Well once again I did not keep this blog updated as I wished but here goes. My first year has been one of the most memorable, inspiring years of my life. I knew for most of my life that I wanted to teach and that it was my calling. I also knew I would enjoy it but I could never imagine the complete and sheer joy teaching brings to me. I have said it a thousand times and I will say it again I love walking in my classroom, I love the faces of my students and their parents, I love the school and the staff at Sedgefield Elementary School, and here in the middle of July I miss it all! But let's get to some of the events and highlights from this year from where I left off in February.
March---All of my students are making incredible progress at this time. IEP meetings are set and my child with special needs will soon have the resources he needs. I have taken on the roll of TAC Representative for our school and found that I really have something more to contribute to our school. I have begun to be involved in more school wide activities and of course have taken quite an interest in all CMS activities and board meetings especially with the Bright Beginnings program on the agenda. My students were able to experience the mischievous behavior of that naughty Leprechaun as he messed up our classroom looking for his gold. Oh the children were so into that!! Oh hummm what else happened this month....Oh Yea..I WAS GIVEN THE HONOR OF NEW TEACHER OF THE YEAR FOR SEDGEFIELD!!
April and May---IEP meeting went very well as did his transition to kindergarten meeting. He is making great progress as are all my students. I experienced PALS testing for the first time and was thrilled with the progress each and every child made. I am enjoying some wonderful professional developing through workshops after school and from one of those I gained the idea of having a Panda Bear Breakfast to encourage parents to come in and spend time in their child's classroom. The children made invitations to take home to their parents, and beautiful flowers to grace the tables. Each table was covered in brightly colored paper and furniture was moved to accommodate the families. I was able to get coffee and supplies from Starbucks for a discounted price as well as bagels and cream cheese from Brueggers. Harris Teeter donated gift cards and I purchased the doughnuts and paper products. The Breakfast with the Panda Bears was a complete success! Almost all my parents came, moms, dads and even a few grandparents! The children ate with their parents and then sang some of their favorite songs. But my favorite part of this event followed where parents were encouraged to work in the different centers with their child. There were parents building structures with their child in the Block Center, painting at the easel with their child, working puzzles, drawing pictures, writing words that they found around the room. Some parents even dressed up with their child in the Dramatic Play Center. It brought tears to my eyes as I stood back and watched this transpire. Success!
We also planted a beautiful garden! The Panda Bear Vegetable and Flower Garden included carrots, peas, radishes, cucumbers, and of course flowers. We witnessed the metamorphosis of tiny caterpillars turning into beautiful Painted Lady Butterflies and then the releasing of them into freedom.
As the year drew to a close my heart began to break as many of these precious little children will go to different schools. Only 6 children will call Sedgefield their home school next year and the thought of not seeing them again is hard. However as someone pointed out to me I have done my job and now it is time to set them free as we did the butterflies. But that last week was so very hard. I made it through the Awards Ceremony without crying however when it came time for the personal awards that we were giving in the classroom I wasn't so lucky. Each child is so very special and unique that the awards themselves were easy to come by but speaking about that child choked me up many times during the presentation. Jay came as he did many times throughout the year and I presented him with the Golden Apple Award as this year and this phase of my life would never have happened without his love and support. (I think he was choked up at this point as well).
I was blessed with the most amazing Assistant ever in Mrs. Salazar. What a wonderful team we made this year. Her amazing talents as an assistant and artist were a blessing that I hope I get again in the coming year.
Another accomplishment of the year were the 7 Donors Choose projects that were completely funded this year. These totaled over $2500.00 and included books, easels, paints and painting supplies, CD libraries, puppets and a puppet theater, a complete Listening Center complete with stand and books on tape, and my favorite....A LAMINATER AND A BOOK MAKER ALONG WITH THE SUPPLIES!
As I sit hear reminiscing about this incredible year I have such a feeling of euphoria, and of pride. My students left my classroom ready for kindergarten both socially and academically. I did what I set out to do, I am becoming the teacher I have always wanted to be and not just to the children. The relationships I formed with the parents was a goal I had from day one. I want them to see the education of their child as a partnership between them and myself along with the school as a whole. I can only pray for those who have left my class and for the Panda's yet to come. I have learned so much this year and have grown more than I would have thought possible.
I eagerly await the next class of Panda Bears!
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