February update ....... (Part 2)

Taking the Amtrak to Denver

I decided to take the Amtrak train from Grand Junction to Denver. It is a long trip - one way takes 8 hours if the train is on time and not stopped due to overheating (in summer) or snow on tracks (in winter). However I had been told it was a great way to see the scenery over the mountains and it was still too dicey weather wise for me to attempt driving over the mountains. If it became winter stormy and icy on the roads I would not have felt comfortable in driving there or home.

So I organised for the Friday off from school and set off at 10am from Grand Junction station. It was truly a magical journey. If anyone has the chance to take the train over these mountains, I must encourage you to do so! The vistas you see are amazing and look just like postcards or paintings. I forgot my camera (!!) but had my iPad mini with me for entertainment. This took some absolutely amazing photos on its camera and I have included a whole page of my photos from the train ride (just look to the right at the top of the page for the link to 'Amtrak Train GJ - Denver' page).

I arrived in Denver at about 6pm and met up with Leanne from Pakenham, who I was staying with for the weekend. We had great fun catching up over dinner and drinks at the restaurant Chilli's, after which we took the bus back to her small flat in the basement of a house-turned-apartments.

Snowshoeing at Estes Park

Saturday February 23rd saw myself and Leanne meeting Fiona, another exchangee from Sydney, at her car for the drive to Rocky Mountain National Park. Fiona lives very close to Leanne so it was an easy walk that morning to meet up and get on the road. It took us about 2 hours to get to Estes Park, which is a small tourist town at the base of the national park, and it was here we met up with the other exchangees - current and past - to organise snowshoes and poles at a hire store.

Getting my snowboots and waterproof pants on ready to go!

From there we formed a caravan of cars and headed into the park to Bear Lake. It was another maybe half hour from the hire shop, into the park and up the mountain. It was a picture perfect day at the bottom and was not in any way forecasting what we were going to be walking into on our hike!!

The day was organised by CITEL for the current exchangees and also included some past exchangees who came along for the day. Most of the Aussies made it for the day and it was great to catch up with them as we walked up the mountain. The photo on left is of our entire group - we had about 25 or so to start with, including four little men! (Our youngest was three!)

We all started together and made the first lake fairly well. After we headed from here, we started getting some wind and interesting weather that reached VERY cold and interesting conditions by the second lake. Due to this, our trek to the third lake was called off and we headed back down the mountain to the start. Despite not making the third lake, I completely enjoyed the walk and will definitely be snowshoeing again - it is so much fun and so easy!

Leanne, me and Fiona at the first lake

Freezing in the windy conditions at the second lake!

The second lake

On the way in and out of the park, I also got an idea why it  may be called Rocky Mountain National Park - the scenery was very rocky with not much vegetation (or even snow!)

Following the snowshoeing, we all met up again at Kim and Vern's house. They are a couple who exchanged to Australia a few years ago - and they also are very good friends with people I know from Gippsland! It is a very small world!! We had chilli lunch and dessert and chatted about our exchanges so far. It was great to talk to the exchangees again - a few of them have caught up since Australia Day but since I'm on the other side of the state (and mountain range) I hadn't and it was great to say hello again.

That evening once we had gotten back to Denver Fiona, Leanne and I had dinner at a pizza place not far from their apartments and then Leanne and I headed back to her place. I had to get up at 6am the next morning to head to Amtrak to catch my train back to GJ so it was an early night.


*******

And that brings about the February catchup posts! Apologies for the time between part 1 and 2, I have been sick for over a week and have not been able to do much aside from wake up, go to school, come home and sleep! Hopefully I am getting better as in a week I am on Spring Break - and off to New Orleans with Leanne! Holidays here I come!!

Next post: New Orleans (and other March tidbits)

Keep smiling everyone!!
Candice


February Update ........ (Part 1)

Okay - so I know I haven't posted for a while. I apologise - it has been a huge month of events and happenings both at school and at home. So grab a snack and a drink, sit down and get comfortable - here is the update for the entire month of February!

Partying like it's the 1970s

My friend Janel is what we would call the teacher-librarian at Nisley and I have had some great times with her since we met on my first day in Grand Junction. In February she turned 40 and celebrated with a 70s themed party. It was awesome! A small group of teachers from school were invited as well as some of her other friends and family. It was a lovely party with great 70s themed drinks and dancing - I had a great time and I was glad to hear later that Janel did as well!

Me and Janel - the birthday girl!

Sara and I in our 70s gear! - Sara teaches with me in 2nd grade
(I have embroidered flowers on the hips and butt of my jeans!)

Kim, Me and Cinnamon - they teach 5th grade

Tanya (computer teacher), me, Janel and Cinnamon

 

A Sad Call from Home

One of the hardest moments last month was receiving a call from my parents to say we had lost my Pop. It was tremendously hard not being there in Australia to help support my Nan, Dad and Mum as well as my sister and all my Aunts, Uncles and cousins as they struggled through the loss that first week. Pop's passing was sudden and not what we were expecting to have happen but I was so thankful for the support of my friends - both at home in Australia and here in Grand Junction. Quick responses from friends at home via messages were so welcomed and made the week pass more easily than it could have. I did not feel like I was overseas alone - so thanks again to my friends and family and the wonders of technology.



Valentine's Day


I knew Valentine's Day was big. I've seen the movies, read the books and heard the stories. However, I never really expected it to be this big - particularly in school! Before I go there, I have to let you know that the shops were crazy with Valentine's Day merchandise. Lollies, cards, toys, animals, books, calendars, magnets, badges, chocolate ...... whatever you can imagine, it was packaged for Valentine's Day. And through this comes the expectation of celebrating this 'holiday' with students at school. I admit, I felt a bit weird - in Australia this day is reserved for couples. Here, it is for anyone. Couples celebrate each other, students and teachers at school celebrate their friendships, parents celebrate their children - we had more than one Dad come into school with flowers for his daughter! I was not expecting the degree to which this day was shared with the students at school - at 3pm all classes stopped for their Valentine's Day parties. I was lucky and Tracy, who I teach 4th grade with, shared with me her idea (and note) for an ice cream party she had planned. A few other teachers also gave me helpful 'hints' regarding how to handle the 'madness' that would ensue and Janel gave me a heads up the night before about having something for the kids to put their Valentine's they receive into during the party. Ahhh! So a quick trip to Walmart netted me some paper envelopes that I imagined the kids could decorate at the start of the party and that night I printed some little "You're Awesome" cards for each of my homeroom students. I believed I was prepared.......

The day started by being presented with a vase with beautiful daisies and an armful of gifts - teddies, chocolates and stickers - from students. This 'pile' of gifts continued to grow throughout the day as I watched in amazement. I was told partway through the day that Valentine's is often celebrated more that Christmas is here - and I can relate to that. Teachers, imagine what you get for Christmas / End of Year from your students? That is what I was receiving for Valentine's Day from them. And at the end of the day during our party? Mayhem!! It all started out well; we were decorating our envelopes, we went to get our ice cream sundaes from the other 4th grade room and were eating them nicely at our tables quietly.......and then someone asked if we could hand out Valentine's and Miss H said "Of course you can." Note to self - next time, think about instigating some type of order to this system! For the next 15 minutes kids were roaming the room with bags of lollies and stickers and lollipops, handing them out to all or a few of their classmates. I even received more items! I did feel okay by then about only giving the students a message - they did not need any more sugar at all! I was very thankful for the end of the day, let me tell you! :-)

Overall however I was incredibly thankful for the kind gifts and words the students gave me on this day - not only from my homeroom but students from the other two homerooms who I also take for writing sessions. Below is a picture of my amazing gifts from these students:

I was so spoilt!

 

I had to share this one in particular - the
student was so happy she found a koala Valentine
for her Australian teacher!


Arches National Park - Utah

My first interstate 'jaunt' took me 2 hours west from Grand Junction across state lines into Utah. I travelled with Linda, a CITEL buddy and friend, to a little town called Moab. This weekend, at the end of winter, it was not too busy at all. However, from around the end of March (Spring Break time) the crowds arrive and it is bursting at the seams to accommodate everyone. There is a huge pull for mountain biking, hiking, climbing, off road adventures in jeeps (and other vehicles), skydiving, base jumping and river rafting enthusiasts.

Linda and I were in Moab to see Arches National Park, which is about 5 miles north of the town. Arches NP has over 2,000 natural stone arches, in addition to hundreds of soaring pinnacles, massive fins and giant balanced rocks. It is a "red rock wonderland" for sure! We spent a good 4-5 hours or so in the park and there is still heaps to go back and see. On this day there was a lot of amazing photo opportunities and red rock scenery - below I have included a few I had on my iPad. Check out the Pages section to the right to see more (I will also hopefully post ones I receive from Linda).

A balancing rock - the number of these blew my mind!
I kept expecting them to fall right in front of my eyes!

Flat land leads to huge red rock formations!

On our way out of Arches, we drove on the scenic route - Highway 128 along the Colorado River. I have also put more of these photos from the drive home on the Pages section with the Arches photos.

Girls On The Run



The last few weeks I have been introduced to a program run here in the area called 'Girls On the Run' (or GOTR). This program is for girls in 3rd-8th grade and it teaches self esteem and life skills through dynamic, conversation-based lessons and running games. The program culminates with the girls being physically and emotionally prepared to complete a celebratory 5k running event. The goal of the program is to unleash confidence through accomplishment while establishing a lifetime appreciation of health and fitness. (http://www.girlsontherun.org/)

I am helping with the program this season and have been loving the messages these girls have been getting about body image, self esteem and being true to who they are - realising that they are an amazing girl and they are truly great! Each session starts with a lesson that gets the girls thinking about themselves and others. For example, our lesson last week was around turning our negative thoughts or sayings into positive ones and how this is a much happier and positive way to look at ourselves. We end the sessions with running laps of the track - as incentive, when each girl completes a mile she gets a little token so she can keep track of how many she runs over the program. At the start of May there is a 5km run where all the schools participating in the program compete in the spirit of fun and girl power! It is a great self esteem program and one that sounds similar to a few I have heard of back home in Australia - although none I know of also link in fitness......... I'd love to look at a program like this at home with our Aussie girls!! Something to think about on the flight home in January :-)


Kids Voting

I was lucky to be invited to attend the banquet for Kids Voting this year. Kids Voting USA (KVUSA) gets students involved and ready to be educated, engaged citizens. Students learn about democracy through a combination of classroom activities, family dialogue and an authentic voting experience. (http://kidsvotingusa.org/) Students participate in school based activities based around learning about voting and democracy, which even include actual candidates being involved! At the end of the election period, the students also get to actually participate in an Election Day with voting ballots, booths and the whole she-bang! It sounds like a great program and one I would like to learn more about.

Not only was the banquet night to celebrate the end of the year and all those students and schools who had participated in the Kids Voting during the last election, I was astounded at the young people from elementary school through high school who were recognised for selfless achievements in their school and community. They celebrated students who raise funds or look out for those less fortunate than themselves as well as those who work with (or create) non-profit organisations supporting the community. It was inspiring to hear and amazing stories for me to bring back to our students.


Other goings-on......

I have begun regularly hiking on Mondays with Kristi, a CITEL member and new friend. She is introducing me to different trails every week. So far we have been on two trails but I look forward to what is to come! I even went and bought actual hiking shoes - don't I feel special!! :-)

I also have joined a book club that meets once a month. This is an activity that Kristi introduced me to and my first gathering was a great event with dinner, chat and only a little discussion about the book. :-) It will get me into some different types of books throughout the year as everyone chooses a book each month. I have even made a book selection for May - A Rose For The Anzacs by Jackie French! (My book discussion girls from last year, if you have any notes just let me know!) Although there is enough books in the house here to keep me going for months! Theresa has so many books I don't know where to start reading - I go back and forth and have about four on the go at once at the moment! :-)

 This week I was lucky to get tickets to see the US Navy Band perform in Grand Junction. It was a great performance with amazing talented singers and musicians - I was in awe of all of them! A magical night of music :-)

Oh - and I am very excited as I received in the mail the tickets to Taylor Swift for May! My sister and I are going to be singing along to Taylor and Ed Sheeran in Denver. Big concert, big US arena = big amounts of fun!! (KPS girls, please do not throw your netbooks - it is not good for them. Just be jealous of your teacher instead!!)

To Be Continued.........

There is one more event I need to share with you from February and that is my trip to Denver across the mountains via the Amtrak train for the CITEL Snowshoeing day at Rocky Mountain NP. However I will have to post this particular event tomorrow as this post has taken two hours so far and I feel I will not do justice to the awesome scenery and adventure I had at the moment.

So be warned (or not) my friends - there is another (shorter) post to follow to finish up that which was the month of February...................... hopefully those groans are not coming from my former students!! :-P


Hope you enjoyed my February adventures so far - I'll be back shortly to wrap it all up.

Keep smiling :-D

Getting through January........

Hi everyone! The final few weeks of January have been full of activities ......... here are the details of my adventures over the last week!

AUSTRALIA DAY

I headed to Denver on January 26 with three past exchangees - Linda, Carolyn and her husband Geary - to attend the Colorado International Teaching Exchangee League (CITEL) orientation meeting and Australia Day party. It was a magical drive through the mountains from Palisade to Denver - we drove past ski fields and small little towns that were huddled against the sides of the mountains. There is a long tunnel - over 1 mile - which is tiled with white tiles and as such has to be cleaned regularly due to the car exhaust and snow-cleaning chemicals that get sprayed from the cars as they drive through. Glenwood Canyon is a majestic part of this drive - the freeway was specifically built to curve and snake through the canyon and not take away from the beauty of these canyon views. I was so taken by the views (and the conversations we were having in the car!) I did not have my camera handy. However I have grabbed two pictures from the Internet to give you an idea (source listed at bottom of post):

The orientation was fantastic. All the Aussie exchangees who are here in Colorado (and even one who is in Oregon!) were there and we had a good debrief about our first few weeks and what we had found regarding banks, cars and car insurance - the big three!! After an hour or so we headed to the main event of the day which was the Australia Day party being held at the home of one of the past exchangee's houses. Not only were all us Aussies there but also about 40 or so past exchangees who had been to Australia. Everyone was warm and welcoming and very interested in how we were faring during the first few weeks of our exchange. A lot of people I met offered beds if needed when travelling over to the Denver area or advice on where to go and what to see while I was here in Colorado. I had a great night and met some wonderful people!

Linda, Carolyn, Geary and I stayed overnight at the house and then headed back to Palisade / Grand Junction mid morning Sunday. We stopped for a few rest stops on the way and had a look at a few of the tiny, beautiful towns. At one town we stopped and spent a few minutes watching cars drive around a race track on an iced over lake. We also saw a group of deer just meandering through the houses!
 

Ice driving!

Meandering deer

The drive to Denver takes about 4 hours, depending on the conditions of the road. Last weekend it was fairly clear and dry but it can get very snow and ice covered if they have a weather system move through the mountains.

 

Celebrating Australia Day at Nisley

 

The Friday before Australia Day I took some little pieces of Australia into school to share with the fourth graders. We celebrated Australia Day at the end of each writing session with cold Milo, Vegemite on crackers and Caramello Koalas. I expected the kids to absolutely hate Vegemite - this is what has happened every time I have seen or heard Americans trying it. However, most of the kids declared they quite liked the salty taste! I was blown away - not quite so surprised when a few teachers who tried it declared it was horrible :-)

 

The following Wednesday I took in morning tea treats for the staff, having cooked for the prior three nights straight. Nisley staff were treated to two Pavlovas, homemade Lamingtons, Scones with jam and cream, and the big one - different flavoured TimTams!! All went over a treat once I cleared up the names (scones are very close to what they call biscuits over here, and they call biscuits cookies).

 

I was very proud of my cooking ability by the way - I have NEVER cooked a Pavlova before OR Lamingtons from scratch. Everything worked awesomely and even my sconces were the best I have made. I am wondering if this had anything to do with the high altitude here? Anyway, I am glad it all worked out and the staff enjoyed their taste of Australia!

 

Side note - finding ingredients to use when cooking these recipes took me an hour and a half solid in City Market! I did have to order coconut from home as I could not find dessicated here in the store - and I admit I used one Pav egg :-)

 

Glenwood Hot Springs

 

Saturday I headed out on my first day trip in the area - a teacher at Nisley, Sara, invited me to go with her to the Glenwood Hot Springs. We headed off at 8:30am and were in the pools by 10am. There are two pools at Glenwood - the main pool is 405 feet long x 100 feet wide and is kept at around 32 degrees celcius. The second pool is 100 feet long and is kept at a temperature of about 40 degrees celcius. The water comes from a spring which delivers around 3 1/2 million gallons of water every day at about 51 degrees celcius!

 

 

 

 

Sara and I spent about 4 hours at the pools and then headed to lunch at RibCity. We then stopped for a quick look at the memorial to 14 firejumpers who died in the South Canyon Fire on Storm King Mountain in 1994. It was a great day and I enjoyed getting to know Sara more as well!

 

Before we headed home, I had to take my picture near Sara's big truck - just for those of you at home who have been wanting me to buy one of these!!

 

Upcoming plans:

* Hanging out with new friends
* Planning some day trips around the local area
* February 23 - CITEL Snowshoeing in Rocky Mountain National Park


Hope all teachers and students started back at school well last week - I was thinking of you all! Have a great start to Term 1! It has started to get warmer here lately.....I am crossing my fingers it will get back to what I am told is 'normal' winter weather - around zero and above! I will keep updating the blog with my travels and adventures every two weeks or so - feel free to leave comments and I will do my best to reply to all!

Keep smiling,
Candice :-D

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Photo credits:

http://joyce4books.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/glenwood-canyon-1.jpg

http://photosourcewest.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/glenwood-canyon.jpg

http://static2.merinet.com/image_uploader/photos_11/large/australia-day.jpg

Experiencing snowshoeing........

Hello all! I hope this finds everyone in Australia underneath the air conditioner or finding some way to relieve the heat! Hopefully everyone is safe and sound from the bushfires as well.

Snowshoeing Novice No More!

One of the lakes we walked around

On Sunday (Jan 20th) Janel and I headed up to Mesa Lakes area, which is near the Powderhorn ski fields. Janel took me out for my first attempt at snowshoeing - and I have to say I loved it! It was so quiet that all you could hear was your breath and the crunch of the snow under your shoes.








Standing in the middle of new snow



Its easier if you keep moving in deep snow though!

The snowshoes helped me walk through the snow easier and I even got up a jog at one point! It was so beautiful just walking around snow and ice covered lakes on trails that passed under bare aspen trees, past snow covered boulders and over little brooks that were still running. A few people prior to us had walked across a few of the lakes, but we did not attempt that! We took the scenic route and enjoyed the quiet, windless walk. Suprisingly, it was warmer at the top of the mountain than it was in Palisade - again, due to the inversion.

In the far left upper corner you can see a bit of a haze
behind the mountains - this is the inversion holding
in all the pollution as well as the cold air!!

 Driving in the USA!




I am finding my independence more and more here in the States. Those that know me know I enjoy having space and time to 'do my own thing' every now and then. This is particularly helped with being able to explore little things on my own if I choose. It has been wonderful having the fantastic friends I have made here drive me around as I needed, but I am pleased to say I have gained a bit of independence again by finding a car to buy. I won't be knocking back car pools or rides to difference places, but it makes it easier if I need milk or to grab something quickly if I can jump into a car and drive myself! So I have bought myself a very neat and tidy 1997 Honda Accord. Hondas are apparently very popular here in the States and are regarded very well in terms of safety and maintenance. Now all I have to do is get a Colorado license - you can only hold insurance in Colorado if you have a state license. That's my next job!

Driving on my own here is another story! It took all my concentration at corners to get right in my head which side of the road I will end up on to start with. There were a few turns I had to correct myself on, but they were very quiet roads with no one around! I concentrate very hard to make sure I am driving safely and correctly on the roads here and I have tried to drive a little bit every day since I bought my car late last week. It is getting easier, particularly the route to school (very straight and only two turns)! I am going to begin venturing out of the Palisade / Grand Junction area in the next month so I look forward to exploring with a high level of concentration while driving!!

Plans Coming Up.....
Over the next few weeks:

* I am heading to Denver for my ITF Orientation session - CITEL is also throwing an Australia Day party so I look forward to celebrating in some way (though it won't be around a BBQ or pool I'm sure - too cold!)

* I will be exploring the local area and getting into some shops to see what shopping here is like!

* I am going to treat the staff at Nisley to an Australia Day feast - pavlova, lamingtons, tim tams, scones, Anzac biscuits.......... who knows what they will get as I have only ever cooked ONE of these items - the Anzacs!! (Don't worry, I've saved some Tim Tams from my travels, I am not attempting to make these!) The students will be getting Caramello Koalas and Milo drinks.

Stay tuned to how it all goes.........particularly my cooking experience!!

Catchya all later!

And School Begins.........

Hello everyone! The last 10 days have been so busy and filled that I have only just sat down to update you all. The past week has seen me celebrate my 30th birthday, meet new people, start teaching Fourth Grade and continue to be amazed at the gorgeous scenery that surrounds me every day. Here are some updates:

Happy Birthday To Me!
I spent my birthday with a wonderful family who are good friends already after only knowing them two weeks. Janel works at the school with me in the Library and I went to her house on the edge of town for the afternoon and evening. We went for a hike up snow covered mountains for about a mile or so, taking in the absolutely beautiful views over Palisade and towards Grand Junction. Janel's house sits on hills outside of Palisade and has 360 degree views of the red mountains surrounding us here in the valley. Photos do not do any of these views justice but I will chronicle as much as I can for all of you back home in sweltering Australia! (I was unable to upload here - please look at the Photos pages located on the right)

After we hiked out and back I had dinner with Janel's family - they have twin boys and another who is in my grade - as well as a chocolate chip cookie slab cake!! It was a wonderful evening talking about Australia with the boys and Janel and her husband, comparing it to the States. The boys and their dad Russ go hunting for game on the hills where we took a hike and earlier that day had killed an elk! This led to me not only having my very first try of elk jerky (which was gamey but quite nice!) but leaving the boys astounded that hunting is not a 'big thing' back home and our gun availability is not as spread as it is here in Colorado and the States.

*Side note - After being introduced to elk jerky, I was told that anything elk is better than beef and that when I try beef jerky I will be severely disappointed! Another moment of interest for the boys was that jerky was not a huge seller in Australia - in fact, I had to tell them I have never seen it myself. We had a few laughs thinking up business names for our new jerky import business though - and working out the profit splits!!

School Begins
So a week ago I began the official part of my whole 'year overseas thing' - teaching. Monday morning came and I arrived at school at 8am, car pooling with Janel and her son. I vividly remember feeling the exact same emotions when I started at Korumburra 6 1/2 years ago (also halfway through the school year) - nerves, excitement, fear, anticipation, worry and wonder at what I had gotten myself in for. However everyone I met was wonderfully warm and friendly and made me feel very welcome and brave for what I was doing!

Monday was a teacher work day with no students and most of the staff were finalising their second quarter report scores, so I spent the day familiarising myself with the room layout and trying to get my head around the fact that I would be teaching 65 students each day. Yes, that's right - I did not make a mistake. I teach ALL the Grade 4 students every day, either in a writing block or for science sessions. To break it down for those in Australia my basic day looks like this:

8:50 - 9am         Homeroom group arrives in class; Pledge of Allegiance and Morning
                                     Announcement over PA system.
9 - 10am            Special Education classes for students - ESL, Speech, OT, Behaviour. While these
                                     students are out, the remaining students are mixed together and we look at
                                     reading or maths skills practice using SRAs, book studies and maths facts
                                     work. When students return from Special Ed, they are absorbed and picked up
                                     by myself or the other two Grade 4 teachers to work on certain skills.
10 - 11:25am    Block 1 starts. Students from all three Grade 4 classes are mixed into three 'block'
                                     groups. They rotate through each teacher every day - I teach Writing, Dave
                                     teaches Math (with no 's' at the end!) and Tracy teaches Reading.
11:25 - 12:25pm   Specials classes (Specialists to us Australians!) Half hour sessions of Library and
                                            Computers Monday and Thursday, with Music and PE half hours on
                                            Tuesday and Friday. All up students get 4 hours of Specials - this is
                                            teacher planning time. Very different to the 2 1/2 hours back home -
                                            however I unfortunately have to say this week I still was distracted from
                                            my planning by other things, just like I am always doing back home!!
12:25pm               Block 1 students come back to drop off their things and collect their food, jackets,
                                      hats, scarves, etc.
12:30 - 1:05pm     Recess / Lunch.........Students spend 15 minutes outside for recess playtime and
                                      then eat their lunch in the cafeteria for 20 minutes. This 35 minutes is my
                                      lunchtime as well (I do no duty during this time - I was told the reason for this
                                      is that I am required have 30 minutes free for break. Other staff, such as the
                                      specials teachers, cover the duty).
1:05 - 2:25pm       Block 2
2:25 - 3:45pm       Block 3
3:45 - 3:50pm       Homeroom returns to the class for any final handouts and the end of the day.

Wednesday is slightly different with the times. There are no Specials classes and the students move around between the three teachers in their homeroom groups. On this day of the week I teach Science, Dave teaches Social Studies and Tracy teaches Research. Another change on Wednesdays is that school finishes at 1:50pm for the students. That's right my Aussie friends and students - school is out at 1:50pm on Wednesday. The School District brought this change in as a way to save money from what I gather. While the students get the afternoon to go home and enjoy being a kid, we teachers spend this time on Professional Development and planning.

There is probably one major thing I have noticed this week which is different between Australian and USA schools. Here, every class is on a different schedule due to the need for students to eat in (and fit into!) the cafeteria, which is a commercial kitchen style deal. At Nisley, most students eat lunch from the cafeteria - and this is their ONLY food break in the day. They spend 15 minutes outside for recess time and then come straight into the cafeteria to eat their lunches for 20 minutes. At Korumburra, most of our students bring their lunch as we don't offer a full service canteen, with a recess AND a seperate lunch break (1 1/2 hours in total). Our students also spend most of their eating time outside and if it is bad weather we eat in the classroom or building. Weather wise, our climate makes it so much easier to do this eating outside though!

Anyway, before I sign off for another week of school there are a few more interesting points that I feel I would like to share with you:

* My mobile talk to me! Yes, that's right - when I have a call or a text my phone tells me who it is from and if it is a message or a call. Very freaky - and not at ALL like Siri!!

* It is so dry here (I am in desert country) everything is static. I keep shocking myself on light switches and bathroom fixtures!

* The Grand Junction valley is currently facing an inversion. Basically, the cold air is being kept down here near the ground and it has been weirdly freezing for the last week. Apparently they never have this long of a cold snap like we have had. Welcome to Colorado Candice!!

* I have yet to find bread here! I have tried a few different types but they are all very sweet - just does not give my Vegemite the best base!!

* Cake mixture boxes here have high altitude cooking instructions! I plan on trying to cook a pavlova for the staff in honour of Australia Day - this could be interesting in more ways than one!!

* Walmart = Big W.......this is the conclusion I have come to - except Walmart also has a supermarket in each store!

*People driving can turn right at traffic light corners when they have a red light - as long as there is no traffic coming obviously (remember Aussies, Americans drive on the right side of the road - which is still really weird occasionally!)

*American printer paper is smaller than ours! That's right - our A4 paper is larger than their standard paper size. Their standard size is 8.5" x 11" - basically our 'letter' size in office print settings. Important I find that out - printing things off for school was interesting the first few times when I was missing the ends of pages!

* Lastly, watching the Australian Open Day 1 tonight is not quite the same without our wonderful Aussie commentators - the Americans just don't have our same jovial attitude to everything!

Every day I am blown away by the majestic scenery I am surrounded by on all sides here in the valley. I have posted some photos of when I went to the Colorado Monument yesterday - we stopped at a viewing station and I took a few pictures quickly. I will be returning again but it just reaffirmed that I have been placed in a gorgeous area of Colorado. I look forward to exploring it more over the next 12 months!!

Take care everyone in Australia - keep drinking water and stay out of the extreme heat if it is affecting your area. To cool off, feel free to look at my photos and think of me here facing -20 degrees Celsius and snow flurries!!

Keep smiling and dreaming!