Takeaways from Prince Rupert

1. Maintain Balance

The go-go-go lifestyle that I was experiencing during my practicum was draining, mentally, physically and emotionally. This past time in Prince Rupert has allowed me to really slow down and start taking better care of myself. I loved getting my physical exercise in each day by being at the pool with students or walking/riding my bike around town. I had down time – such a novel concept after being on my practicum. It sounds so cliché but the low key, laid back attitude here was so relaxing compared to the constant rush of the city. Being here reminded me of the things that I value most and the need for more balance in my life, something I will definitely work to keep up upon my return to Vancouver.

2. The Value of Community

I must say the community in Prince Rupert is really amazing. The other day I was riding my bike home from the pool in the pouring rain and I must admit, I was pretty miserable when I heard from across the street “Miss Woodley! Hiiiiiiiii!” It was a student that I had met only once or twice when I was at Lax Kxeen. I was so overjoyed that they had remembered my name, recognized me on my bike and had wanted to say hi! I waved and yelled back and was immediately pulled out of my rainy bike ride gloom. I loved how quickly the students warmed up to me at Lax Kxeen. Even though it was the end of the school year, there was job action and I was a brand new face in their school, they never made me feel as though I was an outsider. They immediately welcomed me and made me feel at home in their school. Even walking around town I will have students wave at me, it really is nice to be able to see them outside of the school environment, I don’t remember bumping into any of my students during my practicum outside of school. This being said, I think that you can make community wherever you are, seeing it so apparent here though solidified my philosophy that teaching is really about the relationships and rapport that you build with students and the school community.

3. Fast Friends

I made a really good friend, Jessica, another UBC TC. Due to the circumstances of CFE we fast tracked our friendship to the point where we were spending every day together. We had a lot of the same goals and visions for our CFEs and we both wanted to make the most out of our time here, I’d say we were definitely successful! We balanced our educational experiences with community experiences and personal interests which made for a well rounded visit of Prince Rupert. We made a great team and support system and I’m excited to stay connected with her even after this experience is over.

4. Go With the Flow

Too many times to count, as new teachers we have been told in classes or at schools “as a teacher, you need to be flexible.” This was especially true as our CFEs fell right in the middle of job action. After having only one week in our schools we were set loose to find our own experiences in the Prince Rupert community. Luckily everyone here was incredibly helpful in steering us in the right direction and we found experiences that were relevant, worthwhile, and enjoyable. This was a lesson in being self directed and navigating our own path in an unfamiliar environment and being open minded to new experiences – being flexible indeed!

5. Any Experience is What You Make It

While I definitely enjoyed my experience in Prince Rupert there were days (especially those rainy, grey days) when I wasn’t the most upbeat. There were a lot of times when things had to be a compromise – not finding proper supplies, having placements fall through, etc. I learnt to always remember that even some of the disappointing things would be funny a few weeks from now or at least make a great story. (The time we, students teachers, spent 6 hours making fish puppets at the Cannery because only 9 children showed up all day.) ( The day that Jessica and I spent hours at 4 different stores trying to find crafting supplies and then transporting said supplies by bike) Basically, to toss out another cliché – you’ve got to look for the silver lining. This cliché is totally appropriate for a rainy place like Rupert so I don’t feel too bad about using it!

I’m sure there are a multitude of other takeaways from my time in Prince Rupert that haven’t made it on this list but I should really stop before I throw in more clichés. It’s definitely going to be hard to say goodbye tomorrow but these experiences will be something I’ll remember for a lifetime.

Over and out Prince Rupert!

For our last week, Jessica and I continued to work with Sue, the occupational therapist. I have gained so much more confidence when working with our student, I am far more trusting of him to be capable to do things but still keeping a very close eye on him. He is such a risk taker and wants to be able to do everything in the pool, climb ropes, ride in the boat, etc. I am always a little nervous at first but he can do it. We also worked with a teenager who has a knee injury.  I admire her willingness to participate in everything, as a 15 year old I don’t think I would enjoy spending my afternoons at the pool doing exercises.  Working with Sue and watching the students make progress was so rewarding. It was my first experience working with the physically disabled and it was very eye opening. I learnt to try to balance being hands off enough but also being supportive enough. On our final day working with Sue and the students, we celebrated with an ice cream sundae party. It was a great way to celebrate their success and say goodbye.

On Wednesday, it was another beautiful day and Jessica and I trekked out to the Butze Rapids, a 5km trail just outside of Prince Rupert. We packed another delicious picnic and enjoyed the sunshine. It was lovely weather for our last two days in Rupert which was a wonderful surprise, a great note to end on for sure!

Overall my experience in Prince Rupert was overwhelmingly positive. I love the community there, everything they say about small towns is true, everyone is so friendly. We were lucky that there were many people willing to help us out when the strike happened. Because Rupert is such a tight knit community, we were quickly connected with new opportunities, something that I’m not sure would have happened somewhere like Vancouver.