my collection of mice

So I really thought when I created this blog that I would be updating it often. I don't know what I came over me, I've never maintained something like this with great voracity. Alas, the first week has come and gone and I am approaching the close of the second week.

We are getting there. The first week didn't go quite as well as I wanted. My class is awesome--most of my students are very quiet, a third are ELL and the other's are simply fantastic. I'm really excited to get to know their personalities more as the year progresses. I do have one little stinker who is causing me a lot of grief. He (I'll call him A.S.) came to my class with a belligerent attitude and hasn't stopped talking back to me. I'm doing my best and have a lot of support from my colleagues, but the principal and A.P. have already had a formal meeting with his mother about his behavior. He's been down right nasty to the school crossing guard and nearly incited a riot in lunch the other day. Needless to say, A.S. came to me like this, on the first day of school.

More than disrupting my class (which is a huge concern!) I am worried about A.S. There is something inside him that is causing him to act this way. I wish that I could help to fix it, but I really feel as though this one is out of my hands. There are my child psych tendencies. So now A.S. is back at school (after his momentary suspension) and we will work together to find something that he can get excited about. Pray for him and me!

I am slowly getting into managing a class on my own, writing lesson plans, keeping track of students' schedules, my own schedule, standards and a pile of papers. It only took me 6 or 7 hours to write lesson plans for the week....I'm improving? I sure hope.

This first year teacher thing is kind of a nightmare. Eventually you'll wake up and it's over, but in the meanwhile you have to pretend you really know what you're doing. I like what my teacher mentor said, "you're trying to figure out how to teach while figuring out how to manage a classroom. You just can't do both at the same time yet. You'll get there...." So I am here waiting until I get there.

In the meantime--my principal was in twice this week to do observations. TWICE. I didn't particularly enjoy either, but it's getting easier. I just get so intimidated by him, and for no reason. He wants me to do well and I want me to do well, I just wish we could ignore the parts that I don't do well. Hmmm think of the possibilities.


Thomas comes tomorrow! Yay--special times ahead. (I can't tell you yet, Thomas wants it to be a surprise).

Sleep now
A