still overwhelmed

Still pretty overwhelmed...conducted my first IEP meeting today...I think it went okay...now time to write it...eeeek.

My New Classroom!

I loooove my new classroom! Today was Wednesday, advisory day, which means we don't have class and instead do educational activities. Every teacher gets a random mix of students from a particular grade, so they are all big general ed groups. There are schoolwide activities, and then activities the teacher gets to plan, so we had a mini-creative convention: math challenge, perform a song, build a structure that can support the most pennies/books, and Presidents questions. I was very impressed by my creative students! They had to write a song that incorporated India, video game makers, and recycling. My students are obviously the best :-)

Here's a sampling of the lyrics:

Push it, push it, to the limit, limit

Cause we're in it to win it

Oh yeah,

We need to recycle, everyday

Don't litter

What, what, we gotta show them now

We gotta show them how

we recycle

Put it, put it

In the garbage,

Garbage

Oh yeah

(to the tune of Disney Channel's "Push It to the Limit")

and

We recycle

With our bycicale!

We bake cake

With our brakes!

and

Hi my name is Ruem and I live in Purem

I make video games all day

I guess it's a delay

cause that's what my wife says

and

Da na Da na Da na Da na

Somethin somethin somethin

Video game tester in India

and

Here's a rap for you and me!
Let's go to India and see what's happening!

It's the game house, yo yo yo

I'd like to see what's in da game house!

Oh! datz sweet!

There's a game tester it's hard to see!

Oh my God it's Halo 3!

Let me play!

So I can be out of my misuri!

Fun Times!

After a long day of errands, grading papers, planning, and TFA work, I went out with Maggie and Jenn to Moose McGillicutty's in Waikiki--very fun! Then when we got back, we 'talked story' (Hawai'ian term for talking and chatting) with our awesome neighbors until right now. It is 5:00 AM.

TIME FOR SLEEP! Tomorrow = more planning and prepping...

Universe: 1, Elyse: 0

After spending 1.5 hours of the school day on Thursday and a considerable amount of time on my day off yesterday at the bank, after every customer service representative imagineable that the checks were somehow lost (and after one even insinuated that my roommates may have stolen them) and that the best course of action would be to open a new account, guess what arrived in the mail today?

The original checks. Thank you, Universe.

More Good Times in Sixth Grade

I accidentally incited a major panic in my 6th grade Spanish class today. Every day, as they come in and work on the first activity, I play a different type of Spanish music. Today, one of my students brought in a Selena CD. As I was explaining what Selena's music was known for and how her life was celebrated in a movie starring Jennifer Lopez, one student raised her hand and asked, "Didn't she die? Didn't her best friend kill her?" and I started to explain that yes, it was a very big tragedy and that one of her managers and friends killed her, but that she is remembered for her music. Hands shot up and immediately people got very upset.
"JENNIFER LOPEZ IS DEAD?!"

So then I had to establish that Jennifer Lopez is alive and well. And then we wrote to our pen pals in Costa Rica! And then I went to the car inspector so I could get collision insurance and then I went to the bank so I could close my account because my checks were lost in the mail and I need to get a new account number but it took way too long so I have to go back tomorrow and then I called the free clinic so I can get a TB test so I can send in a complete form to UH - Manoa so I can register for fall classes so I can send in another form to get health insurance. And then I got papers notarized so I can send in papers to the DOE so I can finally get paid sometime soon. And then I attempted to search for a post office so I could send the letters to the pen pals in Costa Rica but failed miserably so that will have to wait til tomorrow.

Hurricane Watch 2K7

So far, Oahu isn't expected to be affected at all by Hurricane Flossie. So I'm good :-) No worries! And the earthquake happened on the Big Island, not here, so don't worry about that, either.

I need to express my excitement that a bunch of LOST scenes were filmed RIGHT NEXT TO OUR HOUSE (before we lived there, though).

Please note the similarity of my pictures to the LOST pictures:

http://www.lostvirtualtour.com/lost/filming_locations/byodointemple/index.html

I KNEW that temple looked familiar! (Okay, actually I had no idea. But it's so beautiful I had to take lots of pictures!) And there is a picture on the website of the entrance from the Kahekili highway--that's literally the turn right before the turn to our street!

Also, one of the teachers at the school my roommates both work at has a son who is one of the babies that portrays Aaron (Claire's baby) on LOST. So crazy!

Still at school...lots of work to do...

Sunburn

While trying to teach a math class...

Student raises hand.
Me: Yes?
Student #1: Miss Moretti, did you get burnt this weekend?
Me: Oh, yes, a little bit.
Student raises hand again.
Me: Yes?
Student #1: Did you go to the beach this weekend?
Me: Uh, no, I was just in my house.
[I was trying to say that I stayed in this weekend but laid out on our deck.]
Another student raises hand.
Me [hoping the next question is about math]: Yes!
Student #2: Miss Moretti, I think you need to get a new light in your house if you get burnt from it.

I've been really busy lately...everything is going okay, just really tough. I can't believe the amount of work I have to do...my kids are rockstars though :-) It's really tough to be the teacher and authority figure though, because they are all so interesting and creative and diverse. I just like talking to them and getting to know them. But we have a lot to cover and not nearly enough time!

I'm definitely learning a lot.

Reasons Why Monday Was A Good Day

1. Less than 40 kids in 8th period
2. Productive classes all day (six periods)
3. Only got lost for two hours
4. It's trash pick-up day (pictures coming soon!)
5. Thanks to #4, I now have a new lamp, chair, and our apartment has a BBQ, air hockey table, lamp, and lots of items for our classroom.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh sOOoooo much to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tomorrow I have to miss school for mandatory Special Education training with the district. And I just finished four papers for U of H as well as an assignment and midterm. Ahhhhhhh.

All Around the Island with Uncle Jimmy

Another beautiful day in the neighborhood! I don't think I have mentioned yet how FRIENDLY Hawai'i is. I can't even describe how absolutely wonderful the people we have met are. But there are always some people who go above and beyond to REALLY make you feel at home, and Uncle Jimmy is one of those people. One of my roommates' great aunt and uncle gave her the number of a college friend who lives in our town. She called to ask his advice, and ever since, we have been blessed with soooo much from Uncle Jimmy. I have a bed and a dresser all thanks to him. We have all the appliances and furniture and miscellaneous items we need. And today, he drove us all over O'ahu, bought us lunch and ice cream, and took us to lots of cool places. We had amazing Mexican food at Rosie's Cantina on the North Shore, saw some beautiful views of beaches, the Mormon Temple, and Waikiki, ate delicious ice cream at Bubbie's, and explored the Valley of the Temples, which is right down the road from us. Even though Valley of the Temples is practically in our backyard, we had never been inside, assuming, like most outsiders, that it is simply a cemetary (albeit a beautiful one!) In fact, in the back there is a gorgeous Japanese temple, a giant bell, and lots of scenic views.




It was a fabulous day on the island, and definitely helped make up for yesterday, when I wrote 4 five-page papers for my master's class. Tonight = another assignment and finishing my midterm (it's a summer class), planning ahead for this week, filling out mountains of paperwork for school, university, insurance, etc., grading diagnostic tests, and more fun...

And it's Jenny's birthday today, HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENNY!

More pictures here.

T.G.I.F.!!!!!!!!

whoa...kind of overwhelmed at the moment, but keeping a positive attitude.
GREAT CHOICES GREAT GAINS!!!!

This weekend I'm going to make the great choices of catching up with all the assignments, planning, paperwork, etc. that have been stacking up. . . eeeeek. I also need to grade the diagnostic assessments of my math class and figure out what areas we need the most work on, and how I can get my class, who are all on dramatically different levels to sixth-grade math.

Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!

Tonight I got to see Meagan, someone I worked with in the I-triple-L last summer at Carnegie Mellon. She's off to Indiana to start a Ph.D. program, but she's from Hawai'i, so she was back for a few weeks before leaving. We went to Bubba Gump's at Ala Moana, and it was way fun! I love Forrest Gump.

I'm going to spend the night in tonight--I need a break!

I also can't believe how exhausted I am after only 1/2 a week of teaching!

Oh and funny story: today I ended up with over 40 sixth graders in a tiny, sweltering portable classroom that only had 35 desks. A lot of them were in the wrong place because of renovation craziness and a confusing schedule format, and I didn't have an up-to-date list so I couldn't bounce them if they didn't belong, because I had no idea. I ended up taking them all outside and I'm not sure what all went on, but I don't think I mentioned a word of Spanish, and the class is Spanish class. Also, since we were outside, I released them when we heard the bell. But it was the elementary school's bell, so I let them out 7 minutes early, and they got sent back...hahaha...craaaaziness.

<3

I love my kids!!!!!
I'm extremely overwhelmed and going a little crazy but my advisory class is super!!! Tomorrow we start the actual classes, so I'll have my first day of math and world language (Spanish) :-)