Student Teaching - Week 5

by Rachel Miller - Bridge Elementary

STUDENT TEACHING

It was a good thing that we had Monday off for President’s Day because I spent the entire day pumping my body with fluids, laying in bed and eating soup. I was a sick as a dog. Luckily, that was my low point, by Tuesday I was in a well enough state to get up and go to school, and now I am almost back to being 100%. My illness was an eye opening experience though. I had to learn to persevere and work extra hard to maintain my usual level of energy and enthusiasm. Just because you feel under the weather does not mean that the students should receive any lesser of a classroom experience. Some times it is really hard to be a teacher, but I just keep reminding myself that the student’s experience and learning is first priority, even if you feel like you just got run over by the bus.

Playing Card Portrait

This week was exciting in terms of student work. My 1^st and 2^nd grade classes are almost done with their warm and cool color landform projects, and they are looking beautiful. I can’t wait until they are completed this week so I can start displaying them. Also the 3^rd and 4^th graders started drawing their king and queen playing card portraits.  This project is remarkable. I am so impressed with all of the detail the students are using. Looking at their work in progress makes my day because some of the portraits are absolutely hysterical. Just the facial features and the style that we are doing them in are to die for. I am so excited to continue working on them this week!

LIVING IN THE CITY



Hunger - Lifeline Theatre

 I also had another weekend jam-packed with Chicago fun. On Friday, Ginnie and I hit up the local art scene by stopping by a few gallery openings in River North. This was a really fun and cheap way to spend a Friday night since the openings are free to the public, and many also serve complimentary refreshments. Then on Saturday, everyone in the Chicago Semester took a trip north to the Lifeline Theater in Rogers Park to watch a production entitled Hunger. The main theme of this semester is focused on hunger and homelessness, and this event was geared directly toward that theme. The show was interesting. The story revolved around a group of scientists working in a seed bank during World War II in Leningrad, Russia. It focused on the hardships the scientists faced as food rations became almost nonexistent. I don’t want to give too much away, but it really was a compelling piece. I certainly left the theatre feeling cold and hungry.  Sunday was also nothing short of busy. 

National Museum of Mexican Fine Art

After yoga and lunch in Lincoln Square, Ginnie and I made a trip to the Pilsen Neighborhood of Chicago to check out the National Museum of Mexican Art. Let me start by saying, if you are ever in the Chicago area put this on your list of must-see places to visit. The museum is home to an impressive permanent collection, and when we were there they also were hosting three additional exhibits. Viewing the work was an excellent insight into Mexican history and art influences in Mexico, the United States and Chicago. I am so glad that I took the time to check it out. In addition, admission is free so there really is no excuse to not give it a go.  


Student Teaching - Week 4

by Rachel Miller - Bridge Elementary

STUDENT TEACHING

 This week of student teaching was a little bit different than weeks past. For one, I had my first observation with my supervisor, and secondly, I was doing a lot of research for a neighborhood project that is a part of my student teaching seminar. Researching my school’s neighborhood was pretty interesting. I learned that originally the area where my school is located is home to a mental institution and it is still the brunt of many Chicagoan jokes. I also got the opportunity to interview some very interesting people. The best was when I took my half-day to tour the neighborhood and talk to a long-time neighborhood resident, Ken. It was great. He met me at the school with his big, old, golden retriever, Clancy, and together we walked around while he told me all about the community. It has really changed over the years. When he was first living there as a child, it was still a part of the city that was transitioning from farmland and now it is just as crowded as any other neighborhood in the city. He also took me to lunch at Starbucks where he is a morning regular. It was neat to get a perspective of how things are outside of the school. 

LIVING IN THE CITY  

Chicago Cultural Center

In other news, I fell to illness this week. I was doing such a good job of avoiding it too. I have been taking my vitamins everyday, getting plenty of rest, eating right, working out, but I guess my proactive measures just were not enough to fight it off. Luckily, it hasn’t completely immobilized me and I have actually had one of my more social weeks in the city. On Thursday, I went to the Chicago Cultural Center as a part of the Arts in the City Seminar. I was very impressed. The building is just beautiful, mostly because of the spectacular Tiffany designed rotunda, but the exhibition that we viewed was equally as interesting. The collection was titled Morbid Curiosity, and it certainly lived up to its title. All of the pieces were somehow related to death. Now, many were not morbid (while there certainly some that were), but the collection was more of a catalyst to engage your mind in the reflection of death and how fragile and brief life really is. I want to go back and look again because we only had about 45 minutes before the building closed.

New North - Chicago Public Library

I also had a pretty busy weekend (another long-one at that). Friday nights have sort-of become a ritual of going out for frozen yogurt, but this time my roommate and I met up with a couple of other student teachers from the program. Then, Saturday I made a trip to the Near North branch of the Chicago Public Library and got my very own library card. I am pretty excited about it because not only can I check out books and movies, but I can also get weekly passes to different Chicago museums. Later on Saturday, I had my first official taste of some Chicago nightlife. I went to a place in Lakeview called The Long Room with another student teacher that I met at a professional development workshop. Bars aren’t usually my scene, but I actually really liked this place. They had a great menu and the atmosphere was crowded, but it wasn’t so loud that you couldn’t carry on a normal conversation. It kind of reminded me of a coffee shop, but in bar form. The best part though was this cool vintage photo booth they had in the back. I didn’t use it this time, but I will if I ever go back.  All in all, it was a good week and I am looking forward to going back to school Tuesday, and hopefully feeling better.

Welcome - Spring 2012

by Rachel Miller - Bridge Elementary

Ginnie and I


STUDENT TEACHING

Welcome to my blog about my life as a student teacher in Chicago, IL. I am currently completing my last semester of college at the University of Mount Union in Alliance, Ohio. However, I came to Chicago in search of a student teaching experience that was different from my previous field placements. I am teaching art at a school in the Dunning neighborhood called Bridge Elementary.

Bridge Elementary

So far I absolutely love the school and my cooperating teacher. The students are wonderful, all 1000 that I get the pleasure of teaching each week. That number is not an exaggeration. There is only one art teacher at Bridge and we are responsible for teaching every single kindergarten through 8th grade class. It is a ton of kids, but it is fun getting to know every student! The school is continuing to grow too. Right now the 5th-8th grades are in a completely different building a few blocks away so I have to split my time between both schools everyday. It is a lot of work, but I feel so lucky to have such a great placement and an extremely young, supportive and fun cooperating teacher. The only downside is the commute (1hour and 15 minutes each way), but at least I am getting a lot of reading done!

LIVING IN THE CITY



Lakefront Trail

 When I am not at my student teaching placement or commuting to and from my school, you will most likely find me taking in what this exciting city has to offer. I am living in a little studio apartment in the Gold Coast/Old Town neighborhood with another student teacher in the Chicago Semester program. The area where we live has a lot going on, but it is pretty noisy and expensive.  So on the weekends we have been enjoying exploring other neighborhoods in the city. Right now we have a ritual on Sundays where we’ll go to a yoga class in the morning, check out an ethnic restaurant for lunch, and then settle in at a new café to work on teacher stuff.  I also do a lot of running in my free time. I have been very lucky that it has been a mild winter. It has allowed me to take full advantage of the Lakefront Trail that is only a few blocks away from my apartment. Living and working in the city takes some getting used to, but I am figuring it out so far.

 
I hope you check out my blog each week as I fill you in on the joys and challenges of working in an urban school district and as I explore the interests and oddities that the third largest U.S. city has to offer. It is going to be a good time.