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The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at SBU chapter.

As a nod to both my full semester of lesson-planning as a student teacher and a wrap-up on my final fall season at St. Bonaventure, I wanted to create a KWL chart for these last sixteen weeks of life. 

For those that may not be familiar with this specific type of graphic organizer, a KWL chart is one that allows for students to express things they KNOW about a particular subject (usually preemptive knowledge before the unit), things they WANT to know (this could be in the form of questions or a list of subtopics) and things they LEARNED (this serves as a reflection after the unit is complete). 

So, introducing my Fall 2024 KWL chart:

K(now)

I knew going into this semester that I was going to be the busiest I have ever been in my college existence. Student teaching, while also trying to stay on top of the clubs I am a part of and maintaining healthy relationships with my family and friends was going to be a challenge. 

I also knew that in order to keep my body and mind in check, I needed to prioritize a solid sleep schedule, while also using my time in school effectively. For the majority of the semester, I really worked hard during my planning periods so that I rarely had to take schoolwork home with me, which freed up time to work towards my certification on my weekends and still enjoy my extracurriculars and time with my roommates. 

I am not pretending that this semester was easy by any means, but I stayed disciplined with a schedule and did not let my phone or social life interfere with my ability to get my work done. Because of that, I was able to be fully present during my non-school activities, which gave me motivation to keep working hard during the week. 

W(ant) to know

It feels like once or twice a week I send myself into a flurry of hypotheticals about my life in a year. What I am desperate to know, but not in a rush to actually live, is what my future will become. 

Where will I attend grad school?

Will I be back at St Bonaventure?

Will I have a job?

Will I live at home?

Will I be happy?

When will I get to see all of my best friends that I have been with the last four years again?

I am stressed to say the least. 

However, I am in no hurry to find out the answers to those questions. I am really focusing on the now, consciously spending time with my roommates and friends and indulging in the small moments that make living away at school so unique. 

I recognize that this life I am living is borrowed time, so I am not wasting one minute of it. 

L(earned)

I could spend an entire article picking apart social, professional and personal lessons that I learned from this semester – but don’t fear, I won’t bother any of us with that information. 

What I will say is this: I went into this semester with the mindset that I not only wanted to learn about myself as a friend, teacher and leader, but I knew I needed to open myself up to learn. 

In my time as a student teacher in both a middle and a high school, I learned that I am going to fail – a lot. Sometimes my lessons will not go to plan, sometimes we will have a snow day when I am supposed to run a very tightly-scheduled unit, and sometimes students just do not want to receive what I have to say that day. 

By working through my shortcomings, I learned how to keep plowing forward. Assess, reflect and then move ahead. 

Through my packed schedule, I learned that prioritizing the little moments with friends, like sitting around the coffee table eating McDonald’s debriefing the day with my roommates, can make all the difference in how I sleep at night. Finding pockets of time to laugh, listen and just exist without responsibility have taught me that so much stress can be alleviated by just a few simple interactions with those who care about you. 

And through this semester of life, I learned that I am strong. I can work hard, I am intelligent, I care for those around me, I have a passion for my future, amd I have built a foundation of friendships that I can lean on when I need it.

Going into next semester, I am confident in myself and my choices going forward. I know a lot, I still have a lot I want to know, and I will continue to learn as long as I accept it. 

Peace out to my final fall semester at Bonaventure. You’ve been a good one.

Riley Connors is a member of the St. Bonaventure chapter of Her Campus and plans to write about college, careers, movies and just about anything that comes to her mind that week. She is a senior Adolescent Education and English double major. Outside of Her Campus, Riley is a member of the SBU Dance Team and is a part of SBU College Democrats. She also has a radio show with her roommates on St. Bonaventure's radio station, WSBU-FM. In her free time, Riley enjoys hanging out with her friends and girlfriend, spending time outside in the sun and listening to any song by Boygenius, Hozier or Lizzy McAlpine. She cherishes her time spent at home with her family and dog but loves her St. Bonaventure family that she has created in her three years of college.