Helpful Boys

So back in November, my neighbour woke me up 2 nights in a row talking on the phone or computer at 3 am so I decided since I have a 2 bedroom place that I would move to the other bedroom to avoid being woken up in the middle of the night. I needed help to move some things like my bed and desk so I called Mishel's house and over came her 2 oldest boys to help. When we were putting things back into rooms the boys found my jewelry and this is what happened...

Yes I tricked them because I was amused by how much fun they were having with my necklaces and rings....I never would have thought boys would be so entertained with "BLING".

Here is what Drew wanted me to video...

Christmas Fun

So this has been a fun December. Christmas band concert, snow days and helping with costums for the live nativity have made the time fly. At the junior high, secretly someone was leaving little gifts for the twelve days of Christmas for me. Sometimes they were in my box and other times on my desk. Thursday I didn't see one so I wondered if it had been the librarian because she was off. Today I found it on the "work table" and just after I had remove that one, the spot was filled with a box. It had the remaining days inside with instructions to open one a day until Christmas.  So now I don't know who was being so kind...but that's what Christmas is all about!

Beautiful Moment...

I love that today I got to watch a child with autism share with classmates. It was track and field day at the school I am volunteering at, so half of the class came where I was and the other half went to track and field (because it was a 2/3 split class and only grade 3 and up do track). We watched a video about things that fly and then the students drew pictures about the video and presented them. This student made a connection with the video that he shared before going to draw and even answered questions from the other class members. I think it worked because it was a small group and because it was a topic that was of interest. I just thought it was beautiful to watch.

Snow Day...

Welcome to winter.  It really decided to snow today. When I left for church it was hardly snowing and I thought maybe the storm wouldn’t come.  I get into RS and there are only 5 sisters in there...others were on their way out. I wondered if I should be leaving too, but I stayed. The snow had picked up and but it still didn’t look toooooo bad. When I left church the snow was falling harder, the wind was blowing and I had to go slow all the way home.  After I got home I decided I should take a picture of how far up my basement window the snow was.

Then 3 and a half hours later here are the pictures I took out the living room....

and the kitchen window view....

No blinds needed in the basement when the wind blows the snow into a drift that fills the whole window. If you miss the snow, just look at these pictures and enjoy it from a distance.

Week 1...

So I have started my second placement in a grade 1/2 split class and I am already tired. This first week went by quickly (I started last Thursday so this was my 6th day in class...) and I now know what lice looks like AND kids that throw up get to go to the office but it is truely nice to have an outdoor rink a block away from your school for skating activities! (Shoulda brought my skates...what was I thinking)

So if anyone has some great poems that would be appropriate for grade 1/2 I'm looking for some. Or a story that could be read aloud, I will need those as well.

It’s all about Placement!

I thought I would share with you a little about my first placement. I was in a grade 4 class with 27 children.  School started at 8:35 am and I was required by LU to be there 1/2 an hour before school started which ment that I was leaving my house at 7:30 am to be to school for 8 am. The first week wasn’t bad because the sun was just starting to come out when I left my house and it was light when I got to school. By the third week, it was dark when I left and just starting to be light when I got to school. The last week (#5) it was dark when I left and dark when I got there. Here is a picture of me arriving at school during my last week.

I prayed every morning that I wouldn’t hit a deer on my way and my prayers were answered because I made it safely every day!

While I was at placement, I was able to participate in the school’s “Harvest Meal” which happened the Friday after Thanksgiving. Community members attended and they feed us turkey, potatoes, stuffing, carrots and gravy. The meal was great! I also experienced Halloween and the challenge it is for children to contain their excitement on days leading up to celebration day.

I did an art project with the grade 4’s that took 3 art classes to get it finished. We put them up on the wall. They were learning about value in colour and how you can change it by adding white or black to make it light or dark. We made grassy fields from a birds view. They did a really good job. Unfortunately the school only had a little bit of white paint and so the light fields didn’t really work out because we didn’t have enough white paint. But I think they turned out just fine.

With the week off, I knew I needed to get a block heater installed so that when chilly January winds blow my car will start. I had asked Bishop P about a reputable mechanic to take my car to and he gave me a couple of garages he had dealt with and then like any good Bishop, he asked the High Priest group leader to follow up with me and see if I needed a ride to the garage. The High Priest group leader’s wife gave me a couple more suggestions of in town garages that are fair and honest. I got an appointment and through a ride home from the Dad of the garage guys came to find out they are related to my landlord. Then the phone call about the job being done came...with good news and great news. I already had a block heater in my car but it was all tucked away and the great news was that the mechanic saw it just before he started to drain the coolant....

it’s all in the placement.

Grade 4

I have been at my first student teaching placement for two weeks now and so I just want to share a few things that might be entertaining. First, students at my placement school are not supposed to bring snacks outside at recess time. This surprised me and so I asked why.

Response: BEARS.

The following is a conversation I had with a male student.

Student: Miss Sykes, what does your husband look like?

Miss Sykes: I’m not married.

Student: oh, well what does your boyfriend look like?

Miss Sykes: I don’t have a boyfriend right now.

Student: well I find that hard to believe.

(Walks off to get stuff out of locker and get on the bus)

That conversation happened Friday as the bell rang. Shortly after getting back to the class room to talk to my associate teacher about the upcoming week where she would be gone 3 out of the 5 days, the fire alarm goes off. We follow the fire plan that we have already practiced 4 times this week and are out in the cold rain with no coats to wave at the students on the school buses.  We then make our way to the front of the school where the substitute principal asks if we can be in and out in 30 seconds and my associate teacher replies with a yes. In we run, grab our stuff and head for home. We think that the daycare set the alarm off making snacks after school....

I would also like to know who it was that thought “open concept” schools were a good idea. It is sooooooo distracting to hear the other classes! Even when your class quiets down to do some learning all the sudden the other class is noisy and students at the back can’t hear the soft spoken answers of children at the front.  Also teachers can’t plan “noisy activities” for their class to do because they will interrupt the other classes, and sometimes you need to let children be noisy.

Overall I think I’m learning a lot, especially about being flexible!

No Pictures but WOW what a morning.

Dear Readers,

I am definitely on an adventure that I would never have thought I would be on.  After applying to Teachers College and being put on the waiting lists I was down and out until a friend told me of a school that was still looking to fill spots in June. I applied, was accepted and had basically one month to find a place to live, get police checks and the TB test. I made it except for the police check which will mean a trip home Labour Day weekend to get that.

Today just makes this experience seem not real. I never would have thought that I would live somewhere that would allow me the opportunity to cross paths with a black bear on my way to church. Yes you read that right...my first Sunday here by myself and I saw a black bear 2 blocks away from church. When I first saw it on the road I thought “man that’s a big dog...or maybe a wolf” but 2 seconds later as it realized a car was coming and started to move I noticed that it was a bear. Scared me a little bit to think that I was in immediate bear country and I wasn’t just watching a show on the discovery channel. And it probably didn’t help that just last week I saw a program about a lady who was obsessed with feeding bears and then they killed her.

After I passed the bear running through someone’s yard, I thought “what have I gotten myself into????” My car had better not break down on the way to church because I could end up being dinner! The trip home from church was uneventful and for that I am grateful. There is only so much I can handle in one day.

Love,

Katie

I Did It!!!!

I have graduated with a BA (Honours) in Child and Youth Studies. Here's proof...

That is me walking into the gym before the ceremonies (short brown hair looking forward).

Further proof, my parents came and the white thing in my hands is my program...my degree was being put into a frame at this point in the adventure.

And then there were the cheering section/adoring fans...

We didn't get to wear hats but I'm glad of that because who knows who would have had it on their head just before you...I worried about the gowns but hopefully nobody had lice...

It turned out to be a nice day. My ceremony was at 2p.m. and the weather was cloudy and around the 20 degree mark so I made no complaints. Thanks to all my supporters out there who came and those who came in spirit due to distance or work or me not letting you know that it was happening...

Now on to the next phase in life......

Oh the Weather Outside ....

Today was one WINDY day.

I heard the wind running over the roof like a freight train and then some banging.

I decided to look out the window and what did I see??

Popcorn popping on the...oh no it was shingles from the roof flooting across the road.

Aaauugh!

This is the damage the wind did (not sure how well you can see it).

strip club ha ha ha



There were a couple missing up higher but the paper managed to stay on.

When dad got home from work we put a tarp on.

Then we ran out of screws and strips of wood so we had to get off the roof for a minute and then finish it off.

We got more wood and screws and finished the job as the light faded to black.

So I took some pics of NF from up as high as the roof....

The wind was still blowing pretty good so I had a hard time keeping the camera still

and this is the best I could get. 

The roof is covered now and hopefully the rain will stay away.

Good bye wind!!!!



Love this quote!!!!

The silver lining in going to school and reading journal article after journal article after journal article is that every once and a while you come across a quote that jumps right into your lap and stays for a visit. I had one of those moments recently and so I thought I'd share the quote with you.

"The mastery of any skill - whether a routine daily task or a highly refined talent - depends on the ability to perform it unconsciously with speed and accuracy while consciously carrying on other brain functions."

Benjamin Bloom (1986)

So for all you moms who feel like a broken record in asking your kids to perform tasks you think they should be doing with out prompts just remember that you are helping them to master skill which need lots and lots of practice to make them become automatic and that doesn't happen over night. Practice isn't usually fun but it is necessary to change our "effortful" tasks into "uneffortful" automatic responses that allows us to move onto developing in other ways as well. So every time you ask one more time to pick up their toys or put something away, be glad that you have a hand in helping them to develop that skill.

Catch up

Yep. It's true what they say, when you get a little down time that's when the flu bug hits...Its soooo nice when its gone.

Really I wanted to catch you up on the results of the last entry. I did do better than the first test in that class. I raised my mark by 17% over the first one. Now the results are inconclusive as to why I did better the second time.

I have been working on a couple of projects though....

This is a book purse...Yes, once it sat on the shelves of the local public library and now it wanders the city slung over my arm. What a fun way to reuse hard covered books.

These beauties are made out of placemats... cool little totes. The green handles are made of ribbon and the brown handles are from an old belt. I love recycling....

Funny thing happened on the way to the Opera....

Not that we should enjoy someone else’s misfortunes, but every once and a while it’s nice to be reminded that we are all human with off days. I went to write my quiz today and was feeling a little bit stressed. Sat down, got out my pens and was mentally preparing as the papers were being past down the row and then it happened…they stopped at the person before me and there wasn’t one for me.

So I got up and left.

 

Just kidding!

I had to wait 15 minutes while the Professor made a phone call and someone came to make photocopies and bring them back. It reminded me that we all have bad days when things just don’t go right and we do the best we can with what we’ve got. It did end up being a bit of a stress relief as 12 of us sat in the hallway chatting as we waited for more tests to come….blessing in disguise? I’ll let you know when I get the mark back…

This Is Exciting!!!

I just got off Skype with Toshina, Brian and Maren and Maren is walking! Took her first steps today. Hope Toshina gets it on video and puts it on facebook to show you...Or maybe you should Skype them and see for yourself!!!

For Sisters Far Far Away....

I asked Toshina's permission to blog about the youngest member of our family so that specifically Heidi and Mishel who are on opposite sides of the country could see their youngest niece. I love the squishy face smile.

I love the clicking of the tongue. That is how she gets your attention (well that's what she was doing at the end of August..she may be on to bigger and better things such as "hi" now). As you will see in the next little clip. Maren is in front of the boxes before moving day. Her mom came to the rescue to get her to crawl for me.

Enjoy!!

Catching Up

So I thought I would update multiple things within one post.

First – for May and June I signed up for art classes. Something fun to do that will help me to gain some talent...here’s a few pictures of what I learned.

The 1st class was on basic drawing – shading. Check out that egg!

Second week we drew a bee...shading to make things rounded.

Third week was colored pencils and because that was my LEAST favourite there is no picture from that week.

Four week I missed because I was in Montreal

2nd class I signed up for was on perspectives. It was four weeks as well doing one-point, 2 point, 3 point and shortening. Here are the pictures that I finished (somewhat).

Maybe next time I’ll post my superman drawing...

So I mentioned I went to Montreal. I went there to present a paper with the Professor I work for and the other research assistant that works for the same Prof. It was at Concordia University. The conference took up most of the time with dinners and mingling that we didn’t get to go touring very far from the university. Next time I go to Montreal I hope to see Old Montreal but the shopping on Saint Catharine Street was plentiful. We stayed at the Gray Nun Residency which has an interesting history dating back into the early 1800’s. Smelled the forest fires in the middle of the night which I didn’t know were happening and so consequentially thought the building was on fire!

In June I also got to attend the Ballet with Toshina in Toronto. Grannie Annie babysat so that Toshina and I could go while Brian had to work. We came home to find out who was really in charge while we were gone...

That girl sure had Grannies arm in a twist and chomped on that thumb to show her who's boss. The love of a grandmother!

We also took that cute little girl to fireworks on July 1st. After she woke up and we covered her ears from the big booms, her eyes were as wide as saucers. Loved it!

So that is the big update...

The Parent's Spring Ballet

In life we look for those little moments of joy from seeing something beautiful. Most times, at least in my life, these moments come when they are least expected or sought after.

Well I was able to capture one of those moments of joy on camera in a series of shots that I'd love to share with you. Of course I'm not a professional and I'll never have a gallery show but I'm calling these pictures "The Parent's Spring Ballet".

Well maybe it really should be called the "Death of the Dandielion Ballet" but you can't see any dandilions in the pictures so...

While these pictures were being taken, my parents were unaware that I was capturing their movements on camera but that is what makes it precious because it is authentic.

So I'm just so proud of their cooperation, symmetry and flexiblity.

Measure Twice, Cut Once

Okay, so I know the drill...measure twice, cut once. Well I have to say that today that didn't work out so well for me. A while back I measured my TV cabinet because I wanted to add another shelf about my TV to hold the DVD player. I wrote the measurements down on a sticky note and stuck on my cabinet so that when I found the moment the saw was going and I could get a piece of wood cut to my specifications I was ready. Well, today was that day. Dad was working in the garage so the saws are going and bingo it was my chance. I proudly brought a piece of wood out and rattled of measurements. I was supicious of the cut wood after but hey, we were in the big garage and stuff looks smaller in big spaces. The joke was on me though. I had not measured twice for only one cut. My board upon trying to put it into the cabinet was...yes, you guessed it, too short!! After laughing my head off at my silliness I thought I should share this experience with you. (Cindy you may recind your previous offer of going into business after this one.)

(The one on the left is the correct one with the one on the right being my original not measured twice shelf.)

So everybody, measure two, three or maybe even four times before you go for the cut!

Maybe you want to be a spider

I was informed that people are SICK of Nova Scotia being on my blog so I'm just going to share a little ditty I came across about spiders.  Think of a spiders web. Normal spiders make them and they are for all intents and purposes of this post, beautiful and made with percision. A spider who has been given caffine makes a web that resembles a stain glass window more than a spiders web. But this is the fun part. A spider who is given marijuanna makes a web that resembles a normal web but just a bit looser in the weave and maybe one cross line missing. So which spider would you like to be?? Caffinated or marijuana? Maybe we should just all be spiders! 

Enjoy the crazy post and not the pics of Nova Scotia....

Nova Scotia Part 2...Finally!

Okay so my posting has slowed right down with the reentry into the all consuming world of school but I'm going to get this post out  finally.

So when I visited Nova Scotia, it was very relaxing. My first post was about the beach and the time I was there before Mom and Dad came out. Well they were there for hurricane Bill but after that we visited Peggy's Cove and were mesmerized by the crashing waves.

Look at those waves crash. I told Heidi to let me know if I was going to be swept out to sea!!

This is the damage that was done by the waves in the little hamlet that is at Peggy's Cove. The little store was pushed right off its foundation!

This sign was in Mahone Bay. I laughed because it got my attention and it's always good to acknowledge the uneventful spots as well.

Mahone Bay had lots a sail boats in it.

This is the Blue Nose at Lunnenberg where we saw a school built back in the 1800's along with a church. Both were beautifl. The fog was rolling in and the hilly streets made me think of San Franciso streets.

Blueberry picking!! We went blueberry picking on our way to Fort Anne and Tranquill Momments Bed & Breakfast.

This flower was found in the Public Gardens in Halifax. The Public Gardens was beautiful with fountains and water and of course plants and flowers. Gorgeous!!

We also went to the citadel. This is when they were changing the gaurds.

What fun was had in Nova Scotia!!!! I'm ready for another vacation.