Sink or Swim

"Are Sundays painful for y'all?" asked our friend Lauren's mom just a little while ago. We were enjoying a glorious evening while chatting on the stoop, and Jackie, a retired teacher herself, spoke with a knowing tone.

"They sure can be," I said. "In fact, when we left the doggie birthday party we were invited to at 4 this afternoon, I felt like I could barely drag myself home."

She nodded sympathetically.

"But then I asked Heidi if she wanted to go over to the high school pool and swim," I told her, "and even though neither one of us really wanted to? We did! And now I feel pretty good!"

"Well, good for you!" Jackie said. "That's a good way to survive."

No Time like the Present

There was an almost imperceptible hint of Autumn in the air when I took the dog out at 7:30 this morning. The light was a little more golden; the air held the slightest chill. We should go hiking! I thought to myself, and then thought of everything I wanted to do on this first real weekend of the school year: But not today, I concluded.

Later, I was telling Heidi about all the hiking we might do this fall. "But not today," I said.

Just then, the phone rang. It was my brother. "We're going hiking!" he told me. "Want to come?"

"Yes!" I answered, "we do."

And we did.

Canary in the Coal Mine

The "Welcome" assembly hadn't even begun this morning when I spotted one of our most restless students squirming in his seat. I knelt down next to him and quietly asked him to sit in the chair rather than wiggle around on top of its folded seat.

He sighed, crestfallen, and sank into the red velvet theater seat. He wasn't defiant or angry; he was just struggling to be comfortable and still in this structured environment. "If you need a break," I told him, "just ask. I'll be right over there." and I returned to my own seat across the aisle.

He did not take me up on my offer, but as our school administrators went through the annual litany of warnings and don'ts, I watched him as he quietly tapped his foot, rubbed his eyes, pulled his hair, and lightly banged his head on the seat in front of him.

He never bothered anyone, but he was never engaged in the presentation, which was a text-heavy slideshow with a lot of adult narration. For him, it was 45 painful minutes with no gain in knowledge or understanding.

Noted.

Present Day

I'm not sure if it's my years on the job, the kids in my classes, the teachers on my team, the way I spent my summer, or something else, but it sure doesn't feel like it's only the third day of school!

Name Game

We have the students' legal names in front of us on the first day of school, but kids frequently go by other names, either middle or nick, and I always ask for guidance in pronunciation. In addition to the Abbies, Jack, and Maddie, and Ike, this year it seemed like there were a whole lot of kids with non-Anglo-Saxon names that had already thrown up their hands at the way native English speakers have mangled their names: Abidi was Abdi, Rayan was Ryan, Dibora was Debra, and Chinkhuslen asked to be called Charlie. (Coincidentally, he was sitting next to Charles, who wanted to be called Austin, not his middle name.) We also have a Zakary who is a girl, and in a quick write where she was asked to write something she wondered about, she wrote, I wonder where my dad came up with my name.

Relativity

In all my years of teaching so far, last year was definitely the toughest. A combination of large class sizes and many high-need students really kept us on our toes. Some days were definitely more challenging than others, but I tried to stay positive. These kids are making me a better teacher, I said to anyone who would listen, and I meant it.

A few years ago, I lost a lot of weight. I had put on the pounds gradually in my forties and early fifties, and a combination of calorie counting and extra activity helped me shed the extra weight over a year and a half. That summer, I was amazed at how much energy I had and how easy anything physical seemed. It was like I was skipping and sliding through every day.

After one day, this school year? Seems like that summer. Smaller classes and kids who seem a bit quieter made me feel like super teacher today. I could move through the room, reach every student, pivot when something wasn't quite right, and it all seemed effortless.

I have kept the weight I lost off, but everything isn't as light and easy as it was when I first lost it. I'm sure there will come a point in this year, too, when I feel the full weight of being the teacher that each student in my class needs and deserves. But for now? I'm enjoying the glide.

Pushing the Deadline

On the last day of summer, the minute I rolled out of bed I made a list of everything I wanted to accomplish. Usually? Crossing a few things off the list and chalking the rest up to over-ambition is enough, but today?

Today I completed my list, which was a mix of home and school and personal obligations.

And now, learning management courses set up, rosters created, lesson planned and written, meeting agendas composed, shelves and drawers organized, donations documented and packed for drop off, and new furniture ordered, we're off to the Doggie Dip. Then it's home for some shrimp tacos before turning in early to be sure we are well rested tomorrow--

not on the list, but I'll check them off anyway.