Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

A great way to start a weekend

While I find it hard to believe, it seems that three weeks of school have passed us by in Alaska. Our first few weeks have been four day weeks as teachers have had in-service days on Mondays. Thinking of all that has happened in a matter of twelve school days is enough to make my head spin. From getting new students and having visits from the dentist and public health nurse to a visit from the President, this school year is shaping up to be one very crazy whirlwind!

First of all, it has been both stressful and exciting to get my schedule in place and get the kinks worked out. As a special education teacher, I have ten students on my caseload ranging in age from pre-school to seniors. This may seem overwhelming, but for me it is a fun variety of personalities to interact with each day. Due to having ten students at such different age and ability levels, I am currently working in a pull-out environment. This means that instead of having all ten students for the whole day, I remove them from their general education classes throughout the day to work with them on their specific IEP (individualized education plan) goals. The stressful part of this process has been trying to make sure that I am working with each student for the hours that are required by law for their unique IEP while also making sure I don't take them from their classes at a time that is inconvenient for their general education teacher. Thankfully, I have some very flexible co-workers who continue to work with me as I try to develop a schedule that works for my students and their needs. I will cautiously say that after three weeks, I have finally gotten a solid schedule in place that is working out for everyone in the school. However, I know that this schedule could change at any minute and I will just have to adapt and just go with the flow if that happens.

Out for a ride in Iliamna :) 

Another aspect of teaching special education in the bush is that I am the one who tests students and develops their IEPs. This requires using a special (non-user friendly) program that I am becoming more familiar with by the day. I began working with the program last spring, but it's a lot different doing it on my own as opposed to having my mentor sitting next to me to answer questions and offering advice along the way. While there are other special education teachers in the district, four of us are new to working with the program, as is our new special education coordinator, so it can be tough at times. We have all been working through it together and I have been thankful to have two very helpful veteran special ed. teachers who have answered many questions as I try to become more comfortable with using this program.

Bear Creek Trail in Iliamna

All of the technical stuff and paperwork aside, getting to work with my students has been so much fun. I am enjoying having students in different age groups and getting an understanding of which skills I need to work on with each student. Most of my lessons go by smoothly and without issues, but there's a special time in my day that both excites me and makes me anxious. Every afternoon, I work with three pre-school students for an hour and these little ones keep me on my toes! One of my students likes to run out of the room any chance they can get, one is very feisty, and the third watches the other two in awe and helps me clean up their messes. It is such a funny little group and they have such different personalities that I love learning about. The part that makes me anxious thought is that one of the students sometimes has meltdowns (and by sometimes I mean every single day) and I need to take precautions to make sure they don't harm themselves, the other students, or myself. My patience is tested daily and at the end of the session I am usually physically and emotionally exhausted. While it may not seem like it to most, we are making progress with each day and this knowledge is what gets me through some of our tougher sessions.

Six Mile Lake in Nondalton

As much as I enjoy learning about my students, I feel like I have hardly seen some of them I'm the past two weeks. We have had some visitors in the village including a health aide, the dentist, and a public health nurse. This has caused many disruptions for all of us as students were being pulled left and right each day this past week. Other students have been absent because of a cold and case of strep-throat has been getting passed around. Another one of our students, along with a few others from our district, was invited to go to a local village to meet President Obama when he visited Alaska last week (everyone's opinions aside, this was an incredible experience for students in our school district to be invited to take part in). Due to all of these events and absences, we haven't been able to get into a true routine yet, but we are all doing our best and doing what we can to keep students on track.

Nondalton from Six Mile Lake

One routine that I have been able to get my students into is daily cross country practices. I am excited to say that I am coaching cross country this year and have a group of about eight students who come to practice each day. They might complain sometimes, but they continue to show up and bear with me as I learn to coach this sport for the first time. Students need to be in eighth grade and up to be eligible to travel to the sporting jamborees, but we also allow younger students to practice sometimes. I've had students in third grade asking me if they can come practice with us! I have really been enjoying working with our older students, especially those who I don't get to see often throughout the day. In two weeks I will be heading to Naknek with the team to attend the cross country jamboree. Last year I was able to chaperone this event, but I am looking forward to be attending as a coach this year. 

Blueberry picking in Iliamna

While work is a huge part of my life out here, I have also been able to enjoy some relaxing weekends filled with fun adventures. Two weekends ago, I was able to get out and pick blueberries on the tundra with Sam and some of our co-workers which was a lot of fun. We spent an entire day picking berries, riding around on Hondas, shooting guns, and we even had a nice lunch cooked over a fire we made by a lake. Sam and I have also been able to visit with other friends who work in both of our schools and it has been great to catch up with everyone and hear about their summer adventures. I continue to feel blessed to have ended up in Nondalton with great co-workers and to be close enough to Sam's village where I have found even more people who relate to the joys and challenges of living and teaching in the bush. I enjoyed my time in Pilot Point, but I have to admit that I feel much more content and at home where I am living now.

This year has gotten off to a chaotic start, but I am enjoying every second of it. I can tell that there will be struggles along the way, but getting through each challenge will hopefully help me grow and learn what works and what does not. I am continuing to try to be less panicked when the schedule changes or students are pulled for different reasons. Each day is a learning curve for all of us and my motto continues to be "take it one day at a time". One thing I know for certain is that I will never complain that I have a boring job!