Wowza

From my NYU Professor:

Hi Liz,
I hope you are well. Your FBA was excellent. You received an A in the course. Here are some of my comments:
Your Frequency Chart & ABC Chart are both very thorough & succinct. The ABC Chart gives a lot of info in just a few clear words. I liked the idea of using magnets . I haven't heard of that before. I would also teach him a variation of the 4B's to further decrease anxiety. In terms of reinforcers, see what he likes. Many youngsters like taking pictures of themselves & or with friends & favorite teachers, clubs, choice time or other activities.
Given all the info you present, I think he should be evaluated by a physician or psychiatrist for a Tic Disorder, such as Vocal Tic Disorder or Tourettes.
You did an outstanding job, and I would like your permission to use your work in teaching the NYU course and in training psychologists with the Dept of Ed. Let me know.


YAH!!!!

Also, tomorrow is the last day of school. It is insane - I'm almost done.
I'm moving into another classroom in the main building so I have been packing and moving all week - but the woman whose classroom I'm moving into is NUTS. Totally crazy. SHE HASN'T PACKED A THING.
Tomorrow at 3:00 I'm out. She can have fun cleaning until Sunday.

Big Weekend in the City

My 10-year-old cousin came to visit this weekend. It's only Saturday night and already we have:
- gone to build-a-bear
- gone to dylan's candy bar
- ridden the ferris wheel in toys r us
- walked times square at night
- gone to the mermaid parade
- swam at coney island / hung out on the beach
- gone to the NY aquarium
- ridden the cyclone
- ate at nathan's hotdogs on the coney island boardwalk
- went to chuck e cheese
- seen the Nancy Drew movie

and she is still here for another day.

It's been expensive. but really fun.

Tired

I'm tired, so I'm going to post in bullet points. Enjoy.

. Ryan came to visit last weekend and it seemed like the longest weekend ever but in an awesome way. Usually fun weekends go by really fast, but this one did not. Making it harder to return to school today. We did a lot of different-parts-of-NYC-bar-crawls, went to the beach to see the skyline at night, saw Apples in Stereo, and hung out. Jimmy came to visit on Saturday too.
. Ryan is now officially old.
. A professor from undergrad, Dr. Hardcastle, came to NYC yesterday and we went to a show and then dinner together. It was awkward but fun. Indulging my ridiculous school-girl crush on his dreamy blue eyes.
. Today 11 kids were absent. It was amazing.
. I got my end-of-year rating sheet - I scored Satisfactory (it's only satisfactory or unsatisfactory. when I first saw the S I thought it meant that I was just mediocre, but such is not the case)
. My uncle took me out for the most expensive (AND BEST) dinner I've ever had tonight. I had escargot for the first time too. It was really good food.
. I can't wait for summer.
. My Harry Potter book release costume is coming along nicely.

Done.
I know you were holding your breath until the end.

One down..

So the first of all my friends (high school and college) got married over the weekend.
The wedding was a blast, but man ... people my age are getting married. crazy.

I caught the bouquet.

2 1/2 weeks of school left.

That's all I have the energy to post about

News!

News 1:

I am (Finally!) a New York State Certified Teacher! It came in the mail today!

News 2:

I was asked out on a date for the first time ever. This custodian at my school asked me out for dinner and dancing. He had hinted at it before, but hadn't ever asked me out directly. Funny part - I said thanks, but no thanks. He asked if I was seeing someone. I said yes. He asked why he never heard me hanging out with him. I said cause he went to VT. He then proceeded to have a panic attack about asking out a "Virginia Tech Survivor's Girlfriend" and how could he. hm.

New 3:

Dave gets married this weekend! I'm leaving tomorrow ... hopefully it's fun.

News 4:

Taking out my personal day, there are 12 days of school left and 2 are 1/2 days. Also, 1 is field day and 1 is the awards ceremony.

News 5:

I am teaching fourth grade next year in the building. It will be interested ... and the more I learn about my future class the more worried I am.

Yup.
Awesome.....

This has become a lot less about teaching

Well, I'm really not posting much about teaching. It just seems totally random ... this morning was one of the best teaching mornings I've ever had ... yet this afternoon was terrible. Did I do something different? Nope. Totally random. Ugh.

Yesterday and Today

Yesterday

School went ok. I allowed the students to choose their own seats (after a talk about making good choices) and all but 5 made excellent choices. The 5 who did not are boys who never stop fooling around. I will have to move them. But because 19 of them had made good choices, the day of teaching actually went ok.

After school I had a hair appointment (and I really like the new place I found ... I'm glad to find a place I like AND can afford) and then I took a nap. Last night I went to see MISTAKES, a band in Williamsburg. They were really good, but once again, made me sad that I was alone there. Williamsburg is such a strange place. I don't know how to explain it. After 10pm there is no one younger than 21 and no one older than 30 on the streets. The streets are packed with people on stoops eating ice cream, people in bars that spill onto the sidewalk drinking, people performing car-trunk-karaoke, and people skateboarding. I hate that I walked through the crowds of fun to sit alone in the back room of some bar on North 6th. I do not lead a life like 90% of people in Williamsburg, but I am their age and somewhat cool - why am I still friendless?

Today

Today I worked at school 11-4 at the Health and Dance Fair. I ran a booth that had kids throwing balls into buckets to earn prizes. There was fruit and games and then a dance contest. It was REALLY hot, but it was fun. Such a different culture (as I keep repeating over and over) but it was fun. Anyway, it made me really sad that I was the only staff member there without kids to introduce around. Without a family there to hang out with at the event. I'm a one-woman family, and I don't like that.

So, in conclusion. I'm sad that I'm not a carefree 20-something with lots of partying to do. But I'm also sad that's I'm not a responsible parents with lots of stuff to do to take care of people.

Which would I rather be? I don't know. I'm stuck inbetween the two -- I'm the age/status of those who are carefree, but I have the career of the latter. Hm.