Wacky Wednesday

Well, the first week and a half are down! Not without its challenges of course but I'm pretty content with how things are going. My class is is a rowdy bunch of 17, 12 boys and 5 girls and the stereotypical gender roles are totally reversed. My girls are mostly independent, rough-and-tumble fiesty divas and my boys are sensitive, cliquey, emotional gentlemen. It's funny to watch them interact and "problem solve". 

We are a little further behind than how we left grade 1, I guess they are still in summer mode! I spent the first week doing a lot assessing and figuring out what my needs were and now I have a clear plan for the year in mind. I really need to get these kids into writing and reading mode (as they are thankfully math superstars) because the expectations for grade 2 are really high! I know what these guys are capable of and we have a lot of hard work ahead of us but I know they will rise to meet the challenge!

Otherwise things have been trucking right along. I can't believe it's only the second week of school, I feel like I've been here for ages! I also got my first cold of the school year, with plenty to follow I am sure. I spent last weekend holed up in my

house surrounded by Kleenex and catching up on my downloads and sleeping as much as I could. 

The rest of this week will be packed with fun activities and I can't wait to REALLY get into it next week as I push the kids to really explore their full potential! 

On a social note, I have started the ball rolling on preparing for my 28th (oh god) birthday party! Yes, it is over a month away but for an event like my birthday, it is important to begin preparations as early as possible. For those who don't already know, it is "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory"-themed and I will be dressed as an Oompa Loompa. Get ready. 

Fabulous First Day

Today was the first day of school and it went off without a hitch!! This is my fourth year teaching in the northern community of Wemindji and it couldn't have gone any better. I am really lucky to have pretty much my entire class from last year and thank goodness they remembered most of the rules and what we learned last year. Of course they are a little rusty in some areas but I have confidence we will soon make good progress. 

The kids were SUPER excited with all the new additions to our class such as the green shag rug, circus reading tent, "big kid" desks, biiiiiig smart board, fish and tons of new games. We read some cute back to school stories, talked and wrote about our summer vacations, jumped into the morning routine, they had gym AND Cree Language (very exciting!) and even recess! Amazingly, most of them even knew what Pac Man was so my door wasn't lost on them! Win!! This day might have been the most exciting day ever for them. Only a few kids knew I was coming back to be their teacher again so there were some very surprised and happy faces in the hallway this morning. I was touched that they were happy to have me back again and it was like no time had passed. It's going to be a really fun year and I can't wait to watch the growth I know will happen over the next few months!

We also named our classroom fish today. The fish are a huge hit in the classroom and the kids were mostly amazed at how I managed to bring them up here without spilling everywhere (each kid has spent their fair share of time on the James Bay Highway and access road and knows how bumpy they can be!!)

Allow me to introduce you to:

John Cena, after the wrestler, and 

TNT, after the explosive. 

Yep. 

So anyways! We also recieved nice "Teacher Survival Kit" from administration today which was really sweet and thoughtful. A nice way to start the first day of school. 

Well, tomorrow is day 2 and I hope it will be as good as today was!

'Twas the night before Grade 2

Please excuse my absence from here over the past couple weeks. I have been busier than ever preparing for a couple important events. 

Gearing up for the trip home is always a big time-taker. Shopping, getting car stuff taken care of, squeezing in visits with friends and family always has me rushing around. I got all the usual business taken care of, my big trip to Costco (RIP bank account) changing my tires from summers to winters (this alway raises a few eyebrows at the mechanic's), nails (of course) and a really nice last dinner with my family. 

Getting my tires switched. 

Last dollar drink :'(

Bye bye BBQ

I feel so lucky to have been able to spend so much time with my family this summer. My mom has been in school and took some time between courses so she could be around more and that was great. My sisters were really accommodating and I got to spend some really meaningful quality time together and for that I am really grateful. I got to see old friends and catch up and spent lots of time in bed (my ultimate goal). Overall this summer was a great success and I couldn't have imagined doing it any other way. Next summer though I would like to travel a little, who knows!

Last breakfast. 

Last Ice Cap

Last dessert. 

Last Supper. 

Dinner before MAGIC MIKE YAAAAHHH

Last pedicure 

Right before he bit me on the face 

So, the drive back to Wemindji was thankfully uneventful! I drove to Amos from Oakville on Sunday morning on my own and set out from there Monday morning in a small convoy with Meghan and her parents Donna and Doug. The roads weren't too bad when it wasn't monsoon raining and we got to stop at the nice touristy spots. 381 got struck by lightening right before we got there messing up the computer systems so getting gas took a little longer than expected but otherwise it was a nice drive and my van made it back in one piece (although I do hear some tinkling that I am choosing to ignore). 

I got back to Wemindji around dinner time on Monday evening and immediately began unpacking my incredibly full van. Being able to pack like a Tetris master is both a blessing and a curse. It means I can literally pack an entire store's worth of goods in my van which also means I shop almost uncontrollably to meet this challenge. I made a few doubling up mistakes at Costco which made me upset (I now have 750 melatonin pills, 12 containers of Lysol wipes, 5kg of basmati rice - just to name a few) but otherwise my classroom and home are now fully stocked until at least Christmas!

I started unpacking my classroom on Tuesday. I calculated that since I arrived I have put in approximately 50 hours in the classroom setting up, as I'm not even done. I've got what is necessary for the first couple weeks of teaching and the rest will have to wait. I'm super excited to see my kids again from last year and I am optimistically hoping we can kind of just pick back up from where we left off! I have a few new additions and some switcheroos were made here and there so I don't have the complete old group but we all know each other and it will be really nice either way to see their little faces again!  We also have 2 more new additions to the classroom, some beta fish I brought up with me, so that will be fun! I can't wait to see the names the kids come up with for these guys. 

Well, I've probably never been more tired this week than I have in my entire life but there is nothing like the feeling of satisfaction of having an almost-complete classroom and an idea of what to expect come Monday morning. I have been sleeping like the dead for the past week and probably getting the most exercise I've had in a long time which is sad. Also! I am happy to report that I have SOMEHOW magically managed to keep my manicure INTACT this entire time!!! My cuticles are a little worse for wear but the polish remains unchipped! Shellac is a miracle. My nails are basically too long to even type on the keyboard so I'll be trimming them pretty soon. 

Anyways good luck to all my colleagues starting school tomorrow!