New year!

The beginning of each school year is such an exciting time. I love getting to meet the students and their families, setting up the classroom, laminating and planning fun get-to-know-you activities. It is non-stop and overwhelming when you try to prepare as much as you can beforehand. And then...all the students show up on the first day and you realize how much you still have to do and you are instantly 6 days behind. Teachers live in a constant state of catch-up!

I am looking forward to learning more, growing more and getting to know a new group of students. 

Here's to another great year, with awesome students and an amazing school!

Moving on

I can not believe that I have left the cute town of Vernal and the amazing school that I worked at. I always said that moving back to Oregon was what I wanted and now it's happened!

It all happened so quickly and I truly did not expect to have this opportunity. I am happy to be back closer to family and friends. Especially because I will be an auntie in the next 5 months! How exciting is that?! I can't wait! Praying for all to be well during the pregnancy and birth!

There are definitely mixed emotions about this move. I keep thinking, "did I make the right choice?". But I remind myself that either way (staying or moving back) would be great. I had a fabulous job with a great staff and I had some of the greatest friends. I am beyond blessed to have had such a wonderful experience. I am grateful that I can look back on that time and think only positive, happy thoughts! Vernal is a unique town and has some oddities, but you really do grow to love it. I miss everything and everyone dearly! In particular, that cute guy who makes me laugh so much and who works so hard for everything he has. But hey, I can always go back, right?

I am nervous and anxious and excited and terrified and happy and everything in between about starting a new job. I'm thankful I'll be returning to the school I student taught at and where I worked part-time as a reading aide. The staff seems fabulous! The principal is amazing! I am lucky to be working at such a great school. I am looking forward to a new adventure! It will be a lot of work to learn new procedures, school rules, curriculum, students, etc. but it will be exciting. And as always, a whirl-wind of pure craziness!

Thankful!

Just a quick note to remember how much there is to be thankful for! 

I can't believe it is the end of the first trimester and when we get back from break, it will be December! Where did the time go? 

I am blessed each day and I am so thankful to do something that I love to do. I truly believe in the positive impact I and other teachers can have on students and their life's. 

Each day is a gift, a blessing, a chance to be better, to make a difference. Make it happen! 

The first 2 months!

We have survived the first 10+ weeks of school. I can't believe that it is already the beginning of November. Where has the time gone?! 

This group of students is so sweet. I sometimes find myself in complete awe of how wonderful they are. I love my job. As we celebrated halloween yesterday, I was reminded how lucky I am to spend my days with kids. I have the best job in the world. :)

We have been very busy! This week we began learning about multiplication. We start this topic by building a understanding of what it means to multiply. Can I just say that not only are these students sweet, but they are smart! They truly seem to comprehend the concept of multiplication. One of the coolest things to see is the students apply the techniques we use in class to their own work. It brings a huge smile to my face! 

We are also working really hard on our writing. This year we are implementing a new writing tool called Utahcompose. The students read prompts and then type their responses. It's a little overwhelming and we have a lot of work to do. But at least we have a good goal to work toward. 

We've been having fun with projects and art in class too! We're trying to make time for everything! 

Back to school, back to school, to prove to dad that I am not a fool.

http://youtu.be/fJSrjW9Wc4A

A new school year has begun and we are off to a great start. Back to school night was on Monday and there was a great turn out. It's always so nice to meet new parents and students. It's also amazing to see parents and students from the last two years, it truly fills my heart to see them. (Teaching is the best job, ever).

So far, we have had 24 students show up. I have 26 registered and I think they will be showing up this coming week. This year, I arranged our room a little differently to change it up. The new arrangement is working out well, I think I really like it. Hopefully it will continue to work! 

This group of students is super sweet. I know it's only been 3 days, but I have noticed that they are kind, respectful and easy-going. I am loving getting to know them all. What a blessing to spend my days with awesome kids! 

This week we worked on procedures, rules and expectations. We put together our binders, our writing folders, and put textbooks into our desks. We also talked about how to check out books from our classroom library, which the kids are super excited about! I'm glad they are so interested in reading, wahoo! 

We have also worked on a few fun projects; a place value robot and name art using "power coloring". Power coloring is a phrase I picked up from checking out Pinterest (gotta love it) and the kids are really into it. 

Here are a few pictures from the first week! 

Priceless third grade quotations

I just had to write some of the awesome things these kids say down somewhere. Sometimes I can't contain my laughter when these things come out of their mouths.

Boy: "But Miss F, why does your hair do that? ...you know, go behind that hair in the front" ( I had literally know idea what my hair looked like or what he was even talking about but then) ...Girl: "That's just what girls hair looks like!"

"I would like to meet Hannah Montana. But I like her because she sings....not because some times she does bad things."

"Miss F, do you know about the twin towers?"

"Yes, I was alive when that happened!"

"You were?!" 

"Who is Michael Jordan?"  (What?!)

Love, love, love my job!

After telling my students we would be pen pals with a class from Oregon, one student raised his hand and asked " but how do they talk in Oregon?" " yeah, do they have accents?" 

We learned about Johnny Appleseed today...

"Miss F, where did the seeds come before there was a tree?" A couple of kids said nature, one kid said God and then one boy said we are not allowed to talk about that at school! 

Johnny wore a pot on his head when he was alive so naturally... "why don't we call him pothead?!"

While reading a sentence for correction about marriage a student said aloud,  "maybe that could be Miss F". I responded with, "we can hope!" And then things got crazy, ..."then you could have a shorter last name",  " we could be friends with your kids!"

"Sometimes this pencil can't concentrate"

"My phone number has 8 or 9 numbers, so it's kind of long distance"

"But Miss F, do they speak another language in Oregon?"

"Miss F, Stone is saying weird stuff. He's saying he has a girlfriend." -Brynlee

"Today, I am retiring my weirdness." -Will

"Miss F, your hair looks like my wrestling coach's". -Andrew

Say what?!

I can't believe that 5 weeks of this year school year has already passed us by! Our weeks have been filled with getting to know each other, testing (ugh) and even a little fun. I am truly blessed by my job everyday. I love what I do and I love to be a positive part of their life's. (I like to think its positive).

A quick recap... 

Back to school night happens the night before school starts. I had all but 4 families show up, pretty awesome. It's great to meet them all. But it's also overwhelming. I have a hard time remembering all the parents. Students and families from last year stopped by, such a joy!

We have implemented a new test this year. It was created by the teachers in the district last near. It has potential, but there are still a lot of quirks to work out. We will work to make it better each time. There is also another new test, to find the reading level for each student. Holy cow, that one was a doozy! It could take 30-40 minutes per student. There just isn't enough time in the day!

I was able to get some fun when I went hiking in dinosaur national monument with Ashley. We hiked the sound of silence trail and checked out Josie's cabin. She lived obey herself in the canyons in east Utah. Pretty cool stuff! Last weekend, I drove to Salt Lake for a weekend of fun with my Oregon State girls! We ate good food (including awesome cupcakes), shared good stories and had a great time watching the Beavers beat Utah! Go Beavs!!

That following week I had three trainings; Monday night and all day Tuesday and Wednesday. I am thankful for the relaxing Saturday morning in bed. It was a crazy week! 

I leave with this final though...what if we looked forward to each day, each moment and all the potential it holds instead of focusing on future what is it come? Enjoy your life, each moment, each I experience, no matter how small or quiet it may be. 

Love and blessings,

Audrey