Internship December Reflection:

            As my internship comes to a close, I am left with bittersweet emotions. I am excited to finish my last semester of university and start my career as an educator in a few months. However, I am also sad to leave my students, co-op, school, and the community I have immersed myself in these past four months. As I write this final reflection, my mind goes back to what I said during my first month of internship, that relationships are everything. Before writing this post, I was finishing writing individualized holiday cards for all my students, as relationships are at the center of my pedagogy and teaching philosophy. Though this month has been short, we still had much excitement within our classroom and school. We kicked off the start of December with a visit to Agribition, the first one held in two years since the pandemic, and it was a real treat. The students had a blast, and we all learned so much. In addition, our visit aligned perfectly with the science unit I was teaching (plants and animals). Next up this month, I also spent some time in different classrooms and other schools. I learned a lot from these experiences and appreciated seeing the routines, procedures, and teachings within different classrooms and grade levels. I even tried teaching a lesson in a grade one class at our school, which was a great experience. After my visits, we had our holiday carnival at the school; I was a part of the planning committee and helped with the face painting and craft stations. On an exciting note, I also made my directorial debut as I led our students in singing and dancing to Winter Wonderland and Frosty The Snowman. We ended this past week with a pajama day and a movie in the morning. While My co-op and I assembled 30 gingerbread houses for our students to decorate for the afternoon, it was the perfect sugar rush to end the week. This upcoming week will be short, and I am going to have to prepare myself for all the goodbyes. Though I will be sad to go, I am truly grateful to this group of students. These students helped shape me into the teacher I am today and the teacher I have yet to become. I will always look back on my internship with fondness and admiration for everyone who is a part of it. This is only the start, and I cannot wait to see what the future holds.

Thank you for taking the time to read my December internship reflection.