It's official: Finals are at a close and that means it is time to celebrate and spend time with the people who have really made the experience unforgettable. And what better way to do that than...ANOTHER FLASHMOB?
The idea was hatched during the GSE BBQ on Wednesday afternoon. By that point, most of us had completed all assignments, so we spent the entire afternoon eating free food, adult beverages and hanging out together. During such time, we discussed the next day's last cohort gathering and reminisced over the past year together. Then the question became: who remembered the flashmob dance we did in February? Abby and I set out to see what we remembered, singing the songs as we went. But why stop at just one Flashmob? The different IEDP cohorts seem to end up "leaving their mark" in some way, and we set out to make Flashmobbing our "final takeaway" for Dr. GK.
We started to discuss song ideas right there, and then Shruti (the genius behind the first flashmob) pulled together some songs and with Abby's help, choreographed some simple moves for us to do the next day. Videos were posted by 10:30pm and the next day, we took over GSE 120 to practice (and hang out) before class. We had a large potluck all laid out with amazing food. "Go ahead and start because we have an activity we have to do," Dr. GK said. We all made some excuses, waiting for the last few members of our cohort to join so we could flashmob before indulging in the food. Then suddenly,
The first song started and we all quickly put our things down and started to dance. Unfortunately, that part was not captured, but perhaps for the best. Dr. GK and Lauren (the program assistant) looked a bit confused and then very entertained once they realized what we were doing. (We even put a Bee Gees song in there because someone had once read a tweet from Dr. GK that professed how much she liked them.) They spent the whole time laughing, especially when we all came together and swayed to "I have had the time of my life, and I owe it all to youuuu."
After, we showed our appreciation for all their work with flowers, chocolate
and a very "in-sync" IEDP moment. To the right is our gift to her and
to the left is our last activity she made with leaves saying our final
takeaways. A few were repeated: Be
humble. Context matters. The value of teamwork and friendships. Be a living
opportunity (from Dr. Fantuzzo's class)...Many are not walking in the
Commencement ceremony next Saturday (only seven of us maybe?), and some have
already left Philly, so it was a
bittersweet last class together.
After, some of us went to get drinks and hang out before we all crashed a
friend's final night before leaving. I was actually going to help her pack, but
it ended up with 11 people lounging on her bed, sitting on suitcases, chatting
and rolling her clothes. What better send-off could you get? We all
"awwwwed" when someone said that Dr. GK had posted about us on her
twitter and instagram,
saying: "I doubt there are many #teachers who have had an experience
like this...I have no words to express how this made me feel. For the days when
I wonder why I became a #teacher, I will look back and remember this. Thank
you, all...I am humbled, tickled, overjoyed, happy, sad, proud all at the same
time. (Plus, y'all have set the standards high for the next cohort!) #IEDP
#best #students #ever!
Who knew we would have such lovely moments? Dr. GK (and Dr. Fantuzzo for us ED580 Child Development students) told us that we had to trust her that we would learn what we needed to learn and that we would come out of the program and class with a new lens. We had to go through the grueling, stressful, challenging process in order to arrive at such moments. The pregnant moment, καιρός, as Dr. Fantuzzo reminds us, of the past and the future converging to have this one full moment of meaning.
Thankfully, we still have more time together in Philly to enjoy Rice n Spice (aka amazing Indian food) and each other’s company. We still have many moments together, if not here, then around the globe. That is the great thing about being such an international and on-the-move group---there’s always someone to visit and an excuse to take a trip. Someone said last night that we’ll probably end up at some random bar in some random country and just look up and see an IEDPer. We will give them a nod and look of understanding of all that we have been through together, with words being superfluous. Because we are IEDP.
The idea was hatched during the GSE BBQ on Wednesday afternoon. By that point, most of us had completed all assignments, so we spent the entire afternoon eating free food, adult beverages and hanging out together. During such time, we discussed the next day's last cohort gathering and reminisced over the past year together. Then the question became: who remembered the flashmob dance we did in February? Abby and I set out to see what we remembered, singing the songs as we went. But why stop at just one Flashmob? The different IEDP cohorts seem to end up "leaving their mark" in some way, and we set out to make Flashmobbing our "final takeaway" for Dr. GK.We started to discuss song ideas right there, and then Shruti (the genius behind the first flashmob) pulled together some songs and with Abby's help, choreographed some simple moves for us to do the next day. Videos were posted by 10:30pm and the next day, we took over GSE 120 to practice (and hang out) before class. We had a large potluck all laid out with amazing food. "Go ahead and start because we have an activity we have to do," Dr. GK said. We all made some excuses, waiting for the last few members of our cohort to join so we could flashmob before indulging in the food. Then suddenly,
"Yo, I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want
So tell me what you want, what you really, really want
I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want
So tell me what you want, what you really, really want
I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha)
I wanna really, really, really wanna zigazig ah"
The first song started and we all quickly put our things down and started to dance. Unfortunately, that part was not captured, but perhaps for the best. Dr. GK and Lauren (the program assistant) looked a bit confused and then very entertained once they realized what we were doing. (We even put a Bee Gees song in there because someone had once read a tweet from Dr. GK that professed how much she liked them.) They spent the whole time laughing, especially when we all came together and swayed to "I have had the time of my life, and I owe it all to youuuu."
After, we showed our appreciation for all their work with flowers, chocolate
and a very "in-sync" IEDP moment. To the right is our gift to her and
to the left is our last activity she made with leaves saying our final
takeaways. A few were repeated: Be
humble. Context matters. The value of teamwork and friendships. Be a living
opportunity (from Dr. Fantuzzo's class)...Many are not walking in the
Commencement ceremony next Saturday (only seven of us maybe?), and some have
already left Philly, so it was a
bittersweet last class together. |
| IEDP 2014-2015 |
Who knew we would have such lovely moments? Dr. GK (and Dr. Fantuzzo for us ED580 Child Development students) told us that we had to trust her that we would learn what we needed to learn and that we would come out of the program and class with a new lens. We had to go through the grueling, stressful, challenging process in order to arrive at such moments. The pregnant moment, καιρός, as Dr. Fantuzzo reminds us, of the past and the future converging to have this one full moment of meaning.
Thankfully, we still have more time together in Philly to enjoy Rice n Spice (aka amazing Indian food) and each other’s company. We still have many moments together, if not here, then around the globe. That is the great thing about being such an international and on-the-move group---there’s always someone to visit and an excuse to take a trip. Someone said last night that we’ll probably end up at some random bar in some random country and just look up and see an IEDPer. We will give them a nod and look of understanding of all that we have been through together, with words being superfluous. Because we are IEDP.
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