Death by Story Problems

I'm taking Math for Elementary Majors, a requirement to get into the Transition to Teaching program at IUPUI. I have actually been looking forward to it because I've always enjoyed math. I like stretching those brain muscles. I felt the same way about music theory.

However, I was slapped upside the head by the math gods (demons?) when I realized that an enormous chunk of math for children in elementary is...DUHN DUHN DUHN...story problems.

It's hard to describe my hatred of story problems. I know I need to change my attitude, and I'm working on it. Luckily I have a very patient fiance who is not only good at story problems, he's also a teacher. Hopefully I won't drive him too crazy this semester.

Gettin' down to brass tax

Lots going on, little time to get it all done. Luckily all good stuff!

Wedding

• 121 days! Hooray! And eek!
• Dress: to be picked up very soon.
• Excitement: at an all-time high!
• Stress? nah, never heard of it.

School

• Classes: (Math for Elementary Majors, Introduction to Scientific Inquiry, Introduction to the English Language) So far, so good! The second class has not met yet, the instructor has been very sick. Talk about bad timing! It's going to be a challenging semester but doable.
• Actual Transition to Teaching program: application is due early February. Fingers crossed!
• The State of Education address: teacher licensing changes, Indiana Growth Model, civil rights issues in Indiana schools, Indiana's first Education Reform Cabinet, and potential teacher merit pay. Some interesting ideas, time will tell.

Crafts

• Cross stitch: my first experience with waste cloth. I'll definitely be doing it again, I learned a lot and there's a lot of potential for really neat projects
• Sewing: A friend of mine and I will be taking sewing lessons (at some point) and I'm getting really excited! I still need to own an actual sewing machine, I guess that's step 1. I hope to do some house projects like curtains, pillowcases and tablecloths. Simple stuff to start out. Then move onto sun dresses and other fun and challenging projects.

Pets

• Stinky and ornery
• Happy and healthy
• Oh, and it turns out walking your dogs is a good thing. Who knew?

Happy Wednesday to all!