School's Out for Summer
Oh my! Am I ever glad this school year is over? You bet! It has been so hard trying to suck in all the Charlotte I can while having to be away from her 8+ hours a day. We are looking forward to a great summer and finding lots of new places to explore.
As hard as it was to have to go to work, there were several bright spots. One of the biggest was my student's success on the FL Writes+ test. This is a big deal for 8th graders in FL and the results are calculated as part of our school's grade. My students beat the county with an average essay score of 4.2. A 3.5 is considered on grade level. I couldn't be more thrilled for their success. I also had the privilege to work with 3 students who earned a 6, which is the highest possible score.
It also helped each day knowing that I was working with other teachers and administrators who cared. We had a lot of students who were difficult, to be nice about it. And even though we all had our moments of frustration, we worked together to do the best we could for these students.
During my last class of the year, I was having a moment of difficulty with some students who wouldn't sit and listen to my 2-3 minute talk to wish them good luck in high school and a safe summer. I had given them quite a bit of time to chat with and say good-bye to their friends and just wanted to do that with them myself. A group of 5 or 6 of them couldn't sit still and listen. They got up from their seats, interrupted me with stupid questions, and kept talking to one another. At that point, I gave up and talked individually with the students who cared.
And then, I had a student from another class period pop-in for a visit. She handed me a gift and said it was a thank you for my help this year. I opened it up and was thrilled to find a Vera Bradley Yellow Bird Folio. It is beautiful and I can't wait to use it! Thanks for making my day!
That was sweet...those are great moments in education. Enjoy your summer break and I'm glad you are back to blogging.
ReplyDeleteThat's right RW... you're an AP aren't you? Has your summer started yet?
ReplyDelete