wow. so. long time...no write

So I'm pretty sure it has been beyond an eternity since I last wrote (at least in here)...time has been flying rapidly as of late...at least when it comes to getting things done. My mind today is functioning more like a list, so I'm going to write that way today - even if that seems odd. So in the last month or so, here is a list of the things I've learned and thought about...hopefully none are a repeat of the last post :)

1. I have no idea what to do with the special needs girl in my class. I wish that while at CSU we would have been forced to take a class - or spend part of a class on actually working with students that have special needs. She is nice, and functions rather highly...but I get uncomfortable when I don't understand what she needs, and also when I feel like I'm not meeting those needs. I do the best that I can, and I make sure to talk with the women who are working with her in the resource room, but I still feel like I would handle her better day to day if I had spend some time with special needs kids before. At this point, I would encourage ANYONE who is going to be a teacher to work with some special needs kids...it will no doubt come in handy in the future.

2. My US class is difficult. Oh. So. Difficult. They are lethargic and don't respond to much of anything, so it has been a challenge to say the least. I think I am finally getting the hang of some things though as last week all but FOUR kids had a rough draft for me...which was absolutely amazing. Usually, there would be less than half. Small victories!!

3. February is, no doubt, the hardest month on kids. It is cold. They're tired of being cold, they're tired of being in school, their sport is just ending/starting and they really just need some time off. I made cupcakes. It seemed to help - as did some of the activities we did in class...rapping about the French Revolution for example.

4. Lacrosse season has started...and although it makes me have less time to work, I am so far ahead of where I thought I would be as far as energy. The sport (as it usally does) has taken my sprit and lifted it up, and I have been able to become more confident in my classroom because of it. Also, the more I think about it, the more I notice that it is the lacrosse coaching that I've done that has allowed me to feel so comfortable in the classroom without being in one. It has been a little bit of an adjustment going from grass to desks, but a good one in many respects...and it's not like I am losing lacrosse :)

5. I want spring break as badly (if not more so) than the kids.

6. I need to re-organize. I am on the verge of having a psycho paper/lesson planning attack. Tomorrow I will go get organizing supplies and create a new lesson planning format for myself that will help. I will also print out calendars and sit down and put a time table on the future to help myself out.

7. I hate that I have to write papers for seminar. I feel like I'd be getting so much more out of talking with other students...I would be willing to drive to Fort Collins or Denver to do that instead of writing papers reflecting on what they want me to reflect on rather than what I want to reflect on. Sigh.

8. Building politics are interesting. I enjoy them...somewhat. I think that is mostly due to the fact that I like politics in general. I don't want to be part of them, that is for sure, but I do enjoy watching them develop...I'm pretty sure that is not normal.

9. I love our department meetings. My department always makes me laugh and I am so happy to be working with a group of men as I get along with men so much easier than I do women. It has really made the entire thing easier on me :)

10. I want a job now so I can stop thinking about it all the time!!!!!!!!

11. I love students. Even the ones that hate me and hate school. :) I like working with them and making things better for them...even if it is really hard, and even if it doesn't really work.

12. I'm tired. A lot of tired...and I don't think that it is going to stop. And you know what? That is okay with me. I love this job, more than I can ever describe in words.

13. I've found that having a strong friend or two really helps with the student teaching process. It is nice to have someone I can call every single day and talk about what I'm doing in the classroom. Without the help and guidance of my best friend, I would feel a lot more lost and frustrated. I think that it is important to recognize that the support of your friends is an invaluble resource when you're student teaching.

I think that is it for now. :)