The Last Weekend in Philadelphia
I can't believe Institute is almost over! I feel like I just got here and I have so much to learn still. It will be sad to leave my wonderful class and all the encouraging supervisors I've been working with. I want to leave my class with the students knowing how truly wonderful they are and how, with hard work, they can succeed in anything. I am teaching math for the last week, which I consider the most challenging aspect of elementary education. I have a discovery lesson set up for tomorrow during which the students will investigate the characteristics of solid figures. They also have to take an end of summer assessment for us to measure how much they have learned and if they will be able to move on to 4th grade. The students' last day is Thursday, the last day of Institute is Friday, and I will check out Saturday and move to New York. Wow, what a week!
In order to prepare for this upcoming week, I took the past two days to relax and fit in a bit of Philly culture. Yesterday I attended the Phillies baseball game at their new, beautiful and fun stadium in south Philly. I had my first Philly cheesesteak (delicious) and a gelati (water ice - Philadelphian for slushy - with soft serve on top). I then decided to buy a DVD at the drugstore for a relaxing movie viewing (it cost only $8 and it would have cost $9.25 to get into a movie at the theaters). By the way, the weather was spectacular - warm, breezy, and bright blue skies.
Today, Sunday, I spent a few hours preparing my lessons for the week and then headed out to downtown Philadelphia for probably the last time in a long time. I visited the Kimmel Center on South Broad Street and took the free tour around the fantastic performing arts center. I learned all about the special features of the acoustics and architecture and even made it to the rooftop garden (hot, sweltering, and quite interesting). I then decided that I should take a look at the University of Pennsylvania campus. I asked someone for directions and hopped on the bus. I soon realized that the bus I was on was not going exactly where I wanted it to. I jumped off and walked the rest of the way.
The U Penn campus was gorgeous – red brick buildings and trees everywhere. University City, a section of West Philadelphia, is also home to Drexel University, another architectural marvel. Walking around the campus made me want to go back to school right now. There’s just something about the university atmosphere that is so attractive. To live and breathe books and learning is truly a pleasure.
I also found out that I can buy a great bed from a girl who is moving out of my building (no need for a mover!). I’m a bit worried about getting all of my stuff to New York with me this Saturday, but I think Katie and I are going to take the bus together so I think she might be able to help me a bit (she took a lot of her stuff to the city this weekend). I haven’t heard anything more about an interview, but I am hoping that it’ll happen if only so I will be able to drop a bag or two off in the city and make my next trip a lot less hectic. My roommates here at Temple are still MIA (probably late getting back from New York) so I have my music jammin’ and my handouts all over the floor. I will soon be in bed dreaming about all that is to come.
In closing, I would like to share a “Positive Paragraph” written by one of my students (transcribed exactly as written):
My name is Destiny and I am a truthful, optimistic, understanding, caring, helpful, and hard working, and loving. I love being all those things. Being all those thing is kind of hard I guess but it is also fun. I love be all those things.
How fortunate am I to have met Destiny and so many other amazing children this summer.
In order to prepare for this upcoming week, I took the past two days to relax and fit in a bit of Philly culture. Yesterday I attended the Phillies baseball game at their new, beautiful and fun stadium in south Philly. I had my first Philly cheesesteak (delicious) and a gelati (water ice - Philadelphian for slushy - with soft serve on top). I then decided to buy a DVD at the drugstore for a relaxing movie viewing (it cost only $8 and it would have cost $9.25 to get into a movie at the theaters). By the way, the weather was spectacular - warm, breezy, and bright blue skies.
Today, Sunday, I spent a few hours preparing my lessons for the week and then headed out to downtown Philadelphia for probably the last time in a long time. I visited the Kimmel Center on South Broad Street and took the free tour around the fantastic performing arts center. I learned all about the special features of the acoustics and architecture and even made it to the rooftop garden (hot, sweltering, and quite interesting). I then decided that I should take a look at the University of Pennsylvania campus. I asked someone for directions and hopped on the bus. I soon realized that the bus I was on was not going exactly where I wanted it to. I jumped off and walked the rest of the way.
The U Penn campus was gorgeous – red brick buildings and trees everywhere. University City, a section of West Philadelphia, is also home to Drexel University, another architectural marvel. Walking around the campus made me want to go back to school right now. There’s just something about the university atmosphere that is so attractive. To live and breathe books and learning is truly a pleasure.
I also found out that I can buy a great bed from a girl who is moving out of my building (no need for a mover!). I’m a bit worried about getting all of my stuff to New York with me this Saturday, but I think Katie and I are going to take the bus together so I think she might be able to help me a bit (she took a lot of her stuff to the city this weekend). I haven’t heard anything more about an interview, but I am hoping that it’ll happen if only so I will be able to drop a bag or two off in the city and make my next trip a lot less hectic. My roommates here at Temple are still MIA (probably late getting back from New York) so I have my music jammin’ and my handouts all over the floor. I will soon be in bed dreaming about all that is to come.
In closing, I would like to share a “Positive Paragraph” written by one of my students (transcribed exactly as written):
My name is Destiny and I am a truthful, optimistic, understanding, caring, helpful, and hard working, and loving. I love being all those things. Being all those thing is kind of hard I guess but it is also fun. I love be all those things.
How fortunate am I to have met Destiny and so many other amazing children this summer.
posted by Sarah at
10:22 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home