The first days of school

What do you remember about your first days of school?

As a student:  walking into classrooms that were unfamiliar, meeting teachers for the first time, getting syllabus after syllabus and learning what was to be done for the year.  Catching up with friends that you had lost contact with over the summer and getting back into the clubs and activities that didn't occupy your time while you were lazy during those long summer months.

As a teacher:  all of the prep time it took to get to that first day of school.  Meeting all the new students, trying to remember a TON of names and faces only to have to ask them again the next day.  (or the next minute) and worrying about where your resources were going to come from.

Before

After, from the front, my desk & student help area to the left

As a teacher in Alaska:  The first day; I only have 5 students so far?  Really!?  The other two are due to show up a little later but then I'll only have 7!   Wait, all the subjects?  Oh boy, that's a TON of prep time ahead of me.  Math, they are all in different levels, 2 History levels too?  Wait, Science, 2 of them as well?  How many standards, strands, etc?  How do I know when they are proficient?  Signing on the first time on the first day and the internet is down (quick email *which still worked oddly due to the bug) which was back up quickly.  Profile sheets for every subject.  Literature books too?  Oh gosh, I'm overwhelmed.  Thank goodness there was technology and Physical education.

Science area, books are now off desks because kids are here.

Technology.  I got this one in the bag.  Thank you WOU.  Oh ya, forgot one little part, I had not used a SMARTboard in 3 years.  Guess what, when a student tells you that "you can circle and tap to erase" you feel pretty dumb.  Yes, you can and it works really well if you can reach the top of the board.  It was hung for the last teacher who was nice and tall.  I have a great yard stick that has no metal points that I use for the top of the board and I basically write on the bottom 2/3rd's.  It's all good though and they were excited with what else I showed them the rest of the day.  Plus, when I introduced them to their MacBooks, showed them Photo Booth and then remotely accessed one of them to put onto the board while they were playing they figured out that I can see everything they do at any moment.  Oh honest statement;  "Oh!  That will keep me from doing a ton of stuff then!"

My books for all the different levels the kids are in, not even all of them

Physical Education.  A no brainer.  I've been doing this for years.  A year of student teaching and 3 years of teaching.  Nothing more than a band-aid needed.  Well, that streak is out the window!  What happens today?  The second day of school?  A great big broken arm.  Both bones in the right forearm, visible deformity and one trooper of a kid.  You get to be flown out of town for something like that.  He was awesome about it and is doing well at the last update.







The kids called me "Bone Breaker" for the rest of the day and continued to make me feel like a heel with comments all in good nature.  Time for science, better put those goggles on, don't wanna put out an eye, you know what happened in PE today.

It's all good, I just feel terrible.

On the upside, the class is up and going and seems to be doing well.

Goodbye Check Engine Light

For years my check engine light has been on. It's also known as the idiot light. Everyone has told me it's no big deal, probably just the O2 sensor or something minor that's no biggie. So, the jeep kept running and I kept looking at it, people would ask and I would say, it's no big deal. Well, today a friend of mine helped fix a little vent tube that I noticed was broken, he cleaned off the engine (it's more than one color?) and as I started up the engine, the light was off! I think after so many years of driving around with it on, it will be weird to look down at the dash and have it be gone.

It was a great day for the jeep, sunny with some patchy clouds. The problem, I didn't get to drive it all that much. A trip to Salem to see Bad Teacher with the hubby was nice but we took the car. It gets much better gas milage and Eric doesn't have to worry about his allergies. The movie was ok, many of the good parts were already in the previews but the movie as a whole was a little slow. Plot line, eh. Funny though because secretly in many teachers minds, just once, you have thought one of those comments to a response on a test. She's just taken it to the front. Never would that really happen, but you knew who the teachers in the theater were, they were the ones laughing.

This morning I went garage sale shopping with one of my best friends, Charlene. I found a few things to bring with me to Alaska. Some Tupperware measuring cups that are like the ones my mom has hanging in her house, an old fashion potato peeler, a sandwich container and a flashlight that didn't work. Ya, so much for the new batteries idea! Lunch was great, Panezanellie's breadsticks were great and it was a good day.

A short stop this evening was at Ugo's. Yes, that is two pizza places in one day. Though I didn't get anything to eat, I did purchase a nice T-shirt and get a picture from a nice local man. I'm sure you have seen him on TV. He's on the Deadliest Catch. It was great to get to meet him, provide support from the hometown and I got a little gift for my students too. I got him to pick his favorite picture and he made it out to the kids of Egegik! I can't wait to hang it in my classroom!

Tonight will be a welcome rest as tomorrow will bring another day closer to the day I leave for a wonderful adventure. We'll watch another new movie, Cars 2! I'll practice again with the gun and work some more on getting myself ready for shipping my things off to the Last Frontier or ready for the garage sale that's planned in a few weeks.

42 days.....