Connections.
After six days of new teacher orientation, staff meetings, unpacking boxes and learning names, I was READY to welcome students to school this week. I joined the Car Line Crew in the mornings, and I have the opportunity to greet students as they arrive at school. I joked that I felt like I was a footman at a gala event with a red carpet! I grab a door handle and out pops a celebrity student who has been delivered for a day full of learning.
My new school services preK four-year-olds through fourth graders, so the kids are adorable and excited to be at school. They are lined up very early each morning. The students and staff have such connections to each other - it's really a big family. At the end of this week I received two hugs from kids passing by me as I sat in the hallway assessing other students. They had just met me!
(Side note - I have been smiling so much that my face hurts! I feel like
Dug from "Up")
Passion.
All of the staff - returning, veteran, new and seasoned - have a passion for teaching, a driving force to help our students succeed, and a helpful attitude. Everyone has been patient and good listeners as I tell them my goals and my background. Even though they may not be excited about some assessment or instructional directives, they are keeping the students in mind. It shows!
It's all good.
To take a quote from Pete the Cat, it's all good. Students are wondering who I am, but they are quick to return a smile. I've walked the wrong way to my classroom and passed one room twice trying to find a teacher. I am trying to be respectful when making suggestions, realizing that the way I've done assessment, grouping and data mining may not be the only way. I'm working extra hard to keep my former students and colleagues in my heart and off my mind, but I feel their encouragement. I can do this.
