Hello my loves,
If I'm not going to get any work done, I might as well use this time between classes to update you all on my fabulous (aka mostly boring) life. So I'm procrastinating and drinking diet coke. (My mother would shake her head at me for drinking pop on Ash Wednesday, but hey, sometimes you need caffeine, especially after your super boring 2 hour biostats class.)
Recent updates in my life include that I have returned to Holy Rosary twice a week to volunteer with the after-school program I helped run last year. I love it, and it's good to be back in the community and feel like I'm doing some hands-on work to make the world a little better place. Somewhere in the back of my mind I know my public health work is making a difference in the long run in ways I can't observe, but sometimes I just need some immediate gratification. Teaching times tables gives me that. I'm sure you teachers understand. (Side note for the teachers and Court - how do you get 2nd-4th graders who hate reading excited about reading? They are way behind for their grade level and hate just reading or co-reading books. Any ideas? My creativity is failing me in this arena. It's mostly one-on-one work, so the resources for individual attention are there, we just don't know what to do.)
Of course, now that I'm back at Holy Rosary, I have to be careful to not be sucked in too much and say no to extra things. The one thing I didn't say no to was for Sean and I to accompany the youth group last Friday on a snow-tubing excursion at a local ski park. So fun! Although by the end of the 2 1/2 hours, also so cold!
Valentine's Day was fun. Sean and I went to a delicious Indian restaurant! Makes me happy that we finally found a good one. Then we went to a movie at a "Classic" movie theater called the Riverview Theater. (Aka like the Georgetown Theater, although marketed as a historic theater). We saw The Hurt Locker. Good movie, although super heavy. It made me really sad about war and what we humans are capable of doing to each other. I mean, I've seen war movies before, but this one was actually about the Iraq war, which is still going on, so it hit a little closer to home. I recommend it, just make sure you've got a strong stomach and prepare your mind.
Classes are going well. I've got a lot more reading to do this semester than the last one. My field experience project with Break the Cycle has been pushed back about a month, which is nice because it gives us more time. (This is what I should be working on.) Haven't started much on the job front once again, but I'm seriously contemplating working for the census. It pays well, and it would give me more time to find a full-time gig for the summer.
That's about all for now! Miss you all LOTS! LOVE YOU!
Try some books from a reading list like this: http://www.monroe.lib.in.us/childrens/hilobib.html
ReplyDeleteThey're books that have high interest (AKA they might get them excited just by the material) but a low reading level, so it doesn't feel like they're reading "baby" books but the books are still on a reading level they can understand.
Really, that's all I can suggest outside of one-on-one reading and lots of active tie-ins with the reading. Definitely try to hit on what subjects interest the kids and be super positive. If you find one thing they like, keep bringing more of that, even if you find it obnoxious or boring. And then, just Good Luck!