I was planning on coming back to Portland on January 2nd so that I could start going to full time student teaching on the 3rd, but on the day I was returning, I tested positive for COVID and stayed with my parents for another week in Seattle. I was really disappointed to be missing the first week back with the kids and super bored quarantining in my room for the next several days.
When I was finally able to come back to Portland I was super excited, but also worried that I would be lonely because none of my housemates had returned yet. While it was really weird being the only one in the house when there are usually six people, it wasn’t too much of an issue because I got back from student teaching at 5:00, and was so tired that I was falling asleep around 9:00.
Full time student teaching is a lot of fun so far, but also extremely tiring and overwhelming at times. I’ve finally gotten used to my sleep schedule again so waking up at 5:45am isn’t quite as hard and I’m able to stay up later than 9:00pm, but some mornings are definitely still hard; I’ve never been a morning person.
One of the best things about teaching full time is being able to see the kids and connect with them more, especially because the afternoon has more down time than in the morning. As kindergarteners, they can really boost my ego with compliments some days (“Ms. Livingston, you look so beautiful! Like a princess!”), and humble me on others (“Ms. Livingston are you sure you brushed your hair today?”). It truly is a balance.
Aside from student teaching, I’ve been so happy to see my roommates and other friends again. It’s a little harder to hang out with people now that we’re second semester seniors, but so far I’ve been able to celebrate my roommate’s birthday with friends, make dinner with a friend, and see lots of people in classes and around campus that I haven’t seen since before winter break.
Even though I know this semester will be a busy one, I’m excited to be able to spend it with all my friends and kindergarten students!
Megan,
You’re “welcome to my world” has some up and down sides. But clearly from your post and many of your classmates – the student teaching day starts rather early!