Happy Leap Year

My warm up today asked the students what they would do to make today special, since it's an extra day to the year. Most of them were like, meh, nothing.

As for me, I took a sleep during my last-period prep, and man, I was out. It was a busy day and I felt tired all day. There was a coverage, but it was pretty easy.

This has been a nice week with my kids. We started a media unit, and they seem to be enjoying it. I'm making more of an effort with reading things and they're responding by working. Two boys in the Grey Bunnies are working on turning themselves around, and I am happy and excited to reinforce their positive changes.

Unfortunately, next week all my classes will change. Drastically. With bunches of new students. The wondrous small classes are officially over, and I am dreading the change. I don't want to catch up a bunch of kids who weren't lucky enough to get me as a teacher the first time around. I really don't want to have to rearrange and reorganize my seating charts; this year I've had ample space for the chatty ones to be alone so they can focus and work harder. I don't want to have to reteach routines and expectations and grammar. I really don't want to deal with behavior problems. My kids, annoying though they can be, are a pretty sweet bunch. And since there are/were so few of them, they've been fairly easy to handle, because I know how to prevent problems and teach them what to do and what not to do in my room. So now I'm really scared that all my hard work is going out the window.

As is my habit, I am pretending it won't happen, in a vain attempt to ignore the dread I feel.

Dammit. My classroom has been my haven this year, the only positive thing I could rely on and count on and feel good about. Please think good thoughts for me, that the 'old' kids will help keep the new ones in line, and that I will be able to shape the classes well.