Mixed Emotions

Note: This was written on May 30.  I am just not getting around to adding the pictures I wanted to add (they were on the other computer).  :)

I only have three days two and a half days left with my class.  I have really enjoyed my first year teaching.  I have to admit, it was much more difficult than I ever could have imagined.  I learned so much.  Many things that I thought would work great did not work at all while things I thought would never work actually did!  The students in my class have really become good friends and are now very comfortable in our classroom.  The students in my class are unlike the children anywhere I have ever taught before.  Although some of them have posed quite a challenge, I feel like they will leave my classroom knowing more than when they entered and being better people.  We have worked a lot on manners, being polite, and what is socially and culturally acceptable.  I feel like I have so much more to teach them and I am not ready to let them go quite yet.  The end of this school year is going to be very bittersweet.  I am ready for summer and for family to visit, but I am not ready for my class to move on to kindergarten. 

Looking straight ahead from the door

Teaching at my school has given me many experiences I would not have otherwise had.  In order to take this position, I moved 4 hours away from home.  I had to leave my husband in the upstate for the first three months.  This has not been the easiest year for us.  He came down to Bluffton and found a job about a month later (which is working out wonderfully).  Because we are so far away from family and friends, we have been spending lots of time together.  I have always loved the beach (but not the sand) so living only 20 minutes from the beach has been really cool!  Many people will never understand why I am teaching where I am, but it has made me a better person as well as a better teacher.  There were several jobs closer to home that I could have applied for for next year.  However, I feel like my time here is not complete yet. On Thursday, I was offered a contract for next school year.  Although I do not know what school I will be at or what grade I will teach, I feel so blessed to have a job and to be doing something that I love.  I cannot wait for next school year to begin.  I learned a lot this year.  I am ready for it.  Bring it on 2011-2012 and induction!   

Looking to the right from the door