Survival Mode

It's that time of year. Testing is finally over and it's time to get into that mythical rhythm. Those days when we follow the ideal schedule I have tediously crafted down to the exact minute of transition between subjects. I feel like I have waited all fall for this time when students have learned the procedures, know the expectations, follow the rules, and are comfortable with one another. I have had enough time to get to know them as learners, and now I can finally begin to progress towards the goals we have set together, add to their portfolios, publish our writing, culminate units.

Yeah, right.

It's that time of year when the demands of my domestic life have caught up with me, and I feel like I am running in high gear from the moment I step in my classroom. I can never have enough time before or after school to prepare for each day. I don't preview the math lesson carefully enough. I forget to copy the Visual Instruction Plan or organizer. I loose books and grade sheets around the classroom. Students are more relaxed, comfortable with one another, and chatty. They know the routines and expectations but still neglect to follow them. I know my students, but do not know exactly how to get them to where they need to go. As we approach Halloween I feel like we are slipping in to the entropy we see outside, like the gorgeous leaves of the maple by my window which are now browning and flying wantonly around the playground.

And grades close in one week.

Where did that first trimester go? I feel like I am just getting my head wrapped around each one of my 19 distinct individuals, and now it's time to evaluate progress. Progress? I have just established my base line! In one week I will begin to assign "grades" to each subject area, and write comments about each child's performance. We will need to find time to look at and reflect on our meager portfolios, and prepare for parent conferences. Granted, we have finished three units in math, are half-way through our content area study, have published a couple of pieces of writing, have finished two guided reading books... But it's like we're just getting warmed up.

I am hoping that writing these "cards," "reports," will help me to truly see the "progress" through the "process."