Well, we survived Friday. In fact, we did more than survive. I didn't have to move ANY clips on my behavior chart on Friday, which was VERY exciting. Everyone went home with a sticker and a pencil for being awesome.
However, I still cannot talk! In fact, it's worse! Yesterday I was able to make it through classes, but today I have barely been able to get out a whisper. Actually, I know it's bad to try to whisper, so I tried to talk normally when I asked my roommate to go buy honey for my tea, and my voice just comes out as a whisper!
The good news=I have no symptoms apart from losing my voice. I've coughed maybe twice today, and Thursday was the only night that my throat hurt. I had trouble swallowing food then, but the past two days I've been fine. I was actually very excited to go out this weekend and ENJOY being in San Jose since I don't feel as stressed by all the work I have ahead of me for teaching. Last weekend I felt quite the opposite!
The bad news is obviously that I still have no voice, and I have four days of teaching ahead of me. Plus, there really is nothing I can do except drink fluids and rest my voice.
So, fingers crossed that my voice will recover by Tuesday. Thank goodness for the long weekend!
Please send any magic cures for laryngitis my way!!
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Easier but not easy
Each day is getting easier, but it's certainly not easy yet, and I don't expect it to ever be that way.
I am really proud of my students for how they have been making good decisions and helping each other, and while I feel that we have a challenging class, I can see how hard everyone is trying each day. I cannot wait to see how much my students grow and blossom this year, because I firmly believe each of them can be ready for 1st grade at the end of the year.
Also, I am very excited about the fact that the kindergarten team seems to be working together more. There are 8 of us, and for some reason, the team has never really worked together that well (or so I've heard from everyone). However, today, when my co-teacher left, she told me she hasn't felt this happy in a long time, and she really thinks that we are getting to a point where the 8 of us can make our classes great.
I told her I intend on being the glue that makes our team stick together. :) ...and she said she thinks I may be just the person to get us working as a team...so let's hope she's right, because I think if we're going to give ALL our kids the best start to school then we need to work together.
Off to bed.
(Oh, and by the way, I am currently driving a Jetta. It's odd having 4-doors on a car. Hopefully mine will be fixed by Friday...for those of you that don't know, someone made a 6-inch cut in the convertible top back in June. Pointless, but I had to get the entire top replaced so it's finally in the shop.)
I am really proud of my students for how they have been making good decisions and helping each other, and while I feel that we have a challenging class, I can see how hard everyone is trying each day. I cannot wait to see how much my students grow and blossom this year, because I firmly believe each of them can be ready for 1st grade at the end of the year.
Also, I am very excited about the fact that the kindergarten team seems to be working together more. There are 8 of us, and for some reason, the team has never really worked together that well (or so I've heard from everyone). However, today, when my co-teacher left, she told me she hasn't felt this happy in a long time, and she really thinks that we are getting to a point where the 8 of us can make our classes great.
I told her I intend on being the glue that makes our team stick together. :) ...and she said she thinks I may be just the person to get us working as a team...so let's hope she's right, because I think if we're going to give ALL our kids the best start to school then we need to work together.
Off to bed.
(Oh, and by the way, I am currently driving a Jetta. It's odd having 4-doors on a car. Hopefully mine will be fixed by Friday...for those of you that don't know, someone made a 6-inch cut in the convertible top back in June. Pointless, but I had to get the entire top replaced so it's finally in the shop.)
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
September is...
September is National Ovarian Cancer Awareness month.
Many of you may know this is a cause very near and dear to me, and the statistic I'll toss out this year is:
* The overall five-year relative survival rate for all women with ovarian cancer is 46 percent.
* However, the survival rate improves greatly to 93 percent if the cancer is diagnosed at an early stage before it has spread. Only 19 percent of ovarian cancer cases are diagnosed at this local stage.
If you, your sister, your mom, (etc. etc.) are diagnosed early enough, the survival rate is FAR greater than the later stage diagnoses. If you don't know the symptoms, it's hard to know the questions to ask a doctor and to catch the disease early.
Friday, September 4th, is National Teal Day. "Teal is the ovarian cancer community’s color and serves as a reminder that ovarian cancer is the deadliest of all the cancers of the reproductive system and a leading cause of cancer death among women." (ovariancancer.org)
I hope you wear teal on Friday!
Oh, and by the way, I REALLY want this shirt. :) Perhaps when I finally get paid...
P.S. I am getting pretty darn good at making up songs for pretty much anything for my class.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Perseverance
Super cool book:
http://carolynrubenstein.com/book/about/
The author is also the founder of the organization that gave me a scholarship! I feel VERY lucky to be a part of it. Check it out. :)
http://carolynrubenstein.com/book/about/
The author is also the founder of the organization that gave me a scholarship! I feel VERY lucky to be a part of it. Check it out. :)
Thursday, August 27, 2009
"Back to school! Back to school, to prove to Dad that I'm not a fool! I got my lunch packed up, my boots tied tight, I hope I don't get in a fight!"
This year is going to be challenging but so wonderful. Here's the news on my class after the first two days.
I have one student who on Day 1 at snack time put a glue stick in her mouth--I had to pry it out. I did not give my students gluesticks...
Today, my co-teacher had to hold back the same girl so she would not hurt herself--she was kicking and screaming on the floor, trying to pull a chair onto herself. We were able to calm her down, but then she got upset again, and my co-teacher took all the other students out to the playground while I took 15 minutes to calm her down. I think she's scared and doesn't trust us yet--it's only been two days so we are just going to work very hard to make her feel safe here. She told me that she is ugly and doesn't have friends. Another student told me she put a crayon in her mouth, and my co-teacher saw her put a manipulative in her mouth. I've already been told to start taking notes and documenting all this.
I know it's nothing out of the ordinary for a TFA Corps member to face these challenges, and yesterday I was upset, because even though my day didn't go that terribly, I just felt that overwhelming need of my students and all that I need to do. I want our class to be safe and filled with learning, and I feel that I definitely have a lot to do to get there. I feel so much better today though, because while it's going to be hard to get there, my co-teacher and I are going to plan together so that we can basically tag-team if need be if I have a student who needs to be removed or needs one-on-one attention. Plus, I have parents interested in volunteering, and so I am going to meet with them and try to get at least one parent in a day.
So that's the long and short of it. I have a lot on my plate for the next year, but I am feeling a lot better after talking with my principal and co-teacher. Though I may need to do a lot of the hard work all by myself, I feel very supported, which is quite a relief.
...and all of this is why I am convinced that pre-k is VITAL to a child's life and why whether in the near future or far future I plan to open my own preschools for children in low-income areas. However, those big goals will have to wait, and right now I am ready and prepared to work my butt off for my kids.
I have one student who on Day 1 at snack time put a glue stick in her mouth--I had to pry it out. I did not give my students gluesticks...
Today, my co-teacher had to hold back the same girl so she would not hurt herself--she was kicking and screaming on the floor, trying to pull a chair onto herself. We were able to calm her down, but then she got upset again, and my co-teacher took all the other students out to the playground while I took 15 minutes to calm her down. I think she's scared and doesn't trust us yet--it's only been two days so we are just going to work very hard to make her feel safe here. She told me that she is ugly and doesn't have friends. Another student told me she put a crayon in her mouth, and my co-teacher saw her put a manipulative in her mouth. I've already been told to start taking notes and documenting all this.
I know it's nothing out of the ordinary for a TFA Corps member to face these challenges, and yesterday I was upset, because even though my day didn't go that terribly, I just felt that overwhelming need of my students and all that I need to do. I want our class to be safe and filled with learning, and I feel that I definitely have a lot to do to get there. I feel so much better today though, because while it's going to be hard to get there, my co-teacher and I are going to plan together so that we can basically tag-team if need be if I have a student who needs to be removed or needs one-on-one attention. Plus, I have parents interested in volunteering, and so I am going to meet with them and try to get at least one parent in a day.
So that's the long and short of it. I have a lot on my plate for the next year, but I am feeling a lot better after talking with my principal and co-teacher. Though I may need to do a lot of the hard work all by myself, I feel very supported, which is quite a relief.
...and all of this is why I am convinced that pre-k is VITAL to a child's life and why whether in the near future or far future I plan to open my own preschools for children in low-income areas. However, those big goals will have to wait, and right now I am ready and prepared to work my butt off for my kids.
