SATURDAY

I love Saturdays!  I love being able to sleep in a little, spend time with family, and spend time at home!

However, I didn't get to sleep in today.  I woke up just after 6:00am worried about the class lists that I needed to type up and email to my principal.  I've been fretting over these lists for weeks now.  My team and I have talked, fretted, emailed, texted, and worried about these class lists like no other year.  Every once in a while (maybe once a decade even), the stars align and you just get a group of kids who do not mix well, a group of kids with many big personal issues.  This is that group. To make matters worse, my district will not allow class sizes of 16 and 17 next year, so we have to create a combo class to ensure at least 22 in a classroom. If you've followed my blog awhile, you may be aware that I taught a 1st/2nd grade combo class two years ago. Because of the way it's done in my district, I wouldn't wish that on anyone, no teacher or student. So my heart is already heavy for my students with their big issues, and now they will receive a poorer education because some will be in a 3/4 combo class, and some will be in a regular class with too many kids with big needs and not enough staff to help them.  So, I got up early, typed up the lists, and emailed them out to my team for proofing. After a bevy of emails back and forth, and a few phone calls, we agreed on a final draft.  None of us are happy about it, but it's the best we can do given the limitations of staffing.  We pray that either we get a lot more 3rd and 4th graders to enroll to justify hiring another teacher, or that our district will see how ridiculous it is to have a combo class in two testing grades (that's five STAAR tests between the two grades!).

Then it was time for some fun!  My family and I went to a birthday party at Putt Putt Golf and Games!  We had a great time!!

Afterwards, we stopped in at my school.  On a Saturday?? Yes!  I had four empty boxes in my trunk so my goal was to pack four boxes in my classroom today!  Mission accomplished!

When I got home, I doubled checked and then emailed the final draft of the wretched class lists and did my lesson plans for next week.

Then it was time for birthday party #2: Nerf War!  The kids had a great time!

 I still have some things to do in my teaching bag, but it's just not going to get done this weekend!  I'm taking a break tomorrow!  I need some rest!