5th Grade!!!!

Today I embarked on a new journey with a fantastic group of 5th graders and a passionate teacher ready and willing to help her students. Ahhhhh....that's a sigh of sheer relief.

As I was driving into my placement this morning a lot was running through my mind. For the first time the negative words my previous CT spoke to and about me seemed to really perrmeate my mind. It made me sad to think that he may be right. I arrived to my new placement and the first thing my new CT said to me was "Forget about what happened in the past, we are going to have fun here". Ahh...what wonderful words to hear. I took another sigh of relief and prepared myself for a wonderful morning filled with new beginnings and much hope.

My new CT is organized and rather strict. I love it. Her voice is so calming, and I found myself truly enjoying when she read aloud to the class. It cracks me up that it doesn't matter how old we are we all still love being read to (even if we don't want to admit it).

The kids were so great. I loved listening to their conversations and watching them interact with each other. ahhh....pre-middle school. What joys. I was reminded of my time in middle school while observing a group of 5th grade girls work on a group project. I had to interject and propose a compromise. They weren't sure what a compromise was so I had to give a few examples. It made me chuckle to hear them argue and feud over the color they would use for their poster. It made me realize just how important group projects are, despite how much I LOATHE them. They teach compromise, hard work and the ability to work alongside of people you don't necessarily see eye-to-eye with. This lesson is one I have applied in my life numerous times, and it has proved to be invaluable.

I cannot wait to get to know these kids. I can't wait to learn all that I can from this inspiring teacher who does her absolute best from her students.

I'm so thankful.