School ended last week, so I really should have sat down and wrote about the end of the year, then. However, as life goes, after the last time I saw my co-workers (which was the day after the last day of school for the End-of-the-Year Lunch), teaching went out of sight and out of mind. And rightfully so. This past school year has worn me the hell the out. I was tired, and I'm still not fully recovered after a week off.
Yet, here I am! I can't completely rest since I'm volunteering to teach summer school, I'm taking classes, I'm working on new material for next school year, I'm presenting at a conference, and I'm formulating my next 5-year plan. The cherry on top? I'm still working on my fitness, but that's not new. That's just me continuing with the good work that got started this school year!
Before I'm go on with my summer efforts, let me recap this school year:
- The kids did well on the CRCT, which rather shocked me, considering how B.A.N.A.N.A.S. this school year was for them. Shows that kids are more resilient and hardier than adults tend to think they are. Did I wish, as a personal goal, to have more kids perform better? Sure, but all things considered, I'll take it!
- Again, this school year, on the whole, was nowhere near as awesome as last year. A weak "decent" maybe the best thing I can say about it. I wished I did better, as a teacher and as a grade level chair. I wish I had held other more accountable, and I hold myself accountable for not doing so. However, I will say that this school year has set the stage for great personal and professional growth. Much reflection over what went wrong (which I won't go over) has given me much insight into what can be improved and how to improve it. Look out for more on this later!
- Lost 20 pounds and still losing! That is all! (Had to share that one now!)
I think that the word that best describes this past school year; "BANANAS!" It was absolutely crazy, drove everyone crazy, and I ate a lot of bananas during it (ate one almost every morning!). I feel like if I got through this crazy school year, then I can take on the next one, provided that the crazy factor doesn't increase by that much.
Also, I strongly feel that this year is setting the stage for the next several years. I'm plotting it and feel like I'll have the next moves set by the end of summer.
With that in mind, Happy Memorial Day! Enjoy everything that summer has to offer: BIG MOVIES (already have seen a few, more on them in another post later!), barbecues, lazy time, less clothing (hey, the stuff is restrictive), more sandals, and cold foods!!
