Back at It!

The sun is not yet up.  It's 6:01 and I'm up, showered, dressed, and fed.  Lunch is made, bags are packed.  It's a freakin miracle.  I woke up about 10 times last night, most likely resulting from a combination of extreme thirst (that's what salty food and beer will do to you I guess!) and a stream of unsettling nightmares about school, which I will not even begin to relive here.  So far this morning I pinched my knuckle in my excruciatingly hot flat iron, resulting in a pink, puffy burn.  The morning is not off to the best start, but at least I am getting out of the house early enough to both hit up Starbucks and make it to the copier before the masses return!

Are you SURE I have to go to school tomorrow???

This day did NOT start well.  I dragged myself out of bed this morning (after I literally pried New Moon out of my hands...yes, I just finished reading the Twilight series for the first time mere weeks ago, and I already felt the need to dive into them again...), got dressed in my running clothes, and headed to the gym for my Sunday long run.  Today's run was SUPPOSED to be 6 miles.  But, WONDERFULLY, my tibia injury has decided to resurface this week...I think it's something to do with the yoga class I went to Monday.  Too much balancing my weight on one leg I guess!  oops.  :(  As I have said many times over the past few months, I am SO over this stress-fracture nonsense.  But this morning, on my way to the gym, I promised myself that if it hurt me today, I was NOT going to push it.  The last thing I want going into the new year is to completely negate the past 5 months of healing time!  So the 6 mile run became a 1 mile slow walk, thanks to my screaming tibia.  I'm a little (a lot) bummed that this has come up yet again, but here's hoping that a couple more days of rest will solve the problem...

After all that, I still went with
an old favorite with dinner :)

While the day started with me in a crabby-pants mood, it did not end that way!  Some friends and I decided to take a trip to the Goose Island Brewery for a tour & tasting, home of my absolute favorite brew, 312!  While it's a teeny-tiny brewing location, it was still cool to see where the magic happens!  We also got to sample six different beers, three of which I liked, and three of which I did NOT like--I swear, one of them had a MEAT flavor, though my fellow tasters insisted it was just a smokiness and my vegetarian palate just doesn't remember what meat tastes like.  We ended our night with a yummy dinner of pub food at the brewery before heading home.  What a wonderful end to a wonderful winter beak.


I literally am in denial that I have school tomorrow.  Seriously.  Do I really have to get up before dawn?  Can't I just take another week off?  I am excited to see my kiddos again and get back into a routine, but the looming ISAT tests do dampen the mood somewhat.  I have a new student coming tomorrow, so let's hope she's a keeper! ;)  Good luck back to school this week!

A little middle-school of me, maybe...

I've written before about how frustrated I am when someone tells me how young I look.  I KNOW.  Got it.  Thanks.  Before conferences, I agonized in this post about my attempt to pick out an outfit that makes me look my age at the very least.  So, as you can see I am very self-aware of how I appear to my students and their parents, and do my best to at least look my age at school MOST of the time.  Anyways, the other night I came straight from the gym to meet my dad at costco for some shopping.  (There's something about buying wholesale in bulk that just gets me excited!!)  In true post-workout fashion, I had a scrubbed, make-up free face, a ponytail of sweaty hair, and sweats on.  No problem for a grocery store run!  (Sorry, Stacey and Clinton, but we don't ALL feel the need to get dolled up for grocery shopping!)

Well...then I spotted one of my former students and her mother walking towards me and my dad!  The mature, adult, professional thing of me to do would have been to go up to them with a big smile and say, "What a surprise!  How have you been, Mrs. Student's Mother?" I'd like to say I did that...but suddenly I was all too self-aware of the fact that I was dressed like a slob, appeared about 12 years old, and was shopping with my daddy.  Ummm...maybe NOT the best moment to be schmoozing parents!

So obviously, I took the MATURE, middle-schoolish approach...avoided eye contact and walked away QUICKLY before either of them could realize that this young girl had been the daughter's TEACHER last year!  Oh my...

2010 Recap!

This time two years ago, I was having a bit of anxiety when I realized that it was the first New Year's of my life when I had absolutely NO idea where the following year would take me.  Interestingly enough, the following year led me right back home to my childhood house, as 2009 brought me a brand new opportunity and a teaching job minutes from my hometown.

This time last year, I was getting ready for an exciting night out enjoying the city nightlife.  It had been a rough couple of months, and I was excited to squeeze in one last night of fun before the impending doom of returning to the classroom post-winter break...

This year, I could not be happier NOT to be getting all dolled up and slipping on high heels.  In fact, I am perfectly content to be wearing jeans right now, and to enjoy a quiet New Year's of yummy food, wine, and a movie with a few high school friends.  Sometimes there is nothing sweeter than a relaxing evening, and I don't care if that makes me middle-aged at heart!  Like last year, I must admit that I am dreading Monday morning...but the reasons are SO vastly different this time.  I am NOT dreading Monday because I can't bear the pressure, because my students are crazy, or because I hate my job.  I'm honestly just dreading waking up at 5am and not being able to read in bed for hours!!

2010 was not the most eventful year in my life.  It honestly was fairly dull, but in that peaceful, satisfying kind of way.  In 2010, I...

• Learned to take control of management in my classroom.  I finally understood the importance of teaching and reteaching (and REreteaching!) routines and procedures that both work for me and work for my students.  I realized that just because I had planned something in my dream-classroom-in-my-head, it might not work out in real life.  And most importantly, I realized that that's okay--you can change plans as often as is necessary. :)
• Survived my first round of ISAT testing, and miraculously the kiddos did too!  
• Experienced the exciting reality of what happens when a student knocks over your fish bowl in class, including attempting to pick up a live beta and picking shards of glass out of carpeting.  Oh 5th grade...
• Came to terms with the distressing realities of stealing, lying, and emotional distress in the classroom.  I realized just how sad and true the stories of some of these students are, and faced the humbling reality that there is not always very much I can do to help, no matter how badly I want to.
• Approached the end of the year with a completely different attitude about myself, my work, and my students than I had had months previously.  I saw just how far they had come, I had come, and we had come together.  And it felt...amazing.  
• Put a hold on my previous plans of service abroad, realizing that I had begun a job here that was far from complete.  Instead of packing up my classroom, I signed a contract for the 2010-2011 school year, 100% confident that I was making the right choice and excited to return in August for a fresh start.
• Paid off my student loans (!!!) thanks to a rent-free year of living with mommy and daddy!
• Felt very grown up when I bought my first NEW car: a 2010 toyota prius
• Relished my first summer working less than 20 hours a week in years.  I used this special time to recharge my batteries, mentally and physically, with many naps, reading some amazing books, and rediscovering running in a whole new way.  
• Ran my first and second 5Ks, took on a whole new challenge by registering for my half-marathon, and was jubilant to discover the amazing things my body can do for me when I treat it right!
• ...got a stress fracture in my right tibia that promptly put a hold on my new running passion for a few months.
• Started YEAR 2 at my school, and was AMAZED to see and feel the difference in myself and my classroom, having had that first year under my belt.
• Faced a reality of students who CANNOT READ in 5th grade, and learned how critical my responsibility is to advocate and fight for my students.
• Fell in love with Writing Workshop!
• Fell in love with teaching again, come to think of it... :)

^and I mean that.  I did fall in love with teaching again in 2010.  I am still stressed, I still yell sometimes, I still feel helpless, and the kids still drive me crazy sometimes...but I love my job.  That alone is both a blessing and a miracle.  And, in an economy when so many either are unemployed or stuck in a job that is unfulfilling, it is something to be so grateful for.  I am grateful for so much as I look back on 2010.  Maybe it was a more eventful year than I'd originally thought...

source: postsecret

Winter Wonders, cont.

Wonderful Moments from the Past Few Days

• A much needed haircut
• An outside run (well, run/obstacle course/adventure...nothing like running dodging icy patches!)
• Christmas Eve mass
• Celebrating Christmas with my family
• An afternoon of family board games
• Yoga
• Finishing a good book

NOT wonderful was my Sunday long run.  Somehow I had the brilliant idea to eat a bowl of HEARTY lentil soup 2 hours before the run...you'd think that would be enough time to digest, but you would be wrong.  There is NOTHING like running on the treadmill contemplating throwing up in your towel, I tell ya...but I made it through and everything stayed in my tummy.  

Am thinking about heading into school tomorrow to start getting my act together...but maybe not...can't seem to find motivation to open my school bag either... ;)

2011: Planning Ahead :)

At my school, we are all about "SMART goals."  And by "all about" I mean that we are both given them and told to write them.  However, they are RARELY achievable, as the acronym specifies.  For example, when filling out an RTI document on one of my MANY struggling readers, the SMART goal I was told to list was that he will read at grade level by the end of this year.  I teach fifth grade.  This child reads at BARELY a first grade level.  Huh...achievable...totally...

ANYWAYS, excuse my snarkiness, but honestly...I decided to write some SMART resolutions for this year.  What that means, basically, is that my resolutions will NOT be things like "work out more," or "get more sleep."  Those are resolutions that get immediately abandoned, mostly because there is no way to keep them!  More sleep?  What does that mean??  Even though my SMART resolutions will likely be overshadowed at some point by other impending deadlines and responsibilities, the organized list-maker in me loves listing out ways to improve my life at the start of every year.  :)

In 2011, I will:

School Goals

• Research grad school programs and select a Reading Specialist Masters program that works for me, both financially and logistically;
• Make time for Read Aloud in my classroom at least 4 days a week, if only for 5 minutes;
• Spend no more than 1 night per week at school until 6 (at the latest!);
• Use a formative assessment strategy like Exit Slips at least once a week;

Fitness Goals

• Continue following and complete Hal Higdon's 1/2 Marathon Novice training plan, and subsequently complete the Disney Princess 1/2 Marathon;

Being a Grown-Up & Living a Happy Life Goals

• Set aside at least 1/2 an hour every single day just for myself, and use this time for reading, exercise, or just relaxing with some music;
• Develop a budget, and stick to it!  To be "measured" using mint.com or some other means that works for me (I guess another resolution should be to find some sort of budgeting tool!);
• Find & move into an apartment that I love and can reasonably afford;
• Cook a healthy meal for myself at least once a week (and by cook I mean actually prepare, not just assemble on a plate.  And no, oatmeal doesn't count... :-/ )
• Take my vitamins every day :) 

Hmm...so maybe not all of these are TRUE SMART goals, but they're a start at least!  Anything I'm missing? What are your resolutions for 2011?

Yummy food and a Blackhawks win = Wonderful Wednesday

During the school year, Wednesdays are a LONG day for me.  I have staff development after school, then rush straight to my autism therapy job.  When I get home, I am exhausted.  Today was an equally packed Wednesday--but a wonderful one nonetheless!

Wonderful Highlights:

1. Lunch with my special teacher friend Miss R and our wonderful friend Mrs. H!  We absolutely gorged ourselves on delicious food and cupcakes at a favorite cafe.

2. Gathering with family and friends to watch a Blackhawks game!  Hockey is the ONLY sport that can hold my interest, and definitely the only sport I understand the rules to.  Definitely a wonderful part of the day.  :)

I'm wondering just how long I can get away with neglecting my grading pile...hmmm...at least this week, right?

I agree, Mr. Teachbad

I recently discovered Mr. Teachbad's blog and immediately love its honestly and satire.  I especially enjoyed this post from last week about what "bugs [him] about education reform."  Today I was talking with my brother about school and the impending state tests.  He shook his head in disbelief when I told him that pretty much every afternoon from January to March would be devoted to test prep.  Honestly, imagine how much more I could TEACH if I didn't feel like I had the fate of the school and AYP on my shoulders...Anyways, Mr. Teachbad struck a powerful and important chord in his post:

Dishonest:

The achievement Gap is not the fault of teachers. How likely is that? Think about it. I mean, what are the chances that all the terrible teachers just randomly ended up in districts and neighborhoods with high rates of:

1) Single, young mothers;
2) Poverty;
3) Obesity;
4) Smoking;
5) Crime;
6) No books in the house;
7) Illiterate/unemployed/incarcerated/absentee parents.

I’ve been doing this for six years. Kids like this are hard to teach. It’s not like dropping into a desert and giving people water…where they are all grateful and think you are awesome. It’s more like giving cough medicine to a hysterical three-year old with a fever and diarrhea; they’ll fight it to the death and hate you afterward.

I can’t patch all these holes. I can’t make up for everything my students have so unfairly been denied. And I can’t accept responsibility for what that breeds.

Bill Gates and Michelle Rhee are dishonest for suggesting that if I do things a certain way in my classroom that I can overcome all of this. It’s just not true. And it is disingenuous and unfair to teachers to pretend otherwise.

--Mr. Teachbad, 12/15

Amen, Mr. Teachbad.  Maybe if every teacher makes their voice heard, someone from Washington will finally hear us?  Oh wait, we're just teachers.  Who cares what we think?

Confessions

Confession #1: I'll admit it...I went into school today.  :(  I guess I really can't stay away from that place for too long!

My lonely car in the snowy parking lot...

Confession #2: I actually LOVE going into school on days off.  Wait, let me explain before you form judgments...I do NOT love spending time at school during breaks, but I love how quiet it is when I do go in.  I can sit and file in peace, I am not at all rushed or having to watch the clock, I don't have to worry about hogging the copier or waiting in line...I can simply get me work done peacefully and head out when I feel like it!  

This afternoon I just stopped in briefly.  Mostly, I needed to pick up my class fish, Fighty, and save him from impending death by starvation.  While there, I inevitable found other things to occupy my time!  I purposely didn't bring my grading or computer, because then I'd really settle in for the long haul!  Today I just hung up some more ISAT signs on the ever-growing clothes line (pictures to come), filed transparencies and handouts from the past two weeks, and started copying ISAT reading practice passages.  GROSS.  It's that time of year, though!  And I know I will greatly appreciate having taken the time to copy them now when we are back in the thick of things in 2 weeks!  I will probably go in again once or twice next week to move desks, continue copying, and do my plans for the next week or so. Plenty of time still, though!!

Confession #3: While at school, I gathered all of the leftover candy that had been brought for the Holiday Party and put it in the candy rewards jar.  But not before I picked out all of the mini dark chocolate candy bars and put them in MY personal candy stash....*evil laugh*  That's totally ethical, right?

Yum.

Of course, I made time for some wonderful things today!  The best part was definitely hanging out lazily with my brother at the gym today.  My brother lives in Florida with his wife, and the two of them are visiting for the holiday.  I brought them both to the gym with me as guests today, and after my brother and I finished working out (his wife is WAY more hard-core than us!!), we decided to reward ourselves with an HOUR of lounging in the club hot tub and chatting.  It was wonderful to spend some time just the two of us, and SO unbelievably relaxing!!  At one point I noticed that the sign by the hot tub warned against spending more than five minutes in the tub...oops!  Oh well!

Wonderful.

A lot of people have asked me recently what I'm doing over winter break.  My response is usually a blank stare.  What am I doing?  RELAXING, duh!!!  No, I'm not traveling somewhere warm and exotic.  I have no exciting plans to visit far-away family.  My goals are very simple.  First, relax.  Second, catch up on school work.  And third, and perhaps most important, do something wonderful every single day.

What kinds of things might those be?  Let me illustrate:

Friday:  My wonderful thing was catching up with my two best friends/roommates from college.  No, we didn't do anything fabulous.  Just went out for drinks and conversation.  But it was wonderful to see them both!

Saturday:  Saturday's wonderful things included staying in bed until noon--unfortunately I was awake at 7:45, but I THOROUGHLY enjoyed the lazy time to read, watch a movie on my laptop, and catch up on reading some blogs--simply bliss.  Another wonderful part of the day was enjoying a 45 minute swim (my first time in the pool after a LONG hiatus!  I forgot how much I adore swimming!), and some evening shopping.

Sunday: Wonderful moments included a cookie exchange party (YUM--nothing says winter break like a midday cookie meal!!!) and a FABULOUS nighttime long run.

Monday: Today was simply wonderful.  Featured on the wonderful menu were manis and pedis with the wonderful Miss R and a relaxing evening yoga class.

My toes mostly look dry and icky in this picture, but I promise that they are FAR more wonderful now than they were pre-pedicure!  Thank you, wonderful manicurist!

Winter break always FLIES by.  I am determined to savor every moment this year.  Yes, there will be some school work (mostly because a wonderful gift to myself will be having everything ready to go when we get back to school!), but there will be lots of NON-SCHOOL WORK happening too. :)

What wonderful things do you have planned this winter?