Well……..(that’s about the only word I can say right now, as there are so many thoughts on my mind). Today is our last full day in the country that we have spent the last two months living, teaching, and growing in. I don’t really know what to say….that or I have too much to say. Emotions are high right now because I am very sad to be leaving, I have made so many connections and friendships and I do not want to part ways with the amazing Kiwi’s I have met here. This experience has changed my life forever, the impact in which the students, teachers, friends, families have made on my life is something I cannot express into words. I have learned so much, and grown, not only as a future educator but also as a person. You never know how much something is going to impact your life until you actually have lived through it.
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It’s been a while since I last blogged, and so much has happened. The last week has been super busy with travel, teaching, field trips, and preparation for activities. First off last weekend we traveled to Mount Maunganui to watch our host sister Teresa compete in a triathlon. It was an absolutely beautiful place to visit. Kristen and I ended up getting a hotel right on the ocean, and there was a wonderful view of the mount and the water. Throughout the weekend we did some exploring along the beach, around the mount, and walked on some cliffs. A new experience I got to partake in was swimming in a hot salt pool. It was really a neat set up. There was three different pools and each one got warmer and warmer. There was no roof on the hot pools so you could see the mountain because we were situated right at the bottom of it. We also were able to do a little shopping which is always fun, because there is so many cute little stores. On Sunday was the big race day for Teresa. It was very fun to watch her compete and she ended up winning the race, which was also very exciting. To wrap up a great “holiday” weekend we stopped in Matamata on the way home to take a tour of Hobbiton. All of my students back home were excited for me to go there, so we knew we had to do it. I mean after all, it is an international movie set. When we first arrived they came to pick us up on a big green Hobbiton bus. The bus then took us on to the farm property where the movie set was. It was ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE scenery, and my pictures don’t even do it justice. There was so much work that went in to filming the movie and you could tell by all the detail on the hobbit holes. After our tour wrapped up we got to try some beer at the Green Dragon that is only sold at Hobbiton. You can’t find it anywhere else in the world. I am so glad we decided to go on the tour; it was definitely worth the time and money. This past week at school has gone so fast. Since it was the start of December I had my students working on Christmas activities to help decorate the classroom. They are getting very excited because our Christmas concert is coming up on Thursday, and they have been practicing very hard. Throughout the week I planned many different activities and worksheets for the students to do to keep them busy. Since it is the end of the school year and it is getting really warm my kids are starting to get a little antsy. We have started to do more activities outside to get them running around and use up some of their extra energy. On Friday we went to Bethells beach. It was a field trip that my cooperating teacher spent a lot of time prepping and planning for, and it ended up being a great day for the kiddos. All year one students went on the trip and everyone had a blast. We had parents holding a rope in the water and cones set up so students knew where they could and could not go. It was very helpful to have so much parent support. An interesting fact is that Bethells beach is where Taylor Swift filmed her music video four days before we went. Last but not least, today, Saturday. Today was one of the biggest parts of our trip that we knew we wanted to participate in before we even got here. We wanted to go to Kelly Tarlton’s and experience the penguin adventure. When we got there we looked through the aquariums, there were sharks, seahorses, clown fish and many more. Then we had to meet up for our adventure. At first the lady explained to us a little about the penguins and then we had to get on our suits. We had to wear sweat pants, a “jumper” and big “gum boots”. We went into the exhibit with the penguins and sat down on a rock. We were not allowed to touch the penguins because they might bite. It was so AWESOME!!! They came right up to us and pecked at our hands and feet. Definitely an experience I will never forget!
I first want to start out by saying Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends and family!! I am very thankful this Thanksgiving to be celebrating in New Zealand, living out my dream, and getting placed with an amazing host family! It has been a wonderful experience so far!!! On the other hand I want to send love and hugs and Thanksgiving wishes to my family back home because this is the first time in 21 years that we will not be together for Thanksgiving! I know they will still enjoy the festivities, especially the yummy turkey!!
Since yesterday was technically Thanksgiving in New Zealand I did a little celebration and activity with my kiddos at Swanson. I printed out a little book about Thanksgiving and the pilgrims and why we celebrate and my students got to color them in. We then talked about what we are thankful for and made some little turkeys. My students really loved the activities and were excited for the surprise I had in 3rd block. After lunch I brought my students outside to enjoy their milk and some pumpkin pie. I wasn't quite sure how they would like it, or what they would think. I would say about over half of them really enjoyed the pie, but some did not think it was yum at all...which is okay because it is definitely and acquired taste. Last night Kristen and I went home after school and started preparing our turkey, stuffing, gravy, and mashed potatoes. It turned out really well and the 14 people that joined us also really enjoyed it. I am really excited for my post on Sunday, because this weekend we are going to Mount Mangonui with our host family to watch our host sister compete in a triathlon. Kristen and I booked a high rise hotel right on the ocean, so we are looking forward to spending the weekend there. Stay tuned for my weekend travels!! HAPPY TURKEY DAY!!!! LOVE, KATELYN It is Wednesday today and we are half way through the week. My students have been doing an awesome job with their manners at the mat, getting their work done, and cleaning up the classroom. Today however I encountered a new issue that effects their behavior…THE HEAT. It is starting to get very hot here, and the heat here makes things very sticky, and the children very sweaty. For last block today we did some activities at their table, and also some go noodle yoga. The students needed something to help cool them down, and not think so much about how hot they were.
I am very excited for tomorrow however because we are having a Thanksgiving day. Since Thanksgiving is not celebrated here I am teaching my students about the day, why we celebrate it, and we are going to be working on some activities that deal with turkeys, and pilgrims. For the end of the day we are going to watch Charlie Browns Thanksgiving and eat pumpkin pie. It will be a neat experience to introduce my students to a holiday from my country. Today I also tried a new activity with my students. Each day I call students over to do writing in their journals, but instead I did group journaling today. We are going to the beach on a field trip next week so I decided to write out two sentences about the beach and what we would need. I had the students get their journals and a pencil. I projected the two sentences onto the board and the students wrote them down in their journals and then drew a picture to go along with it. This activity was very successful, and I am looking forward to doing again. My students also enjoyed writing at the mat for a change of scenery. Kristen and I were very excited about this weekend because we were going to be going to the beach. Turns out the weather did not want to cooperate and it rained and rained and rained all day Saturday. Instead of going to the beach we went to dinner and movie with Teresa and Dan. The movie we saw was "Pan". It was a very well put together movie, with lots of action. We enjoyed watching it. Our favorite part of the evening however was getting yummy burgers. Whenever we go out for burgers its a chance to have a little taste of home, since we eat so many burgers in Wisconsin. The restaurant we went to was called Burger Fuel. I got a burger in a lettuce wrap, because they did not have any gluten free buns. Although the burger was very good, the best part about the restaurant and most places we have eaten here in NZ is the "hot chips" and Aioli for dipping. Hot chips are what they call french fries here and Aioli is kind of like mayo with a different flavor, but it is so YUM!!!!!
On Sunday we got to help get ready and decorate for Akiko's third birthday party. It was so much fun setting up, because it was Pokemon themed. Akiko was dressed as Bulbasaur, and Akimi was dressed as Charmander. The party was mostly family, and there was a lot of tasty treats. During the party there were many different activities for the kids to play, a new activity that we had never heard of was called pass the parcel. What you do is take a kinder egg, or other fun surprise and wrap it up. Then you take a piece of candy and put it next to the wrapped egg and wrap it again. You keep adding candy, or prizes until you get to the number of gifts you would like for the people playing. You have the kids sit in a circle and you play music while they pass the gift. When the music stops if you are holding the gift you get to open the first layer and keep the prize inside. You keep playing and then when it gets down to the last one, whoever it lands on gets to keep the big prize inside. The kids love it, and it is a great game to play at parties. This week at school is exciting because we are starting to get ready for our beach trip with the year one kids, so we are learning about beach safety. Today we talked about the different items you need to bring to the beach, and what you need to wear. My students are getting very excited, and it is less than two weeks away!! That is all for now! Katelyn I know, I know, I haven’t blogged in forever……Well the thing is, I wrote out a very long blog post with “heaps” of information about what I have been doing, and it ALL GOT DELETED. Needless to say I was frustrated, so I have been putting it off. I decided to type them in Word now so they are saved just in case my Internet goes funky.
So much has happened the past couple days. This past weekend Kristen and I went to Wellington. Now some of you know how I feel about flying, and let’s just say I don’t enjoy when the plane goes through turbulence, or turns, because I feel like something bad is going to happen. Anyways to make matters a little more interesting Wellington is known for being VERY windy and the runway is right by the ocean. When we flew into Wellington I had to close my eyes because I couldn’t watch. All I could see out my window was water, the plane was shaking, and we were flying very low. After landing I was able to feel much better. The best part about flying Air New Zealand though is that instead of a flight attendant going through the safety features of the plane, they have a hip-hop video that plays, and its “sweet as”. After arriving in Wellington, we decided we would walk to the Te Papa museum to save money on transportation and we could see more of the city. Um… that was a terrible idea. Turns out I don’t completely have the conversions down between American measurements and New Zealand measurements….OOPS. It was actually over a 10 mile walk, and some of the “foot paths” were a bit “dodgy”. When we came back to school on Monday even the teachers at Swanson thought we were a bit crazy for walking all that way. After arriving at the Te Papa museum we were starving, and grabbed some food, it was “yum”. The museum was very fun, and then we did some exploring of the city. Wow, I thought that Chicago was the “windy city”. Not even close compared to Wellington. It was so windy I thought I might blow away. During our weekend we went to the zoo, rode a cable car, and stayed at a bed and breakfast on the beach. It was a very fun experience and it was great to see more of New Zealand. As for Teaching….. I have fallen in love with my students here at Swanson. They each come from so many different backgrounds and have so many different talents that they bring to the classroom. Every morning I countdown the minutes until my kids arrive at school, because I am so excited for the school day to start. This past week we have been working on “ow” words and nouns. We have also been continuing with our science experiments, and patterning in maths. On Wednesday we made butter by mixing cream with salt. I had the students sit in a big circle and we took turns shaking the bottle to make the butter. The students loved it, and were very excited that they could taste test it afterwards. I can’t believe that I am already half way through this placement, it has been great so far and I am excited to see what the next four weeks hold for experiences and teaching. Although it is also sad to think that we have been here for half of our stay already. This week was a little different week because on Thursday Kristen and I got the chance to chaperone a class field trip to Rainbows End. Rainbows End is a theme park that is very similar to Bay Beach. We were super excited to see what kind of rides they had, and spend the day there. All the kids that went were wondering if we were going to go on the big rides and roller coasters. Yeah that was not going to happen for me. I did go on the go carts and I smoked Kristen and my cooperating teacher, because go carts are my favorite. It actually felt weird to drive because we have not done that in over a month. After eating some lunch Kristen, my cooperating teacher Matt, and I decided to go on a couple more rides. We were waiting in line to see this motion movie, but turns out they were having technical difficulties. Instead Matt and Kristen said we should go on the Free Fall. Against my better judgment I got roped into going on it. The ride was for 3-5 people it went slowly up the tower to the top so you could see the whole city then it completely dropped. Now, I do not do any rides that go in circles, because I will get sick, but I couldn’t think of an excuse to get out of this one. While we were waiting in line I started to get super nervous, but there was no turning back. Once I was strapped in I really started to freak out. I was just going nuts and super scared all the way up to the top, only to look over and see Kristen and Matt laughing hysterically at me. When we got to the top it was a game of chance wondering when it was going to drop. When it did I screamed all the way down. Although it was a bit scary for me, I am glad I was able to provide some entertainment for Kristen and Matt, because they were quite amused. Don’t worry; I will get them back for taking me on that ride. Anyways this weekend we are going shopping for Thanksgiving meal items, and going to the beach!!! I am going to be making a pie for my kids, and doing a lesson on Thanksgiving (making a pie should be interesting). Hope you enjoyed reading about my adventures! Make Today an AWESOME DAY!!! Yours Truly, Katelyn Once again I have nothing but positive words to say about my time in New Zealand so far. The views here are absolutely breathtaking, the atmosphere at my school is so uplifting and our host family has been amazing!!!
This past weekend I had the opportunity to go to Waiheke Island. I took a ferry from downtown Aukland to the island. The ferry took about 40 minutes and there was beautiful scenery to look at all the way there, and it ended up being a very relaxing ride. Once we arrived on the island the zip lining company brought a van to pick us up and shuttle us to the highest peak on the island. Once we arrived we went through a tutorial and then they helped us get into our gear and get ready to go. It was also a great time for me to use my go pro which I ended up strapping to my helmet to capture our awesome adventure. We were able to go on three different zip lines with little nature walks in between. On our nature walks we saw the tree that was used in the movie Avatar, so that was a pretty cool experience. I was a little nervous at first because I had never done something like it, but after the first time down I was so pumped to go again.....definitely an event that I will never forget. After we went zip lining we wanted to find a fun place to eat on the island. We ended up going to a little italian restaurant downtown with a beautiful ocean view. The food was amazing, and so was the $12 Diet Coke. Yes, you did in fact read that right. Turns out in New Zealand you will go in debt if you order anything other than water at a restaurant. They also do not do free refills, which me thinking they did, ordered two cokes. Lesson learned, I will stick to water. This upcoming weekend will be an adventure because we are hopping on a plane to Wellington, which is the capital of New Zealand. It is only an hour plane ride so it will go by really fast. We booked a bed and breakfast right on the ocean to stay at while we are there. Our plan is to go to the Zoo, a museum, and do a little bit of shopping (although we seem to do a "little bit of shopping" every weekend....OOPS). There is just so many cool little shops here that it is hard to say no, and everything is more expensive than in the US. WOW!!!!! WOW!!!!! WOW!!!!!! That is how I feel everyday here in New Zealand. This country is absolutely beautiful, the people are so kind, and the school staff is so wonderful to work with. First off....SCHOOL We have only been in our school for a week, and I already am in full control. The students in my class were so excited to have a teacher from the United States, and they were very interested in learning about where I am from. At Swanson Primary School the main subject focuses are on reading, writing, and maths. We also do work with science and social studies throughout the week. Typical School Day: 8:25 All Staff Meeting 8:55 School Bell Rings 9:00 Mat Time -Morning Roll -Must Do's -Book Reading -Poem and Literacy Functions *after students are done with their must do's they have free choice and while they are playing they get pulled for reading, writing, and homework 10:50 Clean Up 11:00-11:40 Morning Tea 11:45 Maths -Timed Fact Sheet -Fact Competition -Measurement exercises -Must Do's *during this time students are also getting pulled for reading, writing, and homework 1:00 Clean Up 1:10-1:50 Lunch/Recess 1:55 Grab bags and book bags -Hand out notices to go home 2:00 Milk and Story -Activity 2:55 Bell rings for end of school day Since I just started doing full control in the classroom, I have started to plan fun activities based on our planet unit for science. Tomorrow I am excited because the students are making "Build a Aliens". I cut out different shapes in colored paper and they are going to design their own alien. After they are done they will have a chance to fill out a sheet that tells all about their alien, and we will hang them up in the class. We are also using play dough to create the planets in our solar system. Writing so far has been my favorite subject to teach. The "writing table" is shaped like a bean and I sit on one side in the middle so I can see all the students around the outside. The neat part is that the table is a big dry erase board so I can help students to spell out difficult words and help them with letter formation. It is a great way to work with multiple students at once, because I can write down a word on the table and then move on to help the next student. Between the two year one classes in our little building I have about 55 kids that I write with everyday. Sometimes it is a bit difficult to squeeze them all in, but I have gotten better with timing. Now, going back up to the title of my blog, I am so grateful that I was able to come to New Zealand. I have only been here a little over a week and I already know that this has been the best decision of my life. Not only is the teaching experience empowering and motivating, but the attractions and culture of New Zealand is so interesting. There are so many great things to do while we are here. Now that we have been here a week we already have every weekend filled up until the day we leave. An Overview of our events: -Bethel's Beach Exploration -Going up North with our supervisor to watch a Marathon -Mount Maunganui -Wellington trip -Hobbiton -Kelly Tarlton's underwater adventures -SURFING I am most excited about going surfing, because I have always wanted to try it out. It works out great because my cooperating teacher lives right on the ocean in Piha and he runs his own surf school, so he is taking us for the day to teach us how (don't worry there will be video). I want to give a shoutout at the end of my blog today to my parents, family, and friends for helping make this trip a reality, because traveling half way across the world is not cheap by any means. Here is a picture of the Trust Stadium. On Monday we took the whole school here and had an all day Athletics day. The students competed in track and field events to earn points for their teams. I was in charge of discus. It was a beautiful day and the students had a great time. Here is the beautiful view from the top of a cliff at Bethel's Beach. This is my favorite picture so far, because the background was so beautiful. It reminded me of a scene you would see in a movie.
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AuthorMy name is Katelyn Landerman and this blog is all about my adventures student teaching in New Zealand Archives
December 2015
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