First Day of School...Two Weeks Later

I'm cracking up to myself as I'm writing this post. Friends, I know this post is delayed almost two weeks but this is the first chance I've had to breathe so far this school year! And yet I still feel guilty doing something I enjoy instead of prepping materials.

Let's just do a quick review of my first day of school EVER as a teacher....

I woke up way too early #collegegradproblems. Oh how I miss the days of having class at 10am and being able to do all my homework the morning before my class! The things I would do to go back to my college years :)

After I pulled myself out of bed I got ready for the day, packed my lunch, and headed to my beloved Tim Horton's before going to school. Luckily my school starts so early that I didn't have to get stuck in rush hour. 

I met my aide (who is literally my saving grace this year!!!...blog post on that coming soon) and before I knew it, my first student had arrived. I was expecting the worst, given what former teachers have told me. But he was so responsible! He brought in his iPod and turned it into me before he set down in backpack. 

As I showed each student where their cubby was and how to complete their morning journal, I was really proud of myself for hurdling this minuscule goal. I'm a firm believer that a great start to the morning leads to an even better day. 

We practiced lining up, we practiced walking in the hallway, we practiced getting breakfast from the cafeteria, because after all, we're in the fourth grade now and fourth graders are allowed to pick up their own breakfast! We went through every important routine I thought was necessary for setting up a successful year. Again, there will be a blog post coming on that soon! 

My biggest regret was not having enough free time activities for them. I had completely disregarded that I, quite literally, had NOTHING for them to do during free time. Not even coloring sheets, playdough, or crossword puzzles. 

I will say that I am forever grateful for my co-workers. I walked into the fifth grade teacher's room and exclaimed, "is it normal to be this stressed on the first day of school?!" I also walked into my fellow fourth grade teacher's room and said, "I RAN OUT OF STUFF TO DO." She politely handed me six extra copies of back to school word searches, community builders, and ice breakers :) Another rookie lesson, right? 

At the end of the day I said to myself, "honestly, today could've gone a lot worse. And here I am in one piece." Talk about teacher success! Now, in five years I'll probably look back at this post and laugh out loud at my amateur self. But until then, I'm calling this #teacherwin.

Side note: I asked my students if they liked hashtags and obviously they all yelled "yes!". Well, I quickly learned they have no idea what a hashtag is. I have a lot to teach them this year!!

This is how I ended my day...

 A good old teacher selfie...

...and a much needed caramel macchiato :)

I know my postings are going to be sporadic the next few weeks but I promise to update when I can!! My 22 year old heart loves blogging :)