What?? Teacher of the Year?!?!

I'll warn all readers at this time that this post will be painfully long; and, probably pretty boring. But, because this is supposed to be my "journal" and intended to be read by my children and grandchildren once I'm gone, I guess I have to put in the good and the bad.

I am a naturally shy and reserved person. I have never been one to seek attention and have never been competitive.  For those reasons, this process that I seem to have been sucked unwillingly into is a living nightmare!!  For about 6 years now, our district has participated in the National Teacher of the Year "Recognition" Program. Basically, it is a competition, I don't care if they do label it a recognition program. 

The process is pretty lengthy. The representative for each campus is selected from 3 candidates nominated by the sight based decision making team (SBDM for short) and then entered into the competition for district teacher of the year.  For many of the past 6 years, I was part of the SBDM team and managed to keep my name out of consideration.  I knew the amount of work that this "honor" would require, and quite frankly, didn't want to mess with it.  Unfortunately, this year my name came up for consideration and I wasn't there to squash the nomination.

As one of the 3 finalists for our campus, I initially tried to turn down the nomination. However, my principal wouldn't take no for an answer. I thought after a while that she had changed her mind because a friend of mine was also nominated, and she mentioned one day getting her invitation for the campus interview. I was overjoyed to say the least because I hadn't received the evite! I thought for sure my principal probably felt I had enough on my plate with Dad's poor health, and had decided to get someone else to take my place.

Sadly, I was completely mistaken. I happened to be in the office one afternoon to make copies of a 504 file when one of the assistant principals asked if I was there for the interview. I was confused and initially thought I was being asked to sit in on a new hire interview. I must have had a pretty blank look on my face when I asked her what interview she was talking about, because she laughed and said, "Your teacher of the year interview!" I vehemently said that I wasn't even being considered and hadn't received an invitation to an interview. She told me I was and went into the conference room to see what was going on. I was dumbfounded when she came out and said I was due to be interviewed in 15 minutes. So, I sat there in the office waiting area trying to figure out how I got stuck with this mess.

I went through the interview with my admin team, consistently saying, "This isn't me! I'm not a competitive person!" I left thinking what a mess I had made of this whole thing and pretty comfortable they would pick one of the other teachers. Unfortunately, when our weekly reminders for the week email went out a couple of weeks later, there it was in plain English; "Congratulations to our 2014-2015 Teacher of the Year representative, Gwen Searls!" I was sitting on the couch at home when I was reading it and this huge hole opened up in the pit of my stomach and I felt it sink to the very bottom of my gut.

The idea of being recognized by my peers and co-workers IS a great honor, and I do sincerely appreciate their vote of confidence. However, the district selection process is a nightmare! First, they send out a 2 page time line of the steps in the process, AND a 14 page application!! The application has 2 pages of simple fact regurgitation, but the rest of it was 2 page essay questions! What are the background, people and events that persuaded you to become a teacher?   Describe your most significant contributions and accomplishments in education. What is your teaching philosophy and how are your beliefs about teaching demonstrated in your personal teaching style ? Describe service-oriented involvement, such as volunteer work, civic and other group activities that you participate in. What do you consider to be the major issues in public education today; and, what outline possible causes, effects and resolutions? What do you do to strengthen and improve the teaching profession? What should be the basis for accountability in the teaching profession? And, my favorite question of all, "As the National Teacher of the Year, you would become a spokesperson and representative of the profession. What would be your message and what would you communicate to your profession and to the general public?" They gave me 2 weeks to get it typed, proof read, and submitted. Thank goodness I can write coherently, and that my friend, Sue, is a phenomenal editor. I got the thing typed and submitted a day early.

The next step was an initial meeting to explain the procedural process of the district and to get a head shot taken by the district photographer. Headshot??? I do NOT like having my picture taken, and, I'm in the middle of struggling to let my hair grow out! I just barely got my hair over my ears and thought, "Oh well, I don't want to win anyway, who cares what I look like." I went to the meeting, got my picture taken, and checked 2 more things of the time line list.

At the meeting, we were told to submit 5 photographs of us interacting with our students and a 30 second video of ourselves sharing our teaching philosophy. Thirty seconds is NOT enough time to share the 2 page philosophy that I agonized over for the application, so I spent the next week trying to condense it into a 30 second infomercial. Thankfully, Ron was able to come in to my room and record it for me. On a side note: I have NO business being filmed doing anything! Talk about looking and feeling awkward!!  But, it was one more thing to check off of the list.

I thought finding 5 pictures would be a breeze! I have ALWAYS taken pictures of the things my classes have done each year; and, most of them are pretty cute. However, I did NOT take pictures of myself! Imagine that??!! So, I have had a very difficult time finding 5 stupid pictures. Luckily, Ron took a few when he was here filming the movie. My selection of pictures isn't great, but I got to check off another item from the list!

The most recent thing I have had to do was schedule and attend a district level interview. We were asked to sign up at the procedural meeting, and I was lucky enough to get the first time slot. The interview was this morning and it wasn't bad; just typical questions asked by a panel of district personnel. I knew a few of them by name and through work experience, so that helped. However, before I went into the interview, I had to complete a writing assignment - in 30 minutes! As you can probably tell, I don't have trouble writing; I have trouble STOPPING the writing. I wrote right up to the 30 minute deadline. Unfortunately, the last paragraph was crap; but, what's done is done. Another thing off the list; check!!

So now, the only remaining hurdles in this exhausting process are an unannounced classroom observation by someone from the district sometime between February 23 and March 27, and to attend the New Teacher Induction Success Celebration on May 5th and The Excellence in Teaching Showcase on May 21st. That that will be when all the campus nominees and their admin teams meet with family and friends to be recognized. It is also when they will announce the district Teacher of the Year. (Please, God, don't let it be me??? That leads to the Regional competition!!!!)

Sounds like that's not too bad, right? Oh, no! The agony isn't over yet!! I have to build a 4 foot wide display for the Excellence in Teaching Showcase to represent my philosophy and teaching style. What??? Maybe I'll get my son-in-law Edward to build it. He got a pretty good grade on Seth's solar system model.

Back to School 2013-2014

Well, Brian got the storage room cleared out after all!  Brian is our campus CIS, and he promised me at the end of last year that he would get the storage room, that would be my "classroom" this year, cleaned out and move my things down for me before the school year started.  It was stacked floor to ceiling with instructional materials! I have no idea where he put it all, but I don't really want to know! 

This is what I found when I went to check out the room the week before school started... not much!

 Thankfully, the room did have 2 bulletin boards and a whiteboard.  There aren't any countertops, which I am finding I really miss! But, there was a small bookshelf that was in pretty bad shape, 3 sets of wall shelves, and a large, 2 door cupboard.  There was an overabundance of trapezoid tables, which I promptly gave away. I took the bookshelf home and painted it a nice bright color.

Before...

After...

There aren't many things on the walls yet. But, I did hang my work of art! Our back to school party was held at Painting With a Twist. It was really a lot of fun and I can't wait to go again.  I'm thinking I would like to get the girls together and go for my birthday!

I'm lucky the colors look good in my little room!

So here are the after photographs.  I like the color combination and I think it turned a pretty bland, sterile environment into a much more enjoyable place to spend my days.

View from my desk! I actually had to have a desk again because there isn't a filing cabinet in the room!
I had to have a secure place to keep student files.

Look how cut my painting is! And it looks great,
hanging above my bookshelf.

I don't really need student desks or tables, because I will work
with small groups at the horseshoe table. But, I didn't want a big,
empty room.

I used pennant swags I made from scrapbook paper & ribbon, and plastic table cloths to cover the bulletin boards.
The jazzy "carpet" is actually throw rugs from IKEA.

Here is where the real teaching will take place.  Lots of phonics,
sight words, syllable work, and reading, reading, reading!

I know it is hard to see, but the 2 pictures hanging beside my desk were given to
me by a former student at the end of last year. One is a hand-drawn picture of our class at recess
that her mother helped her make.  The second one is a painting she bought with her allowance
at a Children's Cancer Fundraiser Auction.  It has VW Beetles in it and she told her mom
I just HAD to have it!

I still haven't started using the Wilson Program, the district program that is used to help dyslexic students. I will attend training for 3 days in Austin, and then 2 more days in the district and I can finally start getting to know my students week after next.

 So what have I been doing all day? During the first week of school, I was teaching Pre-K because one our teachers had to go on emergency medical leave. That was an experience!!  

And for the past week, I've been helping out in the home rooms of my dyslexic students.  I'm hoping I can establish a good, working relationship with their teachers so that once I start pulling students for instruction and assessment, they won't be so quick to be irritated with me. 

I've also been able to see so many of the students that I have had since I started teaching at Skipcha.  They are all confused about why I don't have a second grade class anymore, but they're still excited that I'm visiting their rooms! 

Before and after #2...kinda

I'm sitting here trying to update the blog while I babysit for my granddaughter, Sophie.  Currently, she is entertaining herself by walking around the house with her shopping cart.  I think she is pretending to be a bag lady because the shopping cart has my rain boots, several containers of playdough, a purse, a stuffed animal, the left overs of her lunch, and a flip light that she is using for a cell phone.  And, she sleeps with a dog! Whatever keeps her happy!

Sophie & Boomer taking a rest...

Sophie enjoying her strawberry milk snack...

Anyway, I said this was a before and after kinda today.  BEFORE summer began, I finished the school year with mixed emotions. Mostly because it was the last time I would be a "classroom" teacher.  AFTER summer ends, I will be the RICA teacher; a fancy term for the dyslexia teacher.  Kathy Smallwood held the position for several years, but decided to retire this year.  Recently, I have been struggling with the amount of time my job consumes on a weekly basis; especially now that my grandchildren have so many activities I want to see.  Also, I really want to be able to spend more time with my parents while they are still around.  They are the best parents anyone could ever dream of having and I know I still have so much to learn from them.  So, when Kathy came in to tell me about her decision to retire, I knew I needed to let my principal know that I was interested in the position.  Thankfully, I interviewed and was offered the job about a month before school ended! An answer to prayers!! Hopefully, the new position will allow me to use my time at home for family and still keep me in touch with children doing what I love to do.

Unfortunately, a new job meant moving rooms and purging my teaching materials.  For the remainder of the year I spent every Saturday cleaning out files and cabinets.  I gave a TON of things away, stored 2 TONS of things at my parents, and donated another TON of books to Maggie's school library.  The one thing I hated getting rid of was my set of anchor charts that I created for science.  BEFORE I gave them away, I took pictures of them to post on my blog. Now I will always have a virtual copy of them.  Now, I can't claim that they are all my own ideas because I browse Pinterest to find things for the classroom. When I see something I like, I tweak it so that it what fits my personality. 

Luckily, I will be able to create new anchor charts for all of the skills associated with the Wilson Reading system. Of course, I will have to invest a lot of time going to professional development classes this summer just to know what I will be doing! AFTER those anchor charts are created I will post them.

Trudging along...

I have had such a battle with the blues lately, that I simply haven't felt like blogging.  But, I realized that if this is truly going to be a record of "stuff" in my life, the blues certainly need a place in the blog.  My sweet husband, Ron, who never seems to have a gloomy day doesn't seem to understand why I feel blue from time to time.  I can't ever really put my finger on it either, so I mostly try to ignore it because they eventually go away.  I try to count my blessings and stay busy, so that they pass more quickly. That works for me.
During the past couple of months, we have been pretty busy ending our summer and moving into fall. Ron wanted to visit his family in Ohio this year, so we took Becca, Seth, and Maggie with us.  It was a pleasant trip and we were able to see all of Ron's family and some of mine on our trip.  The kids traveled well, and we didn't have any problems along the way.  It was great for Seth to meet his cousin, TJ and find out that they have so much in common! We enjoyed going to the county fair and discovering that it is just like we remembered it.

Cousins TJ, Seth, & Maggie

While in Ohio, Ron and I were able to finally get a marker placed on the grave of the baby we lost early in our marriage.  He chided himself because it took so long to get it placed, but I reminded him that we've been busy with life; caught up in the challenges of raising a military family.  We are content and at peace with the choice we made for the marker. We hope that members of Ron's family will take us up on our offer to let them have the remaining 3 burial plots so that someone else in the family will be buried near our baby. Our intention is to be buried here in Texas because it is now our home.

My surgery to repair the heel spur and Morton's Neuroma went well.  I feel better each day, and look forward to being able to get out with Ron for our daily walks.  My co-workers have been helpful and check on me daily to make sure I'm doing okay.  I really work with wonderful people and am thankful for them.

Post surgery footwear... not cute, but comfy

Returning to school this year was difficult.  Not because of the surgery, but because I am just tired of working.  I am ready to retire, but still have at least 3 years before I can collect a full annuity.  I think part of my worries about working have a lot to do with how I feel physically.  It seems as I age, I don't have the energy I used to have or heal as quickly as I used to.  Therefore, I seem to work and come home exhausted.  Thank goodness Ron helps out so much at home.  He cooks, helps with the cleaning, and laundry.  He is a real treasure and I would be overwhelmed without him.

Ron and his mother, Marie

There are many moments of joy during my work days, which make it easier to keep working.  I have been at this school long enough to see many of my former students move on into middle school.  It is amazing how many of the big, tough 5th graders still run up for a hug when they see me in the hallway or on the playground.  I know in this day and age, hugging students is discouraged; but, I will never push a student away when they run up to me with arms open wide, just wanting a little affirmation that they are important to me.  The students in my class are very sweet and adorable.  This year, I am working with struggling learners again, and that melts my heart.  They challenge me and make me want to be a better teacher.

The classroom on Meet the Teacher night

The family is healthy, clothed, housed, and (for the most part) employed.  In these troubled economic times, those are great blessings.  My parents seem to be doing well physically, and that is a comfort to me.  We still enjoy gathering the kids and grandbabies with them on Wednesdays for food, laughter, and noise.  They are crazy evenings, but we all love them.

Mom & Dad... LOVE these two!

Our furry friends have had some ups and downs lately.  We lost Sassy to complications associated with diabetes. Then, as soon as we got back from Ohio, Buddy had to be put down because he had tumors on his kidney and liver.  But, we have our newest little friend, Boomer to cheer us up.  He is the cutest little mixed breed (beagle & basset hound) that we bought at a flea market while we were in Ohio.  He loves the grandkids, they love playing with him. and he fills an empty place in my heart that my Daisy girl left when she died.  He is a challenge to get potty trained, but we'll get there eventually.

"I got that Boom, Boom, Boomer!"

Our weather is starting to cool down now.  It is a welcome change from the oppressive heat we have each August, and the rain has helped repair some of the damage from last year's drought.  Most of all, it reminds me that fall is near.  It is my favorite season, and I love the weather; but, it is the feelings I have during the fall that I love most.  I can't quite describe it, but it feels like I have rushed through yet another year, trying to be everything that people expect me to be and thinking that maybe I did an okay job.  It feels good to think that I have another year behind me, and fall is wrapping me in warmth and comfort, preparing me for the rest that comes during the winter.  That rest gives me the strength to face another new year with renewed hope and determination.  Just knowing that this season of rest is ahead of me has brightened my spirits.  And, the blues will soon pass.

May??? Where did it go?

Today was my last work day of the school year.  I had to go in and tear down the classroom and turn in all of my paperwork.  Thankfully, Ron came in to supply the manual labor so I was able to get 8 hours of work done in less than 6.  

I headed home, stretched out on the couch and TOOK A NAP!! Sweet~

I figured I ought to get one thing marked off my to do list, so I am updating the blog.

Between work, family, traveling most Sundays, and life in general, May simply disappeared before I knew it. 

Here is a quick recap using what few pictures I managed to take this month.

One of the things I wanted to do in our tiny back yard was make a place for the girls to play. Ron and I cleaned up an area near the shop that was covered by a portable storage building.  We gave that away to Holly, and it opened up a nice area to use for the girls.  Leslie gave us the plastic play cube, but they still needed their own place.

The girls play area before...

We found some cute chairs at IKEA and used those as our "inspiration" for the paints.  We painted some old flower boxes, a cheap bench from Big Lots, and now the girls have a cute place to play and grow pink flowers.

... and after.

It is also the perfect place to eat popcicles!

Two cute girls!

I have been quilting some of Mom's quilts now that the quilting machine is at the Temple house. I just haven't had much time to make my own quilts.  A friend from work is getting married in June, and another one is having her first baby in July.  I knew I wanted to make some simple quilts for them before the school year ended, so I took a couple of days off and got them finished.

The first one is a simple summer throw quilt that I made for Alana.  Leslie and I both loved it and it was hard to give it away.  I guess I need to get one made for myself this sumner,

Alana's quilt...

 The next 3 are simple baby quilts made using 3 yards of fabric and backing.  You cut the 3 pieces the same way and then mix and match them to come up with 3 different looks.  Sara is an animal lover so I used this cute frog print that I have had forever.  

Baby quilt 1 went to Sara...

Thankfully, I have 2 spare quilts left for future gifts!  I think this summer I will make up 3 more using boy prints. 

baby quilt 2...

and baby quilt 3.

 Toward the end of the year, there are several things that take up a chunk of time at school.  One of them is the normal end of year assessment cycle. YUCK!  The second is our annual science fair.  FUN!! 

The 4th and 5th grades are expected to have each student complete an investigation independently.  The lower grades are expected to complete class investigations.  Once we have gone through the scientific process, completed the investigation, and created a display board, the school has a campus wide science fair.  

This year my class won the first place ribbon for second grade.  We did a really cool swirling milk investigation.

Dawn dish detergent dispersing the food coloring in different liquids.

 The next big event for the family was Miss Maggie's graduation from Pre-school!  Leslie enrolled her in a program that was 3 days a week, instead of enrolling her full time in the public school system.  She wasn't ready to send her to school full time.  It was a great experience for her and I am very impressed with the things that she learned there.  

Sophie waiting for the graduation ceremony to begin...

Leslie & G with the happy graduate...

Aunt B and Seth with the happy graduate...

Poppy with the happy graduate...

Uncle Ryan with the happy graduate...

Uncle Scott with the "I'm tired of taking pictures" grouchy graduate.
They opted to make grouchy faces.

And of course a picture of her teacher, Mrs. Bickford.  

In a town the size of Killeen, it is at times amazing how it can truly be a small world.  I met Mrs. Bickford at the local community theater before watching Pinkalicous.  Her children attend school where I teach and I discovered that her daughter was in my animal enrichment group!

And of course, the end of the school year means our annual end of the year party.  Last year, I started a tradition for the second grade teachers.  I decided to have a candy bar and nacho's party.  The teacher across the hall found out what I was doing, so she threw one together as well.  Everyone else loved the idea so this year I think most of us had candy bars for our parties this year.  

The little buckets I got last year at IKEA (love that place) weren't quite enough.  So, this year I found some cute plastic pails and scoops at Target.  The table cloth was the perfect touch!  I used beach balls and inflatable pool rings last year as part of the decor.  I just didn't seem to get my act together soon enough to get them inflated this year.  I guess I really need some kind of little pump for my classroom.

Anyway, the students LOVED it!

The candy bar...

 And, as part of my going away gift, I improvised on an idea I found on Pinterest.  These cute water bottles were in the Dollar Spot at Target.  I got one for each of the students and attached a little tag that says, "I hope you have a cool summer!"  

... my going away gift.

So, now I am caught up (at least for a little while) with the blog.  Ron and I don't have any exciting plans for this summer; but, I am really looking forward to getting caught up on my sewing, quilting, crafting, cleaning out closets, and just general every day chores.