I'm back to school and couldn't be happier (or more tired..). Since blogging has obviously been put on the back burner until I can manage my time a bit better, I wanted to share with you what a typical day is like for me at my new school!
I wake up promptly at 6:15 a.m. and hit the shower. Once I'm clean and dressed, I wake up Cory so he can hop in. While he's getting ready, I fix us both a bowl of oatmeal and a cup of coffee. Depending on the day, we'll either eat together at home, or take it on the road.
I take a gorgeous backroad all the way to school. It's a windy road that cuts through a mountain and runs right beside a state park where there are waterfalls! It's such a zen experience traveling through a serene element twice a day. So calming and perfect! I'm so excited for the trees to be bright yellow and orange!
I'm usually at work by 7:30-7:40 and jump right in to a mental To-Do list to make sure I'm ready for the day. I check my work email, take a look at my lesson plans, touch up any final handouts or task sheets, and head straight to the copier. I try to get everything copied before the line gets too long ;).
By the time I return, my office-mate and friend, Jess has arrived and we catch up on our good morning's and stories from the night before. Usually we're both pretty sleepy, so we just focus on waking up for our teenagers!
By 8:30, the hallways are pretty full and the last buses are dropping off students.
I have my planning period first thing, so I work on lessons for the week and any miscellaneous paperwork that comes my way (usually for Yearbook).
By 10:10, I'm heading to my classroom for mod 2. Oh! I may not have told you! When I moved to my new school, I agreed to not have a classroom for at least a year. It's actually sort of cool to walk around all day. I have noticed I burn A LOT of extra calories because I'm up and moving so, so much more! Sounds like a win-win to me :)
Mod 2 begins at 10:15 and for me, that means teaching juniors and seniors how to write well. I'm beginning to love this class. It's a large class of sweethearts. I'm not entirely confident in the subject matter, but I'm learning A LOT as I research and prepare lessons.
Mod 3 is the exact same class, but it's a bit smaller and has A LOT of football players. It was pretty fun to see everyone dressed in their jerseys yesterday! Fortunately, this class is split in two sections, before lunch and after lunch. Either way--it's a good time.
Mod 4 is like a quick dip in the pool: Freshman Honors. We have a split mod of just 43 minutes, but I will have this class all year long. I'm really excited about this class, because I will be able to dive into two of my favorite pieces of literature:
Of Mice and Men,
Ethan Frome. Yay!
Mod 8 rolls around by 2:45 and is another split class that I teach for just 43 minutes, but all year. This is yearbook! This class is turning out to be a good time, but of course, it's a lot of front loading. Right now, I'm dedicating a bit of my weekend to looking through our ladder and making sure our pages are exactly how they should be. I have a lot of work to do, but the kids seem really great :).
The great thing about this schedule is that it forces the day to speed by so quickly. Before I know it, the day is done. I'm usually pretty sleepy after school, but stick around until 4 or 4:30 to finalize some work for the next day or tackle some grading. Cory doesn't finish his school day until 4:30, so I'm not in a huge rush to get home.
I'm usually walking through the door by 5:15 every evening. I'll figure out what we're doing for dinner and what I need to accomplish that night. This week has been filled with a lot of lesson planning and family events in the evening.
By 9:30 or 10, I'm so worn out and ready for bed, I can't even formulate proper sentences. I'm usually giggling a lot and rubbing my eyes like a typical 3 year old. So, I head to bed, read a few pages of my current book, and drift off to sleep to wake up and do it all over again!
What is your typical day like?
Whenever I meet a newbie to needlearts, they always ask the best way to get started.
