Netherteaching

Teaching is like a rollercoaster - there are high points and low points - but it's never boring. Everyday is different, and I love it. 

Monday, I had one of my days but Tuesday was absolutely one of the greatest days I've had. Granted, I did work with a different group on Tuesday - I was with the younger groups, and I just remembered again why I loved teaching. 

One of the teachers I worked with had to substitute a 2nd year math class, and she wanted me to introduce myself to them. I had so much fun talking to them, and the class enjoyed my sense of humor. 

Some of the questions that I was asked today:
1. Are you going to Amsterdam to go smoke weed?
2. Are there a lot of hookers in America?
3. What kind of boys do you like? 
4. How old are you? (I always tell them to guess b/c normally students say 18, which I love, but this time someone said 28...whoa.)
5. Are you rich?


We had such a lively discussion. It was soo much fun talking to them. 


**Note** When someone is a substitute, normally they are in the classroom and the teacher leaves an assignment or whatever. Here, you do watch the students but there is no work. The substitute has to find something for them to do. This 2nd year class that I visited was a math class, yet we worked on English. Ha. 


Also, this teacher found out that two teachers from the English department are quitting (including my mentor teacher) and she told me that I needed to take over one of the spots and work there. That's pretty awesome that she thinks that. I really want to, but I think me not knowing Dutch is a huge problem. 


Remember when I wrote about the English program that I'm working on with a teacher after school? Well, apparently our letter has already been distributed to teachers, but they still haven't told their students about it. The teacher and I wanted to personally invite students to come after school for help, but my overseas coordinator opposed the idea and wanted the teachers to do it. It's so frustrating when we're doing so much work and nobody wants to take advantage. Ugh. 


I taught one of my pronunciation classes today as well. Before we started, I got the students to make name plates so I can start remembering their names. I just started teaching this class so the students are new to me. We worked on /th/ - voiced and voiceless..../sh/ /wh/ /ch/. They took notes on their foldables, sang a song with me, practiced, and played bingo! It was fun. The students were so attentive. 


I started my dialogue journals today too with my 4th years. I only have 6 students participating right now, which is completely fine by me b/c I think all 28 students might be too much work. I also talked to the Spanish teacher and she will be giving me a list of things to do in Barcelona! 


My bicycle light won't work anymore, and I don't know why. I ate a ridiculous amount of french fries and mayo - their mayo here is totally different. 


And, Stevon and I are having a hard time booking a flight to Alghero, Italy in Sardinia...our cards won't work and we don't know why. It's so frustrating. As long as we have rome to go to, I think we'll be fine.

Netherbusted - Ha

Story of my life: can't tell a lie worth a crap

Everyone is so liberal here. Goodness....I kinda like it. 



Anyways - Monday: I was having one of those days. Just didn't want to put up with the students' ridiculous behaviors. I was so upset that the students aren't giving me the time of day to pay attention or pretend to be interested. I'm incorporating all the fun things that I've learned to do, but my students just don't have the motivation or the determination to work hard - well some of them anyways. Am I doing something wrong?

I checked some essays - and several students didn't even finish when they had 75 min to do the essays! And it was about interesting topics (increasing drinking age, use of condoms leading to irresponsible behavior, sports participation keep teens out trouble, and age in relationships)....or so I thought.


I had a venting out with Ashton - she makes me smile. I seriously don't know what I would do without her. I also talked to my mom and she's hilarious. She knows how to make me feel better. I've finally figured out what I'm doing with my relationship/ex-relationship. 


I went to the gym and did ZUMBA - how nice it is to shake your hips and feel good about being able to. Ha. 

Oh! And I booked my trip to Rome, Italy! Stevon and I decided it was too expensive to go to Athens, Greece so instead we're flying out to Sardinia for a couple of days. It's like a romantic getaway except with a gay guy. I'm sure we can make it romantic somehow. Ha. I'm super excited! 

My aunt and uncle are the greatest - they sent me a care package full of food! So my dinner is covered for a week or so, at least. :) And it's so nice to have the instructions in English. My mom sent me an email with two recipes that I can cook - I have to start cooking, for real. 

The temperature is dropping. It's cold. It's supposed to snow later this week. :(

Netherawesomeness

So best weekend yet. :)

Saturday:
* watched Manila Skies - a Filipino movie - wanted to start speaking Tagalog again
* did laundry (finally! after a month of rewearing everything...ha) I absolutely love doing laundry....
* worked out (30 min of cardio and 30 min of getting my swole on)
* grocery shopping (more bread and cheese! ha)
* ate french fries with mayo and chocolate with the best roomie - best combination - :)
* cycled to town with a skirt and heels on (shake your head if you knew this was a bad idea, b/c I didn't even think about it - results = hahahaha)
* Coffee Shop Nemo - tried a "Snow White" - coolest place ever - we were in an aquarium!
*  Plan C - finally! after being so eek about it b/c the outside looked a little sketch - 3 drinks for the price of 1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! talk about someone who was really happy
* retired at 12 - cycled home - another bad idea - could've died
* got home and decided to order pizza - closed before we could order - went to the other restaurant
* didn't realize it was 12 and restaurant stopped serving food
* owner was drunk and welcomed us! also showed us a dead pig - raw ----- EW.
* owner got the servants to cook us food - hahaha - for free!!!!! and we got hot chocolate!
* hallucinated that my hair tie was pearl earrings that i couldn't manage to lose while i was sleeping
* had a really bad dream about Anthony --- ugh

Overall: Successful! Didn't get to dance, but def found a hot spot. :)

Sunday:
* church at 10:30 - priest talked forever - meaning 25 minutes plus lighted seven candles and talked about each - all in Dutch - I just wanted to give money during collection and get my communion
* had to leave church early b/c couldn't miss the train to Utrecht
* really tired...cycled really fast home - realized that i'm a better driver than a cyclist - i've almost killed myself along with others
* cycled to Rotterdam Centraal and bought tickets  to Utrecht and got rid of all my coins! yay!
* finally got to Utrecht and walked around - stores were open b/c it was the first Sunday of the month - rest of Sundays, stores are closed
* loved the atmosphere - 60 roses for sale for 5 euros - whoa
* grabbed hot chocolate at a cafe that used to be a hidden Catholic church - still had pipes for organ, a statue of Virgin Mary, etc.
* dinner at my overseas coordinator - amazing food - apple pie with ice cream for dessert
* talked about WWII
* made a friend!!!!!!!!

The End. :)

Netherminustwodays

I keep forgetting to write every night. Ugh. 

Thursday: I taught my other 5th year class about argumentative essays, and I was very impressed with the lively discussion we had with some of the most controversial topics. The other 5th year class participated but not as much as this one. My activity - four corners - turned into a discussion that was amazing. I love that class! For my 4th years, they had a literature test over the different things that they've been reading. My mentor teacher reviewed with them the different terms they needed to know - and basically gave them the answers. You would think they'd do well, but no. Almost none of them studied - one of the students told me that he had a religion test so he studied for that one instead. I'm a bit frustrated because these students won't give me or my mentor teacher a chance to get them interested in English. They underestimate the English language and say that it is easy, but they have so many problems. For my other 5th year class, we gave them back their argumentative essays with comments and suggestions. One student used "bullshit" and others contradicted themselves. The level of English was just a bit frustrating. One student had problems with subject and verb agreement, and I promised to help him. I'm doing everything I can to show them that I care about them learning, and I'm not giving up on them. One of the students was absent that day and I have to come up with a good deal for him to write an essay at home. It's ridiculous how they refuse to do homework - and I can't force them. 


Anyways, on the bright side, I booked my Ireland trip! I'm officially going to Ireland for my birthday weekend ALONE! The thought makes me nervous but so excited about visiting Europe by myself. Today is our two week mark until Paris and Barcelona!


I also had to babysit for the American woman that I met. Her and her husband went to a concert. She has two daughters, 6 and 8...and they were hard to put to bed. It reminded me exactly why i DON'T babysit. I can handle kids I know, but kids I don't know is another story. Ugh. My roommate came with me and she knew how to handle little kids so she took over most of the time. Thank God the girls were scared of her. Ha. It was our first night also to eat junk food! The American woman took out snacks for us. We didn't get paid - instead we got a box of Belgium chocolates - better than money. :)


Good news! I emailed the assistant principal (ex-teacher at my high school) of SCMS and told him that I was interested in working for their school. He told me to send a cover letter, resume, and application. I really want this job so I can be closer to my family. 


Bad news: I didn't work out today. :(


Friday: Took forever for me to wake up. I went to go watch another movie - Ante. It's a Filipino film in Tagalog and I was soooo happy that I could still understand everything they were saying. The movie was a little bit over an hour, and it wasn't bad. I guess I just suck at criticizing. Ha. But I did go through another part of the city that I've never been in so that was exciting! There are so many theaters in Rotterdam! 


When I got home, I cleaned up my room and organized my life. :) Then, my roommate and I went to school. I had a checklist to do, and I checked off most of it besides starting on my portfolio. It's taking me forever to start on my portfolio. Ugh. Anyways, I worked on my cover letter, resume, and the application. I also worked on my resume online. I'm trying to apply to as many school as possible. I've decided to stay home for 2 years and later try and teach abroad. 


I also booked my Germany trip over Easter break, and Poland trip for another weekend. My original plan was to do both over Easter break, but the transportation to Poland was insanely high. All I want to do is visit Auschwitz, so I just decided to dedicate a full weekend for Auschwitz. :)


My mom had a test today. I hope she did well. I've been talking to my parents a lot. I miss them...and my dog. 


Oh, and I tried to do laundry for the first time and the washer took two of my coins. I was pissed to say the least. I wrote an email of complaint to the company that owns the building asking for a refund and how they should have a "not working" sign on the washer. Ugh. I really don't like this apartment...at all.

Netherbust!

I woke up in the morning feeling like P.Diddy. :)

- cycled to school to get some more work done
- had a meeting with my overseas coordinator about the school
- paid my expensive rent
- talked to one of the teachers about the film festival
- looked up trips to Ireland...will book it within two days
- bought another movie ticket - VAHO - Mexican film for the night at 10:30
- pretty, pretty, pretty day!
- cycled home to mope about not having a job yet
- freaked out about possibly not having a job when I get home, ate like 5 slices of bread with peanut butter - ugh
- called my mom so she could calm me down
- Zumba!!
- bought laundry tickets - can only buy 5 at a time - washer for .90 and dryer for .25 - both machines are in Dutch and very tiny!
- don't recommend the building I'm living in, we pay way too much for rent - the location is great, but totally not worth it
- VAHO: interesting movie, but way too long - 2 hours
- my mentor teacher was right, the atmosphere of the film festival in the heart of rotterdam was amazing - lots of drinks and food :)
- filled in most of the paperwork I needed to get done

Ta-da.

Netherrainy!

Today, I looked hot.

The end.

Lol.

Wait? What? You're not satisfied with that? Ok, fine.

1. I looked hot.
2. I wore amazing shoes. (The teachers and students complimented my shoes.)
3. I looked hot.

Ugh. Fine.

1. It was rainy, so my roommate and I didn't cycle - Thank God because there was ice everywhere and we would have busted our booties.
2. I graded the argumentative essays, and it was interesting to say the least. I had to grade according to this - grammar, repetition, and not contradicting. Whoa, right? I'm all about the content so it was very hard for me to turn that switch off.
3. I taught the 1st years today! Pronunciation - it was great. The other teacher I work with told me an hour before class that I needed to teach two lessons today and not one- and it got really hectic really fast. I was a bit stressed because I left my stuff at home but I conquered and my lesson was a success!
4. I sang to my class - another Whoa moment for me!
5. My mentor teacher cancelled her two out of three classes today. So short day for me!
6. I've been doing this ab workout thing twice a day now, and hopefully by the time Stevon gets here, I'll have a toned stomach so I can get an awesome tattoo. The tattoo is a reward for myself.
7. I'm planning a trip to Ireland by myself for my birthday present! It's exciting to know that it will only cost $300 to visit another country - transportation, hostel, and dublin pass card included. Whoa, right?
8. I went to the gym today and did 3o min of awesome cardio and pumped up the rest of the time. :)
9. I cycled to and from the gym and got attacked by rain and wind. I had to keep telling myself that I'm having fun in the rain. Ha.
10. Duffy had a vet appointment today to make sure he tests negative for heart worms and to get medicine! I miss my puppy.
11. Shout out to my parents: They are amazing. I told my dad that since I don't have a bf anymore, I'm just gonna call him all the time now. Ha.
12. I'm getting a haircut soon - or a trim - or I dunno,
13. I played catch up with my friends today! How exciting!
14. I have a new nickname from the students - Toni Montana - great. They know my first name. Ugh.
15. My roommate and I listened to old songs. Actually I listened while she sang. Thank God for an awesome roommate.
16. I bought one movie ticket so that I can finally say that I did participate in the International Film Festival in Rotterdam.
17. I paid my bills!
18. I tried to call this dance center so I can take Modern Jazz Dance classes, but our communication lacked understanding. :(
19. Tomorrow is going to be pretty. I'm excited to be outside and cycling! Yay!
20. I really need to start taking pictures daily. Goodness.

Netheranniversary!

Today is my one month anniversary with Rotterdam! How exciting right?!

Stupid moment of the day: 
Get excited about goodies in the teachers' workroom, ask one of the teachers if he brought it, and happily ate the goodies....without wishing him a Happy Birthday. Ugh.

Lately, I've been having such a hard time getting up in the morning. I'm so sore from all the working out, and my bed isn't the most comfortable thing in the world. I cycled to school this morning, and ended up sweating by the time I arrived there. I haven't been layering as much either. I guess I'm getting used to the weather! Yay!

I arrived to school at 8, and just printed things out for my next class. My 8:15 class was canceled due to a German listening exam. So for my 9:30 class, I had the chance to review Thursday and get the students writing an argumentative essay! It was hard to motivate them at first because their work will not be graded, but I finally encouraged some of the guys to start writing. :) My mentor teacher complimented my presence in the classroom - how the students are only 4 years younger than me but I still get their attention and respect like a teacher. :)

Now I just have to look at the papers and make suggestions. The essays were very basic, and grammar is what really matters, not the content or style. Since English is a foreign language, writings don't have to be in-depth or amazingly structured. They do all that fun stuff in Dutch classes. So I have to turn off my what more can you do with this paper switch and turn on just my grammar switch. We'll see how it goes.
My 12:20 class (which is only 20 mins long), I am in charge of coming up with little activities to practice their verbal skills. Today, I introduced dialogue journals and made them sign a contract saying they abide by my rules and expectations with the dialogue journals. I'm hoping it will be as successful as I'm thinking. We'll see, I guess. 

My 1:55 class is the same as my 12:20 class, but we read from the WASP report about Skateboarding in Kabul. It was very interesting for me since I just finished reading the Kite Runner which was all about Afghanistan. I love all the reading that I'm capable of doing now, since I do have plenty of time. I'm starting on Bridget Jones's Diary tonight. :) Since I only bought two books to read, I'm checking out books from the library!

I cycled home with my mentor teacher and she took me to this bike route that was really nice and relaxing. Then we parted our ways. I talked to my parents today, and it was really good to hear their voice. I was upset about a couple of things, but I didn't allow myself to be too angry. I love and miss my parents like crazy. 

Then, I cycled to my gym and did Zumba!!! It was a great workout and I couldn't help but laugh at this lady who was beside me. She just couldn't get the rhythm or the moves so she just did her own thing. It was hilarious to watch. There's also this girl that works there who seems so interested in me, I'm guessing because I'm American? I'll approach her next time and see if we can be besties. Ha. I can never say no to new besties. 

Anyways off to bed I go. :)