First day of school at Randall P.S.!

I arrived at Randall P.S. at about 8:10am this morning. When I went to the office, I saw Hilda, a girl who was in my class a few years back. I'm glad that I have someone with me this year, 'cause I was alone most of the time last year! We waited for Ms.Webber, our site coordinator in the office, but it got crowded 'cause there's lots of new students with their parents. So we went to the staff room to wait instead. When she finally appeared, it was about 8:30am. There's another York TC (teacher candidate) called Joyce. So Ms.Weber talked to us for a while, and she said that she'll go talk to Ms.Ohl, the principal, to decide where we'll be placed.

When she came back at about 9:10am, she told us that she hasn't had a chance to talk to Ms.Ohl yet, so we'll have to wait some more. At about 9:55am, she came back again and told us that we should just go into a classroom and observe. Hilda and Joyce did junior grades last year, so they went into some primary classrooms together. I went upstairs alone to find a junior room.

I went into a classroom, and then found out that it's a Gr.6/7. I know that I wouldn't be placed there, but I sat and observed anyway. The teacher, Ms.Tasch, is pretty nice. The students were making name tags while I went inside. She set up a reading area at the back of the room, and I love it! It has curtains hanging down, there's a mat on the floor, with 2 couches (1 with a teddy bear sitting on it), a little desk with a lamp on it, and a bookshelf. It's really comfortable and warm, and I'll keep that in mind when I go into teaching next year! (hopefully) The classroom structure is very different from the Gr.1 classroom. The major difference is that the Gr.6/7 don't do their learning on the carpet, they just sit where they are. Also, the teacher doesn't need to repeat her instructions as much as a Gr.1 teacher.

I stayed in Ms.Tasch's room till recess. Then Ms.Weber and Ms.Ohl talked to us and asked us what grades we want. I prefer a Gr.4 class, 'cause I taught Gr.1s last year, so the gap wouldn't be that big. Ms.Weber said that there's a Gr.4 class and a Gr.4/5 class that I can be placed in. She said that it'll be challenging and interesting to be in a Gr.4/5, so I took that. You never know if you never try, right?~

After recess, I talked to Ms.Lamba, my host teacher. She's a nice lady, and I know that I'll learn a lot from her! She's very well organized too. She said that when I start teaching lessons, she'll let me take charage of one small unit, so I'll be teaching the same topic every week I come. Then both of us would be more organized. I think that's a great idea! She has been teaching for 5 years, and she's experienced with having teacher candidates in her class.

Ms.Lamba introduced me and let me take the attendence after lunch. I'm already remembering most of the students' names after school~ I can see that some of them already like me, and I'm really looking forward to be a member of this class!