Another School Year Ends ...

For some inexplicable reason I feel I need to summarize the school year in a blog in order to bring closure to the year and officially feel like my vacation has started. It's been a week since I said good-bye to my 27 third graders and I have to say I do miss them. They were ... well, a flood of words come to mind: exuberant, robust, enthusiastic, loud, funny, motivated, hardworking, chatty, social. So, you can imagine, my days were quite exhausting. The most remarkable thing about all my students was that they enjoyed working hard. Give them a heavy duty assignment and they embrace it wholeheartedly, working quietly until a quality finished product emerges. But they loved to talk ... loudly ... at every available opportunity ...
On the last day of school I asked my students to write me a letter. I told them to tell me what makes them interesting and unique and why I would want to make them a character in my next novel! Despite their excitement about the year ending they actually put some effort into this assignment. I have to say these kids were all a pretty interesting bunch. Many of them mentioned their love for writing creative stories!

Overall, it was not my easiest year of teaching. The first half of the year was especially challenging with a myriad of behavior issues and ascertaining academic capabilities. But after January, once I figured out some techniques and bonded with the kids, things got easier. This class of kids worked really well together and it was almost as if we were a huge family. They were all loving, caring, and respectful.
But, again, they were extremely chatty, making my job a difficult one.

The administrative pressures this year were very subdued, thankfully. It was quite a relief that the standardized tests weren't an obsession as they'd been in previous years. Have to say, not much has changed regarding No Child Left Behind. What's the deal on that?

The start of summer vacation .... hmmmm ... I'm thrilled. Hope to get back to my writing. But, the big, big event is our trip to Europe. On June 22 we fly into Paris, spend a couple nights there, and then take the TGV to the Cote d'Azure for our "holiday". We've rented two gites because we'll be joined by a whole lot of relatives. We'll be based in Antibes, just meters from the Med. How about that? After the Riviera I'll go to Berlin to be with Max, Julia, and Fabian. We'll be having a big party for Fabian, who turns 5 this year. From Berlin I'll fly into London, where I'll be for two leisurely weeks. Lots to look forward to ...