New Places, New Faces

Being in a new place offers an array of opportunities to meet new people. For the most part, the people of Barrow have been great. We are starting to develop more and more relationships with the people at our schools and those at the college we are staying at. Fortunately for us, Steve our Site Advisor, has put us into contact with many people that we can benefit from knowing. We have met scientists that we hope to join on an excursion before we leave, as well as school administration here in Barrow. It is always nice to network with people who can help improve your stay here. Whether it is giving a helping hand and driving us to school, or giving us career advice; we are trying to soak it all in.

On the note of meeting new people and experiencing new things, the five of us have volunteered to help chaperone Barrow's High School Prom this Saturday. That's right everybody, we will be THOSE people making sure not TOO much fun is going on. The weekends are times where the cabin fever sets in and most of us thought it would be a good idea to get out and about for a couple of hours. I am sure I can speak on behalf of the five of us when I say we feel it is the least we could do to show our appreciation for what they have done for us thus far. Again, it is just another opportunity to meet new people and experience something new.

On the whaling front, as far as I know there has not been a whale caught yet. I am sure the news would travel faster than Justin racing to the dining hall if that were the case. We are all anxious to see the procedure and festivities that come with the whale capturing. It is always interesting to see our students talk about how they are involved in the process and all the news they know that goes through the town.

We are all beginning to start teaching at this point, and even some full-time teaching. With this comes long nights and lesson planning. It is nice to bounce ideas and management strategies off one another at meal time. We were all discussing at dinner tonight how interesting it would be to observe one another. For the most part, we have not seen each other teach in a classroom and it would be helpful to see what works for somebody else and work on implementing similar strategies into your own repertoire. I hope time allows us to see one another, or at least a few of our classmates.

Otherwise, we are patiently waiting for the arrival of Eric Koser and Bob Shoemaker from Gustavus to arrive here in Barrow tonight. Our third advisor, Michele Koomen, will be coming into town Saturday. They will be supervising and offering any support they can during their stay, so it will be nice for them to get a chance to see us teach and help any way they can. I hope this blog finds you warm and enjoying the spring weather back home. Here in Barrow it is a warm 17 degrees and it feels like heaven. Apparently we are fortunate with the weather we are having, as it could be a lot worse. Enjoy reading our posts, as they will become more focused on what is happening in the classroom and our own personal experiences with our specific class. Feel free to add any comments or ask any questions you may have for us. Take care.

Best.

Travis