Almost showtime

I had to laugh as I closed my door today, realizing I was the last one on my hall to leave school. I certainly don't want to make it a habit, but I also knew I was trying to minimize the time I spent at home on school stuff. And, I knew I wouldn't sleep well if I hadn't crossed (almost) everything off the list.

I'm not too nervous about the 1st day of school tomorrow, even though I have no idea how the bell schedule works (since there really isn't a bell) and how I'm supposed to get my kids to lunch or the bathroom. I'm hoping my lesson plan will last 70 minutes, and I'm purposefully not reviewing a bazillion rules & guidelines, b/c I'm sure they'll get enough of that in their other classes. I'm not really sure how my split 4th period will work ~ they have about an hour with me, then lunch, then me again for about 15 more minutes. I can foresee disaster on lab & test days, but I'll deal with that when it comes.

For the most part I'm more excited than nervous. I have to admit, meeting my students & parents on Sunday was fun ~ middle schoolers are adorable. (I wonder if I'll be saying that in a month or so.) Some of them are so tiny ~ I actually thought one of my students had to be in 6th grade. I already had to field one concerned parent's question about how I planned to teach evolution (which is the last unit of the year), and school hadn't officially started yet!

I'm really hoping the first few days go well, since I know they will somewhat set the tone for the rest of the year. More than anything I want my students to remember this year as their best one yet, to have fun doing science (no matter how much they hate the subject!), and to know I'm on their side & that I believe in them even if no one else in their life does.

As for now, my most pressing tasks are to find a) food and then b) a suitable outfit for tomorrow - classy, but comfortable.

Flashbacks ...

My mind is a little overloaded with information right now. Day 3 of New Teacher Orientation was today, and I feel more like a real teacher every day. Today was a little surreal ~ I kept having flashbacks to my 1st day of college: getting keys to my room, stumbling around the building looking for my room, assessing the furniture situation, checking out other rooms on the hallway in attempt to discover the best arrangement, meeting other new teachers on my hall, sitting through numerous informational meetings, etc. etc. etc. I was hit with the reality today that I'm it: my cooperating teacher is no longer my safety net ... this is "for real," as my nephew would say. Not only am I running this show, but I'm also writing the script.

I'm so glad I decided to teach at this school. The staff seems so supportive, and I think I'll enjoy working with the other ILTs. I was a bit concerned that our school has 28 new teachers this year, but apparently a bunch of teachers had gotten old & decided to retire. It's nice to know I won't be the only one trying to figure things out & learn the routine.

I have tons left to do (Open House is Sunday!), but I finally left the building because I kept getting sidetracked & distracted & wasn't really accomplishing much of anything besides refining my super sleuth skills. The first thing I did in my classroom was raise the blinds; I felt better instantly. I'm still a little lost inside such a huge room, but completely thrilled that I have so much bench space and 5 sinks (with running water, even!) I poked around the large storage closet and found a variety of items, from the usual consumables & glassware (which one would expect in a science classroom) to various other things, such as 25 boxes of rock salt, various files & folders, leftover transparencies & quizzes, a grammar workbook (do science teachers in middle school teach grammar too?!), photo of the basketball team (circa 1995), box of random novels, an assortment of progress reports, faculty handbook, field trip permission slips, a curious bottle of mysterious purple liquid (which suspiciously resembles ethidium bromide waste), and a lunchbox (complete with someone's uneaten snacks).

Part of me doesn't even know where to begin. My gut wants to work on lesson plans, but I don't want to have bare white walls and empty cork boards for Open House (plus, I really can't wait to use the laminator and die cut). I'm a little concerned about the teaching materials, or rather, lack thereof ~ the dept. leader told me today that student textbooks have arrived, but none of the teacher's editions or additional ancillary materials have been delivered yet. I know I don't absolutely need a teacher's edition to plan lessons, but it certainly would make life easier.

I always thought people said middle school was the hardest to teach because of the students' raging hormones & the accompanying drama. However, I'm finding out that it's also because middle school teachers have a lot of additional responsibilities ~ issuing lockers & locks, keeping up with $/receipts, taking kids to classes/bathrooms/assemblies/cafeteria/bus lot, teaching (not just reviewing/telling) procedures, teaching (not just issuing a handbook) the school policies & guidelines, team meetings, team planning, etc. etc.

I'm totally overwhelmed, and I have no idea how I'm going to get everything done in time, but at least I'm smiling.

Final weeks of freedom

Summer is so much more fun someone else has the same non-work schedule. J. took last week off as a final vacation before skewl for both of us starts. We trekked across the state from the mountains to the beach, soaking up the free time. He was a total star, indulging my perpetual infatuation with bookstores (6 visits, 5 stores), entertaining my niece & nephew, and even enduring a highly non-masculine lunch at the Tea Room with my mother (it probably became more tolerable when my dad made a surprise visit & joined us.) To be fair, I busted myself on one of our runs and vowed to keep up with his pace, the entire run. That boy can kick my booty on the trail; it's just not fair. I'm proud to say I kept my promise.

Here are just a few of the highlights:

Best meal out: George's Garage

Best meal in: Salami, Havarti, crackers, & bread (plus 2 hungry tummies) ... or pizza with P & G & their 2 munchkins

Best buck spent: the $1 cone at McDonald's, shared between us while NC's finest PWT watched

Best run: Making it to the top of a hilly trail w/o stopping (thanks, J!)

Most overplayed CD: Etta James' At Last

Best J-tune (to date): His countrified satire inspired by Boone's double decker Wendy's

Saddest realization: Our 1st 2 joint fast-food experiences occurred this week. We're not fans. It won't become a habit.

Best decision: To re-read the Narnia Chronicles together

Favorite discovery (revealed while browsing in Mast): J's 1st job was at Piggly Wiggly. What a stud. He'll now proudly re-live the memories with this find.

Best laugh (this is a tough one): Collapsing in the Regulator while reading the TOC of Why Do Men Have Nipples?

2nd best laugh: Collapsing in the Atlantic as breakers destroyed our best attempts at balancing the unexpectedly strong ocean currents.

Most misunderstood comment: "I like it up here. Life is slower." (by K.) "Sure, because everyone here is basically two steps away from the tomb." (replied J.) (Sure enough, we were surrounded by adorable slow-moving elderly couples, not to mention one gentleman who happened to need help hoisting his pants & crossing the street.)

Worst movie of the week: Be Cool

Needless to say, it was fun to play for awhile. This week it's down to business, preparing for next week. Thankfully it's raining, so I'm not tempted to bake myself by the pool. I've plenty indoors to keep me busy ~ packing, planning, cleaning, brainstorming. Hopefully I won't get too sidetracked by The Magician's Nephew or Blessed Returns. Rain is such perfect reading weather.