TRABAJO, HO!

Goal for this post: to be very descriptive, yet concise and no bunny trails. But I love bunnies, they are my favorite animal. One time I had this beautiful, white bunny, and then my parents decided that I was "allergic" to it. I sat in the foyer of our house in Arlington, crying and watching some stranger load Hoppy (yeah, creative) in to the back of a red SUV and drive away. Darn. No bunny trails = FAIL.

The move into my apartment went as smoothly as it could be. I felt triumphant kicking my very large now very empty backpack to the far corner of my closet (heck yes, I have a closet!). Don't worry, massive, red backpack, we will meet again soon when I take you on a trip in the near future. 

Where the magic happens- Hold the judgements, Bible-belt peeps, I'm talking about the magic of sleep.

The window I stand in front of to ponder questions of great value.

My roomies are the best, and the location is perfect. All my things are put in place, my clothes are hanging in the closet, my blanket is draped across the bed, and my books are sitting on the shelf. It's not home, but it's a wonderful place to stay.

This Friday, I finished my TEFL course. I don't believe I have done a proper explanation of my TEFL experience as a whole. Don't worry, faithful reader, I'll keep it short. We started practice teaching real live Chileans the beginning of the second week and continued teaching for the next three weeks. We did have to turn in a couple of reports, too. However, the most daunting component of the course was the "observed teaching practice," where we were scrutinized on everything and then given feedback immediately afterwards by the instructor and our classmates. Overall, it was a solid course that gave me a framework of methodology, and all I need now is experience.

Our sharp looking class with the infamous Lillian, our scrutinizer.  

One time in our evaluations, Lillian said to me "Katie, you class was very cozy. You were like a big mother hen." Was that a compliment? I still don't know.

This last week has been a whirlwind of event. Along with finishing the course, a good friend of mine, E, coordinated an interview for me at his English institute which I had heard several great reports from a handful of people. I had an interview this Monday then was scheduled for a 30 minute demo lesson the next day. I called up my new awesome English friend Becks from the course to tell her the news of my demo lesson, then I walked over to the building where our TEFL course had been held to try to find some materials for the next day. I left a little more confused than confident after being told a couple differing options of how to do my lesson. A quick stop at the grocery store and I was off to meet with E. Together we came up with an awesome plan. Well, it was more like me freaking out, then asking a bajillion rapid-fire dumb questions such as "Should I write my name on the board? Should I write my age on the board?" After our brainstorming session, I walked home and between watching The Terminal on TV and checking facebook, I filled in the skeletal lesson plan. Tuesday morning, I kept envisioning the student staring at me with blank eyes. HOWEVER, the lesson went so smoothly, the student flew through the activities, and the entire atmosphere was relaxed and comfortable.  I was offered the job! At dinner that, Becks said "I bet you couldn't stop smiling." Heck yes! I felt like a little kid that just received the biggest bag of candy in the world.

The face of a newly employed English teacher!

Chao, Amigos! I'm off to buy work clothes.