Labor Day

Back home, in Minnesota, we didn't ever start school before Labor Day, but as a teacher I really like the fact that we do...

I have been in the classroom for two weeks now and this three day weekend has been a great opportunity for me to get caught up on all of the things I have wanted to finish since school started. I have had to input my student's names into several different programs and create login names for them, set up my online grading system, and of course complete more lesson plans. Most of the work involving entering students into programs is pretty futile to try and do before school starts because the "rosters" that I get before the school year are not very accurate at all. I know that they try to provide me with an accurate picture of who will be in my classroom, but in reality the students I teach are coming from a very transient population of people and numbers are going to fluctuate a lot. Already this school year I have had as high as 22 students in my class to as low as 17. On Friday I left school with 19 students in my class. I think that is a pretty good estimate of the number of students I will have in my class this year.

In comparison to some schools, 19 is a relatively small class of students. I am fortunate to have an administration that believes in small class sizes (something I do agree with them on). With my students coming to me preforming anywhere from a 2nd grade level to a 6th grade level as far as math and science content knowledge (not to mention varying commands of the English language) I feel that 19 is more than enough students in my classroom. It is a definite challenge to try and meet the needs of all my students and ensure that they are progressing to their growth goal of a year and a half growth in one academic year. I have to differentiate all of my lessons and try to teach to everyone at the same time. It is a challenge, but can be very rewarding when you see students make progress.

On a sad note, one of my lizards died over last weekend. I am pretty sure it is the one that I caught outside and not the one I bought from the store. The students were a little bummed out, but it was not as traumatic as when the chickens died. Oh class pets... always entertaining.

I hope everyone is enjoying the 3-day weekend. The Vikings play on Thursday vs. the Saints. Saints fans seem to have infested Houston after Katrina so this city is full of them. I will probably stay home to watch the game, but I will be cheering extra loud on Friday after we (the Vikings) win! Also, It was nice to see the Twins beat up on the Rangers last week. :)