Snapperoon: Outfit of the Day

Capturing my life in snaps.

Sweet Tooth

I downloaded an app on my phone which I guess you could call a "sophisticated version of Paint from your PC".

I had a bit of a doodle on it and I didn't come up with a masterpiece but I feel I came up with a style I like; a soft pencil, ombré shading with a messy, thin, black outline. I did try to put a fun, yellow background on it, but let's just say, your traditional pencil and paper wouldn't crash and close down on you every time you made an attempt to...

 

I'll have more of a play around with it and see how I go.

Nothing show-stopping but we've all gotta start somewhere right?

Keep smiling xxx

Mug Mugshot

So, I like mugs.

I have since I bought this little fella earlier this year from the reduced Christmas sales.

Cute right?!

 I may or may not have a virtual mug collection on eBay. Take of that what you will.

So instead of drowning myself in my own mugs, I like to buy mugs as gifts. I don't know if that's my way of justifying buying mugs or if it's become something instilled into me now that I'm a fully fledged tea-drinking teacher; probably not the latter.

But just look at these quirky little things!

So this one I bought for a teacher who taught taught me at sixth form. In the last few weeks of my teacher training, you are given the opportunity to "enrich" yourself. So I thought I'd return to the sixth form and work alongside the teachers who inspired me to go into the field. And might I add, if you ever have the opportunity to work alongside the people who inspired you to do what you do:

It's an invaluable experience and for me, it was just such a nice way to end my own teacher training to work alongside the teachers who taught and inspired me.

Anyways, back to the mug story. So yeah, I bought that mug for him because one, he's a computing teacher if you didn't already figure with the geeky code plastered over it and two, we both worked on a programming solution to a GCSE qualification together so this was like a little nod towards that. Plus, he loves coffee.

Again computing themed, this was bought for another computing teacher who also taught me at sixth form which I then had the opportunity to work alongside. The one that I bought was a blue version of this one. He was incredibly complimentary when I was working alongside him, which I never know how to react when receiving a compliment..."That looks good." "Yes."...*awkward shifty eyes*

Surprise surprise, another computing mug for, you guessed it, another computing teacher who taught me and then I got to work alongside her. This particular teacher has actually taught me when I was in high school as well so it was incredibly lovely to work alongside herself and then let her see me teach also! One of her favourite topics to teach was HTML which is a language that is used to program websites. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a HTML based mug so this I.P. address one just had to suffice. However, the reaction I got when she saw the mug was amazing! She loved it!

My final mug purchase was not for a computing teacher, which you may or may not be pleased to read, but it is for a friend of mine who was also teacher training this year. She was training as a primary school teacher and I can gladly announce, she too is now a fully fledged teacher! So to gift her on surviving the PGCE year, I have bought her this mug. I've yet to give this to her but I'm hoping she'll like it. Throughout this year, we've rang each other something like once a week every week to offload, rant and quite frankly, keep each other sane. This mug particularly fits her because for once in her life she got mega stressed, which is not usually her, hence the Keep Calm and to add to that, the lesson plans that she had to do was insanely, several pages long for each lesson. So that's the little nod to that.

Lo and behold, I too was given a mug as a gift for my teaching adventures and isn't it the cutest!

How coincidentally funny - when I opened this gift, I was smiling so much, one because it's so cute! But two because in my bag, I too had bought them mugs! We were just on the same brainwave. They mean a lot to me because they are the very people who inspired me to go into the teaching career that I'm in, in the subject that I'm in. So these mugs are only a very small token of my appreciation and thanks to them!

I can only hope to be even a fraction of how inspiring they are to me to my own pupils who sit in my classroom!

I Googled Myself.

There comes a point in a person's life, and in my case at midnight when sleep is a thing I should have been doing, where one Google's one self. The internet can be a scary place, but upon doing so, I found out a few things about myself that I never knew!

1. I'm a River in British Columbia, Canada?
   
2.  I am a book written by a South Asian, Canadian writer?
   
3.  I am a Society in Terrace, Canada?
4. I Cat Ski in Northern British Columbia, Canada?

I really don't know about you, but something is drawing me towards Canada...

Snapperoon: Somewhat a Haul of Some Description Something or Other

So I went shopping and...

You're welcome.

Snapperoon: Eid-ul-Fitr Mehndi 2015

Capturing my life in snaps.

So today marks the end of Ramadhan for this year.

To celebrate, we design our hands with mehndi/henna patterns.

From being fed up of having no one to do my mehndi growing up, I taught myself how to.

I'm not exactly mehndi artist of the century, but I can do the odd flower and paisley.

My sister's right hand accompanied with her blue and orange nail polish to match her Eid clothes.
(Apologies for the lighting - I'm clearly not photographer of the century either!)

 My sister's left hand - I like the design of the index finger here so will be making a mental note of that for future mehndi sessions!

This one is cute. Again, still my sister's hand. I like the simplicity of this one and I think the heart looks bolder with it being left empty and designs all around it. My sister's favourite and mine too I think!

And finally, my own hands. I've said this previously, but I really like the way simple designs look as opposed to a full hand of mehndi. I especially like the finger toppers on this one.

Honestly, I'm not too fond of this one. I'm kind of glad this one is in the palm of my hand rather on the outer. I do like it but the surrounding of the outer circle is messy and not a fan.

Despite all the time and effort it took to squeeze all these mehndi patterns out of the tube, what I failed to realise was that the mehndi tube I was using was an old one. And as a general rule of thumb, the older the mehndi, the lighter the stain it leaves. And to no one's surprise, the stain left if practically non-existent! Rookie mistake - I know! But ah well, it's all in good practice!

If you'd like to see my mehndi designs from last year's Eid-ul-Fitr, you can do by clicking this.

Cool. Right. Well, I'm off to enjoy the festivities.

Good day and keep smiling xxx

San Diego Comic Con 2015: I may have squeeled a little...

I'm just going to leave this here...

WATCH TILL THE END!!

Where have I been? Good question.

Hello lovely people!

I may have disappeared somewhat for the past five-ish months but I have returned humbly to my blog. Things got busier, crazier, stressfuller (technical term), and now are beginning to settle.

I have much to tell you.

1. I want you back. Want you back. Want you back for good!

So that is the question, I am back but am I back for good? Well, truth be told, I very much hope so! I feel like I get so busy in the academic year that around this time, is where I recalibrate and make a blogging return. I guess it's the hum of the summer that entices me!

2. I am just under 2 weeks-ish (technical term) from finishing my teacher training!

Yes, I am indeed and will indeed be graduating again this year with a Post Graduate Certificate of Education which in basic terms, I am a teacher. Even more excitingly, I have landed my self a permanent post as an actual full-time teacher! I am a teacher. Now that's something that still hasn't fully dawned onto me yet.

3. I am three episodes in!

Remember I said, or may have said, that I enjoy screenwriting? Well, nearly a year later from starting to write my very own TV series, I am two episodes in. Well finished two, now onto three - which, even I at times question, "It's taken you a whole year just to write only TWO EPISODES?!". And the answer is, "Sure has buttercup!". It's something still very new to me hence my slow but steady pace. Plus, I do like to let my ideas to simmer for a bit before putting pen to paper or rather fingertips to keyboard as it were.

4. Back to YouTube?

I sure hope so! I hope to make a come back on the YouTube-sphere on my own channel Skeena Keep Smiling, where currently two videos sit. All shall be revealed in due course (i.e.) in about a week or two. However, speaking of YouTube, myself along with some friends and colleagues have started another YouTube channel called Crash Bang Computing where we have already and will continue to create and upload videos about Computing in School. So videos about technological tools in the classroom, the Computing curriculum, lesson ideas and tips. Do check it out if it's your jam!

Anywhoozles, we shall converse again soon!

Arrivederci!

Keep smiling xxx

Throwing an Emoji Cushion around a Classroom!

At the end of my teacher training, I started up and run a new YouTube channel with other Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) dedicated to sharing computing subject knowledge, lesson resources and teaching tips.

Here's my first solo appearance on the channel explaining a fun way to question pupils in the classroom concerning an Emoji cushion and the act of throwing it around the classroom!

Check out our other videos on the YouTube channel: Crash Bang Computing

or follow our progress on Twitter: @CrashBComputing and Facebook: CrashBangComputing