XO

At the end of one of the most challenging years, Beyoncé dropped an album that I absolutely cannot stop listening to. If you are reading this post and don't like Beyoncé or having something negative to say about the album then you can click here. I don't ever do album reviews...I actually don't even know if you could call this post an album review--I honestly want to just write about my experience with this album--audio and visual.

Beyonce's new album should be listened to not song by song and in between trips to the grocery store. The set of songs and the way that she created her masterpiece is a story and should be sat down with and listened to like you read a book--giving it thought and time. The self-titled album pulls on your heart strings, makes you want to dance, love your people for who they are, and just down right cry--it's what my professor George would like to call a catharsis. That is exactly what happened to me while listening to this album--I had a catharsis, an emotional outpouring.

She goes from singing about her love with Jay-Z, to crashing down the anti-feminist barrier, to losing a child, and then her love for Blue--and so much more. My favorite song on the album is constantly changing and at the moment, the song I am in love with is "Superpower." I love this song so much more because of the video. Beyonce didn't leave fans trying to visualize what each song meant--she just created a video for each song, and "Superpower", like all of the other videos, is just flat out brilliance. Beyonce brings in all of her people to the video--her people people. I have such a thing for being around your people. I love my people and they are my rock. When I watch this video, all I can think about is my people.

Honestly, I have so much to say about this album but I'm not entirely sure I have processed enough of it into words. I don't remember ever being obsessed with an album like this before--song, yes, maybe...but album...no, never. Beyonce has redefined how my heart responds to music--mainly because she shattered it into a million pieces with "Heaven" and then picked it right back up and put it together with "Blue".


Christmas came early this year. Love you like XO.

Baby It's Cold Outside

I have started a Christmas countdown board in my classroom. I know that creating a bulletin board is a small thing (really it's kind of tedious and helps me understand why it is considered a "first year teacher thing") but I love countdowns. I really appreciate this countdown because there are many things that I am looking forward to that will happen around day one--I will be with my family, my first semester of teaching will be complete, my project PaCE observations will be done (they are looming over my head), etc. I am looking forward to day one but I'm not wishing my days away either.

This week was freezing--I am not ready for Texas Panhandle weather. Cold weather is one of my least favorite parts about winter--that and the days getting darker sooner. I expected it to get somewhat cold in the Valley, but I'm tired of thirty degree weather. I don't do well with the cold and never have. There is just something about warm weather and the sun that makes me smile. 

On Friday, I decided to have my kids write a letter to Santa as a journal assignment. In 11th grade, students are working on persuasive writing. I know it might seem rather silly, but I had them write a letter persuading Santa to take them off of the naughty list. The letters that I received have kept me laughing and my kids really seemed to enjoy the assignment. Obviously a letter to Santa isn't the most rigorous writing I could assign, but my students wrote and were persuasive--celebrate the small things. 

12 days until break--17 until Christmas.

I can wait until then

To start this post I would first like to say thank you to all those who have sent my kids letters. We read them in class all of the time and many of them are posted on my walls (I will post a picture soon). The response that I have received from all of my readers exceeded my expectations and I couldn't be more grateful.

Yesterday I finished teaching my first six weeks of high school English. I laugh to myself when I reflect on the trials and successes that have happened in my classroom in this short span of time.

As I continue this post, I write today knowing that tomorrow will be the beginning of the third six weeks (it's amazing how time can fly when trying to draft a blog post). What a year it has been. I have learned so much about life, love, and what it means to really be committed to someone and something.

Accepting my spot in the corps and coming to the Valley was never a question in my mind. I knew what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go. I think the only way to really explain it is just to say...I just knew.

Teaching 11th graders has been such a rewarding experience. Everyday is a new adventure. There is always something to laugh at and something new to learn. Honestly, I could talk about my kids all day long. They are the most incredible people in the entire world. When I crafted my vision for my classroom at the beginning of the year, I had no idea how much it would actually manifest in my classroom. If you need to know the definition of a dreamer, just come and talk to any one of my 120 juniors--believe me, they know.

Whoever the "they" is, they say that your first year of teaching is sometimes just a matter of surviving. Maybe I just lucked out...but they are wrong. My first year of teaching is more about living than surviving. It has been a journey that is far from the road of "I think I want to quit my job every time I drive to work." Don't get me wrong, teaching is hard and emotional--and there are those days where I just want to scream...so I do, but I love it. Before I started in August, I was also hired to coach. Coaching has been such an amazing opportunity where I am able to get to know my kids on a different level. I am always busy (which is nice) and I am able to work with my kids outside of the classroom. I coach the 7th grade B team for basketball and going from the high school to the middle school everyday is eventful to say the least. Middle school girls have such a different perspective on life...(yes, let's just put it that way). I love my kids across the board--and maybe coaching your first year isn't for everyone, but it definitely is for me.

I remember moving to Austin and only knowing a handful of people in the city (and no one at school). Moving to a place where I know no one is a pretty reoccurring event in my life. Starting my life in the Valley and finding my people has definitely been the biggest challenge I have faced. When life changes, it is so important to know who the people are that are always on your team. The people that have always and will always be on my team are fourteen hours away. Fostering relationships is always a new experience and having people on my team is always a very crucial part of my well-being (isn't it for everyone though?). It has definitely taken me a bit to find my people, but the most loving and caring people have come into my life. Each day I am thankful for these relationships and how much love each person brings to the table.

Now, will I teach for the rest of my life? Will I stay in the Valley after my time in the corps has ended? These are both big questions that I work on answering everyday. Honestly though, I am in no rush and I kind of just want to let life happen. I don't have any desire to stop teaching or leave Raymondville. For right now, I am living not surviving--I am breathing not gasping for air--and as always...I am dreaming.

I believe in you

When I made the decision to join Teach For America, and even more when I decided that the Rio Grande Valley was the absolute number one place that I wanted to be while on this adventure, I knew that I was taking my first step into a part of my life that I had been anxiously awaiting for a very long time. After I returned from Chile, I had a very different sense of what I actually "needed" to survive throughout each day; I had a completely different outlook on relationships and what love looked like; I had a changed mindset about other cultures and races; I had gained a new sense of independence and adventure; and, I was incredibly devastated. This is probably the first time I have openly written about it, so why, you may ask, was I devastated? I was happy to return and see my family and friends but I had the absolute worst time readjusting to my life in the US. There were too many things that I felt like I need to have, time moved too quickly, people demanded too much, and I missed the instant gratification that came from learning something entirely organic about another culture each day (this was heavily based on the fact that I was constantly learning Spanish). So yes, as excited as I was to move back home, it completely broke me. I stayed pretty broken for most of the year--and it was awful. Don't get me wrong, there were great things about my senior year of college, but it was very very emotionally exhausting and difficult. I thank God each day that I have such good people who constantly helped me out while I continuously processed all of my reverse culture shock. I'm not sure at what point I knew, but soon I realized that I had to go back to simplicity. How do you even do that right? Well, for me, it was going rural. It was moving to a culture in the US that identified with the one I experienced in Chile--but still remained an adventure in and of itself. It's very hard to tell people exactly "what" Raymondville is like, and so many people have so many different opinions about what it is like to live here. But this video helped me really understand the town which I have come to call home.

This place is nothing like my home, except for the fact that it is a rural, small, sports-loving town. Now, getting down to my kids.

What do kids in the Valley face compared to other students? For every 100 students entering a public school classroom in South Texas today, only 12 will earn any type of degree within six years of graduation. As early as third grade, students in South Texas are performing behind their peers across the state, and this gap persists through the grade levels and into college for those students who are able to further their education. 

When I was in high school my biggest worry was making a B, not being able to CLEP a college exam, or not getting into the college I wanted to attend. It is impossible for me to try and even remotely understand what my kids face each day at home, in school, and for their future. But what I do know is that they can succeed at levels just as high as any other students in the state. Where does that start? Success is rooted in what my students experience at home, at school, in the community, within the government, within themselves.

Any veteran teacher knows that building a classroom is an insanely expensive and difficult thing to do and takes lots of time. Many of us are young 20-somethings fresh out of college who can't rub two pennies together--thank goodness I have amazing parents who help me rub pennies. So yes, anything you want to donate to our classrooms is always welcome. I have gotten the most amazing supplies from peoples' used or unwanted school supplies from previous years. However, putting all of the material aside, what can you really do for our kids that may end up changing their lives forever? Believe in them. Do not tell my kids that they cannot go to college because they aren't smart enough, don't have the money, actually....just don't ever tell them that they can't, for any reason. Tell them that they can do it. Tell them about your life and how you were able to push through your struggles. Tell them about how amazing life is even when it doesn't seem like it in the moment. Tell them you are here for them. And most importantly, tell them that you believe in them.

I know that many of you haven't had a conversation with me in a very long time and just keep up with my life on here. Others of you I communicate with all of the time. Whichever it may be, something brought you to my blog--something brought you to this post and I want to ask you to do something (which isn't something I ever really like to do...besides like watching videos and listening to songs and such). I want you to write my kids a letter. Yes, the snail mail kind (or the email kind I guess). I know that you don't know my kids from Adam (right now neither do I) but you have to care about the future, right? The future is my kids. Write to them and tell them that you are cheering for them--write to them and tell them that you are on their team. Let them know how you succeeded in life and overcame your struggles. Tell them that they can go to college. Explain to them that they were made to do great things. Really, write anything that you believe will inspire my kids to dream big, challenge themselves to go beyond mediocrity, always find the silver lining, and let them know that there are people out there in the world that care about them. Even if it's just one sentence, let these kids know that you believe in them.

Leigh Anne Winger
12712 State Hwy 186 W
Raymondville TX, 78580

lawregion1@gmail.com

Life Lately

So it's been a while...a long while it seems. In the past month and a half my life has changed probably more than it ever has. I guess that's what happens when you like join the real world and do that whole "becoming an adult thing" right? I'm not one to be accepting of change, and I sure hate to think that I won't always be young, but this new chapter of my life has started off being one of the most rewarding yet. Here is a glimpse into the past few weeks:

First and foremost I graduated college--praise Jesus, Joseph, and Mary. Of course there wasn't a moment that I was ever worried that I wouldn't finish (granted there were plenty of days that I wanted to quit) but graduation day with my parents and closest friends is one of the happiest days that I can remember in all of my 21 years. After graduating, I was able to go home and spend time with my family. It was the longest amount of time that I have been at home since my freshman year of college and everything about it was just wonderful--I cried when I left--not a bad cry, just an, "Oh my god I want to live with my parents forever because they feed me, clothe me, and love me all day" kind of a cry. My mom is also excellent at this from a distance (her snail mail skill is unstoppable). When I left Gruver, I headed to the Valley for two weeks where I was immersed into the TFA world of Rio--I met my future colleagues and had a wonderful week talking about the goals we have for our kids in the upcoming years.

After leaving Rio I traveled to Houston and walked into the most wonderfully rigorous environment that I have ever been in. I have been at Rice University for the past month basically going through the teacher military. We wake up around 5:30 AM, get to school at 7:30, teach all day, attend classes all day, go home for dinner, attend more classes, then lesson plan for the next week and day--this is real life, this is Houston Institute. Teach For America requires that every teacher go through the five week intensive program where we are in sessions, teach summer school, and learn many of the ups and downs of being a teacher. I have met the most amazing people, have been pushed to the furthest limits of my comfort zone, and have been blessed beyond words. The kids that I teach every day are the most amazing group of high school students that I have ever met and I don't even like to think about not being their teacher after the end of next week. I honestly keep having this moment where I know that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing and as mushy and cliche as that sounds, I wake up every morning and am legitimately excited to go to work.

While I was at Institute another blessing happened to spring upon my path. Teach For America partners with many grad schools and I was researching the programs one night and came upon the John Hopkins School of Education application. I decided to make the move and sent in my application (about three weeks ago) not really thinking what could happen. I woke up Tuesday morning to an email that said that I had been accepted to the MSED program--it was like Christmas morning times ten. Now it's back on the role--scholarship applications. However, this time around, applying for scholarships and going to college is different. I am working with my kids on writing scholarship essays and the importance of writing and literacy. After pushing my kids to see the impact that reading and writing can have in their lives, I begin to think past the buzz of Institute to what I want to do after completing the masters program. I know that I don't have to know what I want to do now--and honestly, I doubt I will leave the classroom anytime soon (it's my sanctuary, I love it too much) but it is a window of hope--which is something I talk to my kids about every single day.

In the Valley (I think I might have said this in a previous post), I was given this quote, which is now the mantra of my life and of my classroom:

“Hope has two beautiful daughters; their names are Anger and Courage. Anger at the way things are, and Courage to see that they do not remain as they are.”--St. Augustine

This quote really does explain what is happening in my life and I hope each day to be able to have the courage to work to change the things that need to be changed. The people that I work with think that I am crazy (because we work eighteen hour days) but I really am sad to be leaving this place at the end of next week. The group of ELA teachers that I work with all day have become my family and my kids have such a special place in my heart. I am excited to see what hope holds in the next few weeks.

Sweet summertime

There is nothing in the world like being home. I never really quite understood this until now though. Not that I didn't like coming home to see my family, but for the past three years in college  I was pretty content staying in Austin over the summer and just visiting the Panhandle over the holidays. I guess it's probably something tied up in that whole growing up thing but I really have just enjoyed my time at home so much and don't really want to leave (so I'm coming back in a month haha). My friends are home for the summer, I get to spend time with my parents, grandparents, and brothers, and it's just nice to be somewhere that is and always be a familiar place. I am still excited for the change in my life but for now it's just good to be home. And honestly, I probably have never really understood that until now.

I also just realized that it has been ages since I have blogged so let me go ahead and catch you up in pictures:

Don't you feel caught up now? Okay, great.

Being In Love...With Life

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter. I cannot tell you how lovely mine was. I really am just overflowing with emotion so this blog post may be a little long (maybe?). The weekend started out with my friend (and basically sister) Laura coming into town. Laura is also a Teach For America teacher--she works in Marksville, LA. Laura was a senior when I was a freshman at St. Ed's. We lived in different buildings and were introduced through our mutual friend Amarette, who is teaching on a Fulbright in Germany, (don't I have the most amazing friends?) and we have been close ever since. Laura is one of those friends who is just super patient and nurturing. I had just come off of a really stressful week so it was nice to have Laura in town. Because I go to a Catholic school, I had five days off for the break. Laura and I spent time in Austin hanging out and then left for the Valley Friday morning (basically afternoon). I never have really liked the car, but I don't mind road trips with my friends. We ventured down to the Valley and into culture shock I went.

Now let me preface that my culture shock in the Valley was not near that of when I went to Chile...it was pretty mild actually and I absolutely LOVED IT. I was having a moment of struggle accepting the transition from college to the job world and going to the Valley with Laura made me feel so much more at ease. Laura is pretty much a wealth of information and her family lives in the Valley. We arrived and there were orchards everywhere. I don't think I can quite explain my obsession with them...mainly because the only crops I grew up around were corn, wheat, more corn, more wheat, and some times cotton, soybeans, and sunflowers (all of which I am highly allergic to). There were also so many palm trees (which I am also NOT allergic to). I'm sure by now you get the gist that I'm potentially not going to be highly allergic to the Valley. This is super important to me because I get sick so often. We stopped at her house and talked to her precious cutie parents for a bit then went to visit her brother, sister-and-law, and kids. Everyone in the Valley that I met was just so warm and receptive. The Mexican culture, like Chilean culture, is just very loving, family-based, and slow paced. Everyone is late, eats late, drives slow, and time just kind of slows down. The Spanish language is also dominant. I really appreciate this. I honestly just have a deep love for the Latin American culture and knew almost instantaneously that this was where I was supposed to be. It is gorgeously hot, crazily humid, and amazing.

We also took a trip to the beach (which is totally right around the corner) and had such a great time:

It was such a fabulous day. It was a day where I just really understood how in love with my life I was. I read the other day that the most genuine form of selfishness was to honor yourself and be in love with your life everyday. I'll have to find the quote and put it up for you all...I definitely didn't do it justice.

I was a bit (actually quite a bit) sad to return to Austin. I do love Austin and everything it has to offer, but I miss the small town life. I have never been a city girl. I don't know that I have ever even claimed to be one. Austin is a great place but I would never want to live here indefinitely. The Valley felt like home and I am ready to be home. Don't get me wrong, I am in no way wishing away the final six weeks of my undergraduate career---I am just looking forward to change (which never happens).

My mom and I were talking about it and she told me that it probably really helped that my first venture to my new home was with Laura. She is totally right about that one. I couldn't be more grateful to Laura and her family for welcoming me like they did and showing me around the Valley. I felt secure, safe, welcomed, and loved in the most familial way.

I received an email today letting me know that I could be potentially working at Raymondville ISD. It is a 3A school--I am hoping to interview later this week. The second exciting news of the day is that I had a new article published on USATODAY College. You can read it here: 2-20+ Play-doh for stress relief.

I will be taking my ELA certification exam this Thursday so keep me in your thoughts and if you have any tips you are willing to share about TX certification testing, feel free to comment below!

Also, my new favorite music obsession, Icona Pop.