4 weeks down 5 to go

Wow! One month of student teaching has come and gone. Time is flying. 5 more weeks at Mountain Creek SHS to go!

I am running every day. Last week I ran 19 miles, this week I am looking at 25 miles. My routine is waking up biking to school by 7am, teaching from 730-330, biking home, going on a run, lesson planning, making dinner, going to sleep during the week. On the weekends it is time for adventures!

After the week on birthdays during the 3rd week of July, we all experienced Ocean Street. (the only night scene there seems to be around here.)

The last weekend in July, 2 girlfriends and I went up to Noosa Heads for a day of paddle boarding (I didn't fall in!) and a beach day. It was gorgeous!

I saw a Kangaroo at school!

I helped at the Athletics Carnival at USC! This is like a track and field meet that all the students from the school compete to qualify for districts. Districts is where schools from the region compete against each other!

I lesson plan on Sunday's at a table overlooking the ocean, not too bad.

Feeling 22

The start of student teaching week 2 was exciting because not only was I more comfortable being at MT Creek, but it was also my birthday!

 

After a long day at school on Monday, netball practice, and a run, we had our weekly meeting with Colin in one of the apartments. It was so nice to be with everyone on my birthday, eat some baked ziti, and even be serenaded by the happy birthday tune. Throughout the day I even kept the Funk tradition alive and had cake, potato chips, coke, and ice cream! 

Tuesday, the celebration continued at school. My host teacher and my session 1 &2 childcare girls put on a party: we had pancakes, frittata, quinoa cupcakes, fresh fruit, and juice for a celebration of my american birthday. (Yes, in Australia I had two birthdays because of the time difference). My host teacher really did make me feel special though, and as a gift I got a bag of tim tams! 

The rest of the week was filled with more sport trials, high jump & javelin throwing during morning tea and lunch. On Wednesday, we had inter school softball and on Thursday we had inter school netball. I am the assistant coach in these situations which is really awesome, and great experience. 

Thursday, I started playing in a rec league for OZ TAG! It was so fun! Every Thursday night a bunch of us are doing this now!

On Friday, it was hot! About 30 degrees (upper 80's). After a jam packed week of teaching and doing the extra sport trial stuff during breaks, Madonna (my host teacher) and I went out to lunch at Grill'd. This chain restaurant was amazing, and super healthy. It was so nice to be able to take a step back and  have a very nice lunch, with my teacher. 

On Saturday, it was Monet's birthday and we spent the gorgeous day on Mooloolaba beach after getting lost for an hour on the public bus.... and at night we went to Ocean Street. Ocean street is filled with bars, dancing, and late night food. (this area is the closest you are going to get 'college bars'). It was really great, very classy, and even found a mini reggae concert, who would have known?

Birthday Celebrations

On Saturday 16/07 , we all went to see Finding Dory at the Sunshine Plaza Cinema. The movie was so cute, and the perfect way to spend the afternoon.

On Sunday, 17/07 Monet, Abby, and I went to Underwater World (which is conveniently across the street from where we live) and got a backstage tour. We wondered through ginormous tanks filled with sharks, sting rays, jelly fish, and lots of other fish. The blue star fish are my favorite. We saw turtles and a seal show! It was great to finally see the seal show that we can hear from our apartments!

STUDENT TEACHING WEEK 1

JULY 11 - JULY 15

I can't believe everything I have been doing for the past 3 years was for solidified on Monday July 11. First day of student teaching at Mountain Creek State High School! 

Normal days are about 6:45am - 3:45pm... 

I am teaching yr 11, yr 10, yr 8 and yr 7. 

Theory classes about biomechanics for yr 10's and a health class for yr 8's. 

Trial, trials and more trials. At MT Creek, it is the beginning of a new semester and a new term, which is code for let's figure out what sport team or enrichment activity 2,000+ students are going to participate in for the next 20 wks. 

I have helped with softball, netball, athletics carnival (track & field), and more. 

Upcoming is a netball competition called Vicky Wilson Cup in week 3 -- Monday nights are practices. 

Softball is on Wednesdays during session  5 for yr 8's.

There is an athletics carnival in week 3 which I will be helping out with. 

I am getting used to the way the school works here. 70 minute classes, Monday's are my longest, Tuesdays are my 'prep' days, Friday's are the shortest.. no day a week is the same. 

I am very happy and ready to see what I will do next.  

In the mean time, I am working on getting a bike, and dealing with this freezing weather. (a whopping 60 degrees). 

*on a side note... i found this amazing heart shaped shell on a run! 

Back in Mooloolaba

How wonderful it is to be back in my home away from home after being on the bus for 15 hours straight. Who doesn't enjoy a sleepover with 26 other people on a bus? 

We drove hours and hours through nothingness. Dodged kangaroos, but ran over a couple snakes along the way. We left Thursday night at 7pm and drove through the entire night. As a group we did superlatives for the trip: I won most likely to be snapping pictures. I think that was spot on, I always have my camera out, documenting every moment. We also watched Finding Nemo (which was really cool because I scuba dived in the great barrier reef not even a week ago), and Rouge (a movie about a killer salt water crocodile in Australia-  kinda like Jaws for croc’s).

Upon arrival at Newport, I was overwhelmed with such a happy feeling. It is amazing to feel so much at home at a place where I only occupied for 2 weeks before. 2 weeks living out of a suitcase was enough for me. It is time to get back to reality and begin preparing for Monday- the first day of student teaching! 

  

Cattle Country

We started off the day by venturing to the Longreach School for Distance Education. 160 students from over 800K attend this school.   After a tour we went to a local bakery in Longreach. Longreach = the capital of the outback.

Another sunrise in the Outback

Qantas first Jet Plane 

Stockholder Show  

Tropic of Capricorn 

Cattle 

At Rosemary's cattle station

these windmills mark stations

The best part about the long trip home was seeing the milky way and southern cross standing in the middle of a road with no lights around.

Land Down Under

OUTBACK!

Started off the day by stopping at a gas station called Oasis. This was and Oasis that wasn’t and oasis. 

Saw some wild camels on the way to the Dinosaur Triangle.... yes that is a real thing. 

Continued driving through a whole lot of nothing all the way to Winton. Here we had an amazing drover stew dinner with bread and rice around a campfire. It also ended up being a karaoke night!