I posted this last year, but it still makes me chuckle, especially March - June.
Christmas Countdown
2 hours ago
Saturday, August 19, 2017
I started my 18th year of teaching on Thursday. With a new grade level (3rd) and a new classroom, the end of July and all of August have been spent moving (again), setting up the classroom, learning all new standards and curriculum (again). The to-do list is never-ending.
We just had two days with kids, and I can't get out of bed. The only thing that is motivating me about going back on Monday is I got to loop with most of my 2nd grade class from last year. They were a great group, so I look forward to spending another year with them.
I posted this last year, but it still makes me chuckle, especially March - June.
And so it begins...again.
I posted this last year, but it still makes me chuckle, especially March - June.
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I love that clip! :)
ReplyDeleteSo what prompted the move up to third? I'm glad it was a group you enjoyed since you're getting most of them again!
I know I've said this before, but it really can't be said enough: Thank you for being a teacher!
It's a very long story as to why I moved up to third, but it all comes down to test scores. A new admin who thinks that the good teachers should only be in those grades that take the standardized tests. 2nd doesn't test anymore, so I was moved up to 3rd. I was blindsided 3 weeks before last year ended, and am kind of devastated about it. :(
DeleteFrankly I'd be putting the good teachers in the very grades that don't test for the very reason they have an ethos, and will and have do the job. If the foundation isn't in place no matter what the rest of the years do they will still be teaching catch-up.
DeleteYep, that is the logical thinking of it and my personal philosophy about education. There is no way 3rd grade will ever do well in testing if the foundation isn't built in K-2.
Delete3rd grade testing is HARD. It's the first time they have to do it, and the entire test is on the computer. At 8 years old, they have to have the wherewithal to put in the effort to take out the scratch paper and solve those problems rather than just click quickly through the answers. They also have to type their writing when their fingers aren't even long enough to reach the keys on the keyboard. Third grade usually has the lowest scores in the district and because of the site I'm at, we are usually the lowest 3rd grade in the district.
The previous principal had put a lot of things in place, including a strong K-2 teaching staff. However, since the 3rd grade team's scores were painfully low the previous year (when the new admin wasn't here) she wanted to change how they did things and they were not happy about that. It was a rough year for them and by the end of it, she had transferred two out of the school and moved the other two to other grade levels. The frustrating thing is all those structures we had in place over the last 4 years (k, 1, 2, 3) finally came together and the 3rd grade team scored 20 points higher than they did the previous year. Too bad she had already obliterated the K-3 program we had in place. We're now all starting over again. It was a head shaking move for sure.
Knowing where I was, knowledge-wise with 2nd grade, is kind of putting me at a standstill because there is so much and I don't have it with 3rd because it's overwhelming. Sure, I will eventually get there, but it won't be before the kids take their test in May. I personally believe this admin shot herself in the foot big time.
You know what I was trying to do might be a help to your kids.
DeleteI have a folding ipad cover with a bluetooth keypad that is held to the folder with magnets. I was thinking of using it as well as the wacom for editing as it will sit on my desk.
But my PC's bluetooth isn't seeing the keyboard for some reason. Still it is small, way smaller that the standard board. And I'm sure the kids will have newer machines that will see the pads keyboard.
Oh, the keyboard comes away from the folder completely.
Yes! I think those little keyboards are great for the tablets. They are the perfect size for little fingers. I've got a few for the iPads that I wrote the grant for, but only a handful. We are supposed to have 1-to-1 devices this year, so hopefully they will have something smaller all year to practice on.
DeleteSeems nasty to expect them to type when the tools aren't in place for them.
DeleteThe whole of testing these days is nasty! :(
DeleteYes, I wondered about the move to 3rd too.
ReplyDeleteI hope it will get better for you.
And are you still traveling so early in the morning.
Yes, still up early to take the dog for a long walk and then to work by 7:30.
DeleteI've debated posting about the craziness of the last few weeks of school, but I'm so sad about the change (and the loss of pay because I can't be a 2nd grade trainer for the district if I don't teach 2nd grade anymore), but every time I go to write it, it just sounds like I'm whining. It is what it is, but I hate testing and I hate teaching to the test so the move makes me sad. Plus I no longer have a bag of tricks...the hundreds and hundreds of hours I've spent creating curriculum, plans, and activities are now completely useless and I've got to start over. I'm old and tired and no longer have the energy to put the kind of time in that I did for the last 17 years. Gah! The entire team is new to the grade level. It's a good group, but we collectively have nothing to teach 3rd grade. Our to-do plates are so full, it's hard to figure out even where to start.
It'll be fine, but right now it's got me down.
I'm starting my 20th year! I just can't believe it. That video is so so so true!
ReplyDeleteA couple of my friends just got their 20 year "congrats". We joke that if we were police officers or fire fighters you all could retire at 20. Instead they got a $500 bonus spread out over the 12 months.
DeleteCASH????? I got nothing.
DeleteOh shoot! ;)
DeleteSorry you had to make a move you didn't want to make but hope you will see some positives as time passes. We expect so much of our teachers with such meager financial incentive or reward. The $500 spread over 12 months for 20 years? Better than nothing, I suppose, but little more than beer money in reality.
ReplyDeleteAs I've told you previously, my daughter is an elem teacher in Alabama. She's on maternity leave right now but this is her 4th year at her school. First year was pre-K, then two years in second. She has had to move to a different classroom every year. When she found out she was pregnant, she gave all the proper notices and went thru the process to get an interim. She was starting to get her classroom ready for summer, thankful she would not have to move again, when her principal reassigned her to kindergarten and told her she would once again be moving classrooms. Then he resigned and moved to a middle school. I'm afraid four years in, she's about over it.
Gah! Her story makes me SOOO frustrated. How do these admins think they will get quality teachers when they move them so often they can't get "good" at any of the grades.
DeleteBy no means to I feel like I'm immune to having to move - it's the nature of the game, but it was a blindside and it wasn't necessary. It wasn't because they had too many teachers at one grade and had to switch. It was arbitrary (and this admin spent the year making arbitrary moves, not because they were better but because they WEREN'T what the previous principal had put in place - but that's another post entirely). It's the "just because" move that gets me....and as I mentioned above the loss of additional pay I'm losing as a teacher leader for 2nd grade.
Anyhow, it all comes down to the kids, and when I go into the classroom that's all that matters. But when they're not there, I'm still having a hard time rationalizing it and reconciling it with myself.
My Chuck goes back to school this Friday (he also teaches elementary), so I have a firsthand account of what you're feeling!:) That's great that you're able to have another year with the same group of students, I used to love growing with a group when I was coaching. Best of luck for your first full week!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Yes, I'm really happy to have this group back. I think that everything is unknown for me (which I don't do well with :) ), so having a group of kids who I already know and who know how to be in my room makes me feel like something is under control.
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