So, I met with one of my department heads this morning; got my class schedule; got a brief outline on the year plan for the department; got some helpful advice, and I got some time (And some help, thank you Mom) to put together my classroom. I'll have tables this year, and while that was less than a stellar success last year, I have higher hopes this time around.
I'm excited about this year for a number of reasons: I have my own classroom, and I have it before the kids show up. (Last year, for those who don't know, I didn't start until the second day of school.) I get to teach a whole curriculum this year, including literature, instead of just grammar, spelling and vocabulary. That's cool. I'll get to meet a whole new group of kids and work in an environment totally new to me, and in a way, that's nice, too.
I have a mix of Hispanic and Anglo kids - no Hmong this year unfortunately, but I'll have a mix of struggling kids and kids at grade level. I'll have mostly eighth-graders and one section of seventh-graders. Best of all, from all that I can tell, I'll have a group of co-workers genuinely committed to working together as a team. I saw last year just how effective that can be and I wouldn't want to have to be without it again - though, with a greater number of kids who are academically successful, I can only imagine the potential for terrific things.
It's an hour away, and that's already a drag since I'm not a fan of commuting, but maybe I'll try an audiobook or something. I look forward to a great year and I'll try to stay close enough to being on-schedule to give you an occasional update.
