Yellow Wood

The practicum experience in my new centre once again renewed my perspective for the career. In Year 2, practicum took up two consecutive weeks every term. The bulk of my classes was packed within the first few weeks of the term (other than night classes) and assignment dedlines were set during practicum weeks. The amount of mental energy needed for me to function after prac made me extremely amazed by how part-time students could manage full-time work and night studies concurrently (i still do).  My responsibilities as a student teacher were to assist class teachers in managing the children, support routines, and also find opportunities to implement interactions/learning experiences for the children. (Same as Year 1, but greater expectations.) I was attached to the K1 class for sem 1 and the N2 class for sem 2. It was my first time officially interacting with these two age groups! Sem 1 was rather stressful and I struggled to adapt to the new centre and its expectations. It was als...

The last post I published was after the end of Year 1 when I consolidated some musings about the past year. Now that Year 2 has ended, I thought that it will be nice to return and to do the same too. I feel that writing can motivate me to consolidate my thoughts and confront my mental clutter. Despite cb-lite, I actually have a lot of things that are on my mind that I want to do, write, read, learn, and think about this sem break. (So much so that I even made it into a list.) While some of their glimmer had dulled upon the completion of my last paper (distraction woes), I thought that doing a mental decluttering might help me gain clarity into what I really want to prioritize this summer. Something I learnt from last summer was my value for a productive and fulfilling break (rather than a busy one). This time, I also need one that can help me recharge and ready my mind for the next year of hustle. The past year has been a buffet.  Since it is covid edition, I only get to decide the...