The year has FLOWN by. I was just creeping back at my blogs from this time last year. I didn't even post on Hallowe'en last year because I don't like it. Also, I spell Hallowe'en that way because that's how they do it in Britain, and because Hallowe'en is a contraction of All Hallows Eve. And because contractions need apostrophes. (And because that's what it's called in Harry Potter, and I LOOOOOVE Harry Potter.)
I'm still not a big fan of this holiday. I think it's creepy, and I don't entirely approve of the overall theme of the day. But there are a lot of adorable costumes out there (just this morning, I saw the world's cutest Superman), so I'm kind of looking forward to handing out candy tonight.
It's crazy how one week, school can seem really relaxing, and then the next week you feel like you're in over your head. Here's what I think:
You're never in over your head when it comes to school.
Yes it can be harder than high school...but I felt really stressed out at the end of last week, and after spending a good chunk of this past weekend on schoolwork, I'm feeling a lot better. So it's just a matter of sitting down and getting it done.
That doesn't mean there's no fun to be had at university, though. We have tons of fun events and concerts - and they're even all-ages lots of the time. So find that balance and have some fun.
So! My life: Right now I'm doing lots of projects that will someday help me to be a better teacher. One project is to find 8 resources that I could use for a unit on something of my choice. That's good because it really helps me learn how and where to find teaching resources. Another project is to do a sixty-minute lesson plan, and then present it to my classmates. Another one is to make a five-day unit plan. That one's really practical because at the end of November, we're not in university, but at our Student Teaching Placements (mine's Holy Cross in Saskatoon) where we have to actually teach a five-day unit. So I'm excited about that.
My unit is on technical writing. I get to teach grade 10s how to properly write a paper. Weooo! My fave. Actually. No joke.
Okay. Until next time! Happy Hallowe'en everybody!
I have an excuse: my blog login (blogin?) wasn't working! But then I emailed the powers that be, and before they even got back to me, it started working again. What's a girl to do? Anyway, I know it's been FOREVER since I blogged, and you're probably wondering what's been happening in my school life.
Or maybe you haven't. But I'm going to tell you anyway.
I am in love with some of my classes. I'm not going to lie and tell you that I'm always pleased as punch to be in school, and that I never get stressed out, and that university's SUPER easy. But it's not so scary as "they" say.
Actually, these days, I've been more afraid of high school than university. In the College of Education, we go and teach one day a week in a local high school. My placement is Holy Cross Catholic High School here in Saskatoon. It's super rewarding - turns out I love high school students - but also terrifying every time I walk into the classroom. I have all these fears that the students won't listen to me, that they'll smell my fear. Last week one of them accused me of not being old enough to be a teacher. I told him I was old enough to be his MOM, and he believed me. It's not true...I am not old enough to be a 17-year-old's mother. Crazy boy.
So all things considered, school's going pretty well. The weather's also kind of wonderful. It's been a little bit chilly this week, but that's to be expected at the end of October. My friend Jimmy says that there will for SURE be snow by the end of October, and that's only 4 days away. Let's hope Jim's wrong for a little while longer.
Until next time!
Today, I was sitting at a table in the Murray Library with a few of my friends. We decided to book a group-study room for tomorrow morning, since we figured we'd be settling in for a big study-day. Well, when you book a study room in the library, you have to give your booking a title. I couldn't think of one--because it needed to be something clever, OBVIOUSLY; "Heather's Study Group" wasn't going to cut it--so my friend Meagan suggested a song title. "When all else fails, go with a song title," she said.
So I did. And when I was thinking of titles for this blog, I went with a song title as well. Our Last Days as Children is by the band Explosions in the Sky. They're post-rock (no lyrics), and if you study while listening to them, you'll feel seven kinds of epic. Like your math homework has suddenly made you Superman.
But I digress.
So, folks, I've started education. I am a FIRST-YEAR again! So I'm going to tell you a little bit about my experience as a student in the College of Education.
First of all, do you remember that blog I wrote a while back about people who say random cliches even though they aren't true? Well, I had a few people (none of whom are now educators, or who even WENT through the College of Education) tell me beforehand that I was entering a college where everything is rainbows and kittens, fluffy and not at all applicable. This is what I think of that:
No really, I think that education is about as fluffy and unapplicable as any course. Sure, there are some things that just aren't practical--as there are in pretty much any discipline--but on the whole, I'm LOVING education.
The atmosphere on campus is so exciting this time of year. There have been a couple really crisp days this week, and I've even loved them because it feels like fall. Construction on Place Riel is finished; the fence in the Bowl is down; life is good.
See you all next week!
Well team, here it is: the last post of summer. It's hard to believe that it was over four months ago that I finished exams. I went to Ontario (remember that?), and then I started work. Then I went to Pennsylvania (remember THAT?) and then I came back, and August moved inCREDIBLY fast, and now here we are.
Anyway, I met with my friend Leesha last week, and while she and I are both fourth-years, neither of us had ever been to our classrooms for this year, so we decided to go find them together. I HIGHLY encourage this behaviour. It's a really good idea to check out your classrooms beforehand.
Even for Leesha and I, who both know our ways around campus VERY well, it was nice to go to the rooms once before we were on a time limit for getting there. Not to mention, there's a certain amount of "feeling prepared" that comes along with seeing the interior of your classrooms.
I wrote a blog over a year ago about the U-PASS. It was titled "I Usually U-Pass My Exams." I figure a year's long enough, so I'm going to talk about the bus system for a while.
Saskatoon Transit has done a great job of improving bus routes to help students out. The U of S is now one of the most major bus hubs in the city, so almost every bus stops here (with the exception of the ones that go up to industrial areas, where no one lives anyway). Also, we get a SUPER deal on bus passes. We pay around $140 for the whole year of bus passes. But if you weren't a student and bought a pass through the city, it'd cost you over $550. So it's really cool that we have such a convenient and relatively cheap way to get to school! ALSO, because we're students, the U-PASS is just included in our student fees, so we don't even have to do anything in order to get a pass.
Another advantage to taking the bus is that you don't really have to be awake on your way to school. You know that feeling you get when you wake up in the morning? The one where you're a walking zombie and can't do more than grunt when your roommate wishes you a too-cheerful "good MORRRRRNING!" I KNOW I'm not the only one. Anyway, and then you try to get in your car or on your bike and realize you now have to be a safe driver lest you hit someone on your way to school. Well, if you take the bus, you don't have to do that. You just get on the bus, and the driver takes you to school. It's a beautiful thing.
Save a tree. Ride the bus.
Save your stress. Find your classes early!
Those of us from Saskatchewan - and yeah, I lump myself in there, so deal with it - know how it feels to be stereotyped. Other parts of Canada tease us with ridiculous questions like, "So how many trees are you guys up to now?" or "How did your dog run away? Couldn't you see it for three days?"
And we are good-natured people, so we laugh it off and move on with our lives. We know the truth: Saskatchewan is freaking awesome. Our economy is fantastic, and we were the only province to release a balanced budget for this year. (Don't quote me on that, though...it was just a headline I read somewhere.) We rock. Anyway, I just thought I'd share some stuff I've been hearing around campus lately, because it'll make you feel really good about your decision to attend (or consider) the U of S.
This was a quote from a Master of Public Health student. I don't know where she's from - she sounded Canadian to me, but obviously she's not from here - and she wasn't saying these words to me, but to her friend. So it was totally candid - she had no idea how great I felt when I heard that. So for those of you who are from Saskatchewan, keep up the good work. And for those of you who aren't, be excited to meet us!
I was giving a tour to a high school student, and this is what she said as I showed her through one of our oldest buildings. It is a really beautiful building, but she was talking about the entire campus. And it's true. I was sitting on a bench with my boss yesterday, outside by the Bowl, and we were both looking around, just talking about how gorgeous our campus is. You might even say it's one of the most beautiful in Canada.
This is something one of my friends said to me. She's from BC, and she just finished her honours English degree here, and now she's moved back home. I asked her about how she felt about the U of S. This was her response. And the whole time I knew her (we took three classes together last year), she said stuff like this. She loves Saskatchewan.
I have a friend who's lived in Saskatchewan his entire life. This is what his wife said when I asked her how she felt about moving here. She's from...somewhere in the States. Maybe Ohio? Even our scary cold winter - which is what season it was when she visited for the first time - didn't deter her. Although I think her husband (boyfriend at the time) might have had something to do with it. Maybe that should be a selling point...we have lots of big strapping farm boys? Yikes. Someone throw a tarp on me!
Cheesy, I know. This is actually one of my own quotes. I had a prof who asked us to write a paragraph, about how we felt about university, as an ice-breaker exercise early in my third year. This is word-for-word what I wrote down. And I still feel that way.
This morning on my way to work, I was listening to the radio, and the DJs were commenting to each other how the mornings are starting to feel really "fall-like, just a little chilly." I can't help but agree with them. I always check the weather on my phone in the morning, but lately I've had to wear a sweater on my way to work, and then take it off before the end of the day because the afternoons are still nice and toasty.
It won't be long, though, before fall really sets in. And usually that's after classes start. In my second year, the first day of class was probably the hottest day of 2009. Everyone was wearing shorts, and everyone ended up sticking to their chairs. Just kidding about the chair-sticking part. Mostly.
Anyway, exactly three weeks from today is a holiday Monday. Exactly three weeks from tomorrow, classes start. Today is the middle of August. Where the heck did summer go??
I, for one, am both happy and sad that summer is ending. Work is great, but I'm a nerd at heart, so school is pretty much my life. But I'm sad that summer's ending because it's nice to have a job and regular money, and every evening off because there's no homework to do.
I'm excited about school starting because I have a plan with a few of my friends:
1. I have a bad habit of skipping class. I try really hard not to, but sometimes I can't resist the urge. That's bad. So my friend Jordan, who has the same issue, and I have decided that we're going to carpool to school. Taking the bus would be cheaper than driving, but if we share the parking spot and split the cost of gas, we'll save some dough, and we'll both feel more obligated to go to class. Mission accomplished.
2. When I'm only going to school for a one-hour chunk of time, I can hardly force myself to do it, because I could JUST STAY HOME where life is nice. But to combat this urge, my group of friends and I have figured out how we can maintain a table at the library all day. Of course, this means someone needs to be there at all times, but we've figured out our schedules to suit that. Then, we can leave our jackets and excess school stuff at the table while we run to our one-hour class, and then come back, and study together.
The biggest thing I can stress at university is to figure out what works for you, and fast. It took me almost two years of believing that I study best in quiet and solitude before I realized that's not true. I study best when I'm with people, and when there's background noise. I have to be able to look up and observe that nothing exciting is happening without me, so I can just keep working. So make sure you do the same--not everyone works the same way, so figure out your way.
School's starting soon! So excited for the first day of classes!
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