This isn't goodbye

I have been pushing off writing this blog because this symbolizes the end of 15 weeks, the end of 15 weeks of hard work, tears, stress, joy, excitement, challenges, adventures and most of all 15 weeks of doing what I love.

I still can't believe I am about to leave the wonderful safety net of Northwestern High School and embark on a summer full of unknowns. Its this crazy thing waking up and realizing that college is over and the real world is speeding towards you. Its a beautiful thing don't get me wrong, its just terrifying yet at the same time this is what I have invested four years of my life towards.

  “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. You are the guy who’ll decide where to go.” – Dr. Seuss   

My last week with Northwestern was nothing short of amazing. Except for that 3 inches of snow...Thanks Erie, I'll miss you too.

I am very fortunate to have my path laid out already, I know where I will be working, I know what summer has in store for me, and I know that I am entering a wonderful community. But something is still missing, I don't feel ready to grow up just yet. How can I already be in charge of developing young minds when my own mind hasn't reached its full potential? There are so many questions swirling around in my head that I'm not sure how I'll make it with out going mad...but I gotta try because the path ahead of me is going to be long, its going to be hard, its going to be steep but its going to be worth it.

Unlike most of my fellow cohort I am going to be just down the road from the school that made me a teacher. I am lucky to have created such a strong tie to the community and area that I feel comfortable stepping into a brand new program confident to take on the world.

So Albion FFA this isn't good bye, its simply I'll see you later!

75 Years of Learning to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve

75 years of Learning to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve

2014 / 2015 Albion FFA Officer Team

 

The Albion FFA chapter is gearing up to celebrate their 75^th year anniversary this May and we would like to extend an invitation to you! Please join us as we celebrate 75 years of student achievement! The awards ceremony will start promptly on Saturday May 9^th at 2 pm in the Northwestern High School Auditorium. The awards portion of our celebration will be free of charge, if you would like to join us for a delicious meal after the celebration, tickets can be purchased at the door for 9$ or for 6$ in advanced through the Northwestern High School officer, or by contacting the FFA Advisor, Mr. Honeycutt. We look forward to seeing you there as we take a walk through 75 years of Learning to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, and Living to Serve!

Original Albion FFA Charter

 How has agriculture changed over the last 75 years?

With a population well over 7 billion and that number to grow to 9 billion by 2050 agriculture has made numerous changes to help combat our growing world’s demand for food, fiber, and natural resources. Using less land than our grandparents to grow more food than our parents the United States has embraced the changes in agriculture empowering our future generations to take on the ever growing challenge of feeding the 9, 9 billion that is. The most drastic change in agriculture over the year is the use of technology. Farmers today are now able to produce more food with fewer resources such as land, fuel, and water with the aid of technologies such as precision planting and GPS systems. Embracing the ever-changing world of agriculture is how our nation remains number one in producing food, fiber, and natural resources. As our way of farming changes, our organizations that support farming continue to change as well. The FFA is a great example of how agriculture has driven not only our economy but our education as well.

“The organization has grown to be more than cows, sows and plows; the modern FFA is about beakers, speakers and job seekers.”- Joe Martin, Indiana FFA

 

Albion FFA Members from 1947

How has FFA changed over the last 75 years?

In 1940 when the Albion FFA chapter was first chartered FFA stood for Future Farmers of American, women were not permitted to join FFA, and agriculture classes stood in place to prepare students to return to the farm with innovative ways of thinking. Today FFA simply means FFA; we are no longer the Future Farmers of America because we are so much more now. We are no longer preparing students to go back to the farm; we are preparing students to; start their own business, pursue jobs in labs, go into policymaking, and help solve the problems of feeding, clothing, and producing natural resources for our world. FFA is no longer exclusively for farmers, FFA is for everyone now, this organization has changed and developed over the last 75 years and will continue to change to help meet the needs of the community, country, and world. We still Learn by doing, Earn to Live and Live to Serve those around us just as the original Albion FFA members did 75 years ago.

Week 12: A week to recharge

Only 3 days in the classroom, sounds like an easy week right? Eh for the most part, however just because the students see the end in sight doesn't mean I had a chance to let go and take a breath...or does it??

I had a blast this week, both in and out of the classroom. Not only did I get to head home and spend time with friends and family I got to learn A LOT about maple syrup.

Monday about 75 elementary students came through our shop to learn a little about maple syrup.






I am finally starting to grasp this whole teaching things! It's amazing when you hit the point where you feel confident to enter a classroom and make a difference.

The Final Stretch

Its hard to believe that I have sat at this desk in the back of the room for 14 weeks already, that I have gotten in front of the class taught all types of lessons and learned my own lessons.

Our baby bunnies

As I look back and reflect on what it was like to teach 7 classes I have learned countless lessons and have learned a little about myself. There are students that I have not connected with yet, and there are student's who it took me 13 weeks to connect with. I have even made a new connection this last week with a student in my Ag Mech class. I have learned how to make those connections though, which is a skill I thought I had, but really needed to develop. I have also gained skills in creating the line between friend and teacher. As an agricultural educator I will have students year after year, I will see them in the summers, weekends, and events. Developing the skill of being a mentor and someone to turn to yet keep the professional atmosphere has been a challenge and I am glad I had the chance to really develop it.

I am getting ready to wrap up all my lessons and units this week and its rather exciting yet depressing. Next week I will only be co-teaching ag mech, finishing up horticulture and landscaping and finishing up my unit project with my animal science class.

This week was fun and unique, these past few weeks have seem to blend together as I have wound down towards the final stretch.

 Students in the Floriculture
CDE

Spring Round up was this week. In high school I attended round up every year and loved it. I was a little nervous with how it was going to go. It was weird seeing Wilmington roll up and not know any of the students. That was a depressing moment...

I am really looking forward to next week, although I am going to miss it here at Northwestern, I am really excited to move on to the next chapter.

When push comes to shove, you taste what you're made of

I hit my point this week. Driving down to State College late Thursday night I had a minor melt down. The weight of the world came crashing down on me and I wasn't sure how I was going to make it through. After a moment pulled over on the side of the road, some where inside me I found that extra strength, that glimmer of hope, and my passion. Student teaching is stressful, life  is stressful, and starting a new stage in life is stressful. I know I haven't been taking time to reflect and relax, my me time has vanished into assignment time, class prep time, and time spent preparing my classroom. After my mini melt down I have realized that I need to find a way to channel my stress and find an outlet, and more importantly stick to that outlet.


Now last week wasn't a horrible week in fact it was a great week, but the toll of making it a great week just took away that me time and I never got it back. Last week was a short week since Friday I had to be in State College for a student teaching seminar. Some highlights of last week include

• my milk defects lab
• making ice cream 
• palpating rabbits
• my first OAC meeting 
• planning banquet
• mixing "pesticides" in Landscaping 
• "Welding" with icing 
• collecting sap
• boiling maple sap

"Welding" with incing... as much as the Ag Mech boys would love to get out and burn some rod, we figured we should practice beads and types of welds










In intro this week we finished our milk science week in food science. We made ice cream, learned about the dairy foods CDE and had a milk defects lab! I really enjoyed this lab and I think the students did too.

We are in full swing of planning the 75th Albion FFA banquet celebration! I am so excited to be a part of this team and help plan a banquet and guide students through the process.







Our babies are due on the 13th of April, and I think I may be the most excited one! I can not wait to have little bundles of fur and cuteness!








Over all week 11 was great, spring has finally reached us ( I think) and I can start to feel the excitement in the air. I may have had my first melt down, but I know I have made a full recovery. Seeing the excitement and passion at my OAC meeting on Wednesday has really brought me back on track to what all I have ahead of me. I know I am stepping into some awesome opportunities and I can not wait to get my hands dirty and build up Union City FFA!

Working as "head tech gal" for checking in and out
buyers

I also had a chance to take a trip home this week which has really brought me back down to earth. Seeing my family and friends is always a way to recharge and get back on track. We had our annual 4-H auction and I got to see a lot of familiar faces and new faces excited about youth development and Lawrence County 4-H. I always love giving back to the organization that gave me so much!

So for now, I'm going to remember to take some time to focus on me and dedicate a few moments during the day to take a breath and relax. Because life is always going to be stressful, I just need to learn how to handle it.

Till next time...

Skittles and Ellie, its always great to be
home with them

The real experience...a snapshot of the life of an Ag teacher

This week was far from normal, it didn't start on Monday like it does for most teachers, this week started at 3 am on Sunday morning. This week was SLLC or State Legislative Leadership Conference, for most chapters a start time of 7 or 8 would due. However we had to leave at 5 am, and since I was in charge of this trip I stopped in at the school to pick up jackets and scarves for a few students, pick up some paper work, and drop off a few things for the sub. We headed down to Harrisburg bright and early, and unlike the 4 students we had, I had the duty to keep Mr. Honeycutt awake for the drive down. Needless to say I was exhausted by the time we arrived in Harrisburg. However the day didn't stop there, I had to check in students, drop off paper work, pick up t-shirts and make sure the kids made it to opening ceremonies. Next I went and helped judge proficiency awards, students who excel at record books are compared against those in the same categories and the best book moves on to compete against others at National Convention. After we were done with record books it was time to move into the room, I found my kids, passed out room keys and made sure everyone knew where and when to be down for dinner. 

These girls crack me up!

This event I got the real feel for what it was like to be an Ag teacher, it was a great experience and I enjoyed having the sense of control and responsibility. Since this was my "event" I did room checks and made sure the girls were ready for the day to come, I gave them a little speech about how I didn't want to be knocking on their door to quiet them down. I volunteered for courtesy corps and stayed up just a little bit later to make sure that all the girls on floor 4 were quiet and in their rooms. My day started at 3 am and ended at 1 am, and sadly I had to set my alarm for 6am...it was going to be yet another long day. Monday was our day of service, after breakfast students went to workshops and teachers went to workshops, I learned a lot and also observed a lot, the same teachers that were up all night were the ones in the workshops. 

Preparing school bags

On Monday we volunteered our time at Crossroads, a church that puts together care packs of all types and sends them across the world. I really enjoyed talking to the leaders of the organization and hearing how excited FFA was back again to donate time and support. They were so grateful providing us with snacks and drinks. I know our girls really enjoyed this act of community service knowing they are impacting lives all over the world. 



I also learned a few very important lessons at SLLC, I learned that kids, will be kids. We had everything from girl drama to real drama. I got to see what it was like resolving disputes between students as well as what happens when a student brings something to SLLC that isn't allowed. Mr. Honeycutt took these few lessons to really help me develop a few game plans for how I was going to handle my first real trip. We talked about how I would gain student respect, and how I would show students what the FFA jacket truly means. I would have never thought to do bag checks before a trip, however after hearing what happened to a fellow advisor, I will be doing bag checks before every trip my first year. 

The dance was a lot of fun, and so was interacting with student teachers and my future and current mentors. I can not wait to go back to SLLC with my own bunch and share in that blue and gold pride! 




Coming back to the classroom was both exciting and a little stressful. I was worried did my students do what I had left for them? How did the sub react to my lesson plans? How far behind am I now? But the excitement of sharing in this experience and getting to interact with all the kids left these worries behind. 


Remember when I said kids will be kids... well when I came back on Wednesday they were kids. I had left an assignment for my leadership class, only one student completed it. I was really disappointed that they dis-respected the sub and myself. I also learned that the sub almost wrote 3 of my students a detention! These kids are the best of the best! They should have been perfect for the sub! But they weren't and that was a lesson I needed to learn, although they may be great kids, they make mistakes and make poor decisions as well. 

The one class I was really worried about was perfect for the sub! I left them a movie and worksheet about the current meat industry and how it has changed and how it will continue to change. I was impressed with the movie myself and wanted to share it with the students, so I saved it for the days I knew I would be out of class. I left discussion points with the sub and made sure on Wednesday I reviewed the worksheet and key points. I was really impressed how much they retained and how heated our debate about grassbased farming got. We spent the rest of the day and Thursday learning about milk and milk products. 

Horticulture had a guest speaker this week! Mr. Honeycutt!!





We just wrapped up a unit on green house management and are starting the unit of marketing, however you need something to market..so Mr. Honeycutt ran a two day lesson on proper seeding techniques and the students began their first plants of season. It was a lot of fun to get out in the greenhouse and get dirty. Horticulture this week was easy for me, one of my students presented a lesson to the class on draft horses for the Teach Ag! Essay contest.

Landscaping was another class that I had a lot of issues with this week. They were flat out disrespectful little jerks this week. I'm not sure if its the weather, the upcoming break, or the fact that they didn't want to learn about Pesticide label reading. But whatever it was they were bad, on Thursday I put my foot down and told them I wouldn't have it. I finally realized that kids aren't always going to be excited and attentive and even with activities you are going to get a lot of eye rolls and sass.


I learned a lot of lessons this week, some good, some that I really needed to learn, and others that I didn't even realized I learned. As the days get warmer and longer I am realizing the life of an Ag teacher doesn't end at 3, and doesn't end on Friday. I am committing every day to teaching students, from an early start on Sunday, to a late end on Saturday the week of an Ag teacher doesn't run Monday to Friday... but I am okay with this! Who else gets to take a group of Freshman on a Saturday afternoon to the local spring Farm Bureau meeting. And today is far from over because I get to help collect sap to boil down tomorrow! I thought I knew that the life of an Ag teacher entailed but until this week I never really experienced the full effect. I've had a lot of time to reflect on how I am going to make a kick butt chapter next year, and how I am going to become a kick butt Ag teacher.

And the little guy that keeps me going

9 weeks in...Not enough weeks to go...

Wow 9 weeks, I feel like I just got here last week! However, I can tell I've been here awhile since I can now see grass and found all the pot holes on my road.

Yesterday marked the beginning of my next chapter in life. I am pleased to say I will be the new Agricultural Educator and FFA advisor at Union City High School in Erie County. Not only am I ecstatic to have a job, I am even more excited that I get to teach agriculture: I get to do what I love for the rest of my life.


Part of me is excited to continue student teaching yet at the same time I can not wait to get over there and begin building my program! 

I almost forgot the ground isn't always white

This week has flown by, it could be from the amount of time we have been spending in the shop and working on labs, or it simply can be because the sun is out and its above freezing. Either way this week has gone by and I can not wait for this weekend!




Although it is Friday my week is far from over. This evening I will be visiting a farm to help with the 4-H dairy judging team. I am hoping to hook these kids so they will try the FFA dairy judging or handling CDE. Saturday is the annual Maple Weekend that I am very excited to help with! And then on Sunday bright and early I will be heading down to SLLC with 5 awesome girls and one amazing advisor!

We have hatched a few chicks 8 to be exact. Let me tell ya they are the nosiest bunch! I need to work on some class room management and manners with them.







Introduction this week was all about meat science. We learned the cuts of meat, the science behind meat, and even got to try out the meat judging CDE. As a lab this week we broke it up among the days and students prepared meat for Jerky, I must say it was some pretty good jerk. It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed teaching meat science. I am really excited to start working on dairy foods next week!






Leadership has been all about banquet planning and parlie pro. I have really found the spunk and excitement in the students and we have been working well together! I am also excited that they planned banquet for a Saturday so I could attend! I look forward to seeing the 75th anniversary celebration dinner.

One of my animal science students building
a rabbit cage

In Small Animal Science we have been working on rabbits and other small animals that can be used as pets. We bred our rabbits this week and the count down begins 30 days till babies! A few students have taken on an independent project and are building new rabbit pens.

Horticulture this week has been focused on getting the green house ready and learning about owning and operating a greenhouse. Our flower experiment did not turn out as well as I was hoping for however I think I got the message across!

We have assembled our small gas engines and took our unit quiz today. As much as I love small gas engines I am happy to be packing them away and moving onto welding. Yay, well maybe not.

Making Pesticide Education exciting is a lot harder than I expected. Although there is a lot of great labs and activities out there getting the core information into the students is at times a real struggle. I have set a goal to only use power points once a week in the class, so far I have stuck to my goal and we are on week 2! I am using the smart board and doing more reading and questioning than power points which isn't much fun at all. So if you have any awesome pest ed lessons I would love to see them!


This week has flown by, and as much as I am excited for summer I am not ready to leave the nest of Northwestern. I feel like I haven't had enough time to bond and really get to know the kids. I look forward to working with a lot of these awesome students this summer as I develop my first officer team and to work with Mr. Honeycutt and his great program through out the years to come. I have been so blessed with all the opportunities I have been given and I can not wait to see what these next few weeks have to offer. Like house hunting...

Till next time!

Ill leave ya with this adorable picture of Blaze. I think he is a little jealous of the new bunnies so I try and bring him into class often(: and dress him up cause lets face it, that dino outfit is adorable!


 

Tis the Season

Maple season that is...

Maple season is a new concept for me, and I think I have found the right place to learn about it. So far I have learned the parts of an evaporator, how an evaporator works, and how a reverse osmosis machine works! I am really excited to learn how to tap trees here next week as well as how the sap collection process works. 

 

 "Each of us has about 40 chances to accomplish our goals in life. I learned this first through Agriculture, because all farmers can expect to have about 40 growing seasons, giving them just 40 chances to improve on every harvest." Howard Buffett 

This week was quite an adventure, and I had a few moments where I really felt like an Ag teacher. On Monday I started my first true full week of teaching, I started off with leadership and getting a member of the month and SAE of the month started. Since we are also learning about Parliamentary Procedure I passed out charts and students had to make motions, vote properly, and used correct discussion. All week we worked on getting ready for our next chapter meeting, the student of the month board, and learning Parli Pro. 

In Intro we started the week off with an unit exam on Animal Science. Although I love animal science I was excited to finally end the unit and start something new! We kicked off my Food Science unit with a strawberry DNA extraction lab. I had a few mishaps with getting all the materials ready and organized, however I think I have a pretty good reason for not getting to school the extra half hour early that I had planed on. On Monday night I drove into downtown Erie and picked up two female rabbits that we are going to use for our breeding program. So Tuesday morning involved me chasing rabbits around the bathroom trying to get them back into the carriers. Other than lack of preparation the lab went really smoothly and all students really enjoyed it! I tried a new method of breaking students into groups and it worked effectively as well.

 


















Wednesday we had our pig roast meeting! This was my meeting to help run, organize, and prepare. I even got to say the advisor part during opening ceremonies. Which was a real honor for me and helped me realize that I can do this! During school on Wednesday we started getting ready for Maple Syrup, Pesticide Education, and completed a fun experiment in Horticulture.  On Tuesday in Horticulture we learned about what plants need as well as what fresh cut flowers need to last. Wednesday students were presented with an inquiry based lab. They were given a scientific hypothesis chart, a flower, and access to a wide variety of additives. Students than had to create a "plant food" to add to their fresh cut flower, and decided where the best place to put the flower. After students created their own mixtures, we talked about what a control was, and than created a few only using water and placing those flowers around the shop and greenhouse and classroom. Finally I created my own using the store bought mixture (shh the students don't know). Each day this week students have been recording any changes in their flowers and making observations. The experiment will end next Friday, and the winning flower gets bonus points! 

Thursday began the real prep day for maple syrup. We had to get the evaporator cleaned and ready to run. I learned that in an Ag classroom with so many "irons in the fire" some days you have to take what you planed on doing and modify it to make sure that you don't lose any of those irons. So instead of reading the rest of chapter 1 in Landscaping we went out to help Mr. Honeycutt and I read to the students and asked questions as they cleaned and prepared the evaporator. Students also had the chance to teach me! They showed me the different parts, explained how they worked, told me about their experiences with maple production and helped me understand why this means so much to them and why it takes so much of their time.


Today (Friday) was AET Friday. SAEs are a big part of a complete program and I wanted to take time and focus on AET and help students get hours and entries in. I logged onto my AET and step by step showed students how to add "books" add hours and log in entries. I had a lot of fun today talking not only about my own experiences but also about the opportunities students had if they had awesome books! I wrap up today finishing the door which is my bulletin board for now, preparing for next week, and trying to find a new male rabbit to breed our does with. You ask why do we need to buy a male when I have one? Well I'm glad you asked let me tell you about my adventures with Judy and Falicia (not sure on the spelling on that one). Big Booty Judy weights in at 13 pounds (we checked) if you don't believe me I'll show you the marks and bruise on my arms. Falicia came in at a whopping 12 pounds. Do you wanna know how much blaze weights? 4 pounds he weights 4 pounds, so sadly he will not be able to breed our does and I am back off to Erie to pick up a Buck who is a Flemish Giant cross just like our does. So hopefully next week we will be breeding rabbits, tapping maple trees, starting welding, and hatching chicks! 

And that is why I felt like an Ag teacher this week. From housing two giant rabbits in my bathroom, grading 50+ unit exams, and getting my hands (and shirt dirty) from cleaning an evaporator. I wouldn't change one thing about my life, and I can not wait to see what lies ahead of me.

Half way there!

This week has been one for the books. From my first FFA week as an "advisor" to my second interview I have experienced it all. This week was full of stress, highs, and lows. I got to see a different side of our FFA officers and saw that its not always rainbows and butterflies and that sometimes you need to step back and let kids learn their own lessons the hard way. Now the week wasn't horrible, just stressful with a dash of joy to end the  week. (well more than a dash more like the cherry for next 35+ years of my life)








I have had my fair share of meltdowns this week and I am really excited to end the week in Harrisburg for ACES

Teacher Appreciation Dinner

The key to my happiness is not how successful I become but rather how much fun I am having doing what I love. This week it set in, and it's set in stone, agriculture and education is where my heart lies. On Thursday I got a call, and I accepted a job as an Agriscience Teacher at Union City High School in Erie PA. I know wow, the rest of my life! But it is what I love and because I love it I know I am going to be successful in life.

Now less about me and more about the fun we had for FFA week! Because lets face it, this experience is for my growth but more importantly it is for them: the kids, our next generation.

Ag Career Day

I have a lot of time on my hands today, well more time than I am use to. Although we are at ACES we left on Friday before lunch so last night I got a full nights rest and I got to wake up after the sun rise!











This week we had a lot of fun, not only in the class room but in the shop and through out the school celebrating National FFA week. A few highlight of my week

Taylor with her dog for small animal science
presentation

• Getting to dress up and see all the faculty dressed up with the themed week! From Camo to Ag Career day I have seen a lot of dressed up students, and all out Educators & Administration 
• More Breed presentations in Small Animal Science
• Ear Tagging lab in Intro!
• My First observation 
• Serving up Ice Cream 
• Traveling to ACES
• A quick visit with Dr. Foster @ PSU 

Quick visit to the learning resource room with the rabbits

I had such a great time this week, I learned a lot about officer teams, running FFA week and how to handle hard situations. I am learning so much from such a wonderful FFA advisor and mentor, Mr. Honeycutt, and I am so thankful that he will be continuing his mentoring as I start the next chapter of my life at Union City and starting Union City FFA!  So heres to a great weekend at ACES in the advisor role, a safe trip back, and a week full of seeding and pesticide education!