August Currently--Only 20 Days Late!!!

Yeah, yeah, yeah...chuckle if you want. But at the beginning of August, I was living on an airbed in a completely empty apartment and driving around a town I'd never been to, relying on a GPS to get me everywhere--including to my new job (which happens to be 40 miles away from my apartment). I even went almost THREE WEEKS without internet or cable. So yeah, I have an excuse to be 20 days late on my August Currently.

Nevertheless, here it is....

And just so you know, if you don't already, the monthly Currently's are from Farley over at Oh Boy 4th Grade.

What a difference a month makes!

Looking back on the last entry I made on this blog makes my chin quiver a little bit. I was so depressed because of the bleak job search that I was immersed in at the time. I'd been on 6 interviews at that time and, although I'd had principals tell me I'd impressed them in my interviews, I did not have a job yet.

Thankfully, I never gave up and kept on praying. It's been an incredibly hectic few weeks since then so I haven't had much time to get on here and give an update on the situation. About a week after that blog entry, I had a FaceTime interview with a school down in Georgia for a 6th and 7th grade special education position. I was officially approved for the job on July 23rd.

In less than two weeks, I went from searching and searching for a teaching job to moving into an apartment by myself--sleeping on an airbed for almost two weeks with no other furniture except a camping chair. Then Chad was finally able to move everything down in the moving truck on the 8th and 9th. It still seems completely unreal that we are here in Georgia. It's an 11-hour drive from Memphis to where we are. Oh, and by the way, I should mention that I am literally 10.5 miles away from the perfect spot on the beach (and that is an exact number...I just Google Mapped it)? I love this new life we are creating here in Georgia.

I will try and post more on here in the future now that everything is settling into a routine. Thanks for not giving up on me, ya'll!

July Currently

Hi everyone. It's been quite the summer so far. I wasn't exactly planning on my summer being this crazy, but you know what they say about plans...."If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans."

That couldn't be any truer than it is for me right now.

I am currently in the throes of finding a teaching job. I've interviewed for 6 positions so far (I think...I've pretty much lost count by now). It seems to really be getting down to the wire since new teacher training for the area starts in the next couple of weeks. Teachers are already going in to do pre-planning since the switch to Common Core is in full effect this year in Tennessee districts.

I keep trying to keep a positive attitude but I can't help but get a little down in the dumps. All through grad school, I've had SO MANY people tell me that I'll have "no problem" getting a job since I'm middle grades. Uhm...yeah. So where are the jobs?

Anyways, that's pretty much where I've been this summer. Plus I took a week off to go to Florida. I badly needed a week off from the stress of job hunting and everything else.

So....anywho...I'm back into the blogging for now. Here is July's Currently from Farley over at Oh' Boy 4th Grade.

Listening--"Does He Love You" by Reba McEntire and Linda Davis. I've been in such a 90s Country mood lately. This is actually on my Spotify playlist called "Selena's 90s Country," which is just a playlist of songs that remind me of my childhood, when I really didn't even know music existed other than country music.

Loving--I got some really great deals at Staples and Office Max today. Staples had some 1 cent deals and Office Max had some really awesome $1 deals (4-pack of Expo dry erase markers for $1!!!!). I spent around $35 at both stores, but saved close to $70, between my School Supply Savings Pass and Staples Rewards at Staples and the sale prices at both stores.

Thinking--I have to get up for work in the morning so I really should be in bed right now.

Wanting and Needing---They go hand in hand. I had an interview with a middle school principal Tuesday for an 8th grade math position. I'd LOVE to get this job so I'm hoping I'll hear from him soon.

Tips--This is something I have seen on Pinterest and other teacher blogs but I just cleaned out the basket that sits on my desk at home today. I have pens, pencils, markers, and other little supplies in it but at the time, I only have one cup to keep the pens in. The markers were just laying horizontally in the basket and everything else was just thrown in willy-nilly. I happened upon these little plastic cups we got at Walmart when we were out of town a few weeks ago (we had a 2-liter of soda from the pizza place we ordered from but no cups to drink from). The cups were just sitting on a table in my bedroom so I figured, hey, I can use these! They worked out great in my basket! I don't have a "before" picture, but here is the "after" picture:

So I think I'm going to take my own advice and head on to bed. I hope to be on here at little more in the next weeks.

See you soon!

Weekend Musings and Giveaway Announcement

Hi there!!

I hope everyone's weekend is going well. I had to work today at my regular job, the University Bookstore at the U of M. It's strange getting back into the groove of working there instead of going to my student teaching placements. But it's nice seeing all of my old coworkers again.

I wanted to let you all know about Ms. Cranfill's 100 Follower Giveaway, which seems like a really neat one to enter! Just click HERE to link to the giveaway.

May Currently....

I can't believe we are already well into May. My coworker said today that she wishes time would slow down. Part of me agrees but then part of me really wants this summer to fly by so I can start teaching in the fall.

This is my first linky with Farley over at Oh' Boy Fourth Grade. 

I'm kind of excited about it :) So here we go!

Listening: I've been listening to Jason Aldean almost nonstop since Chad surprised me with tickets to his concert for my birthday. This is my favorite song by him right now.

Loving: I'm absolutely loving that I'm not student teaching anymore! Although the first half of student teaching was an incredible experience, the second half was...well...an experience. But it's not really something that I'd want to do over again.

Thinking: Chad surprised me with tickets to the Jason Aldean concert in Little Rock on May 11th (Only a week away!!!!).

Wanting: Food. I really don't care what kind of food. But I am very hungry and I haven't eaten anything but a handful of Cheez-Its all day. We are supposed to be going to the Memphis Barbecue Company for dinner. I haven't ever been there so I'm excited to try it out. It was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives awhile back.

Needing: To clean my room and bathroom. I cleaned it last weekend. What happened to it?!

Summer Bucket List: 1.) To get my dream job. This one is a no-brainer. I'll be literally on top of the world if I get the position I want at the school I want. Cross your fingers!!! 2.) We usually go to the beach twice a year every year. Because I haven't been able to work any days except Saturday this semester, we are super tight on money. But I'm really hoping we happen to find a couple of dollars to go down to Florida for a few days. 3.) To meet Jason Aldean. I'm sure this won't happen, but you know I'd be one happy girl if I did. :)

The Last Day of Student Teaching

Today, dear friends, was my very last day of student teaching. It's definitely been an uphill battle these four months, but I am thankful for every single experience.

My first placement was a blessing in disguise. I was at ATES, which is the school I hope to get a job at in the fall. All of the faculty, staff, and administrators were amazing and helpful in every way. The students were a great group of kids. They were sweet, caring, kind, loving, smart....this list could go on and on. My mentor teacher was incredible; she and I worked so well together. Our personalities and teaching styles clicked perfectly.

My second placement was very difficult for me. I was at CMS in Memphis, TN. This was also my special education placement, so I was an inclusion student teacher in 7th grade pre-algebra and language arts classes. I'll always consider all of my placements, whether student teaching or field observations, a learning experience--and this one was no different.

I learned so much from all of the teachers and professionals I worked with there, as well as from the students. This group of students was a challenge for me to communicate and identify with as (and here I go making excuses for myself...) I am from a very small town, with small-town ideals and values. I had an amazing family life. I had amazing teachers the entire way through school (except for a couple of bad apples). I never needed anything that I didn't already have. Not all of the students at this school know a good family life. Not all of them have had caring teachers through school. I like country music. They like rap music. I live in a nicer part of town. They live in a part of town where shootings happen on a regular basis.

Basically, if you could think of two people or groups of people that are furthest apart in society, that would describe me and my students.

Like I said, though, this was a challenging, yet meaningful experience that I have definitely learned from. In the beginning of this post, I said that my first placement was a blessing in disguise. Had I not been in a classroom and school (ATES) where I felt immediately welcomed and valued, with students and teachers who strive to do their very best every single day, I might have lost my faith in the education field. This is not to put down the professionals or the students at CMS in any way. I truly feel like they do their very best (the teachers do, at least). But every day felt like a race there. I was always racing to leave the building right at 3:30, because I wanted as far away from that school as possible.

One thing is for sure though, I will always remember the teachers and students from both of my placements of student teaching. Every experience is something I've learned from, good or bad. I know much more about myself as a person and as a teacher than I knew before. And I feel like I am much more ready, now, to take on the task of leading my own classroom in the fall.

Well, this post has gone on long enough. Be on the lookout for my next post with my tips for getting through student teaching.

All About Ms. Haler

Since this is my very first post, I figured I would complete a "Get to Know Me" sheet, like we make our students do for Back to School.

This All About Me image is courtesy of Run! Miss Nelson's Got the Camera.



The template can be found on her TPT site.