Did you ever wish...?

that you could just shake the leaves off the trees??

(Sorry, but I couldn't figure out how to rotate the picture!)

That is exactly what we convinced Abbie she could do.  I showed her how to "shake" the tree and make leaves fall down.  Thankfully the wind cooperated a bit with this as well.  So as we were playing in the leaves in the front yard (they don't have leaves at their house, so they came to play in ours), she would decide that she needed more leaves.  Abbie would walk up to the tree and "shake" it as hard as she could.  Se had her "working really hard" look on her face (I wish you could see it in the picture it is a cute look)  And then the wind would blow a little and she would watch all the leaves fall in the yard and in the street.  She thought this was the coolest thing.  So she would play in the leaves for a while and then go back and "shake" the tree.

If only raking in the fall was that easy.

Fall is here!!

As if the colder weather the last few days wasn't a sure sign that fall was here, all the leaves that I raked out of my yard this weekend and the ones that are still falling assure me that fall is here to stay.  We were teased this weekend with temps in the high 70's and low 80's.  Temps which allowed much outdoor yard work to get completed without being too uncomfortable due to cold.

This weekend we:

*Raked the back and front yard.  Leaf collection starts this week and goes every week for 5 weeks.  And this is our one good raking of the year.  My arms are still feeling it today and I have blisters on my hands to prove I really did do the work.

*Cleaned off the lawn chairs and stored them away for the winter.

*Dumped what was left of the planter boxes on the porch and cleaned out the "garden".  Our garden didn't really work this year.  Not enough sun and plenty of bugs, so nothing grew and we were left with the dead remains of our plants.

*Put the garden hose away for the year and turned off the water to the outside.

*Cleaned the leaves out of the gutters to prepare for the rain we are supposed to get this week.  However after the slight wind today I am sure that they are full again.

So, that was our busy weekend.  Hopefully all of you did something outside to enjoy the last bit of summer this weekend as well.

Maybe I'm not meant to be a teacher

Yesterday, I thought I still had a chance at the Kindergarten job in Menasha when I called the school to see if the position had been filled and the secretary said they were still working on it.  Today, I know that my chances are gone.  I subbed at that school and one of the Kindergarten teachers, who I e-mailed yesterday to update on the situation, said that they hired someone.  Luckily that was at the end of the day, so I only had to hold it together for a few minutes.  She made it sound like this had happened a while ago, but was sorry that I didn't get the opportunity to interview.  Why was I lied too??  Was the secretary not aware that the principal had made a decision??

It also gets me thinking about my Perceiver interview.  Was it that bad??  Was the principal seriously considering me for the position or was I granted the phone interview out of guilt??  (I did hand my application directly to him and worked at the school most of last year)

I know that the economy is in a tight spot, but why an I not getting a teaching job??  I am not a bad teacher, though I haven't really been given a chance to show that.

I would not be as upset if I had at least been given the chance to show myself and my skills in a face to face interview.  Would I be less upset if the secretary had told me yesterday that the position was filled??  Probably.  I don't mind the no's, because I know i got looked at, but why the lies??

So, now I contact the day care that was interested in me before the Menasha saga started.  I informed her that I had some opportunities through a school district that i was waiting to hear about.  Hopefully I didn't burn my bridges there or I don't know what i will do.  I need something full time and subbing is not going to cut it.

Thanks for reading my vent.  I know that I am a good teacher who will shine given the right opportunity.  I'll keep you posted on my career saga.  And if anyone needs a good tutor, or knows someone who does, let me know.

Teacher Perceiver Interview

For all of you teachers out there, you know exactly what I am talking about.  For those of you that are not teachers, the Perceiver interview is about 60 questions on your teaching style, teaching philosophy, interpreting situations, and how you would handle different situations.  Not all school districts ask for them, and this is actually the first one I have done since college (which was just a practice one)

Overall, I think the interview went fine.  It was done over the phone, so I really couldn't see reactions.  And it was done at 9pm, after I had subbed all day and put in 4 hours at Sylvan.  My brain was a little fried, but the administer knew all that was going on in my day and still wanted to give the interview at 9pm.

I answered from my heart and a little of what I think they want to hear.  (Who doesn't answer interview questions that way, either in person or on the phone?!?!)  After the interview, which took about 45 minutes, he was able to tell me some things that her "perceived" about me, based on my answers.  I would have to say he did pretty well.  He was able to perceive that I was a good listener and knew that there was more to listening then just listening.  He also picked up on that fact that I am a focused person, based on the fact that I have wanted to teach since childhood and have done things in life to reach those goals.  He did say that my mission was a little messed up, based on the fact that I didn't think that teachers were more important than doctors.  I think that they are equally important, but for all you teachers out there, teaching is the most important job in the world.  Remember that for future interviews.  He did think that I had the right mission, he said there were just other pieces floating in and out.

He was going to call the school principal as soon as we got off the phone and let him know what was perceived and then the ball was in his court.  Well, that was Thursday and I am still waiting to hear.  

I had a dream last night that the principal called and offered me the job, without an interview.  After all, I spent most of the year there last year, what else does he need to know about me.  So here I sit waiting, but not by the phone-don't want to seem too desperate.  Hopefully something good will happen, but for now it is out of my hands.