Week 3: When I consider the heavens...

This last week I was teaching math and science for my 3rd grade class here in Dubuque. Each morning, I have been reading in Proverbs and Psalms and I am continually amazed at the handiwork of God!

In science we are learning about the Sun, Moon, and Stars. The Psalmist writes, "Praise Him, sun and moon; praise Him you stars of light! Praise Him, you heavens, and you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the Lord, for He commanded and they were created" (Psalm 148:3-5). God truly is the an amazing Creator!

Week Highlights:

1. Taught a lesson that Mrs. Poling, my professor, was able to observe
2. Taught the phases of the moon
3. Went to a teachers' meeting at the Dubuque Forum
4. Played racquetball with Dale Twesten (I'm getting better but he still beats me!)
   
5. Attended Carver In-Service
6. Discovered the Emmaus Food Pantry and got some canned goods
7. Started a Blog on WordPress.org that will be for more professional purposes
8. Talked to two boys in the class who were angry at each other
9. Helped out with sledding day at Carver (See the picture)
10. Played guitar for FN music since Beth couldn't make it
11. Went to see Katie Fleming's soccer game at Roosevelt for the Iowa Games
12. Got a return flight to Japan!
    

Personal Reading:
-Dear Mr. Henshaw
-Proverbs
-Psalms
-Ecclesiastes
-Micah

Prayer Requests:
-To prioritize time with the Lord
-To be able to lesson plan more efficiently
-Friday Nighters kids ministry
-To get rest
-For wisdom as I tutor a 3rd grade girl in reading





Spinning students during sledding day!

Student Teaching Week 2

Week 2 of student teaching went very well and I am ever so surely getting into the swing of things here in Dubuque, Iowa!

Monday was Martin Luther King day so there was no school.

On Tuesday I had a student come up to me and share with me something really special. He told me that his 94 year old great grandmother had died and he missed her very much. It is good to be able to be a part of these kids' lives and I am so thankful that the Lord has placed me right here in Dubuque where there is so many needs. Tuesday was one of the highlights of my week because I was able to start tutoring one of the students in my class. From now on I will be tutoring a 3rd grade girl in reading for 30 minute sessions on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Praise the Lord! I gave her a Reading Attitude Survey and then tested her on some word lists as well as a 1st grade narrative text. Finally we were able to look over a book called The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant. Each week I plan to introduce quality literature and some fun reads along with our reading work. I'm excited to see what the Lord will do!

The rest of the week flew by quickly and I taught a lesson on the topic of Heaven at Friday Nighters which is the downtown kids ministry that I have been involved with for the last 3 years. The Lord had His hand on the evening and I was so thankful for what He did that night.

Some fun things from this last week:

1. I played racquetball with Dale Twesten, whose house I am staying at
2. I played cards with some good friends as well as had milk and cookies
3. I spent time with my sister-in-laws parents, ate dinner with them, and watched a documentary on Israel
4. I was able to spent lots of time in God's word
   

Student Teaching has begun!

I have now been at Carver four days since being back and already there have been some highlights. Here's just a few:

1. Helping out with correcting student work

2. Teaching a Macmillan language arts lesson

3. Doing a read-aloud for "Because of Winn-Dixie"

4. Mrs. Breitbach used the SmartBoard clicker system with the students

CLASSROOM FUN

1. Emily looked at my Student Teacher ID card and said, "You look funky without your glasses on Mr. Eby!"

2. I received a belated Christmas gift with a note from one of my students

3. One of the boys came to school without socks for his winter boots

4. I taught some of the students how to play the Japanese "kendama" during indoor recess

5. I recommended "The River" and "The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler"

OUTSIDE OF CLASS

1. Dale Twesten and I made a 2-3 gallon pot of chili, pork & beans, chopped up onions, corn, black olives, and lots of spices as well as lots of rice to put it onto.

2. I am now listening to the Percy Jackson children's book audio series. One of my students recommended it to me so I'm going to see what its about.

God is good and does good! In the mornings I have been reading in Proverbs and Psalms and the reminder is so often to trust in the Lord and to watch your words. As I teacher I need to entrust all my responsibilities to the Lord and I also need to watch the words that I say because they have great impact. 

"For you will light my lamp; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness. For by You I can run against a troop, by my God I can leap over a wall. As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him. For who is God, except the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? It is God who arms me with strength, and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, and sets me on my high places. He teaches my hands to make war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze." Psalm 18:28-34

Skyping Mrs. Breitbach's 3rd Grade Class

A couple days before I flew back to the U.S. to finish my last semester of college, I emailed my cooperating teacher and asked her if I could Skype the class while I was still in Japan. She responded that she would make time for such and opportunity and we planned for 2:30PM U.S. time which was 5:30AM Japan time. I woke up early in the morning and got together some Japanese items that I might want to show via Skype video and after a little initial trouble of connecting we got through! I was able to share a little bit about Japan and each of the students had prepared questions for me that they were able to ask. I answered all of their questions and it was a great experience for the kids. They were especially surprised by the Japanese Kellogg cereal box and the strange plastic cartons that held four eggs instead of a dozen. 

Visiting Schools in Japan

Before I left for the U.S. I was able to have an interview with Michael DiMuzio, the assistant principal and St. Mary's International School in Tokyo, Japan and it was a great experience! Mr. DiMuzio is an amiable personality and after talking with me about the St. Mary's elementary and giving me advice as a young and aspiring teacher he gave me a tour of their new school facilities. The school is an amazing structure! Everything is space conserving and top-of-the-line. I learned a lot from the experience and it was good to see how a prestigious school, such as St. Mary's is run. 

The following day I went to have an interview with Brian Vander Haak, the headmaster of Christian Academy in Japan, and again, it was helpful to have advice from a person in the school administration as to what direction I might want to go and what kinds of expectations the school has for incoming teachers. 

After meeting with Brian Vander Haak, I took the train to the American School in Japan so that I could visit Mio Foster's 4th grade classroom for the afternoon and it was incredible! ASIJ is a prestigious school as well and has amazing facilities, there are at least four of every grade level in the elementary and the student population is fairly diverse. In talking with some of the teachers afterwards I gained a lot of insight into the whole international teaching realm and several teachers gave me input as to how I could get the proverbial "foot in the door" when applying for teaching jobs. I even met a lady whose husband was from Dubuque, Iowa where Emmaus Bible College is! In fact, this lady's husband attended Clarke College which is about four hundred yards from where my sister-in-law Amy's parents live! It is truly a small world!