2 weeks have come and gone as I sit here thinking about the new week ahead (3rd week of school already!). The past 2 weeks have gone really well so far. I am starting to get into a routine again, which is really great! My students are adjusting well to 5th grade and all it contains. I am very proud of their determination to learn a new routine, schedule and teacher!

I have a new student joining my class this week, I am so excited about that! My prayer for her is that she'll be able to adjust quickly to the class and academic work so that she doesn't get too far behind.

On a side note, volleyball season has begun. I am assisting the varsity coach and coaching the junior high/junior varsity team. I really do love it! On Friday we had our first game, which we lost, but I truly think the girls had a good time. I enjoyed seeing the game back in action once again.

This is a short post, with not much stories or information to share, but I am going to try to do this on a more regular basis.

Hope school is off and running to a good start for all of you!!

Tomorrow will mark 1 week since I have been finished with school....I keep asking myself, "where did the year go?" It is hard for me to believe that my first year of teaching came and went. This time last year I was sending out my resume and interviewing for prospective teaching positions and now I sit with a whole summer ahead of me....boy time sure flies!

First years of teaching are quite scary! As much as I was prepared in college for teaching (and I was very prepared by Trinity), nothing so much prepares you than your first year of teaching! Although my year was a great one,  I am thankful and relieved to no longer be a first-year teacher.

I learned a lot this year!! What exactly did I, the teacher, learn?

  I learned:

• to laugh (a lot) at myself and at the jokes/stories my students told
• teaching math was not the drudgery I thought it would be.
• you can never be too organized
• at times 5th graders think they know everything and expect to be treated as such
• to schedule bathroom breaks (for myself)
• the importance of asking for help
• that I am going to do a lot of things differently next year
• to put myself out there
• that coffee or chocolate are the essence of surviving a mid-day or mid-week slump
• that students don't always have to use the bathroom when they say they do
• to sit, listen and talk with my students during lunch
• to be flexible and "go with the flow"
• that a hug from a child adds highlight to any day (especially mondays!)
• that I am right where God has called me to be

I learned things each and every day, but the list would be quite exhaustive for this blog, so I'll keep it at that. 5th grade was a lot of fun, quite different than what I'd originally wanted, but turns out it was a good fit. I spent a lot of time pouring over 5th grade curriculum and have to admit that I love the material! I think 5th graders have such a potential to begin independent learning and exploring in a way that will seem real to them. It was neat to watch my students complete something at the end of the year that was difficult at the beginning of the year. Classroom management was not always easy, and I saw myself becoming a "push-over" especially when I was tired or stressed, but for the most part my students participated and behaved in a way that was expected of them. I thoroughly enjoyed my class, we had a lot of fun together.

It has been way too long since I have posted anything on here. Time has just flown by and I have been so wrapped up in everything a first-year teacher ( and any other year teacher as I've been learning) has to do. It has been a great year so far. I have a great class of students, a wonderful, supportive fellow teaching staff...they are beyond what I could have imagined for my first year teaching.

I have "survived" the first marking period, although it really has been much more than that. God has taught me so much about who I am as a person and who I am called to be as a teacher. Each and every day is a growing experience...I have made so many mistakes, but am trying to grow from them and do better. There are moments when the load is overwhelming and I question my passion...but then I see one of my students "get it" or a younger student gives me a hug...yes, they are the moments that make it ALL worth it!

Things are busily approaching the holiday season....Thanksgiving being the first and my favorite. We have our harvest festival this weekend...I'm excited to run the 5th grade booth...we are fishing for marbles with our toes! :) Early American History Day is coming up quickly, as well as our Thanksgiving luncheon....good times! :) God is working in this school and it is awesome to see. He is good!!!

Until next time....God Bless! <><