PSHAW!

Unbeknownst to me, a phrase I've used for a very long time, apparently is a REAL WORD! Today, my kids were looking up vocabulary for our novel and it was one of those finder words, like at the top of the page, for instance, if you were looking for a word between PSHAW and PUT..

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pshaw

Just in case you don't believe me ;)

Life is like a Rollercoaster !

The week goes by quickly, the weekends even quicker. School is keeping me very busy. I am continually amazed by all of the support I get at school. I have been amazingly placed with a teacher who has so much in common with me, it can be almost scary at times. At the end of the day, we sit and chat about the kids, even though we have two different groups of kids. We have very similar philosophies about teaching, and we've even planned similar projects without even talking about it, even to the point where they match up in points!

The kids are pretty good. One class is more talkative than the other. The quieter class is not the advanced math class, and oddly enough, I seem to get more done with them. I'm not sure why that is. I think it's because the more talkative and higher level group tends to nitpick at stupid little things. They get wrapped up in the unimportant and thus, we get less done. I think I need to challenge them more.

I'm not finding too much to be a challenge. It's just different. I seem to have found my groove and that's what counts. It did take me a few weeks, but once back to school night was over, I was just fine. Hopefully, it will keep going just as smoothly. In the meantime, another week, with a challenge within, but I'm sure I'll be just fine!

Overwhelming yet great!

Last Wednesday, I started school. This year, it will be different. There will be no uniforms, no first friday masses, no Christmas celebrations, no religion. This year, I am teaching at a great public school. The first week was clearly a whirlwind of trying to get my feet on the ground. Teaching is an odd profession. When you start, you don't ease into it. You hit the ground running, and if you're lucky, you won't trip and fall. I managed to get through my first few days just fine, leaving me with a weekend to stew over next week, and stew, my mind certainly did, even causing some anxiety sickness on Saturday! Yeah, I had some rough ideas for my first week, but I didn't have a plan. There are still so many things I am unsure about; So many policies to become familiar with, all in a working model of a school community. Today, I got up with a fresh mindset and dumped out my bookbag (oh, I can't wait until the day when I can take home a NORMAL bookbag again, not one overflowing with books). I went through all of my stuff, and I began to plan. It's like when you haven't been swimming for a while...the water seems cold, until you jump in, and you realize that it really wasn't as cold as you thought it was. The planning went smoother than I thought, and here I am, before noon, done with my plans. With only a few things to tie up before the rollercoaster begins again tomorrow, I can let go of some of that anxiety that I've been feeling this weekend!