy!
After SPUD. . .
Here is the street my friends live on. It’s a pretty view… but quite a hill!
My friends and I did some homework and ate dinner together.
I made a pasta dish for dinner and brought it over to eat at my friends’ apartment.
Pasta dish recipe: Broccoli, kale, olive oil, spinach, cherry tomatoes, kalamata olives, onion, garlic, garlic powder, dash of salt, pepper.
9:00 AM: Pre-Practicum– Today, we learned about an active learning strategy, Four Corners. We discussed an article on the Finnish education system and compared it to ours. When I saw that my professor made my class cookies, I knew it was going to be an awesome day!
The cookies were SOO good.
10:00 AM: 20th Century America– We submitted hard copies of our 5-7 page papers on the Redemption era and continued our discussion on the Gilded Age.
11:00-1:30: Black Biographies Seminar– In class, we learned about Marcus Garvey’s life. Then, we made Jamaican patties for lunch! My professor always makes us food because our class is during lunch time– it’s the best.
Here are the Jamaican patties cooking during class!
2:00-3:15: Urban Education– We learned about what solidarity means.
After classes, I met my younger sister, Catherine, at the gym to go for a run. Then, I did homework at Starbucks with a friend.
Here is Holy Cross’ new Luth Athletic Center.
My friend sent me this picture of the gorgeous rainbow today!
This is where I go to be extra productive!
Apartment Tour!
I also wanted to show you my room and what my apartment looks like! Here are some pictures.
Here is what our living room looks like. We are ready for fall!This is what my side of the bedroom looks like!Here’s the view overlooking the city from my bedroom window. It’s so beautiful!
In addition to my bedroom and our living room/dining area, my three roommates and I also have a full kitchen (with a dishwasher, fridge, and sink), a bathroom, and a shower.
Pro-Tip: You can tell how long it is going to take you to get to school when you live on city-side of the building. This video shows how you can see the traffic on the major highway, Interstate 290, that takes you across Worcester. It’s great!
For breakfast, I made oatmeal using gluten-free oats, chia seeds, hemp seeds, cocoa nibs, strawberries, blueberries, black raspberries, dark chocolate sunbutter, and a little granola on top. So delicious!! I only drink decaf coffee (with a little coconut milk) but I love to start my day with something warm to drink.
I eat this vegan, soy free, gluten free, nut free chocolate oatmeal recipe basically every morning.
Lunch:
For lunch, I packed a salad with spinach/kale blend lettuce, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, kalamata olives, onions, sweet potatoes, carrots, and some pumpkin and sunflower seeds on top.
Here’s what my crazy countertop looks like when packing my lunch.
Dinner:
I ate dinner in my apartment with my two roommates, Lexi and Sarah. This was a true “comfort food” dinner. I have to admit, the soup wasn’t homemade– I used a tomato soup from Panera in the Holy Cross Lobby Shop 🙂 But it sure did the trick!
There’s nothing like a little grilled cheese and tomato soup to end a chilly fall day.
Besides Food. . .
My work view! Dinand Library is absolutely beautiful.
Today I worked in Dinand again from 8:30 AM-12 PM (here’s my view– can you tell I LOVE my job?!) and then I had a Personal Research Session with a research librarian for a paper at 12 PM. Then, I met up with friends in Lower Kimball for lunch. After lunch, I registered for a parking pass decal for my car from Public Safety.
This is what our parking passes look like!
For the afternoon, I did some homework and worked out. My day ended with a super interesting seminar, Student Mental Health, which goes from 6-8:30 PM! Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post where I share an apartment tour.
I’m so excited I get the opportunity to start the College of the Holy Cross Teacher Education Program (TEP) blog takeover series for the week. Today, I spent three hours at Sullivan Middle School in Worcester where I work with 7th grade history students. I am only spending three hours a week this semester there, but in the Spring I will be there full-time. For today’s post, I really wanted to focus on giving a little tour of what Sullivan Middle is like— hopefully the pictures below bring it to life!
Break down of today:
Here’s a little run down of how my schedule went today:
8 AM: Wake up, shower, breakfast, pack lunch, some homework
10 AM: Class (20th Century America I)– We learned about the Gilded Age and what makes a corporation unique.
11 AM-2 PM: Sullivan Middle School– I observed and assisted with small tasks and one-on-one help in class. I get to carpool and spend lunch with my two friends Ally (Math) and Hannah (English), who are also in the TEP. We are all part of the 7th grade team.
2 PM: Office hours– Went over a few questions for a history paper due Wednesday with my professor.
3 PM: SGA Meeting– Since I am Treasurer of the senior class, I met with the class president, Brandon, and our advisor, Simone, to plan more Senior Ball details.
4 PM: Writer’s Workshop Appointment— I met with a trained student worker to make some edits for my paper (the same one I went to office hours for earlier!).
5 PM: Gym and dinner– Even a short run on the treadmill helps 🙂
6-9:30 PM: Work– I work 10 hours a week in Dinand Library as a Student Reference Assistant.
10 PM: Manic Monday– My roommate, Lexi, is an amazing singer and my friends and I always go to cheer her on at the Monday night Delilah’s performances in Hogan Campus Center.
Overall thoughts on the day:
Today was a great day! It was super busy and scheduled down to the minute but I really enjoyed spending most of it with my students at Sullivan Middle. I’m still getting to know their names and personalities, but I’m getting better each week. Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post where I talk about what I eat in a day as an “almost” student teacher!
I knew it was going to be a great week when I saw last night’s sunset 🙂
Teacher OOTD (Outfit of the Day)! I was excited to wear a sweater for the first time this year. It was so cold today– the high was 54!
Here’s the outside view of Sullivan Middle School in Worcester.
Ms. Kudenchak, Ms. Trueman, and I were excited to start our fourth day at Sullivan. We are so lucky to be part of the 7th grade team and share our students!
This is what the office looks like and where we sign in and out of the building.
Here’s a shot of the first floor hallway. The library is right behind the yellow wall.
My favorite hallway painting at Sullivan! So inspirational!
Students wrote in their INBs (Interactive Notebooks) while Mr. Riley modeled how to take Cornell Notes from a reading.
Seminar students enjoying a documentary from the History Channel on the Declaration of Independence.
Even though it was a crazy day, I made time for a quick run on the treadmill.
