Thursday 10 December 2015

Reception Class Blogmas 2015 - Day 10

Hello my lovelies!

Boy oh boy am I tired! Today was my first day working with a lovely local Primary School in order to gain some further, more recent experience working in the classroom and I was fortunate enough to work with the reception class. I have only worked with the Early Years Foundation Stage once before so I was rather nervous about how I would be able to handle them but the children were so sweet and all of the staff so friendly that I had no need to be concerned. 

For those of you who may not know, I have quite a vast life plan. I've always know that I wanted to be a Primary teacher but in more recent years that plan has expanded. I'd like to start my career teaching, progressing to higher roles in school; head of department, head of year, head of faculty, then Deputy Head, Headteacher and Super-head. I'd eventually like to progress in to the political side of education, working with the Department of Education. The biggest role, right at the top of my list, is Minister for Education, but who knows maybe Prime Minister could be stuck in there too! However, I do believe in progressing to said career points, meaning I'm determined to gain the experience in order to earn those places. I want to teach because I am passionate about educating people and sharing knowledge. I'd like to think I will be the kind of teacher who inspires her pupils, pushing them to become the best version of themselves not only academically but socially and personally. A well-rounded person, in my opinion, will always go far.

Source: http://quotesgram.com/walt-disney-quotes-on-education/
Anywho, back to my day! I really enjoyed working with the Reception class. I got to work on independent maths skills at one of the best times of the year in schools so the students were incredibly excited and terribly eager to learn. I also got to experience Physical Education, it certainly isn't how I remember it! The class participated in hockey, something I didn't do until at least Year 5 or 6! I remember my Primary P.E classes being mostly athletics, gymnastics and dance. Maybe a little bit of football. One particular class that springs to mind was the Tudor Dance class we had for a few weeks as P.E in order to learn a routine to use in the school play - I played Queen Elizabeth that year, it was awesome having everyone bow down to me haha! - but i certainly do not remember being allowed near a hockey stick.

Photo courtesy of University of Chester Orchestral Society
This evening was rather hectic as well, as it was the Orchestral Society's Christmas Performance. I was shattered, had barely had any time to eat and get changed and really did not feel like putting on a show. In the end, however, it was a great night. We raised a bunch of money for charity - even if the University Choir did let us down last minute - and we put on one hell of a show. My Orchestra family has been one of my biggest support networks at uni, I've made friends there who I know will be in my life for a long time.

Now though, I think it's time for me to sleep. Goodnight!

Love you all!
T
xxx

Wednesday 9 December 2015

Daily Student Comforts.. Blogmas 2015 - Day 8 & 9

Hello my lovelies!

The past couple of days have been fairly uneventful. Tuesday was a typical day that started bright and early prepped for a day of lectures. After spending my first few hours of the day groggily trying to write down all the notes necessary for my first lecture, I was rather happy and also slightly annoyed that my afternoon lecture was cancelled. It meant that I could spend a decent chunk of time in the library - something I rarely do, but I'll explain that in a moment - and knuckle down to get a bunch of work done. I don't know what had got in to me but I got a whole lotta work done and felt rather proud of myself! The rest of my day was fairly uneventful and I spent the majority of it tucked up in my room watching Netflix (with no chill before y'all get your minds in the gutter). 


Back to the library... I'm not a huge fan of it. I don't mind public libraries but the uni library gives me the heebie-jeebies. I don't know what it is, but I have never really wanted to willingly walk in, sit down and work. I think it might be the eerie silence of some parts, or maybe the fact that there are so many people in there working and you never know who's watching you. Like I said, it really weirds me out! However, once in a while, I find myself in a mental state of motivation and suddenly I find the library to be a haven of knowledge and student comfort. That's definitely becoming an increasingly persistent mental state with the implementation of a Costa in our library.

Today was slow and steady. Nothing too exciting, just a bit of work, shopping and binge-watching. This evening had a splatter of musical-ness which always makes me happy! 


I shall have lots to tell you tomorrow as it will be my first day volunteering at a local Primary school! I am seriously excited!

Love you all!
T
xxx

Monday 7 December 2015

Quiet day! Blogmas 2015 - Day 7

Hello my lovelies!

I didn't get back to Chester yesterday until rather late so I was shattered and fell asleep before I could find the energy to write, which is why we've skipped ahead a day. At least I warned you! I did however have a lovely day yesterday so let me catch you up. 

Yesterday morning I had a small sleep in and spent as much time with my parents as possible. We had a Costa break just before lunch time and I had the delicious mulled fruits drink. I must say, I am rather a fan of mulled drinks... Mulled wine is of course my favourite, however these mulled fruits drinks on the Starbucks and Costa menus are seriously tasty. My mother stuck to the more traditional gingerbread latte, although she has a rather complicated order which is a bit of a nuisance but a whole lot simpler to make than it sounds, and my father had some kind of toffee/caramel drink... I think. I actually don't remember what he ordered. I'm not a coffee person though, so none of the festive things that have coffee in really appeal to me. I'm more of a cold drinks kinda gal.


The afternoon was really nice as I got to see my grandparents before I left as they joined us for a full Sunday Roast. I cannot explain to you how excited I was for a roast dinner. Last time I was home, I completely missed out on a proper Sunday roast and it was a total nightmare because it's the one meal I really look forward to when I go home. My mum's cooking is the best - although I may be a little biased haha. My coach left at 4.40pm so it was really nice that I had a full day to spend with my family before I headed back up to Chester.

My oh my was the coach journey a kerfuffle! We had a toilet door issue, an unidentified baggage scare and there were some irritating young teens who talked non-stop, but overall I rather enjoyed my trip. I definitely prefer coach travel, even with its excitement. I did end up getting back later than expected however as soon as I arrived, I decorated my entire room. My little Christmas tree has been covered in sparkles and ornaments, tinsel's been draped all over the place and fairy lights are lighting up my life. It was at that point that I fell asleep! 

Sourced from: http://favim.com/image/1488308/
Today has just been a quiet day, I had an interview with a head teacher to arrange some work experience at a local school but as soon as that was out of the way, I went straight back to bed. Lazyyyy!

I shall catch up with you again tomorrow!

Love you all!
T
xxx


Saturday 5 December 2015

Worn out and it's only just begun! Blogmas 2015 - Day 5

Hello my lovelies!

I didn't post yesterday as I was sooo tired after the full day at my postgraduate interview. It was such a long day and I barely ate anything so by the end of it I was ready for food and then bed. I must say, it was a rather enjoyable day and nicely spaced out so nothing felt rushed. I think it went rather well and I found out a few bits and pieces that I didn't know so all in all it was a positive experience. Now all I need to do is wait and find out how I got on!

Today, due to the hectic day yesterday, has been incredibly chilled out. I did a bit of dissertation work down at the records office this morning which was nice an productive. I always enjoy going down to the records office, it's so peaceful and the staff are all so lovely that it makes it such a pleasant experience. I think it helps that my mother came to help me out with the data collection as well. 



 The majority of this afternoon was spent at a garden centre. This is the only time of year where I find that I can tolerate such places because of the Christmas displays! And boy oh boy was I in for a treat! There were so many fairy lights - I actually ended up picking up three packs for my room at uni - and then all the tree decoration displays were stunning. My favourite decorations are always the traditional Victorian style or the pastels. I personally decorate my miniature tree with pastel pinks and purples (because I'm just such a girly girl that I cannot resist!) while my mother prefers the bright pinks, purples, blues and greens to match our obnoxiously loud lounge decor. I'm so happy with my new fairy lights though, I've been looking for snowflake lights for such a long time and finally came across them today! 

This evening was spent decorating the house with my father. It was so lovely as I haven't been at home when the decorations have gone up for a few years so to be there to help out made me feel like a child again. I got to decorate the trees whilst my dad focused on the window displays and the lights. We like to go all out at Christmas which is rather unusual in the UK these days, People still have their trees and might have a few lights but not many will decorate several rooms, put outdoor lights and displays or window displays up which I find rather depressing. Christmas is the best time of the year after all! It's when everyone is full of Christmas cheer and families are reunited. 

I'm heading back to Chester tomorrow so have a long coach journey to look forward to once again. I don't get back until late so don't be surprised if I miss another day! 

Leave a comment and let me know what you've been up to this week and what you do to decorate and celebrate!

Love you all!
T
xxx


Thursday 3 December 2015

Throwback! Blogmas 2015 - Day 3

Hello my lovelies!

It's been a rather hectic day today but I am in such a holly jolly mood! The day began bright and early and if you know me, you know that I am so not a morning person. I was wide awake pretty quickly though as I clocked what day it is... Interview day! Yes, the day has finally arrived. I wasn't as nervous as I thought I would be, that's for sure. It was so surreal to be back somewhere I know so well interviewing for a place on a postgraduate course. There were people I remember from my childhood still working there and everything looked incredibly similar. 

Can you see meeee?
The interview day itself was rather fun. I got to do a storybook activity with Year 2 children which was absolutely adorable and it went incredibly well. I also got to talk about myself for a good 15 minutes in a presentation, do you realise how difficult that is? I can talk for England but if I have to talk about myself, I really struggle! I felt so self conscious and absolutely uncomfortable but it definitely didn't come across in my performance. I seem to be very good at hiding my nerves when it comes to public speaking. I think it might be because I plan it out a lot. I practically write a script. I don't necessarily follow it as a script but I do like to have a list of points in front of me so I don't lose track. I think that went pretty well because I kept it lighthearted but formal and even got a few laughs from the interviewers (always a positive sign!). 

The interview part of the day was definitely the hardest, I had no idea what i would be asked, and they had some pretty tough questions! Fortunately, I'm quite good at talking around something until I can come up with a good enough straight answer and I was able to answer the majority of the questions with complete confidence. I stuck to my guns throughout the day and made sure that everything I said was consistent because it's never good to look like you don't know what you're doing. I got to ask a few questions at the end of the interview and they seemed pretty impressed with what I had to ask about so that made me smile! The entire day only ran from about 9am-12pm but it felt like so much longer.


My dad picked me up which was nice, I like driving around with my dad, I can be totally silly and he'll be silly with me. I got a little Christmas crazy in Tesco, all the Christmas food and decorations just gets me so excited! I'm always so thankful to receive an advent calendar each year, the build up to Christmas just makes it all the more exciting. Anything even remotely Christmassy at this time of year just sends me on a festive spiral haha! I was also lucky enough to fit in a visit to my grandparents. I don't get to see them very often because I'm rarely at home so it was really nice to have a little catch up with them. (Hi grandma and grandpa! I know you're probably reading this!) 

Anywho, I'm off to rest up for the night and get some sleep because I've got another long day of interview things tomorrow. Yep, I got through to round two! Squeeeee!

Love you all!
T
xxx

Wednesday 2 December 2015

Homeward Bound! Blogmas 2015 - Day 2

Hello my lovelies,

Today has been a long day but it has been rather lovely. I finally got to have a little trip home so spent all morning on coaches travelling from Chester to Leicester. I've always preferred coach travel to train travel, I don't know why because I often feel incredibly ill on coaches. I think it's because I can just sit back and relax without having to worry about missing my stops. This morning's journey was rather wonderful though, I got to watch the sunrise and see how beautiful the winter countryside looks. It was the best way to start the day.


 My mother met me off the coach and right away we headed to Costa to meet up with my father for coffee. I can't stand coffee, but I am a fan of hot chocolate and mulled fruit so I love the Christmas menu this year. I had a delicious white hot chocolate with cream and cherry sauce but completely forgot to take a photo as I was busy catching up with my parents. It's always when I return home that I realise how much I miss my family while I am away. I've lived away from home for 5 years now, and have only really been home for Christmas, Easter and the start and end of summer since starting University. I think it's because of this that I'm choosing to head back home for my postgraduate study. I knew I didn't want to stay in Chester but I didn't want to go somewhere completely new. 

I've spent the majority of this afternoon prepping for tomorrow's interview however I did help my father get the tree and some decorations out of the attic ready for Christmas! Christmas is definitely my favourite time of year because I get to see everyone I love and have an old school good time with board games and chatting. I absolutely adore it! So much so that I spent all of last weekend and quite a bit of today with SmoothXmas playing while I worked away. 24 hour Christmas music? Yes please! Even when it isn't Christmas, I like to put up fairy lights and cute decorations just to add a bit of that Christmas magic.

A photo posted by Tamsin Rebecca (@tammybecks) on

I'm going to spend the rest of my evening curled up on the sofa watching crime TV, I hope you're enjoying your December so far and that this kind of blogging is something you are all enjoying! I'll try to get the missing posts up ASAP! 

Love you all!
T
xxx 

Tuesday 1 December 2015

Happy Blogmas 2015! - Day 1

Hello my lovelies!

I think I've finally managed to get blogger working for me again so all the posts from the last few weeks will be going up in a block at some point this month however I've got a whole lot going on this December so I think I'm going to be treating this as a bit of a journal/diary kind of thing for Blogmas as well! Feel free to join me on a little journey through my life this month...

1st December 2015

Well today has been crazy. I had lectures as usual as it is a Tuesday, but I have so many big things coming up soon that it was incredibly hard to concentrate on what anybody was saying. These next couple of months are a huge turning point in my life and I am terrified it's all going to go topsy-turvy. I have interviews for postgraduate opportunities and I will be telling you all about them as they happen so you'll be joining me on a bit of an emotional roller-coaster this month! 

I've been doing a lot of foodie things lately but I decided I'd keep things simple with a chicken hotpot microwave meal today. Oh the glamour of student life! I am determined to use a lot more fresh foods this month though, I feel like I rely way too much on frozen things or really unhealthy foods. Yesterday I attended the Food Fest at Chester Uni and stocked up on some delicious locally produced foods. There was fresh fruit and veg and some delicious sausages. Fresh coffee beans, cupcakes, tea, jam, chutney... so much deliciousness! I treated myself to some clementines, apples, sausages and a cupcake - come on, every girl deserves a little treat when she's stressed! - so I'll be using them all over the next week or so! 



I'm so nervous for this week, I have my interview for a schools direct program and then a selection day and it's absolutely terrifying! All I've ever wanted to do is teach so I'm putting in everything I have and more to try and make my dreams come true. I think that having a goal is always good, it keeps you motivated and allows you to explore your limits. I have a whole lot of preparation still to do, even though I feel like I've done a lot already! I think I'm also going to squeeze in a little workout before I go to sleep, I've been doing a lot of home workouts lately as I think exercise is such a good stress relief. Then again, so is magazine reading!

I get to go home tomorrow so I'm super excited to see my family but for now I really ought to do some work on my interview bits and pieces so I shall see you all tomorrow for another daily chat!

Love you all!
T
xxx