My Blessed Little Life

Tonight has been a very long, tedious night.  I am preparing to have a sub tomorrow, which I just dread each time.  I would much rather be in my classroom sick than to have to plan for a sub to be in my room.  It is just so much work to get things ready and then find a way to explain to a stranger what my kids and I have been working on.  It is just easier to be in the room and make decisions on the fly as needed.  To make matters worse, I will be gone two days, not just one.  I have a PD day with my language arts coworkers and then will finally get into the doctor for an appointment that has been rescheduled twice.  Tonight I worked after school until 8 o'clock trying to get caught up with grading and planning in order for someone to come.  I also needed to clean off my desk...what a job! My gratitude in all of this is that I have a job.  I don't have to worry about the hunt and the rejection that many are experiencing daily.  I enjoy...

My husband and I had a woman in our home today to conduct some home business...super exciting stuff! Anyway, as we signed papers we were chatting about nothing in particular. My son mentioned our recent snow days and how he hoped to go back Monday. He asked me if I wanted more snow days (because of the new storm watch for Monday and Tuesday and another 6-10in), and I said no because we are now into Memorial Day as it is...which means summer school plans and the like all get pushed back as well. This woman commented that schools really have too many days off anyway...and do teachers really need all those inservice days? Clearly this woman had no idea she was sitting across from a teacher. Her comment really irritated me, and I was really at a loss for words. I think most teachers would say that we dont get too excited at the thought of 8 hours of sitting in meetings... just like any other profession. I'd agree that I'd like to sometimes see other options for inservice time...

I recently had a professional development day for my school district and was able to hear Ruth Ayres speak about teaching writing.  She mentioned her blog, Two Writing Teachers, and a challenge that she sponsors every year called the Slice of Life.   To complete the challenge, the idea is to write every day in the month of March.  I was really intrigued by the idea, and began to think about really doing this.  She also mentioned that they were beginning a classroom challenge this year for the first time.  Could I really write every day for a month?  I've had this blog established for quite a while now and sadly have only posted 20 times...so writing every day is a little lot daunting for me to even consider.  But the more I really thought about it, the more intrigued I became.  I really need to practice what I preach I guess, and I should show my students that I am a writer too.  I can't really expect them to do this and then not follow ...

What a year! It has been a busy few months since school started in August. I started out the year as a Special Ed. Instructional Assistant, and am now working as an 8th Grade Social Studies teacher. While no one could have predicted the events that have led to this place, I am truly enjoying being back in the classroom. It has been a big transition full of changes for everyone though. It has meant that my free time is now consumed with planning and grading, instead of other activities, and I have learned quickly that finding a balance is going to be even more important than in the past. Between school, my master's classes, and the activities of three busy kids, I am worn out at the end of the day! That doesn't even include keeping a house in order and finding time to have some me time. However, I am very lucky to be able to be teaching again, and feel very blessed!