Tuesday, October 21, 2008

The First One

First, I feel like I ought to explain the web address. While I was student teaching last April, we had a meeting with all of the current theatre student teachers. A very wise woman there-Gail, who is a widow and simply amazing-gave us a great analogy as we all discussed our options for post graduation life. She related it to pie (which I love). Sometimes we are sitting at a table with friends and family, or whoever, and everyone seems to be getting the kinds of pie that they want. And you don't get served your favorite kind of pie right away, and the temptation is to wonder, "Hey! Where the heck is my pie!?" That's when we need to remember that in God's kitchen, there is always more pie. We may not love the flavor, but we can learn to appreciate it. And we may not get our pie when we want it, but we'll get it. And sometimes we get surpised by the kind of pie, but it's still really good pie. I think you get the idea. At any rate, now many little analogies in my life seem to relate to pie.
So, as to what we are up to! It certainly wasn't the pie I was hoping for (which was a full time teaching position at a local school as a theatre teacher), but I'm really loving my pie right now.
I am working as permanent substitute at local junior high, and it is really fun for the most part. I've taught PE (what a laugh!), biology, Spanish, German, English, Algebra, Geometery, Keyboarding, Computer Tech, Special Ed, and I can check books in and out of the library. I"m a teacher of all trades! In the evenings I am working fo rBYU as a stage manager for a new play by a BYU student, called "Houseboat Honeymoon." It's hysterical, but certainly challenging to work on.
But what I am really stoked for is the pie I will have come January. I've recently been hired to teach for BYU next semester in the theatre department! I'll be teaching a class called Drama in the Elementary Classroom. It will be a challenge, but I'm really excited! So I'm really glad I didn't get the pie I originally wanted because this one is so much better!
Ben is doing school, and doing it marvelously. He gets calls at least once a week from people referred to him to tutor them or their child. He's a fantastic math tutor, but just doesn't have time to help everyone who wants him and manage is own demanding classes. He'll finish classes this semester for his bachelor in Mathematics and his Japanese minor, and then next semester he will be student teaching to finish up his degree in Math Education. He was awarded the Edwin S. Hinckley scholarship because of his amazing academic performance. And this weekend he will be presenting at a state math teacher conference on the research he has been working on about Japense math education. I'm a pretty proud wife, and understandably so if I say so myself.
Well, that's the pie we are eating these days!

4 comments:

  1. Welcome to the world of blogging, carful it's addictive. Addicts are normally recognized by their carrying of cameras EVERYwhere they go and taking pictures of the most random things. Enjoy this outlet--it has been a true blessing for me!! Love you!

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  2. WOW!!! I love it! I haven't started to blog . . . yet. But I LOVE reading my kids' blogs. and I love pie, too. In fact I wish we could have birthday pies instead of birthday cakes!! Love you!!!

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  3. haHAAA! I love you pie analogies/story. Story of my life - I probably needed to hear that. :-)

    That' so cool (and a bit random) that your husband has been researching Japanese math education. They definately do it differently over there! I say random becasue we just recently decided to stay in the military, and the opportunity to put our future kids in Japanese schools was a big part of that. How funny!

    Its great to hear updates from you guys and I hope everything continues to go well.

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  4. So, I followed your facebook account to your blog, and I'm loving reading it. I should tell you that Drama in the El Ed classroom was probably my favorite class in the El Ed major. Our teacher gave us some great tips, and even taught us a new lesson plan format (HIPA), and it really worked for me as a teacher. You'll do great, Summer!

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