The end of the first quarter is in sight, and let me tell you, these first two and a half months have just been a whirlwind of activity! Between creating lesson plans, grading papers, classroom management, and the never-ending trail of meetings new teachers must attend (new teacher meetings - both district and school, staff meetings, department meetings, district staff meetings. Sometimes it feels like I just don't have enough time in my day to get all my "stuff" done. Then to top it all off, I am taking graduate classes as well! So, on top of all that other "stuff" I just mentioned, let's add on time to actually attend the classes, more research, more essays, more reading! It really never ends!
You know though, as much as this sounds like I am complaining about not having enough time to accomplish anything, the truth of the matter is this . . . I actually LOVE what I do! Every time I walk into my classroom and greet my students, listen to their thoughts, opinions, or whatever they want to talk about, or see them making connections from that day's lesson to their own lives, it makes it all worth it.
In truth, I am actually beginning to feel like I am falling into a routine and THAT feels good. I love my job!!
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
The Summer I Was Hired!
What an amazing summer this has turned out to be!
Back in June, I was informed of an opening in the English Department at Omaha's South High Magnet School. After informing the "powers that be" of my interest in the position, I received a phone call from the principal of the school, wanting to schedule an interview.
I was pretty darn excited.
The day of the interview, I was feeling pretty confident. For the two previous years, I worked as a substitute teacher, almost exclusively, at this school. I knew the staff, faculty, and the students. It felt like a natural fit. However, when I went into the interview, all I could do was "gush" about how much I loved the school and everyone who is a part of it. "I love this, I love that," and so on. It was like I was star-struck and trying to make small talk with a superstar.
By the end of the interview, I knew I had bombed it and on the 20-minute ride home, I essentially talked myself out of the position. When I walked through the door, my husband asked how it went and I told him how poorly I thought I did.
You know that gut-wrenching feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you know you didn't live up to or meet your own expectations? Yeah, I had that!
Less than an hour after I got home, I received a phone call from Nicole in Human Resources. She asked how I thought the interview went. I lied. I told her I thought it went pretty well and that I was hoping to get a call back. It was like she couldn't contain herself, she quickly told me, "Congratulations! They have decided to offer you the position. That is, of course, if you're interested.
What was I going to say?! Oh golly gee. No, thank-you.
Yeah, right!
As soon as I hung up the phone, my husband and I jumped up, hugged each other, and continued jumping and laughing until tears came to my eyes. The overwhelming excitement was pouring out of me.
Since that day, I have been on cloud nine. I will finally have my own classroom, with my own students. I just hope that I will be able to teach them everything they need to know about English so they can be successful in whatever they choose to pursue.
Back in June, I was informed of an opening in the English Department at Omaha's South High Magnet School. After informing the "powers that be" of my interest in the position, I received a phone call from the principal of the school, wanting to schedule an interview.
I was pretty darn excited.
The day of the interview, I was feeling pretty confident. For the two previous years, I worked as a substitute teacher, almost exclusively, at this school. I knew the staff, faculty, and the students. It felt like a natural fit. However, when I went into the interview, all I could do was "gush" about how much I loved the school and everyone who is a part of it. "I love this, I love that," and so on. It was like I was star-struck and trying to make small talk with a superstar.
By the end of the interview, I knew I had bombed it and on the 20-minute ride home, I essentially talked myself out of the position. When I walked through the door, my husband asked how it went and I told him how poorly I thought I did.
You know that gut-wrenching feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you know you didn't live up to or meet your own expectations? Yeah, I had that!
Less than an hour after I got home, I received a phone call from Nicole in Human Resources. She asked how I thought the interview went. I lied. I told her I thought it went pretty well and that I was hoping to get a call back. It was like she couldn't contain herself, she quickly told me, "Congratulations! They have decided to offer you the position. That is, of course, if you're interested.
What was I going to say?! Oh golly gee. No, thank-you.
Yeah, right!
As soon as I hung up the phone, my husband and I jumped up, hugged each other, and continued jumping and laughing until tears came to my eyes. The overwhelming excitement was pouring out of me.
Since that day, I have been on cloud nine. I will finally have my own classroom, with my own students. I just hope that I will be able to teach them everything they need to know about English so they can be successful in whatever they choose to pursue.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
To Thine Own Self Be True
Wow! The end of another school year is upon us. To me, it feels like so much has happened while at the same time nothing has changed.
I have had another fulfilling year of substitute teaching. Not just for one school district, but for two. As such, I was given numerous opportunities to work on and build my classroom management techniques and strategies, learned a lot about numerous academic subjects, and had the privilege of working with and teaching diverse groups of students. I just hope that one day, when I have the honor of having my own classroom, that my students will be as amazing and full of wonder as the students I have been exposed to for the past year.
In addition to being a substitute teacher, I have continued to work on a Master's degree in secondary education. As of right now, I have officially completed over one half of my graduate program. I am still amazed at the fact that I was able to find the strength and courage to go back to school after so many years!
This may sound weird, but sometimes I look in the mirror and almost don't recognize the person staring back at me. Don't get me wrong, this is not a bad thing by any means! It's just that, by looking back on my life and all the obstacles (both those imposed by myself and those imposed by others)I've had to overcome, sometimes it's just hard to believe that I've made it this far. What happened to the uncertain, clinically depressed, teenage girl from oh so many years ago?! I'll tell you what, she found out how good life can be! Once she started to believe in herself, doors began to open up and opportunities began to present themselves to her. I have become living proof that people can and do change and that we all have the power within ourselves to affect change in the world.
So, you're probably wondering what I meant when I said nothing has changed. Well, nothing has changed.
I am still me.
I still have the same hopes and dreams that I have always had. The only difference is now I believe that I have what it takes to achieve them, all of them. Ultimately, it is this belief that I hope to pass on to my students:
"To thine own self be true." If you believe in yourself, with a little bit of work, everything else will fall into place.
I have had another fulfilling year of substitute teaching. Not just for one school district, but for two. As such, I was given numerous opportunities to work on and build my classroom management techniques and strategies, learned a lot about numerous academic subjects, and had the privilege of working with and teaching diverse groups of students. I just hope that one day, when I have the honor of having my own classroom, that my students will be as amazing and full of wonder as the students I have been exposed to for the past year.
In addition to being a substitute teacher, I have continued to work on a Master's degree in secondary education. As of right now, I have officially completed over one half of my graduate program. I am still amazed at the fact that I was able to find the strength and courage to go back to school after so many years!
This may sound weird, but sometimes I look in the mirror and almost don't recognize the person staring back at me. Don't get me wrong, this is not a bad thing by any means! It's just that, by looking back on my life and all the obstacles (both those imposed by myself and those imposed by others)I've had to overcome, sometimes it's just hard to believe that I've made it this far. What happened to the uncertain, clinically depressed, teenage girl from oh so many years ago?! I'll tell you what, she found out how good life can be! Once she started to believe in herself, doors began to open up and opportunities began to present themselves to her. I have become living proof that people can and do change and that we all have the power within ourselves to affect change in the world.
So, you're probably wondering what I meant when I said nothing has changed. Well, nothing has changed.
I am still me.
I still have the same hopes and dreams that I have always had. The only difference is now I believe that I have what it takes to achieve them, all of them. Ultimately, it is this belief that I hope to pass on to my students:
"To thine own self be true." If you believe in yourself, with a little bit of work, everything else will fall into place.
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