It went well.

Now that the school year has been said and done, I've had some time to sit and mull over how I feel about my first year of teaching.  The overwhelming consensus of my brain's daily variety is that it went well, but that it was lacking in a few areas.

For instance, my hectic schedule provided the lack of fresh cuisine in my palette that still has yet to find its way back.

The schedule also provided the lack of visitations from and visits to old friends, something of which they have been more than understanding and that has improved with time.

Lacking in conversation pieces that do not relate to school does not phase me, but many around me seem to have had enough, especially when I am around other educators.

In the classroom, it is lacking confidence that comes to mind the most.  I know for sure that this area changed throughout the year, and I am excited to see what entering a school year with at least some confidence can do for a classroom.

Consistent extracurricular activities were also missing from my life this year, which is a first for me.  As the year went on, helping out with the after school program and watching Wheel of Fortune helped with this (trust me, I know how sad that sounds), but I'm looking forward to having some more structured me time next year!

My biggest feeling of lack this year, though, comes from none of these.  A year ago today I lost one of the people who would have been one of my biggest cheerleaders in the work I've done this past year.  I can't really put words to the feeling associated with missing my grandmother, but lacking such a role in my life has been truly difficult.  I often think of things that I just know she would love to hear, and while part of me believes she knows, I'm just a little too selfish and want to tell her myself.  I'll never forget rushing to the hospital from my training to say goodbye, finding her smiling and asking for assurance that I truly do like where my life was heading.  At the time I wearily told her that I loved it, knowing in the back of my mind that it was and would continue to be the hardest thing I'd ever done.  I kept hoping that it truly would be something that I loved so that I could stay true to  my word.

I'd be happy to tell my grandmom today that I did, in fact, love it... and that it went well.  I just wish I could have shared it with her.

The end is HERE!

Today is the last day of my first year of teaching! 

Bittersweet doesn't even begin to describe how I'm feeling, but within the next few hours I know that both emotions will be hitting me at full force.

Oh, and by the way... For a limited time:

Meet my class here!

One more thing: What will I write about? Oh, I'll write.  This summer is the time when all of this year's memorable stories will come back to me, and all of the thoughts about next year will be formed.  

Until then, time to get to work on time!

The end is near!

Only 3 half days left of school.

On the agenda: Playing in a student-staff softball game, watching a video that I filmed/edited/made for/of my class, and completing the tear-down of my classroom.

It's crazy stuffing this year into boxes.  I still can't fathom that a mere ten months ago I had no idea what I was getting myself into.  Now I not only have experienced my first year of teaching, but I am on my way out of it. 

There have been many successes and shortcomings along the way.... probably more of the latter, but one success story in particular has been on my mind for a few days now.

All of my students came to me this year as low-performing students.  Most of them struggled across the board, but those who tried and completed the tasks I put before them improved greatly.  One student whose presence in my class has been overwhelmingly enjoyable probably came to me with some of the most primer skills of all.  For most of his life, this student was moved from school to school because he was not getting the help that he needed... and this student truly needed individual attention and so much patience.  I have been blessed with the patience of a saint, or so I have been told, and I was also blessed with a small classroom that allowed me to get to know each student individually.  Combine those factors with my genuine love for this kid and his family - the strongest family support system I've seen in my time teaching - and you have created a place where he feels safe and eager to learn.  The student certainly has more growth to be done, but his success this year has been monumental.  I couldn't believe it myself until I saw the numbers that indicated that, after entering fifth grade with reading scores that match students who have received no schooling, he ended the year with nearly a fifth grade reading level, which places him in the average range for students his age.

I wish I could say that five years of growth was the average for my class, for my kids need so much more than that, but this success story for my student leaves me with much hope for next year.  I started this year knowing nothing.  Sure, I had common sense and trial and error, but I felt as though I spent a lot of time learning on the job, which is generally the nature of any new position.  Knowing that I could help facilitate growth even with such a struggle in the beginning makes me both excited and anxious about my new challenge: to take what I've learned and make next year a far more successful year for my kids. 

Thank God I'll have two months to rest up for that endeavor. 

Brian

Last night, I attended a high school graduation.  Not just any high school graduation, but the graduation of my (baby) brother Brian.  This was a momentous occasion for a lot of reasons: high school graduations are generally a big deal, he's the last of the (4) Bonannos to go through Octorara High School, he's had numerous accomplishments throughout his high school years, he's headed straight to college to pursue a degree in something that he loves... the list could go on. I couldn't be more proud.

The thing about Brian is that he is not only a spectacular kid in and of himself, but he also helped make me the person (and teacher) I am today.  See, Brian was one of the main reasons I wanted to go into education in the first place.  Let me explain.

For his whole life, Brian has often had to work twice as hard to get where he needed to be.  Needless to say, he got there.  And I would say he got there with flying colors.  This was certainly not without the help from several amazing educators and arts directors who made a difference in his life.  Seeing the growth Brian has made in his life made me all too eager to be that support, in one way or another, for any child who needs it.


I'd have to say, though, that Brian's influence on me started way before I was able to see such monumental growth.  On the day Brian was born, the day I became a big sister, I was changed forever.  For the first time in my life, I became a role model, a protector, an advocate, and an educator.  Although I probably didn't realize this at the mature age of 4, Brian's life has been one of the prime movers of my own.  

Anyone can be a big sibling, but not everyone chooses to live up to that role wholeheartedly.  I can't say that my decision was deliberate or even selfless, for that matter.  I can say, though, that at one point I subconsciously decided that Brian was my brother and that what hurts him hurts me, what makes him laugh makes me laugh, and what he succeeds in is a success for me.  


It is with this love that I entered into the teaching career.  I even find myself talking to my kids as I talked (and still talk) to Brian so many times.  I am a role model, a protector, an advocate, and an educator to these kids.  I am more than proud to say that I learned each and every one of these roles through the life of my amazing, not-so-little-anymore brother.