Before I get to now though, my first year is over! It's been over for more than a month, but I'm definitely still stuck there a little bit. Yes, May rolled in and hit my assistant and I with a bang, and made testing a boulder that wouldn't move as we basically lost a week of time. But I still managed to tie dye 22 shirts for our field day (thanks Amanda!), we took a field trip to the local aquarium, and we rocked out 8 days of swimming lessons. AND we got our testing done. And as each day in May brought us closer to June, I grew happier and sadder. One of the laws in North Carolina states students can not complete their end of the year reading test with their reading teacher. Did that make me nervous, knowing my 6-year-olds (and five 5-year-olds) had to read with another teacher? Of course. Did it make me even more nervous when I told them they had to read with the teacher next door and one of them cried and begged to read with me? Definitely. But each day, as my mentor read with more and more of my kids, I watched them soar above expectations. Including the one who cried. So much so that when I showed their scores to the vice-principal, she couldn't believe how much growth I had. I knew they could do it. I really did. But as each day went by, we got closer and closer to the end, and I wasn't ready to let them go.
I took 18 of my 19 students on our field trip to the aquarium. If their parents came (and signed a permission slip), they were allowed to explore the aquarium separately from us. Here's a shot of the 9 I had with me, sporting our tie dyed class shirts, and a smile on each face, I swear. It's probably my favorite picture from the entire year, mainly because all of them are smiling, some like it was the best day of the year.
Then we had swimming lessons, which is an incredible program the local YMCA holds for all of the local kindergartens. Every kindergarten school receives two weeks of swimming lessons. We live on the water. Knowing how to swim is a valuable lesson here, and for some, the only time they will ever be in a pool.
The following week, we faced it: The Last Day.
Ending the year was really difficult for me. I don't handle change well, and I felt like with this class I was constantly changing! Okay, a large part of it was definitely me adjusting, but it didn't help me much. And then summer came. With that, a peace and relaxation that can't be found during the year. I began preparing for year two. How should I lay out my classroom? I definitely need to redesign my communication logs. What is the best way to kick off reading groups? How do I want to implement the iPads? What supplies do I need? Summer is the time to change all of this. Kick off the year strong, and hopefully then we won't have to make as many changes.
So now, it's the middle of July. The 21st. Summer is in full swing. We're literally halfway through. School starts in roughly 5 weeks. And we have a new principal this year! She's actually an old principal who left and is now coming back. The veteran teachers are thrilled she's back so I'm excited we have her too. I went to meet her earlier this week. And I found out that I now teach...
SECOND GRADE.
Woah. Okay, that's a change. It was a recommendation from the superintendent, which she took, because she doesn't know us. And I get it. And I understand why I would be moved. But they moved 3 second grade teachers from last year to the grammar school. Which is logical as they are the closest to teaching in those grades. Unless you know one of the other teachers in the elementary school wanted a grammar school position. Oh, wait... yeah, that's right. I DID request third grade when I was hired. I guess this is getting me there? Mind you, when I was in college, I had placements in 3 kindergartens, 2 first grades, 1 third, 1 fourth, and 1 fifth. You may notice there's an elementary grade missing on there.
And apparently, now I teach it. What happens in second grade?!? I have a lot to learn in 5 weeks.
Yes, I'm still a little shaken from this decision. But I do definitely see some positives to it.
For example: the class I have has been placed together for a reason. At the end of the year, the grade level gets together and collectively places their kids for the next year. Last year, I had two sets of split twins and one set of neighbors. Those kids knew each other outside of the classroom in a way they wanted to bring to class way too often. (I made sure they're not together next year.) But we didn't know that before the school year started. Nor did we know who wouldn't work with who, who needed extra assistance, etc. But my new class has been placed together. The class is balanced.
Second: if I want to know anything about them, easy. First, I can look them up in the yearbook and get a face for the name. Then, I can find their first grade teacher. And all but one of the first grade teachers are returning, so I really can.
Third: these kids know things. I had a student enter class last year not knowing the letter their name started with. I had three that couldn't spell their name. Yes, this year I will get some kids who are considered to be low. But not like this.
Fourth: these kids have personalities. They have likes and dislikes, and I can use them! When I was student teaching in fourth grade, I helped a kid who was struggling with a history assignment on the noble prize. They were told to write an award for themselves, including what field their prize was, what they got it for, and then a speech on how they were going to continue to improve (or something like that). Well, one kid just wanted to get an award for being a professional baseball player. Yeah, sorry dude, not going to work. I tried explaining to him why, and he didn't get it. Now I have a love for baseball myself. So I started giving him ideas of a different way he could do the assignment with a theme in baseball, or something related to it. And he got it. Because I changed it to something he understood, instead of peace, which is the example the class had been given. He ended up in medicine, perfecting Tommy John surgery so pitchers could come back faster. But you can't do that in kindergarten. There just isn't enough there yet. I know I can't use an analogy like that in second, but I can use a simpler one.
Fifth: no full-time assistant. Which some could see as a negative, but not for me. I had a really hard time letting my assistant do things for me last year. I like to do things myself because they I know how they were done. I have a hard time with substitutes for a similar reason, but I can't fight against them. When you need one, you NEED one. I'll still have an assistant, but just for an hour a day. And that may be all I need.
So in the next few weeks before I can get in my new classroom, I'll be doing some research. What are the second grade standards? What did they learn in first grade? (Translation: what should they know before they come to school?) What reading level is second grade? When do kids typically start AR? What's the second grade letterland curriculum? Can I get a copy of the pacing guide? There's definitely plenty to learn!
~ Amy
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