The beginning of this school year started way earlier than it normally should.
I have for years joked that working in the summer is against my religion (I seem to find other things to do! Spoiled? Yes.) but at the end of last year I was asked to be on a Link Crew committee that trains upperclassmen to welcome freshmen to high school. I kicked and screamed and said I'd never have enough time to dedicate to it throughout the year but my principal insisted that I give it a shot. Fast forward to a training in Southern California, countless hours of work in May and I found something I absolutely love. The mission is noteworthy, the tools provided inspiring but above all, I found some incredible people on our campus. We are a team of ten teachers of all different backgrounds (I represent the white girl contingency but am a bit bitter no one remembers I'm an immigrant that didn't speak a word of English 2 decades ago) and teach different subjects. We are full of distinct strengths and are the main cooks in our kitchens, however Link Crew has given us a platform to work together. These great professionals also drop off apple pies (secret: I don't actually like pie but that one was *bomb*), chocolate chip cookies, spinach smoothies, unannounced company, ridiculous bitmoji and inappropriate jokes.
I loved this team so much that for the first time in my 14 year career I logged in hours (48 of them to be exact!) before school even started. Noteworthy: these peeps are some serious summer workers and none were impressed with the above statistic. Damn.
In another set of firsts, I'm room sharing. I didn't think it was going to be a big deal but man oh man, this has been an incredible challenge. Without going into juicy details, it's been interesting to have a "tenant." Because this person is a new teacher I received some responsibility I didn't sign up for. Teaching how to use tech, make copies, check emails etc are just some of the things I have had to squeeze into my schedule unplanned. And if I sound unfriendly it's because it has taken much more of my time than I ever anticipated. I didn't sign up for a student teacher and I'm hoping the growing pains have passed and the rest of the year will be smooth sailing.
Speaking of smooth... that's definitely not my last class of the day! On average I probably send out one or two kids a year. But not during this round. I sent out 2 today. I have a super disrespectful loud bunch and it doesn't help that there are 38 of them.
For the last two years I have recruited kids to join me on a trip to Spain in June 2018. However it's been hard to get excited to recruit when you end each day frustrated. I'm hoping to find a way to reach those kids without losing my mind, wish me luck!
For some additional excitement this school year, I have to drop off Remi at his school at 7, sign him in, drive to my school, park, walk to my classroom and look at 35 students by 7:15. I realized that it is unlikely to happen *ever* and have been lucky to have Remi's friend mom take him to school for me each day.
I've continued to be involved in Remi's PTA and endlessly work on his school's after school program. While calling it a success would be a stretch, we have gone from zero programs two years ago to 5 last year to the current offering of 11 options from chess, martial arts, Spanish to basketball, story writing and more.
I've been doing bootcamp twice a week, trying to burn off all that summer travel. Let me tell ya, 25 min work outs won't cut it! As the September 90 degrees pass, I'm hoping to start running again and get back in shape of last spring. Did you know there are only 24 hours in a day?!
And with that, I have enjoyed laying on my couch for the last hour. It's a rare occasion and I savored it. Wine included.
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