Saturday, May 2, 2009

Nearing the end

I'm sitting in a beautiful hotel in downtown Anchorage on my last trip out of the village for this school year. I was lucky enough to be able to come down here for the past two weekends for class and it's been amazing weather. Sunny and warm, it was a welcome relief from the chilly winter we've had.

We're down to the final three weeks of school. Kids are already starting to check out. The sun is up for the full 24 hours now and children don't go to bed anymore. You can hear them playing and running around the village at four in the morning. Definitely makes for some interesting discipline issues.

This year I have been back and forth on my decision to return next school year, but a few weeks ago I got a wonderful bit of news that firmed up my decision. Neal, my boyfriend, got a job teaching third grade at my school. I'm super excited to be able to stay up here because I have made some excellent connections with the community and students. It will for sure put a better spin on things for next year. It's also exciting to be experiencing this with someone else. It will be a great year.

2 comments:

Lori Bell said...

Hi, great posts! I live in Anchorage, I'm a motivational speaker and will speak to Bush teens about healthy choices. What do you think are the challenges these teens face most often, particularly in areas of self-esteem, self-worth, purpose, and life choices?

Ryan Hays said...

Hats off to you and congratulations on completing your first bush year. I have great respect for what you do. My wife and I teach high school in southern California, but are in Anchorage/Wasilla visiting my parents. I am curious about bush jobs and was wondering if you might be able to provide a bit of information. I bet you wish I would have asked for info when you were in the middle of the tundra with nothing to do. I was looking at a job website for Alaskan teachers, and was wondering what attracted you to this type of position? I was also wondering if there was another way of contacting villages about jobs. My wife and I have pretty good teaching jobs right now, but I'm always looking for some adventure. Good look with your second year. It's nice to work with my wife, and you'll probably enjoy working with your boyfriend. It's nice to have someone that understands the challenges of teaching, by your side.