Dear Photograph...

So if you haven't had the chance to visit the website Dear Photograph...do it!

The whole purpose of this post is to distract myself from being incredibly stressed about classes and nervous about my screening interview in DeSoto on Tuesday...eek!

Anyways..if you visited the website, you get the general idea. So the other day I started looking through my family's old photo albums. I've decided to start my own Dear Photograph art project with family photos. I think of it as Post Secret...but better! I also decided I'd use it to change the tone of this blog for the time being...while I'm on break from student teaching until January.

So here's the first one!

Dear Photograph,

The swing set might gone and the hammock stored

in the basement. The deck has new stain on it, and

the scattered toys are gone...but that backyard still

has some great memories!

Amanda

There will be many more more to come throughout the holidays!

Now on to that cover letter : /

Rainy Day Field Trip

Aren't you so excited? Two posts in a week?! Crazy!

Alright, so as you already know, today was field trip day! The rain kindly held off until I had to walk from Allen Fieldhouse to my car at the Union...thanks Mother Nature (that's supposed to sound sarcastic, BTW)

I hoping that my kids had a good time...they seemed to enjoy it, but I'm not sure if that's because they got a day out of school or because they genuinely enjoyed learning about KU's Athletic Training program. I really enjoyed it...even if they didn't. We had the opportunity to go inside the new Anderson Family Football Complex...one word...INCREDIBLE. We got to take a peek inside the weight room...HOLY COW you could get lost in there it's so big! They also have this really awesome underwater treadmill they use in their therapy pool. State of the art indeed! Overall it was a good time...I even had one student tell me she was thinking about going KU after the visit...I'd call that success! (P.S. sorry for all the triple periods...I don't know what's gotten into me) I got some good pictures, so I'll share one of the group ones with you.

The traditional group photo in front of the Jayhawk at the Union

All in all, we all had a good time and I was happy I got to see my students again. Needless to say, I'll be making a few more trips to Wyandotte before the semester is over. 

Until then...time to celebrate! It's BIRTHDAY WEEK! Friday cannot come soon enough : )

Double Takes and a Field Trip

So I waited to do my final post about Wyandotte until I had the chance to go back and visit my students.

Last Day.
My last day was emotional to say the least. I didn't cry at school, but let me tell you, the car got some waterworks on the way home. I was the most strict with my third block...and I got the most hugs from them. Students I thought hated me because I was strict with them told me I was a great teacher and that they'll miss. I guess all they needed was a little tough love. By the end of at all, I realized that teaching is what I want to do with the rest of my life. I fell in love with teaching in those 9 weeks and wouldn't trade the experience for one in the Blue Valley School District any day.

4th Block threw me a little party and my cooperating teacher put together a gift basket with all sorts of awesome teaching supplies. I can't wait until I get my own classroom so I can start putting it all to good use.

Oh PS, the principal made get my picture taken, since picture day was my last day there, so my picture will featured in the Wyandotte year book...I tried my hardest to get out of it...but couldn't dodge it.

Visit.
So today, my day off from classes and work, I decided I'd go visit "my kids" at the Dotte. I'm so glad I did. I walked out of the building today with a huge smile on my face. I didn't realize how much I missed those kids until I walked in the door. I got there during 2nd Block so I was already in the room for 3rd Block (my hardest, biggest, and craziest class I had). The kids were SO funny when they saw me. They did this double take and when they realized it was me they got this huge smile on their face and they ran over saying, "Miss Riss!!!" and gave me a huge hug. I told them a long time before I left that I would come back and visit. A lot of them said, "That's what they all say" and I know they didn't expect to come back and see them...so my guess is that was where most of the surprise and excitement came from.

It was really good to see the other community teachers too. It's crazy how you can build relationships with these people over such a short period and you don't realize how much you miss seeing them until it's been three weeks and you finally get to see them again.

On Monday I'm taking the 4th Block kids on a field trip I set up with the athletics department at KU. I'm so beyond excited and I'll share more on that experience and hopefully I'll have some pictures too.

Until then...Wyandotte Forever.