Piece of Cake

I'm going to keep this short and sweet because, well, it's ten till 8pm on the second day of school and I'm ready for bed.

1. Teaching 13 (and even 14) third graders is a piece of cake. I loved every second of yesterday and today was pretty good, too.

2. Teaching second graders isn't a piece of cake. It wasn't the hardest thing I've ever done, but teaching 13 third graders is definitely easier.

3. One of my second graders is named Erin. AND we have the EXACT SAME BIRTHDAY (well minus a few years). Anyways, I think we'll be friends.

4. All of my second graders were born after I graduated high school. I AM OLD.

5. I can't believe I taught the kids that are now 5th graders. Time has flown right on by.

6. My team is awesome.

7. I have the best and most supportive boyfriend ever. He brought me tons of snacks to take and store at school, he sent me flowers on the first day of school, he has texted me the sweetest and most encouraging things and he's offered to run errands for me this week. (Even though he doesn't get off work till after 7 himself. In fact, he's still at work now and I'm typing this from my bed.) Don't worry, I didn't let him run the errands for me. But still, amazing right? I love him.

I'm looking forward to the best year yet. :)

"This is what I'm going to do."

My team leader from two years ago commented on my facebook-

 "Year 1 - 'Tell me what to do.' Year 2 - 'I remember doing that.' Year 3 - 'This is what I'm going to do.'"   

She's right. That's exactly how I feel and it does feel so good to not be a rookie anymore.  

I will, however, be the first to admit that I still have SO much to learn. Things are going to be different this year and my team and I will have to adjust and be flexible as we go. We'll need to compromise on many decisions to ensure we are doing what's right for our students.  

That being said, having the years under my belt helps when giving input and making decisions. I've taught in a testing grade level for two years (and student taught for a full year in 2 different grades), I've been departmentalized and self-contained, and I've worked with so many people and personalities in my short time. 

Tomorrow's the first day of school, and (let's be real) as much as I'm dreading waking up early, working long days, grading papers, and sharpening pencils, I am starting this year with a confidence I haven't had before. [I always pretended I was confident, though. :)] I am excited to get to know two new groups of sweet kiddos and to spend the year working with some fabulous ladies. I'm trying to soak up my last day of laziness before I start this crazy cycle all over again! Ready or not, ya'll.  Ready or not.

TEAMWORK

I'm excited about so many things in regards to this school year, but one of the things I am most excited about is my new team.  While it was SO hard to tell some of my favorites goodbye, I am confident that my new team can get things done.

This year we will have a 6 (wo)man third grade team with 4 gen-ed (Sydney, Stevie, Melinda, and myself) and 2 bilingual (Maggie and Gabby) classes. Melinda will be self contained and (here's where it gets complicated), Sydney, Stevie and I will be departmentalized and rotate with a 2nd grade partner. Syd and Steve will teach ELA to their 3rd grade homeroom class and a 2nd grade class and will be paired with a 2nd grade homeroom teacher that will teach math and science. I will teach math and science to my 3rd grade homeroom and a 2nd grade class and my partner is Samantha from the 2nd grade team who will teach ELA to both of our babies. Confused yet?

Although we still have some kinks to iron out, I'm really looking forward to how all of this will work out, and I really think the kids will benefit. Our 3rd grade team is obviously going to have to work closely with the 2nd grade team this year, so to kick it off, we had our first 2nd/3rd social event tonight. :)

We went to Painting with a Twist in Arlington to bond and have a good time! We were missing a few members, but a good majority of us were able to make it and a good time was had by all! Check out our paintings! We can't wait to hang them in our classrooms! :)

Ahead of the Game!

Last year and the year before, I remember seriously STRESSING out on the Thursday before school started about having things ready for Meet the Teacher night. But this year, here I am, a week and a half before Meet the Teacher night, with a room ready to go. #notsohumblebrag

I know you people don't want to hear about it, but I'm pleased. I plan on spending this week enjoying my last week of summer while exploring some center ideas and such from my bed or couch. I'll get back in my room next week when we have breaks from staff development to get some other things done.

My room has a lot of what I've done before, but I did change a few things up. Check it out, friends! :)

Time Flies

I guess I blinked or slept a little because all of a sudden I'm finding myself beginning my THIRD year of teaching. I can't really believe it myself, but ready or not- we're starting the cycle all over again. And THIS year, I'm going to have my act together. :)

I blogged my first year until about February, and somehow I totally missed all of my second year. That's probably for the best anyways. My personal life was filled with challenges. Luckily, I was blessed with the most perfect boyfriend a girl could ask for, Jason, who showed up just in time to be my strength when things weren't going quite as planned. A new school year is beginning and I have high expectations all the way around. I hope to pick the blogging back up this year so that I have a way to document the funny, sweet, and challenging moments I experience with my adorable darlin's and my super awesome new teammates throughout the school year. We'll see what my schedule allows.

This crazy adventure started 4 years ago when I began my student teaching. I student taught 1st and 3rd graders for a full year and fell head over heels in love with 3rd graders. I was lucky enough to be hired on in Grand Prairie after graduation and taught 3rd grade at Eisenhower for the 2010-2011 school year. I was on a departmentalized team and taught math/science to 40 wonderful boys and girls that will always hold a special place in my heart as my first babies. I taught 3rd grade again at Eisenhower for the 2011-2012 school year, but this time I was self contained and taught the whole kit and kaboodle to 19 spunky sweethearts. This, my friends, is my THIRD year in THIRD grade at Eisenhower and I can not tell you how good it feels to be a third year teacher. I also feel blessed to still be at Eisenhower in the same room I started in. People have been shuffled and moved all around me and I've already seen so many people I love and adore come and go. Getting to stay put has made each year just a little bit easier.

I've spent the week working in my room and it's basically ready to go. I've never felt so prepared and I can't help but hope that this is a preview of how this year will pan out. I have pictures to share soon! :)

My team is beyond amazing and deserve a whole post of their own. That'll be next!

I can't wait to use this blog to journal memories I want to have for a lifetime. I'll try to keep them coming. <3

Cabin Fever

Originally, I was scheduled to go to a training (Capturing Kid's Hearts) on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of this week.  3 days worth of substitutes had me extremely stressed out and overwhelmed.  That is a LOT to plan for and with the groups of kids this substitute would have to deal with, as much as I love them, I was afraid the sub wouldn't make it past day 1.  Besides the planning and concerns of missing 3 days, I was, in fact, looking forward to the workshop.  Some of the teachers on my team were going with me, along with Emily and Sarah, it was bound to be a wonderful learning opportunity, and a 3 day break from the classroom would definitely benefit me. I was at school until about 8:30pm Friday night working on plans and copies and knew I would be there late Monday night organizing as well.  However, on Monday afternoon, I received an email from the district explaining that that the training was cancelled due to possible inclement weather. 

I didn't know whether to be excited or bummed.  This meant I wouldn't have to stay late on Monday organizing any more or pray 3 extras prayers nightly for my poor substitute, but I was also looking forward to the training and spending some time with some of my teacher friends. 

As it turns out, the "possible inclement weather" turned into actual inclement weather late Monday night/early Tuesday morning.  At about 5am, school was officially cancelled for the day.  I spent Tuesday being lazy with my roommates.  I got all of my papers graded and my room cleaned.  We watched TV, played some games, shared some good roommate talks, and Sara made us chili for dinner.  Before we knew it, we were receiving phone calls to inform of us school cancelling again on Wednesday.

Wednesday was even lazier.  We ordered pizza and sat around.  We had some more roommate quality time and began to think probably a little too much.  I entered some of my data into spreadsheets and Emily got some grades entered.  Sara made dinner again and then we received ANOTHER phone call to inform us of school being cancelled again on Thursday. 

I think this is probably about the time we started to lose our minds.  We watched a few movies on Thursday, played some more games, ordered Jason's Deli for lunch, and once again, thought WAY too much about our lives.  We got brave enough (or stupid enough) to go to Target Thursday afternoon.  It was wonderful to get out for a little while, but one trip out and we were exhausted.  I don't know how we're ever going to be able to go back to school. We bought stuff to make bacon and waffles while we were out and Emily and I took our turn making dinner. Hah.  We got our call much earlier on Thursday about school being cancelled yet again. 

As everyone in the state already noticed, it started snowing hard at about midnight.  After watching it for a little while, I finally decided to go to sleep.  Of course, at about that time, Sara woke up and realized it was snowing and came to tell me about it.  I couldn't fall back asleep, so I decided I definitely needed to go outside and play.  The roommates joined me and we had a grand ol time at about 1am Friday morning.  :)

Today, Friday, is snow day #4 and I'm very ready to get out and do something.  I'm definitely a lounge around kind of girl, but just knowing that I CAN'T get out makes it so much worse.  Cabin fever is legit.

(I stole this from a friend.)

Another day or two or three of laziness and then hopefully we can all head back to school on Monday. :/  Is it summer yet?



Influenza

It started out as a cough.  I was coughing for a good week.  My throat didn't hurt, my nose wasn't runny, but the cough was terrible.

I went to Austin for a Kilgo workshop on Tuesday night/all day Wednesday, and the cough got worse.  I felt miserable Wednesday night and all day at school Thursday.  I planned on coming straight to the apartment and going to sleep early, but I had to go by my parents to get my school shirt to wear on Friday.  Unintentionally, I fell asleep on my bed at my parents in tears because of how miserable I felt with my school clothes, coat, purse, ID, and shoes all still on.

On Friday morning, I tossed the idea of putting in for a sub around many many times because I still felt awful.  I didn't have anything ready for a sub in my room, so I decided that I needed to go to school to at least see what I had going on.  I made some math packets, talked to my secretary, and she got me a sub by 11. Thank goodness.

I came home to my apartment to sleep my life away, and discovered I had a temperature of 102.  :/

When my sweet, loving, wonderful, amazing roommates came home, they made me go/took me to Care Now.  They did a flu test on me that came back positive. :( They gave me lots of prescriptions that I went and got filled.

$90.00 later, I woke up Saturday morning feeling SO much better.  Still not 100%, but the fever and headache and terrible cough were gone.  Just a snotty nose and a little cough.

Unfortunately, now one of my sweet, loving, wonderful, amazing roommates is sick, too.

The highlights of being around my little pumpkins all day every day! :)

We are a Family

Coming back from the holiday break, I was so anxious to see all of my sweet boys and girls.  I knew one had transfered, but other than that, I was ready to see all 18 precious faces.

There was one student in particular that I was more than ready to see. On the Friday before the break, he talked to me some about his home situation and broke down in tears.  It's so hard to hear a student tell you some of the things they are going through.  I sent him down to talk to the counselor that day, but hated to say goodbye that afternoon.  School, as tough and chaotic as it may be some days, is a safe haven for some of these kids.  I take my job as a teacher very seriously, but I also know that some kids just need a place to get away. 


That student didn't show up on the Monday we returned to school.  I was upset and worried.  I talk to his brother and sister's teachers too, and neither one of his siblings were at school. I was crushed.

I had 2 other students not show up as well, but I was aware of their situations and knew they were just out sick. 

I also got a new student that day.  He fits in with our close knit family very well. :)

To make a long story short, after much prayer and some tears, when that sweet boy walked through my door Tuesday morning, tears of joy fell from my face. 

This class really is like a family.  They mean so much to me and I have no doubt that I'll remember this first group of boys and girls forever. :)

Heroes!

I passed out today at school.

There was a health screening blood test thingmajig going on at our school this morning, and Emily, my BFF, was the one responsible for getting people signed up and such.  Despite my fear of needles, I decided that I would sign up to have blood taken because I'm such a great friend. (HAH.)  I told everyone I was super nervous, but they didn't really understand.  I'm a pretty brave girl.  I'd jump out of a plane.  I've bungee jumped.  And I'd rather do that 30 more times than have blood taken. 

This was all taking place in the library, and when I finally got the courage to go up to THE chair, everyone giggled at how nervous and silly I was acting.  The nurse (I guess that's what we could call her) couldn't get a vein in my left arm (because I was so stressed) so she tried my right.  Mrs. Hernandez, one of my teammates, was sitting next to me and started up a conversation in the hopes to get my mind off of what was really happening.  It hurt.  I cringed.  And then she was done.  I was so relieved.  ...Until she said that she hadn't gotten any blood and would have to try the other arm. :/

She poked the other arm.  It hurt. I cringed.  She was done. And then I got VERY lightheaded.  Emily was standing next to me at this point and everyone commented on how pale I looked.  I insisted that I needed to leave the room and that I needed a drink.  I got up and started to walk out of the library (no idea where I thought I was going).  Emily and Mrs.Hernandez were on either side of me (thank God), and before I made it to the nurses office, I had completely blacked out and my legs had gone out from underneath me.  They carried me to a cot in the nurses office where they found me an apple juice.

Emily and Mrs. Hernandez were my heroes today. :) Thank goodness they were there to catch me as I went down. 

As soon as I was down, I felt much better. I ate cheese-its and drank water all morning. My head hurt for most of the day, but I taught all the way through.  The fun really never ends.  Just another good story to tell.

Looking Back...

I have learned and experienced and grown more this year than ever before.  An unbelievable amount of changes happened throughout the year, and I wouldn't live a single day differently.  I am beyond grateful for every person that played a part in making 2010 so unforgettable.  I thought I'd reminisce and share a few of the things that brought 2010 to life. 

JANUARY-
- Began full time student teaching and worked with some awesome people in Grapevine
- Fell in love with teaching 3rd graders
- Took and passed both of my certification exams

FEBRUARY-
- Got my Valentine back

MARCH-
- Celebrated 3 years with Scott Preston
- Started my student teaching in 1st grade

APRIL-
- Finished my student teaching
- Did some running

MAY-
- GRADUATED from the University of North Texas!
- Found out I was going to be a Godmother :)
- Took a trip to Schlitterbahn with Texas and Olive-  The beginning of a wonderful friendship.
- Went to see Avenue Q with Scott
- I went back to work at Stevens Ranch for another exciting (to say the least) summer.

JUNE-
- I was HIRED by Grand Prairie ISD as a 3rd grade teacher at Eisenhower Elementary!!
- Turned 23 :/
- Aunt Diane came from Missouri to visit and I met my new Uncle for the first time
- Went bungee jumping for the first time! A check off my bucket list. Thanks, Scotty.
- Megan got engaged and asked me to be a bridesmaid

JULY-
- Spent the month with many campers whom I love and adore 
- Decided I would not return to camp for summer 2011 and had an emotional last few weeks of camp

AUGUST-
- Finished my summer at Stevens
- Started new teacher training with GPISD
- BOUGHT A CAR!
- Met and fell in love with my sweet third graders!
- Met some amazing coworkers.  So thankful for people like Emily, Sarah, Lisa, and Misti!

SEPTEMBER-
- My precious Godson, Jaxon Kane, was born!
- Lisa Saldivar joined our 3rd grade team (and saved my life!)
- Texas got engaged and asked me to be a bridesmaid

OCTOBER-
- Decided the key to happiness was to part ways with Scotty
- Cut my hair off
- Got myself an iPhone  :)

NOVEMBER-
-Took a trip to visit my BFF, Jordan Avery, in Austin! (and maybe had a little TOO much fun. hahaha)

DECEMBER-
- Went back to camp to help with an event
- Had fun programs, field trips, parties, and celebrations with my sweet third graders
- Went back to camp AGAIN for a fabulous staff retreat with the KD dream team
- Signed a lease for a brand new apartment with Sara and Emily! (and Oscar and Vegas!)

So many highs and lows, but it couldn't have played out any better.  Thank you to everyone that supported and challenged me this year. You will always have a special place in my heart. :) Happy New Year!

Finishing up 2010

Once again, I've put off updating my blog.  There's lots of catching up to do before I dive into teaching in 2011 on Monday. (Which, by the way, I am so not prepared for!)  Now, if I could just remember some of the exciting things that happened with my sweet kiddos in the last month.

Multiplication-
Multiplication has taken over my life.  I eat, sleep, breathe, and sing multiplication.  I bought an awesome rap CD that the kids are in love with and created a multiplication wall where the kids get to build ice cream sundaes as they progress through their times tables.  Most of the kids are really into it and are anxious to take their daily timed tests.  I am excited to say that ALL of my homeroom students are passed their 3's and I have just one student working on 3's in my other class.  I am also excited to say that I have 4 students who have completed all 13 tests (0-12)!

(They have more stickers and lots of ice cream on their pages now. Updated picture soon!)

Picture Day-
Pictures happened earlier, but we got them back from the company, and I was just so excited to have my first "grown-up" picture.  Hopefully my first of many teacher pictures to come!

Door Decorating-
Ms. Lackey LIVES for competitions.  When my team and I found out that there was going to be a holiday door decorating competition, they all agreed that they would just "let me win."  My team saw how competitive I got with the can competition, and they were afraid to challenge me for the door decorating.  When we found out about it, we were told we couldn't decorate until the next week, but of course, I had my kids get started immediately.  We didn't actually decorate the door until the next Monday, but the kids were very into it.  Some of the teachers on my team did end up decorating their doors, but on party day, they announced that my class won. :) (Like anyone was surprised?)

(The tree is made of my kid's hands and the star is made of my hands.  The tree skirt is made of their feet, and the tree stump is my feet.  We added a tag that we all signed our names on above the door handle.)

Nutcracker-
The Grand Prairie Education Foundation provided us (as well as all of the other third graders in the district) with the opportunity to go see The Nutcracker at UTA.  While I knew that it would be difficult for some of my kids to sit still and be attentive during a ballet, it was an experience that some of my kids really needed.  Some of these boys and girls have never been anywhere like this and may not get the opportunity to do something like this again.  We all got dressed up and headed to UTA.  The bus ride was miserable.  I don't enjoy bus rides anyways, but when we got to UTA, we sat on the bus in the parking lot for a good 30 minutes while they were unloading other schools.  When we finally got to the very top of the theater, the kids really did enjoy the ballet.  It was so funny to watch them watch the dancers.  The students next to me were so amazed that every applause starts with just one single person clapping.  They were determined to "start" applause's.  (They were, in fact, successful!) What a great experience!

Appraisal-
Although new teachers are supposed to be appraised before November, mine didn't happen until December 14th.  The last Tuesday before the holiday break.  Things like that don't usually make me nervous, and I actually had fun figuring out what exciting things I could plan for that day.  I'm usually a nut with my kids anyway, so I didn't do anything differently! While the principal was in my room, I did my usual singing and dancing and silly things and had a good time with it.  The lesson was on fractions and so I got to use lots of fun materials!  I even painted my nails to use as an example.  The lesson went well!  I got my appraisal back today and am pleased with everything my principal had to say about me and the lesson!

PTA-
The December PTA meeting featured the third graders doing a holiday program.  I talked my mom into coming and seeing my dears sing and dance their little hearts out.  It didn't surprise me when I found out that many of my students had been given speaking parts.  They have so much energy and absolutely ZERO stage fright! I was so proud of them!

Polar Express-
I am in LOVE with Polar Express day! We got to wear our pajamas to school and teach lessons that involved the book.  My kids were so precious in their pj's! After lunch, my class and Mrs.Saldivar's class got together and watched the movie.  Mrs. Saldivar and I bought them popcorn and juice boxes so they had a great time!

(my class!)

(most of my team!)

Gifts-
My kids are too good to me.  I was showered with gifts and goodies and notes from my precious boys and girls.  They sure know how to make my day. :)

Challenges-
I dealt with my fair share of challenges in the past month, too.  As I listened to my kids talk to me about what they aren't going to get to do for Christmas, how someone broke into their house and stole their Christmas things, and how their parents are getting a divorce and their dad walked out, all I can do is keep it together, think of something encouraging to say, and pray.  Their struggles are my struggles and that was the toughest part of this two week break.  These kids don't have what other kids have.  They don't have the support systems at home that other kids have.  This breaks my heart and it's all I can do to step into the hallway before I let tears fall.  I count my blessings daily, and I can't wait to give each one of those kids a big 'ol hug when they walk in the door Monday morning. 

I'm anxious to see what all 2011 will have in store for me in my classroom.  There's never a dull moment!

Stronger than Yesterday

I am beginning to feel stronger in every aspect of my life.  Well, minus physically. Hah.  Even though I am stronger than my students, so I guess that works, too. 

My classroom is really coming together, and it feels like home.  We are a family, and I really do love them to pieces.  Don't get me wrong, we still have our daily battles and struggles.  They challenge me constantly, but that is exactly what makes me stronger.  I have already accepted that I'm not going to have it ALL figured out for the first few years, but as long as I wake up in the morning excited about going to work, I'll be alright. 

Last week, my teacher coach set up an observation for me at another elementary school in the district.  It was my first day to be away from my students.  As crazy as it seems, when I told the teacher I was observing about how it was the first day for me to miss, tears filled my eyes.  My boys and girls are the reason I enjoy walking into that building at 6:30 every morning.

Speaking of walking into that building at 6:30 every morning, I really need to get myself together so that I can not spend 12-14 hours of every day in my classroom.  I'm pretty clean and organized, but I always find another project or something to do, and I can't seem to get out of there in a timely fashion.  Hopefully this is just a first year thing. 




My friends have been so wonderful through these first few months of teaching and the break up.  I love spending time with them.  Thank you, ladies.




I'm also feeling much stronger emotionally.  This break up is what was best for both of us.  Honestly, one of the hardest parts of it all is making sure that everyone knows that it's not anybody's fault.  I know that he's not what I need, but I also know that I'm not mad at him for that.  I don't want anyone else to be mad at him either.  He's happier, I'm happier, and no one is to blame.  No matter how our lives change now that it's over and no matter how quickly either one of us move on, he was/is a good friend and doesn't deserve any grief.  It was fun while it lasted and the best first relationship a girl could ask for.  I sincerely wish him all the best. 

WORLD SERIES!

My kids have been nuts this week, but the Rangers are going to the World Series so I'm over it. :)

ESL Certified!

With the arrival of the wonderful Mrs.Saldivar came a mad dash to get me ESL certified. 

We taught three classes of 25 3rd graders (maybe 5 or 6ish being ELL's) for three weeks without an ESL certified teacher on the team, and while I knew that this was a problem that needed to be addressed, nobody (administration wise) seemed to be in any hurry to make sure that one of us take the steps to get certified. 

Mrs. Saldivar was assigned to join our team and already was (thank goodness) ESL certified.  I thought this would put everyone at ease, BUT I was mistaken.  In order for my class to switch with hers and viceversa, our adminstration panicked about me being certified as well. They immediately got me registered for an ESL review course with Region 10 that would take place in Richardson 3 different nights for 4 hours a session. Rouuuugh.

I took the test this past Saturday and found out today that I passed. :) One or two more steps and I will be OFFICIALLY certified with a few more bucks added to my paycheck.

Time Flies

Time's got the best of me.  I honestly can't believe that it's been over a month since I've updated this. SO much has happened since I told my little ones goodbye.

Mrs. Saldivar
Lisa Saldivar is an absolute BLESSING. The poor thing was pulled from her 2nd grade class at Whitt Elementary and given 48 hours to get her 3rd grade room at Eisenhower ready for a class of 16. She did. Not only has she been just what those precious children need during a transition like this, but she has been just what I need to survive the struggles that come with the first year. It turns out that she knows my mother and that her son was good friends with my sister growing up. Her homeroom switches with my homeroom and she teaches ELA while I teach Math and Science.  Lisa is extremely helpful and is constantly looking out for me. PLUS, the kids absolutely adore her. :)

1st Six Weeks
The first six weeks came and left so very quickly.  Getting classes settled into their new homerooms created some trouble when transferring and entering grades online, but after everything was sorted out, grades were done.  My sweet boys and girls had a difficult first six weeks in dealing with a huge transition from 2nd to 3rd and a shuffling of homeroom/math/ELA teachers within our own 3rd grade team.  I don't know how we expect them to be at the top of their academic game when they have so many things on their plate. Nonetheless, I'm proud of them. I can not wait to see how much they grow this year.

They also took Six Weeks Tests provided by the district for Math, ELA, and Science.  Oh boy. Once again, had these boys and girls had a consistent schedule the first six weeks, the same teacher for the same subject the first six weeks, and ample time to receive every lesson that was supposed to be taught the first six weeks, I'm sure they would have done great. BUT, that just wasn't the case. I just about fell over dead when I saw the results for the grade level, but there's not much we could do. Lucky for us, the test results don't have to be recorded. So, we used the data that was beneficial to us and set the tests in a big 'ol pile to worry about another day. There's always next six weeks...

Field Trip
The first Friday of the second six weeks found us at the Grand Prairie Nature Center for our first field trip.  A few interesting tidbits from this adventure:
- It makes for an uncomfortable journey when 136 third graders, 7 teachers, and 2 parents have to ride on just 2 buses.  Try sharing a seat with 2 of your students.
- I learned that our 3rd grade team is the LARGEST elementary grade level at any of the campuses in the district. Great.
- Two of my students have severe allergies and had to stay with me all day which forced a change of (already complicated) plans.
- If you don't let students go to the restroom when they say it's an emergency, they'll pull down their pants and pee on the nearest tree.  
- Yes, you read that last one right. He peed on a tree.

Lifted Spirits
Just when I thought I was never going to get the hang of anything, I found my inbox flooded with emails from other people I know and my parents know throughout the district.  Every day, there is a "Today in GPISD" email sent out to the district full of news and updates and announcements and shout outs.  In the "Today in GPISD" email last Tuesday, there was a shout out for me.  (This is the part when I brag on myself a little.) :)  After I realized that all of the emails from people I know on my campus, around the district, and people that know my parents were responses to the daily email to the district, I went to the "Today in GPISD" email that I normally just quickly scan, and read down to find this encouraging note.

I would like to acknowledge a special  teacher:

First year teacher, Miss Aren Lackey, is Capturing Kids Hearts even on the weekends. This Saturday, to my surprise, Miss Lackey approached me while I was sitting on the sidelines of the GP Dolphins Pee-Wee football game at Parkhill Park. She had made a promise to my son and another student that she would come watch them play football. The boys were celebrating homecoming, and at the end of the game she stayed to congratulate them on a job well done. Kudos to our new teacher for being FABULOUS! I think Miss Lackey has exactly what it takes to make a GREAT teacher here in GPISD! Sent in by Ashley Logan, 8th Grade ELA and Pre-AP Reading Enrichment teacher at Fannin Middle School.

I felt like a celebrity and it felt absolutely wonderful. I was so glad that I got to see two of my boys play in that game, and I didn't even realize the impact I was making. I must be doing something right. I guess?

Ms. Turner

Emily Turner is also a first year teacher and has been such a good friend as we tackle this crazy little thing called teaching. She is our P.E. teacher and has an enormous amount of challenges she faces on a day to day basis as well.  They cram as many kiddos into that gym as possible each period and leave her with an unteachable amount of students. Despite all that, she comes and says hi to me every morning and every afternoon and has a great listening ear. :) And we all know I have plenty to talk about.

Personal struggles

My students have had so many challenges, but I, too, have struggled to find happiness.  I lost the one I loved and thought would be mine forever, and I've never experienced anything so tough. I just take on one day at a time and hope that something with someone will work out somehow someday. All of my time and attention and energy is being spent on my third graders, and I work very hard to stay positive when I'm around them. They deserve it. 

I'll do my best to NOT wait another month before I blog again, but I'm a busy girl. :)

Losing my Little Ones

This week has been rough, but today was especially difficult.  We had to set up the new class lists for our new homerooms now that we have the new teacher.  As much as some of my kiddos drive me absolutely bonkers on a daily basis, it was so hard to choose the ones that needed to be put in the new class.  And, of course, we didn't want to just dump on the new teacher, so some of the super sweet ones had to go, too. Even though I'll still get to see the kids that are in the new homeroom every morning for math and science, it's so tough to have to get rid of them. 

This will make for smaller classes, though. It will definitely be a good thing once we can finally get into our routines and such.  I'll figure it all out one day...

Exhausted.

I am exhausted.  Thank goodness for 3 days weekends, but this 4 day week has been quite a challenge.  I haven't been in a very good mood for a number of reasons and as much as I try to leave that out of the classroom, it doesn't make for very positive days.  My kids are super funny and sweet, but they LOVE to talk.  I've done a lot of "warning," but we're about to have to get serious.  I probably should have already gotten serious, but that's just not my personality.  Off with the silly/playful face, on with serious/mean face. :/

The powers that be keep changing their mind (or at least telling us different stories) about whether the new teacher is coming or not.  We have our team meetings with the principal every Thursday during conference, so HOPEFULLY we find something out then.  At this point, I don't even really care whether we get another teacher or not.  There's positives and negatives about every situation.  I just NEED to know what's happening so that I can move on with my procedures and schedules and such. 


On a lighter note, my Godson, Jaxon Kane Miller, was born yesterday at 12:36pm.  I got to hold him in my arms yesterday afternoon, and he is absolutely precious. :)

One Week Down

Whew. That was so exhausting. Everything about this week has been crazy.  Despite the craziness, I am SO thankful for all of it. 

I had 28 kids on my roster Monday morning, but only 22 showed up.  Then I got a new one on Tuesday morning, and then 2 more new ones on Thursday morning.  I'm back up to 25.  It makes for a very crowded room.  They did, however, tell us that we WILL be getting a 7th teacher. :) This won't happen until after Labor Day, but it will happen. It stinks to know that I will lose some of my kids, but I know I will get them back for half of every day anyways when we rotate classes. Having to wait another week to find out exactly how everything will fall into place makes things so complicated.  I want to assign my student numbers.  I want to give them mailboxes.   I want to post my class list in places.  I want to write my kids names on the birthday poster. I want to get into a routine.  One more week(ish) and then hopefully I'll be able to get it all together. 

Kids say and do some funny/sad/strange/memorable things.  They have had me cracking up and extremely concerned so many times this week, and these are some of the things I want to remember. 
- We were going to make a birthday bar graph with sticky notes on the board at the beginning of the week, so I handed every kid a sticky note and asked them to write their name and birthdays on it. 
             "Ms. Lackey, when is Thanksgiving?"
                 "Well, sweetheart, Thanksgiving is on a different day every year."
             "My birthday was on the day after Thanksgiving last year."
                 "Um, well, I don't know what day Thanksgiving was on last year, I'm sorry."
  ...His sticky note ended up in the February column with February on it.  ...His birthday is November 27th. 
This has encouraged me to make it a goal for my class that every student enter the 4th grade knowing exactly when their birthday is.
- Friday during recess, I was doing recess duty with Micah and Maggie.  They were standing on one side, and I was standing on the other.  I noticed two boys standing across the play area facing the fence with their backs towards me.  I looked over at Micah and Maggie and they were both looking at the boys, too.  It seemed to me that they might be ...well...using the restroom, but I couldn't tell for sure.  I looked back towards Micah and Maggie and they were still watching the boys closely.  The boys began to turn back around toward us and ZIPPED UP THEIR PANTS. Uh... I looked back at Micah and Maggie and they were both laughing.  I went to join them and we were all very confused.  We got our giggles out and called the boys over to discuss their, um, choices. They definitely did just decide they needed to use the restroom. I guess boys will be boys? I had to call parents and all of that fun stuff, but the boys, I hope, have learned that there are better options for that particular situation... Oh geez.



I went to dinner with some of the girls from my student teaching cadre on Friday night.  It was SO GOOD to get to talk to someone who is going through the exact same thing as me.  We all learned together and practiced together and were/are so prepared to tackle all of this.  But, that doesn't make it less stressful.  I'm so thankful for the friendships I gained from my student teaching experience, and I look forward to sharing stories and ideas and strategies as we all continue in our careers. :) I hope the rest of the ladies that are still on the search for a job find their perfect match soon! I'm praying for you!


   

I survived!

Well, I survived my first day as a third grade teacher.  I had 22 show up.  Other than that, I don't really remember what happened today. :)

I was up by 4:20am and at school by 6:20am.  It's now almost 7pm, and I'm DEAD. I had a pretty good day, nothing too terrible. There were lots of times that were pretty crazy, but I think my kids felt like it was under control and I think they had a great first day of 3rd grade. :)

When I have more time and energy (hahahahahha), I'll give some more detail.

Day 1= DONE.

Ready or Not...

Welp, I survived Meet the Teacher.  14 of my sweet kiddos showed up, and I'm really excited about having a class to call my own.  There is still lots of confusion as to how our schedules will work considering our large class sizes and the possibility of hiring a 7th teacher for our team.  They have mentioned that we'll possibly get a teacher transferred from another school, but that probably won't happen till after Labor Day.  So for now, we'll switch our 3 large classes 3 ways and I'll just be teaching Science.  But, when/if the new teacher is added, we'll switch 2 ways and I'll teach Math and Science.  I'll be happy either way, I just hate that we'll have to get into one routine with one set of kids, and then switch them and their schedules all around later.  These kids need consistency.  I'm afraid that they'll take kids out of my class that I really like and already made connections with.

I went up to the school for a few hours yesterday morning to try to finish some things up.  I had to leave by one, and I left feeling very flustered and unprepared for Monday.  I brought home a bunch of things I could work on here, and as the weekends gone on, I've started to feel a little bit better about tomorrow.  But ready of not, in less than 24 hours I'll be in a room full of potentially 28 of my own 3rd graders.

Here goes nothing...