The Waiting Game... Has Come to an END!

I've been a major slacker at blogging lately, BUT I have something BIG to post about!

After literally MONTHS of waiting, I have finally heard decisive news from the district. I went to Monday's board meeting, & ...

I HAVE A JOB!!

I'll be teaching First Grade instead of Kinder, but at least it's not 3rd of 4th like I was afraid I might get! Switching grades is like having another "first year" of teaching, not easy, but this is probably the easiest way for me to have to do it. I get to just move up with my kids, & I already know almost all of our upcoming First Graders, so that will be nice too! I'll have to learn to work with a whole new set of standards & lessons, (only kind of new to me, actually, I've worked with first graders before!) but it will be nice to move on with my kids, instead of having to try to remember how to teach kids how to be students. It will also be nice, because I KNOW the great things these kids were doing even as Kindergartners, & so I can help the whole first grade team shorten up the review, & keep moving from there!

Needless to say, I'm pretty darn excited to stay at my school, stay with my kids, & most of all, just to know! I was NOT a fan of the waiting & wondering game, & so I'm super excited that it's over! It's also a wonderful thing to know, since school starts in about 4 1/2 weeks, & I go back to work the week before that! & I have to set up an entire classroom again, since my classroom got moved! I'm going to keep busy! :o)

Blah, Blah, Blog

Nothing I've posted recently has been very important, or much of an update. So... Little as it may be, here's an update.

I've been taking 3 college classes. One was in person through Yavapai College, & (YAY!), it's done! The other two are online, & are prooving to be a struggle, since I have to work with a child for tutoring sessions. The best time so far seems to be pulling her during specials to work with her, since her mom isn't being entirely helpful.

At this point I am still VERY unsure of my job for next school year. I'm still trying to be hopeful that I will be employed, but I'm also putting out applications, & even had a job interview today. It went pretty well, but I think they don't want me, because I need to be in a high-poverty school in Arizona, & will take a position in that kind of situation before I would stay with the preschool. They sounded like they might hire me for a sub, but I doubt I'd have much work that way.

Every single one of my kids hit (or well exceeded) their end of the year Benchmark goals for their testing! We're having a party tomorrow with pizza & ice-cream to celebrate! Our entire Kinder grade level is at 99% benchmarked kid-o's, with only one left to be tested! That's better than ... pretty much EVER! :D

School is coming to an end- only 15 more days of school! In the meantime, we've got our pizza/ice-cream party, more "Flat Stanley's" coming back, a tie-dye shirt project, swiming day, report cards, learning-learning-learning & Celebrating, before Kindergarten Graduation on June 4th. That's also the day I'm supposed to have my classroom empty. :( It will be a terribly sad day. My kids have grown up so much, & are really, pretty much Amazing!

Right after school ends, I'll be heading up to Flagstaff! Friday June 5 is Laurie's HS Graduation! (Congrats to Laurie!!) I'm excited to see Dutton's, since it's been FAR too long since I've been able to spend some time with that great family!

And in Flagstaff on the 6th I'm taking the Early Childhood AEPA... WISH ME LUCK! I'm a little bit terrified of all the technical things I may or may not know/remember! :P I think I need to figure out some way to study before I have to take that test!

Seth is adorable, though I don't get to see him much lately. He doesn't talk a lot, but he knows a few signs- (most especially please, & food... "food please"), & is very effective at communicating what he wants, where he wants you to come, & yes & no. If you want to see him nod "yes"... just ask him if he's hungry (especially after he's been with his mom.) Or, when his diaper's wet, ask if he needs a new diaper. He'll tell you. :D He's just about ready for potty training... or, really I guess I'd say he seems ready NOW, but I'm not sure his daddy's quite ready. ;)

Bear is loving having 2 other dogs to play with. He also loves raiding their food bowls & has gained back all the weight he lost & then some. If anyone has suggestions on putting a big, fat, black lab on a diet, please share! Last night I (FINALLY) bought him a nice, BIG, new bed from costco. No pics yet, but maybe if I can get him to lay on it & pose, I'll get one up here.

Well, for now, that's a little update. Hope you enjoyed it!

Money Song!

Here's another funny! (it has nothing to do with the cute picture of Chelsea & Seth, I just wanted to put up a recent, fun picture of my boy.)
Tonight as we were leaving the store, I decided to show my Mom & Chelsea the money song my kids are loving right now. (for them, it came song AND dance, but you just get the words & you can imagine the silliness)

to the tune of "Mama's Little Baby Loves Shortening Bread"

"I like money. I use it at the store.
Money, money, money, I always want more!

Lincoln's on the 1 cent, Jefferson's on the 5.
Roosevelt's on the 10 cent. Washington's 25.

I like money, I use it at the store.
Money! Money! Money! I always want more!"

There are two more verses, but I'll spare you for tonight. ;)

My kids randomly start singing this throughout the day, or if I sing "I like..." they're in! Yay for learning $$!

Teaching: Week One!

Wow! Week one is gone! I'll admit, it was a little bit terrifying as I prepared for starting out a classroom, especially for Kindergarten, with little ones who don't know HOW to go to school, and line up, or walk in line, or write their names, or any of the basics that my kiddo's are starting to get already.

I started the week with 15 kids, and even though one didn't get there until almost lunch time, they all came. One little boy was absent the whole rest of the week... probably because of a swollen eye & a note home from the nurse saying that he shouldn't come back as long as his eye was red & swollen. I'm hoping he'll be back on Monday. I got a new little boy on Wednesday or Thursday, so that put me up to 16 kids. (an AMAZINGLY SMALL class!)

I have a little girl who is pretty much terrified to be at school. On her first day she didn't eat (except for one bite of pizza at lunch, because I begged her.) All day she cried off & on... a pattern that followed for most of the week, although each day got a little better- except for the day after I accidentally sent her on a bus that gets her home, but not the bus she was supposed to take. The next day she told me "you put me on the wrong bus." & I said " I Know, and I'm SO sorry Honey!" She forgave me & we moved on, & got her on the right bus the rest of the days. I felt awful though. (Especially because it didn't feel right to me, but I still put her on the bus I had on my list, instead of the one it should have been changed to.) Hopefully Monday will be even better, & she'll be great.

Oh, I think I forgot to mention that my class, although acting like a normal Kindergarten class, is labled Kindergarten ELD (English Language Development). I love the fact that this means I get to use my spanish... For communicating with the parents, (because it's illegal to teach in any language other than English). I Love My Class, but I don't necessarily like the segregation idea that creates at T.E.S. 2 ELD & 3 "Regular" Kindergarten classes. I like that idea even less when it means that one of my sweet little girls will be switching to a different K class on Monday, because she doesn't speak spanish. Why do they think they need to move her & change things for her when she's doing fine in my class? Poor kid. She just got used to Kindergarten, & now on Monday she'll have to start getting used to a different class, kids, & a different great teacher.

Monday I'll also get a new little boy in my class, because he does speak spanish, & only Spanish & that makes it hard for the teacher he's had all week to help him. I hope he'll do good in my class.

Oh, one more note about the first week of teaching... NEXT Friday is payday, and I'm really excited for that, because I'm tired of being the most broke I've been in my life. During the past couple of weeks I have maxed out my credit card, paid a little bit on it from my overdraft loan on my checking account, & repeated that process. It's kind of depressing. I hate debt.

Update!

Wow! This is an update I should have made on here a long-ish while ago!

I am NOT teaching 4th grade at Territorial when school starts next week!
I will be however, teaching Kindergarten ELD! Yay!

Now I'm going to stop blogging so that I can get ready for "Meet the Teacher" tomorrow!
Wish me luck!