Not a 5th grade teacher for much longer . . .

I have to share some exciting news! It was just confirmed this week that I will not be teaching 5th grade next year. I LOVE 5th graders, but after six years with this grade level, I knew a change would be good for me professionally. I had expected to move down to primary grades, but instead I will actually be moving up to 6th grade!

Because we currently have three sections of 5th grade, they needed to create a third section in 6th for next year. In addition, ASB is moving forward (slowly, but surely!) with technology integration, readers/writers workshop and eventually instructional coaching. My director knows my background in literacy coaching and I approached him early on this year about really wanting to get back into this - my passion definitely lies in working with both kids and teachers.

So . . . next year I will be teaching "humanities," which is a combination of literacy and social studies, for half the day. I'm SO excited to teach social studies again - it's been years! (And I'm pretty happy to not be teaching math and science. :) The other half of my day will be spent working as a "technology integrator" in grades 4-7, helping teachers integrate technology projects into their lessons.

Although I think I know quite a bit about how to use technology as a demonstration tool (i.e. interactive whiteboards), I have a lot to learn about technology-based programs and software! For the past three years, I have been craving professional development - I miss the learning I was able to do at Crawford so much! I have a feeling that the next six months/year are going to be FULL of learning opportunities for me, which makes me so excited! Between possible technology training, writer's workshop training at ASB in June, and possibly attending the reader's workshop training in NYC this summer, I will certainly be learning a lot.

Needless to say, I'm really excited about this opportunity! Getting to work with teachers and students in a new way, moving back into more of a coaching role, teaching two-three subjects instead of four, and getting to spend another year with many of my fantastic kiddos - how lucky am I?!

A Week in Ireland

Tessa and I just returned from a week-long trip to Ireland and as expected, it was amazing! Ireland has been at the top of my travel destinations list for a long time, so it was great to finally be able to visit, especially with Tessa, who has been going there for years to see family.

A visit to the Guinness Storehouse started our trip!

We started our trip in Dublin, then drove to Ballinamore in Leitram, where we stayed with Tessa's grandmother for three nights. After that, we headed to Galway for two nights, then returned to Dublin for one more. It was a packed holiday! However, getting to see so many different places and have a variety of experiences is what made it such a great trip.

The weather on our drive to Galway was incredible - what a beautiful country!

It was wonderful to spend time with family, even though it wasn't mine. Since I've been without grandparents for about a decade now, it was so nice to be around a grandma again. I was also constantly amazed at just how big Irish families tend to be. I can't imagine having 50+ cousins like Tessa does, considering I only have six! In some ways, I think it would be great to have a family that big, but at the same time, it must be overwhelming, too.

Grandma Lena and I - such a lovely lady!

One of my favorite parts of both Galway and Dublin was the music. Live music was played in just about every pub we went to! We heard a variety of traditional Irish music, cover bands, and musicians playing in the streets. It was incredible to hear such good music consistently and it was so fun! Everyone (but especially Tessa and I!) would be singing along and it created such a happy vibe.

One of many bands we saw, but these two were especially great!

In both of these cities, we also met people from all over - Italy, Denmark, South Africa - and even met Christian Bale's doppleganger (wow!). In some ways, Dublin reminded me of Barcelona - the energy was palpable, which I loved. It was also confirmed that Tessa and I seem to be magnets for older men (maybe because of our American smiles?!) - this was often a bit uncomfortable, but it also saved us some money.

I LOVED the Temple Bar area!

As I had been told, the Irish really are some of the friendliest people around. No one is a stranger and they love to tell stories. The lilting accent and way of speaking made me happy to listen to anything they had to say! As expected, I was often mistaken for being Irish and I really wished I could say that I was (not centuries removed!).

Although I definitely need a break from the food and beer (how are Irish people not more overweight?!), I can't wait to go back. I definitely see another night or two in Dublin and a trip to Northern Ireland in my future . . .

Song of the Moment

I am 100% obsessed with this song, thanks to Jango and Marybeth. Love it!

So Sweet!

One of the best parts of being a teacher, particularly an elementary teacher, is just how sweet students can be. Although it might not be apparent everyday, sometimes it couldn't be clearer just how much they care! I know there are plenty of things I do that my students don't love, but when I'm not there, regardless of how great the substitute is, they seem to think I'm the best teacher ever. Completely untrue, but I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me feel good.

The girls in my class gave this letter to Tessa to deliver to me. I have to say, it includes some of the best messages I've yet to receive! It confirms that being a teacher is one of he best jobs ever, and that I particularly love this group of kids. :)

One of the not-so-easy things about living abroad . . .

As I'm sure it's clear from my posts, I absolutely love living abroad, especially in Spain. The people, the weather, the lifestyle, the language - all of it is amazing! However, in the past week or so, I've been reminded just how difficult it can be to live in a different country, particularly when not fluent in the language.

I was pretty sick before the holidays with the typical flu. Although that eventually went away, I was left with a pretty deep cough that has lasted for over a month now. I haven't felt too bad, but am constantly coughing, which led to inflamed muscles between my ribs - pretty uncomfortable! Last week the doctor told me there was nothing I could do besides try not to move too much and take pain relievers. Although I stopped exercising (adios, New Year's Resolution #1!), I kept working because it's such a pain to write sub plans, miss school, etc. Unfortunately, teaching, talking, and laughing haven't improved the cough at all and I've been pretty miserable.

I'd visited the doctor here a number of times. Although she's nice, she's pretty intimidating! And I usually understand about 80% of what she says. (She's not particularly good at checking for understanding!). So, I decided to go to the ER in order to get a chest x-ray based on the advice of a number of people at school. After 3 hours there, I was happy to find out that there's no infection, but unhappy to hear that again, there's nothing I can do. The doctor there suggested I not work for the rest of the week. I opted to take her advice this time and go on the baja - basically the Spanish equivalent of work leave - I think! Not knowing that I needed that form at the time, I had to return to the doctor yet again today to get the paperwork necessary for school.

Wow - what an experience it has been! I have to say, living in a country where the health system is SO different than what I was used to in the US, as well as the fact that I have yet to encounter anyone who speaks English has been quite a stressful experience! I love practicing my Spanish, but when it comes to medical matters, I would much prefer to understand 100% of what was happening than improve my language skills.

Although I made it through all of these experiences in the past week, I'm still not convinced that I really know what's going on with my health! If nothing else, I got my first baja, watched the entire "Game of Thrones" series in 24 hours (it's amazing!), read two books, watched multiple movies and done some great vacation planning. Hopefully I can make it through the next three days without going completely stir-crazy AND actually beat this cough!

And I have to say, I'm a bit proud of myself, and anyone living in a foreign country, for getting through these type of situations. Maybe I'll study some Spanish medical vocabulary this weekend . . .