First Day of the Rest of My Life

Warning: This is very wordy, all about school, and has no pictures.  Read at your own discretion.

Yesterday was the first official teacher workday.  We sat through a meeting with other schools where the superintendent and a school board member spoke.  After that, I got to go upstairs and work in my classroom.

Classroom challenges:

~My previous owner left NOTHING in the classroom.  Not a stapler, pair of scissors, or paperclip.  Everyone has been great about sharing their surplus or finding me supplies, but it has slowed down my process.

~My computer log-in isn't working.  This means I can't access my email, class role, etc.

~I have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing.  Should I be working on my class role?  Hanging posters and decorating?  Trying to get my email issues taken care of?  Who knows!

Classroom fun:

~It's MY classroom!  I can arrange desks the way I want, decorate the way I want, and organize the way I want!

~The one thing I discovered in my room -- stacks and stacks of poster board on top of my file cabinet.  Oh yeah, we'll be using that!

~I have about 40 cabinets and ten book shelves that have nothing in them -- room to grow into!

I share a stock room with another new-to-LRHS teacher who has been really helpful.  For every school supply I'm missing, he has five of them, so he's been sharing.  He's also been a sounding board for me with all of my "Hey, how do you do ______ in your classroom?" questions.  The supply room is going to be another challenge, but we'll tackle that maybe next week.

The science department (most of which are in the other building) came by to introduce themselves and invite us to lunch.  They. Are. Incredible.  Super nice, very helpful, and are really embracing us as members of the family.

Other interesting things from the day:

~I ran into MHS teachers at the multi-school meeting, and they were so excited.  "Yay, you got the job!"  They were crestfallen when they found out that I DID get a job... just not at their school.

~At lunch, one of the teachers said I looked like a former math teacher -- someone in my Sunday School class!  (ps, we look nothing alike...)

~Someone has already asked me about Paint by Letters and said they may commission me for a pregnant colleague's gift.

~The science department buys each other cakes for their birthdays, one of which is today.  They are also renowned for their participation in Homecoming/Spirit Week.  I can't wait!

~For those who don't know the whole long story of my hire, they were hiring 1.5 positions (one full-time, one part-time).  They were considering me for a part-time position because they had someone with years of earth science experience for the full-time position (my new neighbor).  I found out yesterday that they liked me so much, the petitioned the principal to reallocate money to hire me full-time.  I hope I live up to their expectations!

Ok, that's it for this morning.

Today's goals:

~Start planning earth science for the first couple of weeks.  Fortunately, the other teachers have already gotten a head start on that, and we're meeting to share notes, ideas, and labs with each other.  

~Get my log-in fixed, check (and handle) my email, and sign up for equipment in the media center.

You won't get a day-by-day report, I promise, but Mom always talks about "Make sure you write that down!" when some significant life event happens, so Mom, this is me "writing it down."