Being Superwoman

I am really fed up of thinking that because I'm on placement, my life is oveeeer. What will happen when I work full time as a teacher in just a couple of months?? I am dedicated to the job but I don't want to be one of those women that get consumed by work and forget about actually living. This week alone I've been told by two people to just stop; even after hours of placement I am still restless and want to do something. Sitting in the staff room this year, I always overhear little snippets about the other teacher's personal lives; the other year 1/2 teacher managed to fit in a two hour walk over the moors as well as planning, all before bedtime. I want that to be me!! 

How I proved to myself that I'm super too..

Teaching

This week we were supposed to have some 'whole class responsibility' but instead I taught all Thursday afternoon and then did phonics and literacy on Friday morning. Above and beyond me ;) I am actually finding key stage 1 lessons a lot easier to plan for because they don't do as much but I am still not used to it at all! Letters and Sounds is all foreign to me so thank God for Mr Thorne's phonics videos :) Sammy did look a bit concerned about the 'ur' sounds coming from my laptop. The TES iboard had this fab interactive book that I used to teach traditional/fairy tales. Just because you use resources and ideas to help you out, it doesn't make you any less of a fab teacher... why re-shape the wheel?!

Food

I bought myself a meal planner from paperchase (featured on my blog 2 weeks ago) and I was worried I wouldn't use it. Quite the contrary, it has been so helpful to sit and think of five yummy lunches on the weekend and buy in what I need for the week. Then on the evenings all I have to do is prepare it and there's no over thinking :) It's good to have really healthy lunches and try and get as many as your five a day while you are at school because then you can have your treats at home. I know this lunchbox has a muffin in but who is judging eh? ;)

Housey chores

I am soooo skilled at creating piles of plates and other crockery so that it takes up the least amount of space on my side. There is still space to prepare stuff as well as putting off my washing up for another day. I have been trying to keep on top of it though so I'm not faced with the usual mountain of washing up when all I want to do is slob. As well as washing up, I've been washing my clothes really regularly too, then I never have to panic about not having a teachery type outfit ready.

Me time

This week was lovely because I was actually back in Uni Monday-Wednesday for a few lectures. I had time for shopping, Starbucks, meals out and cinema trips. I know I won't be able to do much on the evenings but I will most definitely be planning time out on the weekend for me to just chill out. I didn't do any planning yesterday at all so I will have to do a few hours today, but it was totally worth it.

CV enhancing

Now that I've done four months at Oxfam, it was sadly time to leave so that I'd have some free time on the weekend. I am still attached to the York Castle Museum because I'm still in the training process. I did a shift before Christmas making Victorian Christmas cards with the education team but I had to wait until yesterday to do my object handling training. I spent an hour picking up fancy bear fur helmets, heavy body armour and a few brass candlesticks. My next training session isn't until March 16th but after that I will be fully trained to run a military session :) I will be in charge of some pretty impressive weaponry. My future history lessons will  clearly be awesome!

Being a proper yogi
I am very aware that I am eating more now that I'm on placement, which is totally fine BUT my exercise levels have dropped. I don't power walk everyday like I usually do; instead I drive too and from placement and that's about it. Usually I spent my whole day walking to and from everywhere and I might have a bike ride to the shops when it's warmer. The belly podge is starting to appear and the bottom is maybe more wobbly than it should be...  so, action plan! I popped into TkMaxx on my way back from town yesterday and they have loads of good sports gear for quite cheap; weights, exercise balls, yoga mats, clothes & loads more. Leah has moved her xbox into the living room so I have lots of yoga videos at my fingertips through Youtube. I'm thinking of doing 10 mins a day to relax and then 20-30 minutes on Saturday and Sunday to keep fit :) There is a great 'Yoga Solution' series from LiveStrong Women which ranges from beginner right through to some scary looking headstands. 

Phew, I will have to read this back one day when I start to doubt myself! Now I think I qualify for a t-shirt.

Afternoon Nigella.

Apologies for the really rubbish Sunday post, I'd been so sidetracked on placement I hadn't thought of anything to blog about. Soooo to make amends, today I have been busy being a domestic goddess; buying groceries, washing bedding and baking some goodies. I am going to share with you how to make some absolutely B-E-A-UTIFUL muffins that should definitely make your placement treat list. They are especially perfect for people who always buy bananas but only like to eat them in the green stage, I always have some sad looking brown ones left from the bunch. 

Banana and Nutella Swirl Muffins

What you will need:

• 230g  or 1 3/4 cups of self raising flour
• 150g or 3/4 cup of granulated white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 2 large eggs
• 113g or 1/2 cup of melted butter/margarine
• 3 large very ripe bananas mashed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 tablespoon Nutella (microwaved for 1 minute so runny)

Pre-heat your oven to 180C or 350F. Prepare your muffin tin or get yourself a fancy silicone one like me :) they just pop out and there's no need to keep buying paper cases! Eco friendly ;)

In one bowl mix your dry ingredients; flour, sugar & salt. In another bowl, thoroughly mix your eggs, butter, mashed bananas & vanilla. This should look pretty darn gross when you are done.

Gradually tip your wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, gently folding the mixture together. You want all your ingredients to be mixed properly but still lumpy so you get the muffiny texture.

Divide your mixture :) I managed to make 10 quite large muffins from the mix.

Spoon your nutella into a small microwaveable dish and heat for 2 minutes. This allows it to go all runny. Spoon a decent blob onto the top of each muffin and then use a cocktail stick to spiral the Nutella through the muffin mixture.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until they have risen slightly and look crispy on the top. You should be able to insert a knife into one and pull it out clean. 

And then ENJOY! :) yum yum yum... they taste absolutely amazing. Starbucks better watch their backs :P

I can pencil you in for Thursday?

The time is 23:33, it's Saturday night and I haven't got a clue what my Sunday Blog should be about. Usually I get struck by inspiration by now and make time to write it, but... seriously... nada. I've been so busy with placement this week I haven't given any thought to much else, let alone my blog! I'm also feeling totally emotional after watching the spectacular Les Misérables today...

BUT the last thing you want is another review about how awesome it is ;) So instead I'm being

totally lazy and giving you guys some links to stuff you may or may not find interesting....

Whatever ;) Have a good week!

HelloGiggles - You're Old!

designismine - Cheer

Emergency Compliment

Lovely Undergrad - bedroom inspiration

My placement were TV stars, such a cute program!

BBC - Leeming RAF Community Primary School

Innocent Drinks - Beat January

I need to buy all of their homeware & accessories!
Wanelo - Anthropologie

Somebody needs to buy me this for Valentines day hahahaha...and lend me a cat.
Etsy - Julie Ann Art

Channel4 - Gok's Style Secrets

Placement Survival 101

Assignment season and Christmas feel like a distant memory now that our final, I repeat FINAL placements start tomorrow. EEK! The first week back for us Primary Edders has been all about being a proper professional, getting organised and thinking about how we can show off our fantastic teaching skills ready for our exit appraisals. I've been talking to my school, emailing my link tutor, photocopying my driving licence and picking up my hire car in between getting myself prepped for placement. After two years experience I know how tough placement can be, so here is my survival guide to stop you feeling like this...

Be organised

Absolute teacher rule NUMBER ONE. If you can keep on top of your workload and sort your files to suit you, it can save you so much time. If you know where everything is and you have spare copies of plans and proformas it can save you so much time and stress! I thought I was organised the past two years but I decided to up it a notch for final placement... or maybe I just wanted it to look cute too :P All my files are bright and inviting and I even got myself a pretty placement notebook so I know where all my information is written.

A tidy desk is a happy place

Piles of paperwork just make me want to cry, even tidying them into neat stacks can actually make me feel better and more in control weirdly enough. I found this AMAZING BLOG that has tonnes of ideas to keep a classroom organised and tidy. I know we don't quite own the classroom yet BUT we can still pick up tips! Honestly this woman is a God :)

1. Recipe stand lesson plan. GENIUS!

2. Plastic bag within an inch of your life.

3. Let the children be organised (she even let's them colour code their behaviour on the calender each day)

4. Boxes for EVERYTHING. I like these daily resource ones the best.

Don't take on too much 

I will be having a chat to my manager today about leaving Oxfam during placement time, sad face :'( It's great working there but now I know how far I'll be travelling each day, I know I'm going to need my weekends to re-cooperate some energy. It's not just weekend jobs though, don't let schools pressure you into something you know you don't want to, we are only trainees after all!

Think twice about that cuppa

We all love a good cup of tea or coffee on placement because lets face it, we feel way more awake and ready to prance around the classroom. BUT, a very big but, caffeine can stay in your system for 8 hours and effect how well you are sleeping at night. I think I'd rather trade in my afternoon buzz for a good nights sleep any day; this also means no more Tesco trips for cadbury creme eggs after school haha. After school you could opt for a lovely fruit tea and then before bed maybe a warm milk with added honey, cinnamon or nutmeg? It will send you right to sleep as well as soothing your teacher voice.

Exercise

Ha ha ha, this is soooo rich coming from me! I'm not saying to join the gym or run a million miles but regular exercise is good for you. It actually increases your energy levels, helps beat stress, gives you a natural high and burns fat (all those extra placement treats)... still need convincing?

Eat Healthy

Blah blah blah, that old saying... your body is a temple. All I want to do when I'm teaching is go home and order a Chinese.  My diet in first year was pretty awful, I'd have a crap sandwich with crisps at school and then something quick for tea... even though I was placed in York! I felt so sluggish that in second year I decided to book my ideas up; porridge for breakfast, soup & yoghurt for lunch and then something healthy for dinner. To make it easier this year I have made a list of all the meals I like that are quick and easy to make and then each week I'll pick some to put on my fancy new meal planner (paperchase £7). Then I know what to buy at the end of the week and what I need to get out the freezer each morning! Hello healthy meals :)

ENJOY yourself

We all chose to become teachers because we liked it. We all got this far on the course because we love it and are evidently quite good at it. If you aren't passionate about your work or don't enjoy teaching then you are in a pretty sticky situation aren't you :) I bet every single one of you are excited to get stuck in, deep down ;)

& if you're finding it too much

You can always check out the Times Educational Supplement website or Pinterest for ideas, I have collected some fab ideas on my Classroom Lovin' board :) Here are two of my favourites... A line activity to help with fine motor skills; a good warm up for literacy lessons or big writes! Then there's a jar full of kind actions that a child must choose from if they have been naughty in order to balance it out again :) you know I love all that karma stuff!

Do what you can AT SCHOOL

I know this was difficult in first and second year with Uni buses coming for us but this year I think we all have a lot more freedom. I am super happy with my hire car because I can leave school as early or late as I want to. Even in second year when I knew the bus was coming at 4:30 I spent my hour marking books, organising the timetable and whiteboard for the next day, chatting to the cleaners and if I was lucky I'd plan guiding reading too. Less on the 'to do' list and way less to carry home. I think everybody should have a set time in the evening to stop working and switch off; and make sure you stick to it! You should find yourself being a lot more productive within that time, as well as leaving yourself a few hours for a shower, baking session, soaps catch up or whatever else tickles your fancy on a Thursday evening.

Take time to be YOU

We all become so focused on our placements and being Miss or Sir that it's nice to remind yourself that you are a person outside of being a teacher. Don't forget about your life outside school, you aren't just a generic teacher type, I'm guessing you probably have loads of interests. Mine are all super geeky but let's not judge eh? ;)

Make non-work plans

As well as taking time out of your week to just be you, your weekend should be spent with the other humans (and/or animals) in your life; family and friends!  You should try not to pour over textbooks about aztecs or revise long division for too many hours; I know you are all secret brainiacs that don't need to. Also, just think about when it's all over.. we can all PARTY!

Ultimate Profesh.

I'd like to think that as an emerging professional, I take problems in my stride and I'm more concerned with the adult issues of the world. But I really don't care how trivial this is... I am having a teaching wardrobe dilemma.

It's not about usual things, such as making my bum look smaller or appearing not to be a lanky so-and-so, it's all about practicality in the classroom as well as looking uber chic! Number one is that you have to look smart (being profesh and all) so it's usually a blousey trousery type thing which isn't me at all. I'd rather wear a nice smart dress :) but then you have got to be able to lean over without engulfing children's heads and you also can't step over small beings sat nicely on the carpet and flash them the bridget jones'.

Miss Norbury, Miss Halsey and Miss Fitzpatrick all look smart AND cute; I do wonder why they are all Miss and not Mrs. Can you just imagine having them all sat opposite you in the staff room?!? Giiiirl envy!

Us teachers need some form of a style guru, I'm sorry but black trousers and turtle necks just aren't going to make me happy. Even Miss Honey was rocking a bit of peplum, despite Matilda coming out mid-nineties.

Any guys reading this, you totally have it easy... If Mr Schneebly can get it right, it's pretty darn impossible to go wrong!

Here is a lovely piece of artwork from my Year 5/6 class in first year. I was totally pulling off the Frankie Sandford crop and floral palazzo trousers ;) even if I had no hands. It's fine and dandy when the kids think you look good but "Miss I like your shoes" gets boring after a while. Now I'm more concerned about what the staff think and how I'm going to make a good impression on placement and at interviews. As I said before, I'm not your standard suit wearing type... help!!

Let's talk about my absolute FAVE television teacher and future me, Jessica Day. If you don't want to hear it again, just skip to the next paragraph mwuhahaha! How does she look so darn cute all the time? Even when teaching sex ed. I want her outfit on the right to magically appear in my wardrobe before I start placement, pretty please with sugar lumps. 

Someone please contact me as there is an opening to become my personal professional dresser helper type person. I can't pay you however because I am poor. At least I know I probably shouldn't take style tips from Professor Trelawney...