thoughts on teaching

(Disclaimer: Here I go being super-sentimental about the last day of school. You might want to skip this one if you're not into teaching.)

Proud to be a Raccoon - Summer 2006

Today was my last day at Reedy Creek. Only two years there, but they were my first two years of teaching! 360 days devoted to walking those halls and educating those children. Where the glamor of influencing young minds was dashed by the reality of classroom management, and then bolstered again by sweet students who care, and - finally - get it! Conflicting emotions - I've experienced more stresses and angst within those walls than any other building on earth. But tipping the scales to the positive are innumerable moments - small and large - that make Reedy Creek a special place to me.

There is nothing in the world like being a first year teacher. The whole teaching scene was much different than I had pictured it - even my student teaching situations were nothing like the reality of this school. I wondered if I was cut out for this environment - was it normal to cry (repeatedly) in the principal's office? Apparently I had a lot of learning to do, but fortunately there were teachers willing to share their lesson plans and management skills, and administrators willing to back me up and help me out. And I am so grateful!

While I dreaded the start of year 2, I am so glad I came back. This class allowed me to break away from the monotony of the pacing guide and do (gasp!) novel studies and math investigations, biography reports and random visits to the pigeon loft. I know my skills as a teacher have improved, in large part due to the people around me who volunteered their expert knowledge on everything. I'm going to miss working with a team next year when I'm the only teacher on the grade level.

So that is a mediocre explanation of why I felt the tears start to come as I walked out the door of that building. This school will always have a special significance, as the place of my first job, where I learned how to teach. (Look at the pictures - you can tell I grew up, huh?)

June 2008

and . . . action!

Field day. Wonderful for so many reasons. I'm going to miss these kids . . .

Boston - Part II

More pictures of my amazing weekend!

Make way for ducklings! Or, rather, asking the kids to make way for us . . .


On the T:

(This one was edited by my friend Vanessa! Isn't she great? I love it!)

Oops! A bird pooped on Meg! I think this was before the man on the duck tour stopped his bus and shouted, "Look! It's Sandra Bullock!"


Metaphorically speaking:



And . . . the sea shots!

(Memorial Day)

BOSTON - a historical view

I love Love LOVE Boston! What a great place! I was feeling rather trapped at the thought of trying to write about it and post only a few pictures . . . so I decided to group into sections - today is the historical shout-out. Really I want to share the funny pictures of the three of us tooling around . . . so this stodgy history-book routine is just a preview of the fun to come.

So. History. America's birth unfolding all around us. Below you will see North Church, where Paul Revere ran up the famed steeple to hang his lanterns. (Not pictured - there was a wedding at the church that afternoon!)


We sat by the fountain outside the church for a while and enjoyed our pastries from Mike's. We also enjoyed watching this little old woman glance furtively around, roll up her sleeves, and plunge into the fountain for pennies.


In keeping with the Revere theme, in Cambridge there are brass hoofprints marking the trail of William Dawes, a less-known rider who was also charged with taking the message of the pending arrival of the British to the American troops. We payed a true tribute here, in front of Harvard and the throngs of intellectuals.


Of course, a necessary inclusion - the cemetery at Park Street Church. The final resting ground of Samuel Adams, Crispus Attucks, Mother Goose (?), and Paul Revere himself. Of course I have pictures of their little markers, but I don't want to bore you.


Coming soon . . . the harbor, the shore, and three roommates take on Boston!

new hair!

I cut my hair! Ta - Da! My friend (and fellow fourth grade teacher) Heather got hers cut yesterday too, so we made a little stir at Reedy Creek. We also had the same pants on today . . . what can I say? You work on that hallway, you start to think the same.

So you can see a before and after, I've kindly included two pictures. The first is my 4th grade team on International Day. I may have provided the African wraps. We took this in the hallway while waiting for the "International Fashion Show" to make an appearance. Thus the 500 students all around us and the strained look on our faces.




I know, we're pretty cute. :)

I think I'll go to Boston

I laugh sometimes at my life. Last weekend I drove to the airport, hopped on a plane, and *bam- I was in Ohio. Driving back through 4 states on Sunday was a little more real as I was very conscious of every state line and every hour ticking down to arrival at home. However, it was a great road trip, our rental car was SWEET, and I have a new dream of living on a farm in Virginia - for a summer.

Anyway. This weekend I'm jetting out of school a little early to catch a plane to BOSTON! As in Red Sox, Marathon, Tea Party, and Massacre. I just got this amazing email from friend Kelly with more helpful information than one could even dream of. There are 18 hyperlinks in her email! Whoa! And now I'm SUPER PUMPED about the weekend. Which, of course, has a story. The girls had planned this as a surprise for me, a last hurrah before my move, and bought tickets and everything without my knowledge. Unfortunately, they bought them on SkyBus, which went bankrupt a month ago. Erin's complete devastation about the demise of SkyBus clued me in to something fishy . . . anyway, we got new tickets, but I figured it out and the surprise is no more. Instead, the thrill of anticipation!

One of Kelly's fantastic links led me to yet another dream . . . a children's bookstore blogger. Oh, my dream! One of these days I'm going to get my masters in media science (aka children's librarian). Until then . . . I'll read the blog of this Boston bookstore and imagine . . .

nothing to write about . . . or is it everything?

I've been struggling recently with the blogging, saying I have nothing to write about. It just hit me that the reality is just the opposite - I have too much to write about, it's hard to filter.

School - We're taking End of Grade tests this week. The police came today, which - though it had little to do with me - is disconcerting, and something was stolen from my classroom. How disappointing! I had planned an encouraging, 'build-each-other-up!' activity, only to use the materials in a 'write what you know about the situation' way.

Africa - I bought wellies online to bring me cheer as I wade through the rainy season. I wore them to school once . . . but then it didn't rain! Tell me how an 85% chance of thunderstorms can become sunny blue skies!? I looked foolish. I've been to both of my grandparents' churches . . . giving little talks to the congregations. A new experience, the first of many times, I think! I make pretend packing lists in my head at every opportunity. I wait anxiously for news of what I will teach and where I will live.


Life - driving to the beach, concerts in NoDa, staying up late on a school night (!) to watch movies, barbecues, Cinco de Mayo, dentists and doctors, podiatrists and optometrists, laundry and grading and dinner planning, Zumba and pilates and afternoon runs . . . I keep busy enough. I've stumbled across some alone time recently of a quality sort - yesterday running the greenway off of Tryon . . . an unseen path tucked between Tryon and 85, running in the shade along the creek. A blissful moment. Today there was a thunderous rainstorm, complete with hail and a standstill on the highway, but I made it home at last, only to sit on the porch for the better part of an hour. I was completely mesmerized by the rain. It felt great just to sit and give my thoughts free reign for a bit. I highly recommend it.

That's it for now, just the ramblings of a busy teacher planning a move around the world.