Buffalo

I finally saw them :) tons more pics on Flickr.

P.S. I'm home in MN! And about to go to sleep for a long time- Do Not Disturb!

Last Day of School

Great Teachers = Great Kids

We just had our last summer school class! Today is the last day of institute!! Unbelievable. Our kids are so amazing and smart and great, I wish I could take them with me.

On Wednesday after their final we asked them to write letters to our future students (Mine in South Dakota and my partner's here in Houston). Here are some of my favorites:

"Dear Ms. S's future students,
I don't really know how weather is in South Dakota, but I don't think that that will affect your ability to learn. Ms. S is a very good teacher she might have some bad days that she forgets how to spell some word, but shoot me if I'm lying, nobody is perfect in this big world... I know I only had her for four weeks, but damn I have learned a lot since she started teaching. I have less problems reading stories when before I even fell asleep when I was reading."

"As you will have seen, Ms. S is energetic and spunky, so if you get as excited as she does you might increase your intake. She's open to your ideas so speak up when you think of something. She's a great teacher."

"Here is some advice for you, pay attentions, participate in class, and follow the rules. She really doesn't have many rule so it will be easy. Work with her, she will give you something in return. She is a really nice person so appreciate her and have fun. Enjoy!"

"For the short time I had her Ms. S was an OK teacher, and in case you wanted to know, I hate practically all of the teachers at school, so being an OK teacher is a big compliment from me. I have to admit, Ms. S is not a perfect speller, no one is, but when she would misspell something class would be so boring that I would get a kick out of seeing how long it takes the teacher or another student to notice. I'm sure Ms. S will be a great teacher to Ya'll, she was to our class."

So sweet... granted they knew I'd be reading these and had yet to give them a final grade, but I'll the same, I'm going to give myself a pat on the back. They were fantastic and we had at least a little bit of fun in summer school. Hopefully they'll never have to be in summer school again! It really is all about the kids... I can't wait to get to SoDak and meet all my kids there that I get to keep for a whole year! I love them already.

Institute Week Four

I think I've finally hit my institute stride. Five step lesson plans seem to flow forth from my fingers effortlessly, I feel perky after six hours of sleep, and Houston is definitely growing on me. Too bad there's only one week left :-P

Here are some highlights of this week:
On the 4th (after a morning of sessions and an afternoon of lesson planning) some of us went downtown to watch the firework show. It was a great show and even greater to get out of Moody towers and see real people in the city. And I'm glad I got to see some fireworks on the fourth, sometimes I forget that it's actually summertime here.

Your teachers were never this cool. My CMA group threw a mini dance party at school Friday afternoon to break it down with a little Cupid Shuffle. (It was also college shirt day- we don't usually get to dress like this!)Friday night Kereoke bar extravaganza. Need I say more?

And finally, today the SoDak corps took a trip to the beach in Galvestan. It was possibly one of the ugliest beaches I've ever seen, but still a beach and a totally fun day.

Also today I bought a really truly authentic pair of Texas Cowgirl boots and I'm about to go break 'em in with some two steppin'. Texas does have it's strong points :)

Over the Rainbow (almost)

We went to Pine Ridge reservation today, but our line up of activities didn't quite pan out due to inclement weather as seen above. Tornado! We actually stood outside the badlands visitor center and watched this funnel cloud form and touch down a few miles away. Crazy. So I'll have to go back out there soon to see the heard of the badlands and visit Wounded Knee. [More pictures in flickr --->]

Two Weeks....

left of my short DC life. Ah! Yesterday after work my roommate Meri and I rode our bikes down around the monuments and tidal basin, then back up to Georgetown where we stopped at an Argentinian Cafe for Espresso and Gellato, then we changed and walked out to a nearby bar for a couple beers. Talk about your action packed DC evening. There's so much to do in DC that I'm going to miss, I need to squeeze everything in to the next two weeks!