It’s been a year. Almost. Crazy!
Here’s a recap of my year:
August 8, 2007 – I drove from Wisconsin to Georgia. Yes, I was headed back to Georgia because nothing had panned out regarding a job in Wisconsin (or Illinois, for that matter). I stopped off in Indianapolis to spend some time with family. My nephews had participated in a Fine Arts Festival, and it was Nationals that week. (Yay for them!!! They all did a great job!).
August 9, 2007 – I left early in the morning to drive the rest of the way to Georgia. The previous day, just minutes before I was set to leave my parents’ house for the drive, I received a call from a principal in Georgia. She was interested in interviewing me for a 5th grade position. I told her I would be in town the following day and proceeded to schedule an interview. I got into Marietta at about 3:30 and headed to the school for my 3:45 interview. After getting a bit lost, which made me a bit late, I made my interview. She offered me the job on the spot. Just to get an idea of the time crunch, this was a Thursday. The next day, Friday, was the meet-and-greet where the students and parents come in and meet the teachers and check out their rooms. The following Monday would be the first day of school. Yeah, cuttin’ it close, eh? :) I accepted the job. Although it was in another Title-I school, which I had kind of wanted to try something else, I accepted because . . . well, I wanted a job, and I wanted to start the school year with the students.
August 10, 2007 - I went to Human Resources and spent the morning there filling out the mountains of paperwork. By lunchtime I was able to go back to the school to get started on my classroom. By 5:30, I had it set up, but obviously there were no posters or whatnot because I didn’t have any of my school stuff. (It was still in Wisconsin, in storage.) I was able to meet many of my students and their parents that evening. I could tell it would be an interesting year when a parent walked in, looked at one of my students already there, and said that she wasn’t sure if she wanted her daughter in my class because her daughter and this young man didn’t get along in their class last year. She then grilled me about my experience and said she was concerned because I was not "a vet'ran fifth-grade teacher.” (She would prove to be the bane of my existence throughout the year, which I will discuss at another time.)
August 11-12, 2007 – This was a busy weekend for me. My friend Jill and I went shopping at the teacher store and bought a bunch of stuff for my classroom. I came up with a theme – what class doesn’t have a theme? My class would have a racing theme. So I bought race car things, racing themed bulletin board posters and cut-outs, etc. I prepared the “Welcome” packet and made sure everything was set to go. It was VERY tiring. I’ve never had to work so quickly! Thankfully I do have experience on my side. By Monday morning, I was set to begin, even if the room was still a bit bare. It would still be a little bit before I’d get all my school/teacher stuff from storage. I was staying with a friend, and until I had my own apartment, my household and school stuff would have to wait.
August 13, 2007 - May 23, 2008 - The Year of Hell
I had a really rough year. It started out crazy – quick hiring and preparation. I felt 10 steps behind everyone. It’s a new school in a new district. My team leader clearly didn’t want to be a team leader, but because she was the only one of the five of us to be a returning teacher, she was leader by default. We (newbie 5th grade teachers) were often in the dark this year because we weren’t informed of procedures, tasks, etc. That was just one facet of the Hell that was this year.
For the first time in my career, I suffered from some horrendous health issues that really affected my emotional well-being. I had a class that didn’t want to learn – I spent more time doing crowd control than actual teaching. They are 5th graders, and the drama that would consume our class was overwhelming. I had students accuse me of being a racist. Students went home and outright lied about me. I was basically investigated unknowingly because of those particular lies. Then I was “unofficially” written up because of these lies and allegations (that were never proven, but who am I but a teacher?). I could go on, but why? I don’t really want to relive some of the Hell, so I will just let it go at that.
I am back because I need to be. I need to have an outlet to release some of my frustrations, to ponder my steadfast hopes and dreams, to spill some of my emotional baggage. I can’t promise that it will be an interesting trip, but y’all are invited to my rollercoaster life!
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