Traveling to Vietnam with a Friend

A furry friend that is!

Yesterday, the boyfriend took me to build-a-bear and he built me a friend to take with me to Vietnam. Why is he wearing scrubs you ask? Well, the boyfriend is studying to become a doctor one day. He is quiet a cutie. The boyfriend AND the bear that is. Ahaha.

For those of you who didn't know, I will be teaching English in Vietnam this summer!

SOME MORE INFO ON MY TRIP
-It is an internship through Queens College
-I am 1 out of 5 interns
-Typically, I will teach from 9-11AM Mondays~Thursdays.
-There are 3 different levels of students. They are leveled according to their English proficiency.
-Fridays are trip days where we accompany the students
-It has been decided that I will be in charge of teaching arts & crafts (which I am really looking forward to! I always wanted to be an art teacher!)

I'm excited to meet my Vietnamese students....
Kinda nervous because I haven't finished up my lesson plans yet (which I really should get done.. haha).

I will be leaving for Ho Chi Minh City on June 29th and will be in Vietnam until July 31st.

I also decided to extend my trip by going to Korea to visit family till mid August!
Therefore, this summer will definitely be jam packed with adventures and lots of exciting new things.

Can't wait!!! Especially to try some authentic PHO!

So, follow me on my Vietnamese adventures!
Till next time....

Ms. Kimpop
:)

3rd Graders

3rd Grade is a very interesting grade to teach.

When I tell people that I am a 3rd grade teacher, they are always curious to know how 3rd graders are.

3rd graders range from 7-8 years old.

At around this age, the kiddies are independent enough to take care of themselves... meaning they can go to the bathroom by themselves, think and act critically(most of the time, haha), and most importantly you are able to build a meaningful relationships with them.

Don't get me wrong, I think in every grade, you can build

a special relationship with each and every one of your students.

However, by the time students come to 3rd, something inside of them starts to mature and they start acting a little bit like big people. They understand consequences better, can sit and read independently, and most importantly can handle having some real responsibilities. Therefore, the relationships I come to form with my 3rd graders feel a bit deeper and more meaningful. I mean they start to read you and all your different moods. Sometimes, some of my students know just with a glance from me exactly what I want them to do.

Anyways, point of the post is that today I was reminded of just how much I enjoy this grade when one of our students randomly wrote us the following letters.

Background Info: Ms. Phantastic and I often share stories about our pets. My dog, Teddy and Ms. Phantastic's bunny, Snowball.

Soon to be... Ms. Pho!

I have some really exciting news to share with you all! (all of my 5 subscribed followers. this is my personal shout out to you guys. haha)

I am soooooo happy to share that I will be going to Vietnam this summer!

Yes, the country where Pho originated.
One of my favorite noodle soups in the world.... hahaha.

I will be there for a month teaching English to Vietnamese students.

Okay, I just wanted to share that.
I hope that you'll follow me on my journey to Vietnam!

I will blog about my experiences getting ready for the trip, during the trip, and after the trip.

Have a pho-tastic day~!

Take That Germs!

As a teacher, you live and breath germs all day, every day (well, almost every day).

This is especially true in the winter time when the kiddies get sick with all sorts of things.
They are constantly blowing (if not picking) their noses,
sneezing, and coughing like no tomorrow.

I remember when I first started out on my teaching career (during student teaching), I caught something on a weekly basis. I was miserable! I think by now, my system has built up some immunity to germs that I am regularly exposed to. However, some germs still get past me and I do get sick once in a while (like right now.... about to take some Nyquil and call it a night).

Anyways, I have come with some preventive measures that I believe work for me 90% of the time.

1) Load Up on Emergen-C Packs

I drink these bad boys pretty regularly once my germ radar goes off. Which is pretty often, especially in the winter time. There have been times where I felt like I might be coming down with something and drinking these 3x a day for a couple of days really got rid of whatever I was feeling. They are about $10 for a pack of 30. You mix it in your water. Kind of taste like a fizzy vitamin water. Loaded with vitamins and all that good stuff.

2. Wash Your HandsNow, I do think that I don't do a bad job of washing my hands regularly but when I am at work, I do an ESPECIALLY THOROUGH job of washing them whenever I can. I also wash them first thing when I get home from work to get rid of all the germs I may be carrying with me from work.

3. Wipe Em' Down

The kids!? Haha no.... their desks. Whenever I have a chance and the kiddies are not in the room I like to wipe down their desks with Clorox wipes (if not available I will settle for baby wipes with a squirt of hand sanitizer).

4. Circulate Air
Even in the winter time, we like to keep some of the windows open (which is okay because school heat is crazy and it feels like a million degrees anyway). I like to think that leaving some windows cracked open allows for germs to fly out of the room. This might be more of a mental thing~ haha.

Although the kiddies get me sick from time to time, there is really no where else I rather be than in a room full of germ-y little 3rd graders.

Prayers for Tom

"Tom"
A bright, cheerful, brown eyed, 8 year old in my class this year.
He is one of our greatest helpers in the room.
Interested in history, writing, and helping others.
Always full of smiles and very, VERY, mature for his age.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit his mom in the hospital.
Tom's mom has been battling cancer for a couple of months now.
What started off as breast cancer has now metastasized to the brain.
She was undergoing chemo however, has become too weak to continue with
treatment.

For the last month or so, she's been just trying to regain her health so that the treatment
can continue. At this point, she isn't doing so well and the family is hoping for a miracle.

As I sat in the hospital room, looking at her fragile body, hoping and praying for her recovery,
Tom walked up to his sleeping mom and tapped her nose with his glove covered fingers.

He then looked over at me and said, "This button used to work."

Right then and there, my heart broke for Tom.
As a 7 year old, I wondered how he was making sense of this whole situation.
Tom's father already had a conversation with him telling him that mommy may not make it through this.

I wondered if he truly knew what that meant.

Despite the circumstances and his young age, Tom is optimistic.
He is still staying bright and cheerful.
I know for sure that Tom is trying hard to stay strong for his mom.

Right before winter break started last Friday,
Tom wrote in his writing notebook, "If I could have 3 wishes, I would wish for my mom to get better and come out of the hospital so that we can spend Christmas together as a family."

At a mere 8 years old, Tom has taught me that we must not lose hope in unfortunate circumstances like this one.

Looking at his situation, I am reminded that...
(warning~ I may sound like a hallmark card but this is truly how I feel)

~Life is precious yet fragile. Circumstances can change in an instant.
~Nothing is promised tomorrow. I wonder if we truly grasped the fact that nothing is promised tomorrow, if we would continue to live out our lives chasing after such temporary things?

If you had the opportunity to read this post,
I hope that you can pray for Tom's mom and his family.
That she may regain her health.
That they may stay strong and not lose hope.