For the last two weeks, I've been in my classroom all but two days (and weekends of course, even I will not go to school on weekends). I've cleaned, sorted, filed, arranged, re-arranged, computed, printed, hung, trashed, and laminated until there seems to be nothing left that needs to be done. Seriously, I never understood why the elementary teachers were always at school two weeks early, and stayed two weeks late, and worked nights and weekends, but I sure do get it now! It's amazing what needs to be done to prepare for 24 six year olds to enter my door on day one.
There are name tags, lunch choices, pin numbers (yep, even six year old have pin numbers), bus numbers, workbooks to label, Buckeye Bucks to make, schedules to put up, rules to post, bulletin boards to decorate, and countless other small tasks. I'm happy to report, however that most of my small tasks are done, with the exception of names on things, because I've yet to get an accurate class list. Class lists are an interesting thing at the elementary level. I guess, if you're going to have to be in a teacher's class for a whole year...one teacher, and you, for a whole year....you want to get someone you think you'll like. So, class lists are the ultimate in school secrecy.
Teachers will get their lists on Friday, nearly the same time as parents. This is because there are so many students coming and going, that the lists seem to be in a constant state of flux, so getting that final list takes until the midnight hour. So, on Friday, at 3:00, the lists will be posted on the school door. The parents will be lined up to see them, and there will be cheers and tears, and I'll be too busy writing names on things to pay attention. If we do get the lists early, it's "top secret" and we are not allowed to tell anyone about our class lists. Kinda like the, "If I tell you, I'll have to kill you," method of secrecy.
So, about that laminating.....yeah, it's amazing! I have laminated so much stuff that I'm pretty sure the laminating film would reach from home to school and back. That means, of course, that I've also had to cut out around all those laminated things, and then organize them in their particular places. I've got laminated name tags, locker tags, lunch pin tags, bus tags, and schedules. I've laminated letters, bulletin board pictures, cards, and just about anything that can be fit between the rollers of a laminator. All this in the hope that things will last all year, so I don't have to do this again this year!
Now that I've been in my room a great deal, it's starting to feel more like it's really mine. I'm starting to make some decisions about things I want to do, and some routines I want to follow. I'm starting to feel confident enough to ask questions when I have no idea, and that's stopped making me feel inferior!
The only thing I've yet to do is set up my lesson plans. That's what Friday will be for. I will be planning for the first two weeks, laying out the materials and figuring out what I want to use. Since I have to teach all subjects, this will require a good bit more thought than when I just taught two, but I think I have a plan to make it work well.
You know, it's been a lot more work, but it's really stretched my brain, and I'm beginning to feel the creative juices starting to flow, so that I believe it's possible this first grade thing and I will get along just fine!
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