After two days of
living in the apartment, we finally have access to internet! This post will
probably be long because I have tons of updates from my time here…
But first, here are
some peopel I’ll be referring to in my blogs: Alexis (peer from IU and my
roommate), Gabe (a peer from IU and fellow student teacher at Belding
Elementary School), Bekah (a peer from IU and roommates with Gabe), Teddi
(a peer from IU and roommates with Gabe and Bekah), and Karen (a peer from IU).
The six of us are part of the Urban Program through the Global Gateway for
Teachers cultural immersion program at IU. We decided to spend our 16 weeks of
student teaching in Chicago Public Schools to have the opportunity to learn
about and teach in an urban school setting.
Let’s start with
Friday: MOVE-IN DAY! After living in a dorm for 3 ½ years in college, I didn’t
realize how much stuff I had… or how much stuff I needed to live on my own. My
parents and sister helped to move me into my apartment in Albany Park, which I
will share with my roommate, Alexis. Alexis and I have known each other since
freshman year of college and lived across from each other last semester, so I’d
like to think we’ll get along just fine as roommates this semester. J Move-in went smoothly because there were so many
people involved in helping me unpack and get organized. (Shout-out to Salima
for color-coordinating my closet!) It took us about two hours to get everything
set-up which gave us enough time to attend Chicago Jamatkhana to say Friday
prayers. After that, my parents decided to treat me to dinner at Annapurna on
Devon Avenue, one of the best places, I think, to get South Indian food! Yum!
Saturday was quite
eventful and a day full of new experiences. New experience #1: Alexis
and I started off our day trying to be grown-ups, setting up accounts for internet,
cable, gas, and electricity. We made a pretty good team and managed to get most
of our accounts set-up in a couple hours! The afternoon was reserved for our
orientation and an introduction to our JUSTICE sessions, which stands for “Joining
Urban Student Teachers to Integrate Community Experiences.” We will be having
these sessions twice a month along with student teaching to help us engage
in conversation about various issues and concerns related to urban education.
During orientation, we learned about the city of Chicago and how it was built
on a grid system. Fun fact: Madison St. and State St. make up the (0,0) point
on the grid and serve as our reference point. I’m hoping to become a little
less directionally challenged while I live in Albany Park, so I look forward to
using what I learned to explore the city!
Speaking of
exploring the city, guess who will be using public transportation for four
months? ME! New experience #2: I bought a Ventra pass to help me get
around the city. Gabe and I will be teaching at Belding Elementary School,
which is about 2 miles from our apartment, so we invested in Ventra passes to
be able to take the bus to and from school. I haven’t taken the bus to school
since 8th grade, so relying on public transportation will be
something I’ll definitely need to get used to.
One of the main
purposes of living in Albany Park while student teaching is to immerse
ourselves in the culture and neighborhood of the students we will be teaching. That
night, Alexis, Gabe, Bekah, and I decided to eat at a local Mexican restaurant
called C-Manny’s. We walked 0.7 miles to get to the restaurant, observing our
surroundings and trying to look like locals. New experience #3: I tried
Enchiladas Verde, which is not my usual order of tacos or quesadillas, so I was
pretty proud of myself for eating something different! The food was delicious,
and we were all stuffed by the end of dinner. I’m looking forward to eating at
more local restaurants and trying different foods throughout my time here!
Today, I woke up to a surprise:
snow. For those of you who know me, I’m not a big fan of snow. I like when it’s
falling to the ground, and I can watch it from my window, but walking in it…
that’s another story. Gabe and I decided to familiarize ourselves with the
route to school today – a route consisting of a 10 minute bus-ride and a
10-minute walk from the bus stop to the school. New experience #4: I
successfully used my Ventra pass, rode on public transportation, and got to my
destination and back, all without getting lost! Because of the commute, Gabe
and I have to be out of our apartments by 6:30 am to make sure we get to school well
before 7:45 am, which is when school starts.
Tomorrow, I will begin my first
day of student teaching at Belding Elementary. I’m feeling a mix of emotions:
nervous, excited, anxious. I don’t know what to expect on my first day, but I
do know that I’ve been looking forward to it since I started classes at IU. Here’s
to hoping for a great semester with great students and a wonderful experience
in the classroom!
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