The Start of My Year of Many Firsts

So it's now Fall Break and I FINALLY feel like I can breathe again! It's been almost two months since my last blog post, it's also been almost two months since school started. Coincidence? I think not. To say things have been busy is a bit of an understatement. First year teaching, including KTIP (Kentucky's version of first year internship for teachers). Signed on as co-owner of the gym I've worked at and helped to grow since college. Hustled partnerships, funding opportunities, and new ideas for my nonprofit, Pink Elephant. Attempting to launch a new project near and dear to my heart in Africa called Kuinua Craft Project (more to come on that!). Preparing for grad school in January. And I wonder why my hair is falling out. But in all seriousness (even though seriously, my hair is falling out), I've never felt so excited and close to things that I am passionate about. These things may be the source of my stress, but they've become the source of who I am and what I'm meant to do at this point in my life. With that said, before I delve in deeper to this post, I leave this food for thought. Whether it's me running across it again later, or a visitor to my blog (graciously) reading this, I hope it will continue to spark the same passion as I felt the first time I read it:

The wise words of Desmond Tutu, ladies and gentlemen. 

Since I started this blog as a way to record my own personal journey, even if it's just me going back to read it, I feel like it's important to express my feelings and experiences in teaching so far. This will be fun to look back on at the end of the year. These last two months have been a whirlwind of firsts. Meltdowns, boogers, kinderbaby potty accidents. Let me just say, your first year as a teacher is NOTHING like student teaching, or anything you experienced in college to "prepare" you for the job. It's hard. Really hard. All of a sudden you've got the huge responsibility of educating children and making sure they know what they need to know by the time they leave you; a romantic notion maybe, but it's a totally different story when it becomes your responsibility. That, coupled with KTIP, and you've got one thing: STRESS. You've got a lot of people to answer to; the principal, your mentor teacher, your university supervisor, parents, and perhaps the most daunting critic of all, yourself.
But to be fair, the challenging moments are 100% out-shined by the truly rewarding moments. Like when you see the excitement on a student's face when the lightbulb goes off and you know they've got it. Or when a professional in the building compliments what your doing in the classroom. Or when your able to provide advice to a fellow teacher in supporting the more challenging students in their classroom. Or when you just take a moment to laugh with your students and appreciate the little humans that they are. The list could go on and on. These are the reasons that carry me forward...to the end of the day, to the end of the week, to the next break from school...to the next point where I can take a long deep breath and ready myself to jump back in again. These are also the reasons I look forward to going back for more. The challenge. The joy. The excitement. The way it makes me want to keep growing and learning. Most of all, the purpose and meaning it brings to life. I am forever grateful that God led me to this profession and blessed me with this passion.

Without sounding tedious, I want to make note of the people I owe a huge thank you to for helping me keep my sanity to at least this point. First and foremost, my husband, who puts up with my nonstop work/stress/venting/money spending on my classroom...he's a real keeper ;). To the family and friends who have been supportive in my journey thus far. To the coworkers that have helped me adjust and learn as a first year teacher. To my Pink Elephant partner in crime who I can share my passion for PE's programs with, and who keeps me going on the projects abroad that are so very near and dear to my heart. And to everyone else that must deal with me in the often overwhelmed/busy/stressed state I find myself. THANK YOU.

Now there's officially four days left until we are back to the daily grind I live for. Until my next post (which hopefully won't take two more months to make), I leave you with this:

What will you do to shake the world?

Classroom Reveal

I am too excited to finally share my long awaited classroom reveal! I had one week from the time I was hired to create my classroom design, get my hands on the decor I needed, and put my plan into action (not to mention prepare for my first year as a primary special education teacher, but that's a whole different story!). Somehow, I managed to pull it off and I am pretty satisfied with the results! Check it out for yourself here. Let me know what you think!

Welcome to my blog!

Since this is my very first blog, I guess that would make me a blog newbie, so bear with me!

I created this blog so that I can share ideas and resources from my own classroom, collaborate with other educators around the world, and sort of "journal" my classroom experiences. I am a first year teacher, fresh out of college, with a lot of passion and drive for my own classroom, so I am excited to track my journey in education, even if no one cares to look back on it besides me :)

The blog name "Teach the World" has a purpose, more than one actually, so let me indulge you...

As a teacher, I really believe in teaching students to be effective global citizens. This means teaching them in a way that will encourage them to give back to the world, to make it a better place. I believe in authentic, real-world learning with a purpose. I want my classroom to provide students with the knowledge and encouragement that will launch them on a path to succeed in life, with just the right dose of rigor to get to them beyond the finish line and onto their next adventure.

As an individual, I am extremely passionate about the world. I love to travel, I love new adventures, and most of all, I love to experience learning in faraway places. I have been blessed to experience learning in classrooms from four different regions in this world, and I hope this number will grow as I continue to grow as an education professional. In my life, I hope to be able to quite literally "teach the world" by experiencing education in all cultures and places that I can.

One way I attempt to bridge my life here in America and the work I yearn to do abroad is through the nonprofit organization I launched a year and a half ago, Pink Elephant. Don't ask where the name came from, because I have no truly good story for that, other than the fact that it was the name of my Etsy shop I used to sell handmade headbands to fund my first international trip to Botswana in college. It was this trip, which allowed me to teach in schools and collaborate with both the students and educators, that forever changed the course of my life. I learned about the struggle for teachers to receive an adequate support system to support them as professionals; this struggle, no doubt, overflowed onto the students. In America, say what you will about the downfalls of our education system, but one thing we definitely have is collaboration among educators. In the schools, we work with our coworkers, as well as administrators and education professionals provided by our districts, to fully support our students in the best ways we can. This was a missing component in the education I saw, reiterated after teaching experiences in Belize and Kenya; one that I believed had a true negative impact on quality of education for the students on the other end of this system.

The Teacher Outreach program through Pink Elephant is in place to provide a global support system to teachers in disadvantaged communities who need it most. This system allows our partner teachers to connect with other educators around the world (like you!) to share lesson plans and resources, as well as collaborate on ideas, questions, and anything else education related. We are bringing the support system to them, in hopes that it will improve the quality of instruction they are capable of delivering, thus improving the quality of education the students are able to receive.

It may be a long shot, but its something I devote myself to growing and developing each and every day. If your still with me on this (bless you!) I urge you to check out what we are doing by visiting our website: www.PEinternational.org or go straight to our Teacher Portal and sign up as a Supporting Teacher: portal.PEinternational.org.

As I wrap this up, and I know its about time I do, I just want to give a shoutout to my personal support system, my high school sweetheart and (brand new!) husband Garrett. Without him, supporting me and encouraging me through all of this I wouldn't be where I am today, on the path to where I am going tomorrow. When everyone else told me it couldn't be done, or rather I couldn't do it, he was the one voice that said otherwise, even when it wasn't easiest on him.

Ok, that's it! I promise. Now off to plan future posts to help you guys support your own littles in your classroom. Asante sana for sticking around and hope to see you back soon!