It's finally here! The first day of school. Even though I felt like there was so much more I wanted to have set up before school started, mentally and emotionally I felt so much better than last year. Thinking about some of my experiences, all I could think was, "Hey, I've survived this before. I've survived when it was really hard and the students hated me and I had to throw out my curriculum and start over and...and...and.... I can totally do this again." And I did. It felt great.
First period I had fun with trying to make my class sound really boring (had a few kids from last year that used to ditch and walk out a lot). It was hilarious. Had one student walk out after about 30 minutes. Kept asking every 2 minutes if he could go to the bathroom, then to the nurse, etc. Just trying to get out of class. Didn't feel bad when I found out he got in trouble for walking out of his second period class as well.
The rest of the day continued to be a pleasant surprise. I went over with my students what the expectations of the class were along with giving them a few options on what to work on for the rest of the class period. 1. Write about what they did this summer. 2. Draw about what they did this summer. 3. Help work on the window decoration. (This year I'm doing "stained glass" out of black butcher paper and colored tissue paper). Everyone chose something. Many were happy working on the windows. I was happy to see them working. Together. There are those who think these kids are not capable of working well with others. I beg to differ.
Class expectation I am most excited about: In order to get a pass to the restroom, they have to give me a cell phone or a shoe as collateral. If they don't come back in a reasonable amount of time I keep it until the end of the day. They laughed then realized I was serious. I laughed when they actually agreed to it. Other teachers think it's genius. I think I'm a crazy genius. Mwahahahaha.
Monday, August 27, 2012
Monday, August 20, 2012
Starting anew
First long day of training over. Time for a fresh start.
The pros:
I love my school.
So many great teachers that really care about helping their students.
I'm really impressed with the new hires that are joining us this year.
A new assistant principal.
I'm feeling totally inspired about the opportunity I have and very optimistic about the coming year..
The cons:
With all the hope and inspiration at times comes feelings of insecurity. I wish I did more. I wish I could help every student I have to feel like my classroom is a safe place. I wish I could help them develop a love for learning and creating. I feel this overwhelming responsibility to help all of my students not just graduate but become better people. I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing at times and then ask questions like, "How on earth did I think I was qualified for this?"
Then I remember a phrase I read once:
"...if ye have desires to serve...ye are called to the work."
The pros:
I love my school.
So many great teachers that really care about helping their students.
I'm really impressed with the new hires that are joining us this year.
A new assistant principal.
I'm feeling totally inspired about the opportunity I have and very optimistic about the coming year..
The cons:
With all the hope and inspiration at times comes feelings of insecurity. I wish I did more. I wish I could help every student I have to feel like my classroom is a safe place. I wish I could help them develop a love for learning and creating. I feel this overwhelming responsibility to help all of my students not just graduate but become better people. I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing at times and then ask questions like, "How on earth did I think I was qualified for this?"
Then I remember a phrase I read once:
"...if ye have desires to serve...ye are called to the work."
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Back to School
I can't believe I'm about to start my second year of teaching. Yesterday I stopped by the school and started working on decorating my classroom with the help of a very creative and very generous friend. Monday is our first official day back at work, and a week later the students will arrive. So surreal. The summer was here and gone in an instant.
Today I found myself at Target buying school supplies for my students (so thankful for Texas' tax free weekend). All around me I saw parents with their children getting them everything they needed for the coming year. I heard women calling a friend asking for help finding a school's supply list that the store didn't have. As I checked out and looked at my pile of pens, pencils, paper, etc., my heart grew a little bit heavy. Few if any of my students would be back to school shopping with their parents today. They won't be showing up in a week with new backpacks or new folders or even their own pencils and erasers.
What they will show up to is a teacher who believes in them and their future, even if they don't...yet.
Today I found myself at Target buying school supplies for my students (so thankful for Texas' tax free weekend). All around me I saw parents with their children getting them everything they needed for the coming year. I heard women calling a friend asking for help finding a school's supply list that the store didn't have. As I checked out and looked at my pile of pens, pencils, paper, etc., my heart grew a little bit heavy. Few if any of my students would be back to school shopping with their parents today. They won't be showing up in a week with new backpacks or new folders or even their own pencils and erasers.
What they will show up to is a teacher who believes in them and their future, even if they don't...yet.
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