One More Till I am off Probation

That is right... I finished my second year of teaching. After next year I will actually have tenure. This year was amazing! I am so surprised by how much easier the second year was compared to the first year. In fact I only cried ONCE about management/workload/students this year compared to the once or twice a month my first year. Now that is an improvement. I was trying to decide why this year was so much better than my first year... here are a few things I came up with:

1. I started out the year knowing who I was as a teacher and how I would react in certain situations.

2. I ONLY stayed at school till 5 instead of 7! (most days)

3. I was an established teacher at the school rather than a former substitute

4. I learned how to multi-task better.

5. One of the administrators was one of my best friends.

6. I went to Disneyland in February.

7. I had TAs that helped me out oh so much!

8. My friend Lindsey Z left such a great legacy at OJHS.

9. My friend Mindy would call me out of the blue and offer to help me grade.

But mostly I LOVE teaching, I LOVE my students and I LOVE my Ashley and Allison (my department) I seriously have one of the best jobs ever. Teaching is so hard, but it is never boring. The kids are so entertaining and they are so good (most of the time :) Some highlights

• C the Gang member got an A on his year end Final
• T had no shame in sharing his love for High School Musical and Hannah Montana
• T (the student that made me cry) and I came to an understanding and he stopped being a behavioral problem half way through the year and he even helped others do better
• J and A performing their interpretive dance
• B4 singing Popcorn popping
• The grand Concert
• The Plays
• N walking around the halls with his boom box strapped to his shoulder playing the Beach Boys
• H who gets so nervous and anxious that she rarely gets PRs in Track. But at Alpine Days she ran her heart out and PRed. I was never more proud of a student
• B asking Miss Belnap to walk down the Red Carpet at the 9th Grade Dance
• Seven Peaks
• The B-Day Party my students threw me. Some students even got into my room early in the morning and decorated my room. It was so cute.

N Revolutionary War book that she created... It is Amazing
• H short story on the Constitution
• WWCD
• Going to Js Baptism
• J was failing. Then we started Track and we talked about improving his 400 and then he was getting As in class.
• I who was scared to be in the Gifted Class but through perseverance was one of my best students
• The Invention Convention
• My B4 class. They are a class straight out of the 50s. They even made me this shirt.
• 7th Grade Boys getting First at Alpine Days
• School Dances
• The Lunch Boys singing Rachelle
• Long Boarding in the halls
• Junior High Students having Crushes
• Having students that look older than me

Oh my Goodness... I could go on and on. I love OJHS. It has been a great 2 years and I am glad that I get to teach next year especially with these two lovely ladies (the two on the ends). We are in each other's classroom daily. They have supported me and kept me going. And they are both teachers that I hope to be like someday.

And lastly I want to give credit to Allen. He has supported me the last two years. He is always willing to grade papers. He gives me the extra encouragement when I feel like I can't face it. He is so patient when I get overwhelmed with school. He comes to all the plays and concerts with me. He has come to teach the track kids how to play Ultimate Frisbee. He even ran in the coaches relay. (And all the girls thinks he is hot!) He knows the kids and he likes to hear about them. I could not teach without Allen. With his help... it was a great year.