sUmMeR sChOoL

Summer school has been an interesting experience.  I’m not quite sure how I want to define interesting though.  Week one seems like a blur now.  I remember feeling overwhelmed, especially in the classroom.  Our second years and team teacher were so good at what they were doing, and I didn’t want to mess it all up.  But sure enough it came time for us first years to teach.  My first lesson was on Thursday, June 10th.  It was on setting and mood, and as I told my team teacher afterwards, it wasn’t the Hindenburg, but it wasn’t the best thing I’ve ever done either.  I definitely had stuff to work on, but the scariest hurdle was over - I had gotten up in front of the classroom and taught, or at least tried my best to teach.  The students now knew my name, my voice, and my persona in the classroom.  To me, that was somewhat reassuring.  My relationship with the class had officially begun.  It wasn’t until that next week that i started teaching on a regular basis.  That second week went fairly well.  I had some solid lessons, but it was all still new, and I had some Hindenburgs as well.  Teaching has taught me that sometimes you wish life had a fast forward button.  Its amazing how fifty minutes can sometimes feel like five hours if its not going right.  Anyway, when my first full week of teaching ended, I felt good.

Now we are on week three, and I’m beginning to get into a groove.  It’s not the best groove, but I’m a creature of habit so I’ll take whatever I can get.  I have to say, waking up at 5:30 sucks - plain and simple.  Sometimes I wish the students would understand what we go through for them.  We put in so much work for their benefit, and I’m sure they have no idea or never even think about it.  I know when I was student, I never thought about what teachers did, and I was one of the good ones.  

Also, my new least favorite thing is lesson planning.  Lesson planning every night is exhausting, especially at this phase when we all kind of suck.  Yesterday, we were in a group session with a team teacher, and she said lesson planning only takes her about fifteen minutes now.  I think it’s pretty safe to say we were all floored.  It was another moment when a fast forward button would be nice.  How about we all fast forward to the easy days.  Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately?), that doesn’t exist.  I do believe it’s the hard things in life that make us better people, so I say bring it on Mississippi.  : )

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