KNOCK, KNOCK! Special Delivery

Since I came back to work, every moment of every day has been busy.  It feels like I've been playing cla nonstop game of catch-up.  My lesson planning is on a day to day basis (Sometimes minute to minute).  I don't like being underprepared it's the magic recipe for misbehaving.  I'm so thankful to have a full day teacher assistant.  She is a great help when it comes to tackling my todo list.  Even with my assistant I spend every moment before school, during my breaks, and before leaving to get my classroom ready.  

My classroom has a small window on the door.  This window drives me nuts during break time.  I usually eat lunch in my room and get some kind of work done.  Sometimes I cover the window so that people won't bother me or I sit in a corner where I can't be seen. On most occasions I will ignore any knocking at my door. I do feel kind of bad about doing this but I usually get kids knocking on the door asking me some silly questions that could have waited until they came back to class.

Each day the school provides breakfast for the students in the classroom.  Today I invited them to fill a bucket after they ate their breakfast.  (I'm trying to build community and buy a few extra minutes to figure out this whole attendance fiasco--#misiscrisis).  I noticed some kids writing little notes and passing them but I let it slide, you have to pick your battles. Then I noticed a folded sheet of paper that read "To Ms. Gibson."  At this point I let them have their fun.  10 minutes later I forgot about the whole thing because I had so many things on my list to do.

A couple of hours later when it was time for recess, the kids were a bit noisy when it came time to line up.  I'm training my students to get ready in a decent amount of time or we can use their break time to make everything better.  Unfortunately their break time is also my break time and I was getting irritated.  I tried to hide my frustrations and start working on my todo list as the students watched.  Of course the kids got really quiet and fixed their lines so we could go outside. 

I walked my students outside to the yard.  When I dismissed them I thought I saw a couple of my students try to approach me.  I think they were nervous and hesitant.  I took advantage of this opportunity and retreated to my classroom.  As soon as I wash my hands and go for a snack I hear a knock at the door.  As I angrily walked over to open the door I was already practicing the scolding that I was about to give who ever it was for disturbing me during my very short break.  Before I had a chance to say a word, one girl places a handmade package into my face while saying, "Knock, knock.  Special delivery."

All of my annoyances quickly faded and I felt a sense of honor and joy.  These kids had coordinated a special little gift for me.  They had prepared an envelope with some goodies that included Hello Kitty sticker (I'm pretty sure I gave them that black pen and they just gave it back to me but that's ok, it's truly the thought that counts).  My bucket was overflowing with happiness.  

I had to remind myself that these are just sweet little kids. I can't take things out on them because I'm not prepared.  My plans and materials need to be in order so that I am not trying to use all my breaks to prepare for the next lesson.  It's not fair to me and it's not fair to them.  As my classroom is starting to fall in place and I am utilizing my TA more, I commit to doing better starting now.

#youcan'tsitwithus

It's been six years since the last time I taught fifth grade.  Fifth grade has always been my #1 grade to teach.  I love the independence and maturation this grade brings.  No two classes are ever the same, each class always has unique strengths and challenges.

The first day a school brought a plethora of personal challenges for me.  First of all, I was not able to get my classroom up to my standards.  There was not enough time for me to singlehandedly accomplish this.  In addition. the mountains of junk that I had requested to be removed from my room to storage was still there and it stayed there for several more days.  This junk was an eyesore.  I reluctantly threw some of it away even though I thought other teachers might want it.  The day before the kids were scheduled to come to school I received my roster of 38 students.  I immediately requested more desks to be placed in my classroom to accommodate each student.

On the very first day of school 43 kids showed.  For some reason all of these students received mailings from the school stating that they were in my room. I guess some changes occurred over the summer and parents were not notified.  5 of those kids were my students from last year but they were on my colleague's roster.  At least they are literally right next door and I still get to see them all the time.  Once two new students joined my class I had 40 kids!

On the first day of school, two of my new girls wore matching black t-shirts with large white text saying, "YOU CAN'T SIT WITH US."  I was kind of shocked by this but then I remembered my last visit to the mall.  The juniors section is loaded with shirts like this.  I will encourage them to save those shirts for the weekend, I really don't need a set of mean girls in my class.  That is not the type of community I am trying to create.

The following day I read the class "How Full is Your Bucket?"  They loved it and wanted to make their own buckets.  I purchased styrofoam cups for the kids to decorate and hang.  One student wrote "#youcan'tsitwithus" on her bucket.  Social media has changed a lot and these youngsters have access.  I think these girls and I need to have a private lunch session.

Gearing up for the 2014-2015 School Year!

Welcome back to school.  This years marks my 9th year teaching and the 12th time I've had to open a new classroom.  At the end of the last school year I was scheduled to teach second grade.  I was slightly disappointed that I would not be able to teach my same group of fourth graders as they moved on to fifth.  Technically, I had enough seniority to teach that class but our union contract states that new employees must stay in the same grade level for two consecutive years.  Being bumped out of that spot wasn't too bad since I'd still get to see the kids around campus, they could come tutor my youngsters, and their new teacher is pretty awesome.  My fourth graders even helped me move my belongings across the hall to my new second grade classroom.

During the summer I reconnected with my former second grade colleagues to begin planning for the new year.  Although I have taught second grade on several occasions, it's always nice to combine minds together and see what new ideas can evolve to create better teaching and learning experiences.  When we get together we seek each other's advice on certain subjects.  In the end, everyone wins, the teachers have something to take back to their students while friends are able to spend some time together.

With just over two weeks before the school year started, my colleague informed me that the teacher scheduled to teach 5th grade was leaving the district.  (I was sad to hear but happy that I could possible take over this class.) Since I am friends with this teacher who was allegedly leaving, I reached out to her and asked if this were true.  The teacher confirmed that information.  I contacted my principal immediately to see if I could move into that spot.  My principal had to verify that no one with higher seniority requested that class before she could make any changes.  This process took a couple of very long days.  I knew that if the switch happened I would not have much time to literally switch my belongings.

Final verification of my grade level switch was given the on first day of a highly anticipated science professional development for teachers (just three days before I set off for vacation). I'm no Superwoman but I always strive to get things done. I was determined to attend my conference, transfer my belongings to my new room in the other wing of the school, workout, and coordinate everything for my family vacation.  

I managed to successfully move all of my belonging into my new room by the leaving the conference one and a half hours early each day.  It was important for me to get everything out of that classroom before I left so the newly hired teacher could get in and set up.  That mission was accomplished but the mission of organizing and setting up my room was not.  I ran out of time and therefore I went on my fabulous vacation with my family.  I was secretly hoping some magic elves would come and fix everything up by the time I arrived.  At the very least I was hoping that the junk in my room had been removed as I requested.  Needless to say neither one of these things happened.  I was hoping for a mini miracle.