"Every night my dream’s the same; same old city with a different name. They’re not coming to take me away, I don’t know why but I know I can’t stay. There’s a weight that’s pressing down, late at night you can hear the sound. Even the noise you make when you sleep can’t swim across a river so deep." ~the arcade fire

Today was a really good day. Every afternoon for about 2 hours (during lunch and academic extension, before the last period of the day), my supervising teacher and I chill in our classroom with two great AP students, Allie and Jessica. I love talking to them and listening to what's going on in their lives. Right before the last period was scheduled to begin today, a secretary called down to let us know that my student teaching supervisor was on his way to the classroom. His visits aren't announced and I always get nervous when he observes me. Allie and Jessica were so supportive, though; Jessica told me that they would be with me "in spirit" and Allie gave me a huge hug. It made me feel so wonderful to know that they were there for me. I want students like them when I become a real teacher.
The class that my supervisor observed went really well. 8 students were absent (a few of them were suspended), and I think their absences made things run smoother than usual. The class usually isn't exceptionally well-behaved and attentive, but I'm getting much better at involving everyone in the lesson and making them participate. It's very challenging, and one 90-minute period leaves me completely drained afterwards, but I'm getting the hang of it. And my supervisor noticed. Which is nice. I really like all of the kids in the class, I just wish they cared more about English. They continue to surprise me, though. One kid (who failed English last semester and will most likely need to go to summer school in order to graduate) is really smart. He admitted that he didn't do the reading, but he still managed to flip through his book and provide some very intelligent answers to discussion questions that I asked. Another kid, who doesn't seem to like me very much and doesn't speak up a lot, got more involved than anyone else in the discussion today.
Moments like getting a surprise hug from a student and an unxpected answer from another remind me why I love teaching.

Last night was a good night; I got to interact with some people close to my age (as opposed to 18-year olds) for the first time all week. I went to my friend Nan's house for dinner. I got to meet her 3 roommates, who are very nice. Josh and Aaron, two UR graduates whom I haven't seen in a long time, also joined us for dinner and it was good to spend some time with them.

Tonight was not as fun as last night. I mopped. Which really needed to be done. I mopped the kitchen and bathroom floors, which were absolutely disgusting. I spent a long time working on them and I'm sure they're still not clean. But afterwards it felt good to know that I had made progress.