I'm in ATL!

So busy, haven't had time to blog about ATL. ..

Got here Sunday, the facilities are very nice, Georgia Tech campus is cut off from the rest of the city, so it is beautiful and secluded. The dining hall is high-class, much more sophisticated than even the Sanford Hall dining hall at the U. I have my own room but I share a suite with another girl who went to Minnesota and two other girls from the Colorado corps. 

So the Parks Middle School bus, my bus, leaves campus at 6:35, so the mornings are rough. Although there are TFA staffers playing music and cheering us on as we drudge to breakfast, it is still dark out and none of us go to bed early. But Parks is a cool place- there are about 70 out of the 500 here that go to Parks every day. Our job is to help 7th and 8th graders pass their CRCT's so that they can pass to the next grade. I got assigned to an 8th grade class and I am co-teaching reading with another corps member from Atlanta named Zack. So basically every day we go to Parks from 7am until 5pm and we attend sessions that teach us how to be teachers in a very intense and condensed form. It is very interesting and the instructors are great, but it all comes at us very fast. I feel confident in the material, and lesson planning and talking about classroom management and investment in education all comes very natural to me, so that is good. It's the waking up early and eating well, working out, and getting every thing done on time that I am struggling a bit with. 5:30 comes way too soon and it seems like my body just doesn't want to go to bed until the late late hours. 

So overall, institute is hard but I think it is going to really help me become a great teacher. I am able to do some socializing at meal times but otherwise it is very focused on getting things done and turned in so it can be reviewed. We will officially start in the classroom on Monday, and I am very excited because I am going first in the rotation, and the students that I met with yesterday REALLY need our help. We assessed them for their reading levels and as will-be 9th graders, right now they are reading as low 6th graders. I can clearly see now why I am here and the work that has to be done. I am eager to begin pushing these students and help them pass the test!

Miss everyone from home- please e-mail me and tell me how you are and what you are up to this summer '09. 

Peace- 

C

Pics from the art fair in Denver and from Lime - a cute trendy Mexican restaurant in Denver where I had those lime salutes with some of my friends. 

I am in Atlanta now, internet is sketchy and only hooks up in my living room. Hopefully that gets fixed- I have to go to bed early because I am getting picked up to go to my school at 6:30 tomorrow morning! 

Peace- 

C

Hired!

So yesterday was a crazy day- I had to go to the Denver Public Schools job fair just to get a call for an interview at a school I had really wanted to work at. My placement advisor had worked at this school and put a good word in for me so I got a ride from my good friend Emily out to the school, which is in Denver but out by the airport, and I walked in and talked to the principal and got offered the job on the spot. It was so relieving and exciting- the school is Rachel B. Noel Middle School in Denver and I will be a 6-8 grade learning specialist. They work on inclusion model and pull-outs, so I will be helping a number of students in different ways. I am so happy and grateful to Martha, my placement advisor. She really helped me a lot- she was a theatre major in college and she is interested in using drama and art for special ed. and so we connected in that way. 

Today has been closing ceremonies, finishing up business in Denver. I looked at two houses today but I haven't felt too right about anything just yet. It may be a matter of waiting until my other friends get job placements until I make a final decision about a place to live. I am very tired so I am just going to relax and get ready to go to Institute. I fly out tomorrow morning but we are getting picked up at 4:30am. . . eesh. 

Miss everyone at home- this week has FLOWN by. 

I'll keep you posted on how things are in HOT lanta! woop. 

C

Day 3 in Denver

I am here! I made it but I have been so busy that I haven't had a chance to really be by myself or take a break to blog. But things have been going really really well. 

The first day I got off too a little bit of a late start, but I made it to O'Hare on time and when I sat down at my gate I met a girl right away from Michigan flying out to Denver for TFA. So that was great, and when we got to the airport, I met several other nice people on the car ride to Campus Village, where I am staying. Met two of my room mates, one named Caroline who is fabulous and a lot of fun- we ended up inviting everyone to the 'Caroline's dorm' later that night to talk and get to know each other. That evening there was an opening dinner for us all, and the Lt. Gov. of Colorado Barbara O'Brian spoke to us about the impact we will make on Colorado public schools. It was very inspiring and I felt really honored to be a part of such an important and powerful group. 

The second day was long, a lot of sessions and lectures about the program. That night we went out to dinner with TFA alumni in the area- had dinner at a restaurant on 16th street mall which is the area where all the places to eat and drink are. Then some of the older corps members invited all of us to Wynkoop Brewery, and TFA pretty much took up the entire upstairs bar. It was a lot of fun, everyone is great and helpful. 

Today, the third day, was a bit more special ed. specific. We got an introduction to our separate licensure program, and we all got to know each other a bit better. There are 16 corps members that are teaching special ed., and I love all of them. They are all amazing and I feel so lucky to go through this with them by my side. The afternoon we had a safety lecture and then we got more info about neighborhoods where corps members live. My friend Emily is from Denver, so she took me and two other girls on a little driving tour of the city and showed us where she lives and where she would recommend living. I am considering living with my friend Katie, who is actually from Waukegan, IL so we talked about different locations- but there really are no bad areas to live in this city. I am waiting to see where I get placed for a job, but the good news is I have an interview TOMORROW with Denver Public Schools- so hopefully I get placed tomorrow so I can make a decision about housing... Tonight we had dinner with present corps members, and they were so hilarious. They had a beautiful apartment with a balcony that had an amazing view of the city (pics posted). We had pizza and talked for a long time, then we went to Breckenridge Brewery for more meeting people and talking.. Lots of breweries here!

So things have gotten off to a great start- I am learning more and more about Denver, getting to see the mountains today was exciting and all the places we saw today look like nice places to live. I can't say enough how great the people are- everyone is so smart, has so many different experiences and is SO nice. I was most nervous about not fitting in with people here, but I truly feel like I will be making some really amazing friends within this experience. 

Stay tuned about the job interview tomorrow- I am crossing my fingers!

C 

Yikes!

I am leaving tomorrow for Denver for Induction week- getting oriented around the city, meeting the corps out there, and doing a lot of paper work, learning things, etc. Sunday I will fly out to Atlanta for my 5 week summer institute. It has all happened so fast! I am extremely excited but extremely nervous. This week at home has been wonderful but has gone by very fast. I am so lucky to have so many friends and family here and other places who support me and have given me the confidence and love I have needed to get this far. 

We will see how things go! I don't know what to expect, but I am excited and prepared to soak everything in.. Stay tuned. 

C