Today was my very first, last day of school as a teacher. My day was fairly low key and unemotionial. I only had two students show up and therefore I was able to finish packing up my room. A more emotional day was last Tuesday when my students had their Kindergarten Celebration! We no longer call them graduations because....well...I don't know why. My students worked VERY hard to learn the song Happiniess from You're A Good Man Charlie Brown. It is a very difficult song because there is really no refrain. We worked on that song at least three or five times a day for about three weeks. My kids were the JAM and they were really excited about performing for their parents. The big day came and all but two students showed up on time. They were dressed in their suits and dresses and looked simply adorable. The crowd was large and I was pretty nervous. I am not a very good public speaker, and I was expected to say a few words about my class and my assistant. When it came time for my students to perform we all stood nicely on stage and the music started. We started singing when I noticed that something was not quite right. We were supposed to be singing to a cd without vocals but as the song went on I realized the music teacher had put in the WRONG TRACK! This would be perfectly fine if the vocals on the track were singing the same lyrics as us!! I don't think anyone but me and the music teacher noticed. Throughout the program the parents were loud, inconsiderate, and rude. It made me a little angry because my students had worked so hard practicing and the parents acted as if they were at a party or something. After the program I had ten students stay at school and seven students go home. Each day following the celebration I had less and less students and today I was down to my final two. I was not emotional or sad when the day ended, but I did a lot of reflecting on how my year went and what I could have done better.
When I started teaching I was insecure and knew nothing about what I really needed to do in order to teach my students. As I got to know my students, administrators and co-workers I started to get better and better at teaching. By February or March I felt like I had a good handle on teaching. I realized that there were major changes that needed to be made in order to make my next group of students successful. I sorta felt like I let my current students down by not teaching as effectively as I knew I could do next year. I quickly realized that I did my best with what I had and that my students were given a lot of new experiences that they would not have had if they were in a different class. I believe that even if my students don't have the highest test scores, or the best writing and reading skills, they have a lot of confidence and experience and therefore they will thrive in first grade.
A few weeks ago I found out that my position was being eliminated, and then I found out that my principal is retiring. Neither of those things were very good news. I love my principal and I was afraid that if she left I would not get a position in my school next fall. She assured me that she is working on getting me a contract and I believe her. I really feel like that school is where I am meant to be. I recently found out about an opening at my school in the 4K program. I expect to hear in the next week or two whether I have the position or not.
All in all I have had a really fantastic year. I have met some wonderful teachers, made some awesome friends, and taught the most precious kindergartners I have ever worked with. I have fallen in love with teaching and can't wait to do it again next year.
Until then I say so long. I hope you will continue to follow me and support me as I venture into my second year of teaching.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
An Uncertain Future
If you have read any of my posts, you know that I adore my students and absolutely LOVE my job. The school year is almost over and I have had some ups and downs during my first year. Initially I was overwhelmed. I felt as if I had no support system and I really had no idea what I was doing. I did my best and my efforts were definitely recognized. Eventually I found my support system and became very comfortable with the team of teachers I am working with. I know that I was not perfect and that I would change a few choices I made, but overall, I am proud of the work I did this year as a first year teacher. Over the past few months I have been reflecting on my strengths and weaknesses as a teacher and I had big plans to create amazing lessons for my next class of students. I was truly excited about summer break not because I am burnt out, but because I wanted to get working on next years plans!
Yesterday I got some very upsetting news. My principal informed me that the projected numbers for next school year are not high enough to warrant a fourth kindergarten, therefore, I was placed on the surplus list. That means that if there are any openings in the district, I will be given an interview with the principals before any newbies. My principal is hoping the numbers will go up enough for the district to add my class back on, but she wants me to weigh my options if another opportunity comes along. I am not sure how I am feeling about this news. I have definitely been going through some phases in my feelings. When she first told me the news I was in shock and wasn't upset in the least. She had told me just last month not to worry about next year! Once the shock wore off and I told people the news I got a little nervous. Now is not the time to lose your job! Most people assured me that if I didn't get a job at my current school, I'd find one in the district elsewhere. That's all fine and good, but I have my dream job and am afraid I will have to take a job that I really don't want. After feeling nervous I became sad. I shed a few tears once I got home but quickly changed my feelings to being overwhelmed. I am currently packing up my house and cannot even fathom having to pack up my classroom. I have no place to put all my teacher stuff! I am not sure how I feel right now. I need to stay positive so that I can continue to serve the students that I love. I am trying not to let this news interfere with my teaching, but it is hard.
In this economy I am lucky to have found a job at all. I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to teach these children this school year. I have learned so much, and no matter what my future brings, the memories and lessons I have learned this year will always be close to my heart. I am hoping to get my job back, or a job in my current school, but if God has other plans for me, I say "Bring it on!"
Yesterday I got some very upsetting news. My principal informed me that the projected numbers for next school year are not high enough to warrant a fourth kindergarten, therefore, I was placed on the surplus list. That means that if there are any openings in the district, I will be given an interview with the principals before any newbies. My principal is hoping the numbers will go up enough for the district to add my class back on, but she wants me to weigh my options if another opportunity comes along. I am not sure how I am feeling about this news. I have definitely been going through some phases in my feelings. When she first told me the news I was in shock and wasn't upset in the least. She had told me just last month not to worry about next year! Once the shock wore off and I told people the news I got a little nervous. Now is not the time to lose your job! Most people assured me that if I didn't get a job at my current school, I'd find one in the district elsewhere. That's all fine and good, but I have my dream job and am afraid I will have to take a job that I really don't want. After feeling nervous I became sad. I shed a few tears once I got home but quickly changed my feelings to being overwhelmed. I am currently packing up my house and cannot even fathom having to pack up my classroom. I have no place to put all my teacher stuff! I am not sure how I feel right now. I need to stay positive so that I can continue to serve the students that I love. I am trying not to let this news interfere with my teaching, but it is hard.
In this economy I am lucky to have found a job at all. I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to teach these children this school year. I have learned so much, and no matter what my future brings, the memories and lessons I have learned this year will always be close to my heart. I am hoping to get my job back, or a job in my current school, but if God has other plans for me, I say "Bring it on!"
Friday, April 1, 2011
April Fools!
Today was a very fun (and kind of annoying) day! Since it was April Fools day, I thought I'd better think of some jokes to play on my kids. I was a little bit hesitant to do anything because I knew that if I started tricking them, they would continue with the jokes all day long! When my students walked into class telling me I had bugs on my head I knew that they already knew about the April Fools tradition! I decided to start out with a simple prank. I got the book "Arthur's April Fools" and had the students sit down on the carpet. I warned them not to say anything while I was reading. I also reminded them that talking during books would result in a color change. I picked up the book, turned it upside down and started reading it. Immediately I heard things like "Mrs. Hainey the book," and I quickly interrupted and said "Stop talking while I'm reading." I continued reading and had two or three other students try to tell me that the book was upside down. I quickly scolded them and threatened to change their colors. They didn't know what to do. Finally by about page two or three, they started raising their hands! They were looking at each other in disbelief! It was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. After a few pages reading upside down was making me nauseas so I called on a student who had his hand up, and he politely let me know that the book was upside down. After that, my kids wanted to trick me all day long! I decided that one prank just wasn't good enough so I thought up an even better one. I told my students that the cafeteria ran out of food, so we'd be eating fried worms. At first they didn't believe me, but after a few minutes I had several students questioning it, and some students who totally believed me. It was hard to get them into the cafeteria because they wouldn't stop chatting about the fried worms. When we finally got there I noticed on student in line crying. I said "J, what's wrong?" and he said "I don't want to eat worms!" I told him that when he got his tray just to let the lunch lady know that he didn't want any worms. It was HILARIOUS. Overall it was a pretty fun day. What made the day even better was that it was SPRING BREAK!!
This is off topic, but I found it funny. I was wearing my school sweatshirt today, and my assistant came in wearing the same sweatshirt. My students thought we looked like twins (my assistant is black). One girl said "Hey, you guys look like twins exept you (my assistant) are light skinned, and you (me) are white skinned. LOL!
This is off topic, but I found it funny. I was wearing my school sweatshirt today, and my assistant came in wearing the same sweatshirt. My students thought we looked like twins (my assistant is black). One girl said "Hey, you guys look like twins exept you (my assistant) are light skinned, and you (me) are white skinned. LOL!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
From Egg To Chick (Videos!)
About 22 days ago I began the hatching process with my kindergartners. I didn't know a thing about hatching chicks, but I did know that if it worked it would be an experience that my students would remember forever. I borrowed the incubator and egg turner from the Clemson Extension program. They also provided the eggs! The woman in charge brought me 14 fertilized eggs and kept on saying things like "You have to keep water in the pan for humidity. I know you probably already know this." The truth is...I knew NOTHING. I had no idea that eggs needed to be turned or that the eggs needed high humidity. The most memorable thing she told me was that I would have to "dispose of the chickens" (don't worry, I'm giving them to a farmer). I learned a lot really fast and just hoped that everything would turn out well.
My students kept a journal where they wrote about the development inside the eggs every five days. We looked at pictures of developing eggs and talked about what new body parts had developed. My FABULOUS father made me a brooder box complete with a heat lamp, a clear front, and chicken decor on the exterior. As the days went on my students (and the whole school) got very excited. I became really nervous that my chicks would not hatch. My classroom had become a hot topic in the building and I did not want to fail. After candling some of my eggs I could see that several were developing, but there were a few that had not. I did not look at all the eggs or discard the duds, so I really had no idea what to expect on hatching day.
By day 20 I began to panic. Eggs usually hatch in 21 days. I was not sure if the chicks would start pecking by day 20 but I really wanted to see some signs of hatching. I had convinced myself that my chicks were not going to hatch. That night I went out and bought supplies for a hatching day party (just in case my instincts were wrong). I bought chick/egg garland, peeps, and chick lollipops.
On day 21 I nervously walked down the hallway to my classroom. I unlocked my door, put my purse down, and then...I heard it. I heard noise coming from the incubator. I peeked inside and there was a hatched chick! I screamed a loud scream and ran down the hallway. I had to find SOMEONE, ANYONE to tell the good news to. It was only 6:30, so there weren't a whole lot of people at work yet! After delivering the good news, I made a Happy Hatch Day poster, and put it on my door. I was a very proud chick mama. When my students got to school they were beyond excited. The rest of the school was also excited! I think I had half of my school walk through my classroom that day. By the end of the day I had two hatched chicks and two eggs that had begun to crack!
Day 22 was very exciting. I knew some more chicks had probably hatched. I was thinking I would have a total of three to five chicks all together. You can't even imagine how surprised I was when I saw FIVE chicks in my incubator that morning! That brought my total to SEVEN! I was told that a 50% hatch rate was really impressive and I had gotten there. My students were eager to look at the chicks and they asked to hold them several times. I was still pretty nervous about those babies, so I told them no. I think I will let them hold them tomorrow if they still want to. The reason I say that is because in order to get my students to stop asking to hold the chicks, I had to tell them that there was poop on the chick's feet and therefore, they shouldn't hold them. They stopped asking pretty quick, but proceeded to tell EVERYONE that there was poop on the chick's feet. We had several more visitors.
There was one egg that had been struggling to escape all day long. I watched it for a good two hours, but it made very slow progress. I am really looking forward to seeing if he made it! I will be pretty sad if he doesn't!
I believe that kindergartners need meaningful, first hand experiences. That is what I am trying hard to give them. If they only remember one thing about kindergarten, I hope this experience is it! I know that I will remember it for a lifetime!
My students kept a journal where they wrote about the development inside the eggs every five days. We looked at pictures of developing eggs and talked about what new body parts had developed. My FABULOUS father made me a brooder box complete with a heat lamp, a clear front, and chicken decor on the exterior. As the days went on my students (and the whole school) got very excited. I became really nervous that my chicks would not hatch. My classroom had become a hot topic in the building and I did not want to fail. After candling some of my eggs I could see that several were developing, but there were a few that had not. I did not look at all the eggs or discard the duds, so I really had no idea what to expect on hatching day.
By day 20 I began to panic. Eggs usually hatch in 21 days. I was not sure if the chicks would start pecking by day 20 but I really wanted to see some signs of hatching. I had convinced myself that my chicks were not going to hatch. That night I went out and bought supplies for a hatching day party (just in case my instincts were wrong). I bought chick/egg garland, peeps, and chick lollipops.
On day 21 I nervously walked down the hallway to my classroom. I unlocked my door, put my purse down, and then...I heard it. I heard noise coming from the incubator. I peeked inside and there was a hatched chick! I screamed a loud scream and ran down the hallway. I had to find SOMEONE, ANYONE to tell the good news to. It was only 6:30, so there weren't a whole lot of people at work yet! After delivering the good news, I made a Happy Hatch Day poster, and put it on my door. I was a very proud chick mama. When my students got to school they were beyond excited. The rest of the school was also excited! I think I had half of my school walk through my classroom that day. By the end of the day I had two hatched chicks and two eggs that had begun to crack!
Day 22 was very exciting. I knew some more chicks had probably hatched. I was thinking I would have a total of three to five chicks all together. You can't even imagine how surprised I was when I saw FIVE chicks in my incubator that morning! That brought my total to SEVEN! I was told that a 50% hatch rate was really impressive and I had gotten there. My students were eager to look at the chicks and they asked to hold them several times. I was still pretty nervous about those babies, so I told them no. I think I will let them hold them tomorrow if they still want to. The reason I say that is because in order to get my students to stop asking to hold the chicks, I had to tell them that there was poop on the chick's feet and therefore, they shouldn't hold them. They stopped asking pretty quick, but proceeded to tell EVERYONE that there was poop on the chick's feet. We had several more visitors.
There was one egg that had been struggling to escape all day long. I watched it for a good two hours, but it made very slow progress. I am really looking forward to seeing if he made it! I will be pretty sad if he doesn't!
I believe that kindergartners need meaningful, first hand experiences. That is what I am trying hard to give them. If they only remember one thing about kindergarten, I hope this experience is it! I know that I will remember it for a lifetime!
Friday, March 18, 2011
Happy St. Patrick's Day
St. Patrick's day was very exciting in our classroom! It all started about a week before the holiday. My students received a letter from a leprechaun! Of course my students had NO idea what a leprechaun was, so sadly, I had to explain it to them. They were so excited about that pesky leprechaun and they blamed him for EVERYTHING! If a light bulb blew, they blamed him. If the computers didn't work they blamed him. If someone got hurt on the playground, they blamed him. The ultimate goal was got get some leprechaun gold, but that tricky leprechaun left us leprechaun POOP instead! My students were unbelievably excited about eating leprechaun poop, but they kept their eye on the prize. After a few exchanges between the students and our leprechaun (Seamus) he actually started writing individual notes and left kids leprechaun kisses! My students were thrilled that the leprechaun had noticed their good behavior. He encouraged them to stay on green because clearly that is his favorite color! Finally the big day came, it was St. Patrick's day! I painted shamrocks on the kid's faces and we anxiously awaited for the arrival of Seamus. The first thing he did was turn our toilet water green, and then he wished us a happy St. Patrick's day in our morning calendar. That was very exciting! After reading the message it was time for computer lab. The students went off for a half an hour and when they got back our classroom was trashed and there was leprechaun confetti all over the floor! My students could not believe their eyes. They insisted that we make a clip for Seamus and put him directly on red! Red is the worse color on our behavior chart. After cleaning up our room the students did some work (yes, we do work in there) and then went on to art class and lunch. When we got back from lunch we had the surprise of our lives! There were pots of gold AND kisses for every student. You would have thought those children had won the lottery. The were cheering and shouting and wondering around in disbelief. Finally one of them realized that the sneaky leprechaun had moved his clip to green and moved EVERYONE else to RED! It only took about a split second for them to switch themselves back to green! They were so loud and excited that several people stopped in my room to see what was going on! I completely lost control of my classroom for about five minutes.
I truly think that my students are the best ever! I get so much out of teaching them. I hope they get as much from me!
I truly think that my students are the best ever! I get so much out of teaching them. I hope they get as much from me!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Sniffles and Sneezes
My students are quickly disappearing! I can only assume that there is a nasty virus going around my classroom. I had several students out last week and by Friday I was down to nine students by the end of the day! Today I only had eleven students! My day was FABULOUS! We were missing a few key players and that made our day very calm. I think I had a smile on my face all day long. I was in such a good mood that I gave my students M&M's at the end of the day because every single one of them was on green!
Aside from sniffles and sneezes my teaching experience is going very well. We had a lot of fun with our fish (but we are down to one goldfish and a handful of baby guppies). Today I lost another fish. The problem is that I don't have a net and I was having a hard time getting the fish out of the tank with my cup. As luck would have it, there was a technician in my room hooking up some equipment. That crazy man was going to stick his bare hand in the tank and take out the fish! EW! Thankfully I got the fish out before he had to do that. On a happier note, we have chicken eggs! It takes 21 days for chicks to hatch and we are on day 6! I am SO excited and my students are unbelievably excited. I just hope my chicks do better than my fish! My amazing father has made me a brooding box so that my chicks will have a comfortable place to live after they escape from their shells. I am so lucky to have such a supportive family!
Wait! More good news! Yesterday I signed up for a Donors Choose account. Donors Choose is an organization that gets funding for teacher requested supplies through donations. I created a project for an MP3 listening center and it is already almost fully funded! I am so greatful to the family and friends that donated to this project. This will give my students another opportunity to interact with books. They are learning how to read, and I just know that this will have a huge impact on them. My next project is for audio books to use at the center. If you are interested in supporting my project please check out this link: http://www.donorschoose.org/we-teach/841873.1808463058.
I really and truly love my job. I feel so lucky to have such a rewarding career. Sometimes I wonder who benefits more, the students, or me?
Aside from sniffles and sneezes my teaching experience is going very well. We had a lot of fun with our fish (but we are down to one goldfish and a handful of baby guppies). Today I lost another fish. The problem is that I don't have a net and I was having a hard time getting the fish out of the tank with my cup. As luck would have it, there was a technician in my room hooking up some equipment. That crazy man was going to stick his bare hand in the tank and take out the fish! EW! Thankfully I got the fish out before he had to do that. On a happier note, we have chicken eggs! It takes 21 days for chicks to hatch and we are on day 6! I am SO excited and my students are unbelievably excited. I just hope my chicks do better than my fish! My amazing father has made me a brooding box so that my chicks will have a comfortable place to live after they escape from their shells. I am so lucky to have such a supportive family!
Wait! More good news! Yesterday I signed up for a Donors Choose account. Donors Choose is an organization that gets funding for teacher requested supplies through donations. I created a project for an MP3 listening center and it is already almost fully funded! I am so greatful to the family and friends that donated to this project. This will give my students another opportunity to interact with books. They are learning how to read, and I just know that this will have a huge impact on them. My next project is for audio books to use at the center. If you are interested in supporting my project please check out this link: http://www.donorschoose.org/we-teach/841873.1808463058.
I really and truly love my job. I feel so lucky to have such a rewarding career. Sometimes I wonder who benefits more, the students, or me?
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
The Most Stressful Day Ever!
This morning started out just like any other morning. I got up at 5:15 and left the house for work at 6:15. I walked into my classroom at 6:30 and BLAM! The stress had begun. Upon walking into my room I see that my fish tanks are VERY cloudy and one of the air pumps completely stopped working. Now, let me give you a brief background of the situation. I was out of school yesterday for professional development and one of my co-workers found that my air pump was not working AND that one of my goldfish was dead (big surprise, right?). She decided to be helpful and put the living goldfish with the guppies. Since that is not a good idea I immediately called her and told her to put the goldfish back in his bowl. A lot more happened, but that is the most important for you to know. Okay, so I walk into my room and see a cloudy mess in the goldfish tank AND the guppy tank. Since the guppy tank was messed with the filter was all out of place and there wasn't enough water in the tank. I could literally feel the stress balling up in my chest. I tried to take care of the fish situation the best I could and then moved on to the next fiasco. The very kind and helpful sub stacked all of my chairs. I suppose she thought she was helping, but all it did was create more work for me. Moving on I could not find the book of the week. I had no idea where the sub placed it and it took me a very long time to find it. I spent my whole preparation time looking for books, tending to fish, and setting up chairs. By the time my students came into the room at 7:15 I was a mess. I thought my chest was going to explode!
Thankfully, they had special areas at 7:30 and that gave me a little more time to get my morning work ready. The kids drove me crazy all day. I knew that it was partly my fault because I was in such a bad mood, but I just felt like they wouldn't stay still or be quiet! I decided that I needed to come up with a math activity that would take a long time and keep them busy. Cutting ALWAYS takes a long time, so since we are doing measurement I thought they could trace their feet, cut the template, and measure their feet with blocks. I was sure this would take at least 45 minutes...I was very wrong. It took them about 10 minutes! I could not believe it.
As you know, I have been selected to get a Smart Table. YAY, right? Well, that means I need to make room for the table in my tiny little classroom. The table is coming tomorrow and I have very few outlets in my room. Earlier today I found out that I am also receiving an incubator tomorrow. YAY, right? Well guess what? That also needs to be plugged in and I need to find room for that as well! So my dear friend and mentor MD came into my room to "help" me. The problem was that I was already very overwhelmed. My other dear friend CH and her wonderful assistant also came in to help. I appreciate their effort, but it was all just too much for me to handle and I didn't end up changing much. My anxiety had peaked, and I wasn't sure my poor heart could take it.
This may not sound so bad to anybody else, but for some reason I was just beyond stressed. I still have a little tightness in my chest, but I feel a zillion times better. Sometimes being a teacher just stresses me out!
Thankfully, they had special areas at 7:30 and that gave me a little more time to get my morning work ready. The kids drove me crazy all day. I knew that it was partly my fault because I was in such a bad mood, but I just felt like they wouldn't stay still or be quiet! I decided that I needed to come up with a math activity that would take a long time and keep them busy. Cutting ALWAYS takes a long time, so since we are doing measurement I thought they could trace their feet, cut the template, and measure their feet with blocks. I was sure this would take at least 45 minutes...I was very wrong. It took them about 10 minutes! I could not believe it.
As you know, I have been selected to get a Smart Table. YAY, right? Well, that means I need to make room for the table in my tiny little classroom. The table is coming tomorrow and I have very few outlets in my room. Earlier today I found out that I am also receiving an incubator tomorrow. YAY, right? Well guess what? That also needs to be plugged in and I need to find room for that as well! So my dear friend and mentor MD came into my room to "help" me. The problem was that I was already very overwhelmed. My other dear friend CH and her wonderful assistant also came in to help. I appreciate their effort, but it was all just too much for me to handle and I didn't end up changing much. My anxiety had peaked, and I wasn't sure my poor heart could take it.
This may not sound so bad to anybody else, but for some reason I was just beyond stressed. I still have a little tightness in my chest, but I feel a zillion times better. Sometimes being a teacher just stresses me out!
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