Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Making Monday (and Tuesday) Matter!















This ride just keeps going and going and going! Monday morning at WVMS brought with it a day FILLED to the brim with hustle and bustle! Eighth graders tend to get a little antsy the last week of school. They are anxious to start high school, and ready to leave behind the awkward years of middle school. It's challenging for those of us who teach middle school to keep them focused and relatively calm during the closing days of the school year. Much to our disappointment, we did not have a plan time on Monday. This meant being "on" all day with the exception of a 25 minute lunch break. Whew! Fortunately, Mrs. Foil is in town now and we chose to launch rockets, figure tangents, and problem solve by packaging a raw egg inside the 2-liter bottle rocket. I say "we"- what I really mean is "they." The students did the hard work of building their rocket. Mrs. Foil tackled the task of teaching them the concepts behind effective design, and Mrs. Storms used some kind of angle-figuring-contraption to determine the altitude of each rocket. Mr. Hicks recorded the data on an "official" chart, while I had the arduous duty of filling the bottles with 600ml of H2O (that's water for those of you non-scientists who may be reading this blog). You might think I had it easy, but, trust me, I was challenged! Steady hand control coupled with good balance and coordination were my essential tools for success! Anyway, the kids had a "BLAST" (pun intended)! The rocket-launch was the highlight of my day at school. After school, Sam, Addie, and I headed over to the IMPACT soccer fields for a try-out for a more competitive soccer team for Addie. She said she didn't want to play soccer in the summer, but we'll see. She's a gifted athlete, and I know Tom will encourage her to play.




Tuesday was a marathon day! I had to drop by the grocery store on the way to school to pick up strawberries and pound cake for a "secret pal" revelation party after school. The morning was spent outside with Field Day. Our 8-3 students dominated the competition this year and I was oh, so proud of my homeroom! They put forth 100% effort. We'll find out the results at the awards ceremony on Thursday, but regardless of how they finished, my homeroom made me a very proud teacher!




April had the ingenious idea of ordering lunch from Hibachi Factory, so we were able to savor some flavor for lunch today as the cafeteria has taken to boxed lunches these last few days. I spent my 45 minute plan time preparing for the NJHS Induction Ceremony that was to take place this evening.




The students helped me disassemble my classroom by taking down all the signs, posters, quotes, etc. that have brightened their days for the past school year. Some talented organizers took care of my closet for me and probably saved me at least 3 hours of work next week! Bless them!




After school, I was frantic to get things prepared for the NJHS Ceremony, but I had a lot of fantastic help! Sherry and Michelle handled the details and I took care of the "big picture." Scotty was our keynote speaker, and Charlie Hicks took care of sound for us. I was pleased to see Mrs. Fuqua and Ms. Finley join us for the occasion. We had a tremendous turn-out of close to 200 parents and friends!




As a result of my busy day, I missed Sam's last soccer game of the season and his team party. Tom acted as parent-on-duty, while Drew carted Addie to her second day of try-outs. I almost lost it today due to stress, but a phone call to my mommy made me feel so much better about things. I am blessed! I have people in my life who love me no matter what!




Tomorrow is the last full-day of school for the 2007-2008 school year! Holding down the fort for two more days...

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