Miss Bandi, The Fourth Grade Student Teacher

Today I got my Student Teacher placement for this fall. I will be a student teacher in a fourth grade classroom at Sheffield Elementary in Turners Falls. While fourth grade is a little older than I would have liked, I am excited because I have worked with my mentor teacher before. Two years ago( my Junior year) I tutored all year in the 4th grade classrooms at Sheffield Elementary School and I spent some of my time in the classroom of my mentor teacher. I am excited to work with this teacher again and to see what a 4th grade classroom is like.
After I got my placement I looked at the school schedule to see when I have to start. Teacher work days are August 24-26 and school starts the 27th! So it is coming up fast.

Stay tuned to the blog and I will be sure to update throughout the fall about my experiences in 4th grade.

"Miss Bandi, Miss Bandi"

Yesterday, I got an email from CTEP( my Masters Program), with my class and part of my teaching schedule for next year. I will be taking 5 classes next fall; Advanced Child Development, Children and Their Literacies, Social Studies Methods, Promising Practices in Mathematics, Integrated Methods. I have even been given a 700 page book to read before classes start. I do not have my classroom placement yet, but I should get it in a few weeks!

We will have two days of Orientation in late August and then soon after that it is off to teacher work days and starting our student teaching. It is crazy to think that I will be a student teacher; creating and teaching lessons and being called Miss. Bandi everyday. I am sure this year will be a great learning experience!

Well that is all the exciting news I have now, I will be sure to update when I get my teaching placement. ~ Rachel

"All I hath needed, thy hand hath provided, Great is thy Faithfulness"

This is one of my favorite parts of one of my favorite Hymns, " Great is Thy Faithfulness". I have been going back to this truth a lot recently.

This past week has been a hard week.

My work schedule is finally getting to me and having a 48 hour work week is not helping at all. Though my job seems easy and nice, it has very wacky hours and I feel like I do not see my roommates that much, because my schedule is opposite of theirs. It has taken a lot for me to remain positive about this and to be thankful for a summer job. God has been faithful in providing me with a summer job in which I will be making a good amount of money.

This week, I also found out that I will most likely not be getting a scholarship that I applied for, for next year. I had been praying and trusting God for this Scholarship and was really hoping that I would get this. It was really disappointing to hear that I did not get this scholarship. Thoughts of, " there is someone better than you out there" and " you are not good enough" kept coming into my head and it was hard to see the good in this situation. I talked to my parents shortly after I found out about this and my Dad was very quick to remind me that God is in control and that God has taken care of us in the past and he will continue to take care of me now. My mom also pointed me towards Jeremiah 29:11, reminding me that God has a plan for me. It is so important to remember that God is in control and that " all I hath needed, his hand hath provided". So this is yet another time where I can trust our faithful God and see what he has in store for me.

This week has been a great reminder that I can not live life on my own. I need to continually rely on God and know that he is there to help me every second of every day. As I sat singing this song in my apartment last night, tears streaming down my face, I was reminded of what a great God we serve!

"Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see. All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!"

The 4th of July in Amherst

Another 4th of July has come and gone. Yesterday was unlike any other 4th of July I have had, because I had to work in the morning. I am used to having the day off and having a cookout and watching some fireworks at night. All but the last, did not happen. I worked from 7-3 and then hung out until I went to see the fireworks in Amherst with a friend.

Overall it was a pretty uneventful day, but the fireworks were really nice. My friend and I went down to the UMass football stadium and sat amongst the crowds and watch the 30 minute show. It was a pretty impressive show and I am glad that we went.

Celebrating July 4th in Amherst this year, makes me think of where I was the past two summers when I celebrated July 4th.

Last Summer I was in Lusaka, Zambia. We spent the day celebrating with our Zambian friends. We threw a " American Night" party, where we cooked a lot of American dishes, had a bonfire and s'mores. It was a really fun day! It was fun to celebrate the 4th in a different way with our new Zambian friends.

A picture from our party!

Two years ago I was in Colorado Springs. I spent that summer in Colorado Springs at a Navigator Summer Training Program. We had the day of the 4th off and we spent it at the house of our leaders parents. We had a great day playing games, having a cookout and ended the night watching fireworks at the top of Lady Bug lookout( a spot at the Nav headquarters).

A picture of some of us playing Bocce on the 4th of July

This 4th of July might not have been that exciting but it was great to think back on the past two years and remember the good times I had!

Hope you all had a great 4th!! - Rachel