Filling in the gaps.

(I'm sharing with you another picture from last week. I didn't want you to be overwhelmed, so I'm spreading them out a bit!)

It has been an interesting week of self-exploration and realization. First thing's first... I had my first encounter with a hearing person (that has not been touched by the Deaf community) in two weeks! (Thanks, Chris Wallis, for coming to visit me!) Throughout this visit, I noticed some interesting things about myself and my adaptation to my environment. Code-switching is definitely a skill that I need to start working on; once my hands started moving, my voice started getting louder and louder. This is what I face everyday in the classroom trying to get the attention of the C.I. Kid that is ignoring me while running down the hall, but I had no clue that it would carry over into my everyday life. Who am I to notice, I guess? I haven't been around a non-Deaf community member in such a long time! I also learned that my hands cannot stop moving. Now that I have been living and breathing sign language, my hands can't get enough; I sign under the table at dinner, under a blanket while sitting on the couch, and just out in the open when I don't have anything else to hide behind. All in all, it was wonderful to have a weekend with a few adult beverages, communication about any topic (because I didn't have to worry about whether or not I knew the sign), and a familiar face!

Due to the inclement weather that Connecticut has been experiencing since my arrival, my school week started on Wednesday (we had Monday off for MLK Day, obviously). I finally took over Math this week; mind you, this has been planned for about a week and a half (lesson plan and all), but got postponed because of Mamma Earth. The first math lesson... well, let's just say that it definitely could have gone better! I'm not going to harp on it too much because I've learned from it, and that's all I can ask for, really. My second lesson, however, was a lot more successful. Considering the students don't remember a lot about fractions, I am basically teaching fractions and decimals at the same time. Dear Teacher's Guide, where is that written? For the most part, the students were attentive, engaged, and really caught on! It's so rewarding to watch the light bulb go off and see them smile when they know they have the right answer. I think it can only go up from here... at least I hope. This week was quite the opposite of what a normal school week should be. We had two days of school, and five days of weekend due to snow and MLK. It's discouraging because my lesson Thursday went so well, and now they are going to come back on Monday and need the entire thing re-taught. Oh well. Next week I take over Social Studies too. We are learning about Indiana, which is not the topic that I would choose to teach, but it's what I've been given so I'll make the best of it.

Despite the cold, I've had a wonderful weekend so far. Last night a few of the interns and myself had a few drinks and played some drinking games. It was really interesting to play drinking games in ASL, and I learned so many new signs by doing it. We even embedded some ASL ABC stories into the game! Today, I went to my first ASD basketball game and stayed for the boys' and girls' games. It's Homecoming weekend, so it was a pretty big deal! The girls won their game, but I can't say the same for the boys, although it was a close one and suspenseful to watch. I saw one of the First Level students at the game and got to meet her parents, which was awesome! It's so inspiring to see involved parents; they are really hard to come by in this field. I feel acclimated and somewhat at home now.

Although ASD is my temporary home, they are thinking of making me a permanent member of their team. I got offered a summer school position with the possibility of a fall position. No promises can be made until the end of the school year gets a little closer, but it's looking favorable . I'm not sure how I feel about taking a position eight hours from home. As much as I try to be a bad ass, I've been increasingly more homesick lately. I think if I had my pets with me, I'd feel better, but it's hard to be this far away from my family and friends. Don't get me wrong, I love it here and am soaking up this experience, but I just don't know if I'm ready to make the move quite yet. I guess only time will tell and I just need to take it day by day.

Until next time...

"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement, nothing can be done without hope and confidence." -- Helen Keller

Thanks for Reading! :)