ketchup...or catch up

oops.

you know how you have all of these fun and awesome things you want to do during the summer and then one day.....summer is over? yeah. kinda happened to me this time, and it was a pretty big surprise. i spent the month of july (and the beginning of august) playing all over the country--utah, idaho, wyoming, montana, california, georgia, alabama, and texas to be exact--and then school started. and let me tell you, it's been trial by fire. two days after i got back from my last vacation, i started teaching in my very own classroom. my question is....why didnt i learn any of the stuff i've had to figure out in the past 3 weeks when i was in college for 4 years??

i suddenly have a much more enormous amount of appreciation for mom and dad (who have been teachers for as long as i can remember), because TEACHING IS HARD. all that stuff about teaching being the easy out in college.....yeah right! but, i love it. truly, this is the job for me. well, at least im still okay with it, and no children have been ruined or injured in the process. so far.

just so everyone knows, i am the teacher to the (arguably) best fourth graders in Utah. They are polite, they follow directions, and they are starting to pick up on some cool stuff. not to toot my own horn or anything, but they think im pretty hilarious, too, so we all work pretty well together. i only have 16 kids in my class, and we're all learning to make it work together. i havent taken pictures of my room yet, but i will try to post some soon.

highlight of the year:
i had a girl in my class who (long story short) was struggling and was feeling left out. in response, we did a character building activity--you know, read a story about a tiny dog who became a superhero, shared unique things about ourselves, same ol same ol. at the end of the activity, we taped a paper on everyone's back and the assignment was to write a compliment on everyone's paper without admitting who said what. the kids talked me into having one. after walking around, signing students' papers and having my paper signed, we started talking about how being complimented made them feel. i then told them that they could have one minute to read their papers and i began to read mine. there were a few 'you are my favorite teacher' and 'you teach well' comments, and then i saw it. right in the middle, bold and black, one student wrote:

'i like your shit'

i read it, stopped, and read it again. really? did some 8 year old just write that on my paper? and then i realized.....i had on a new, bright yellow shirt on. they meant i like your shirt! of course! i almost burst into laughter, but i controlled myself. of course, no one pointed it out or made any comments about my paper, so i just turned it over and placed it on my desk. i promptly showed all the other teachers during lunch. i will DEFINITELY be laminating that one and saving it for years to come.

anyway, i have lots to do. no matter how much i get done, i still find things i need to work on. blah. such is the life of an adult. i still say im not ready for it. i dont mind the paychecks, though...