The End

My first year of teaching has come to an end. It's been an amazing year of growth and learning who I am as a teacher.

My school was not an easy one to work at. As a district we struggle to produce passing test scores giving us the extra pressure of meeting State expectations. Our community doesn't necessarily put education first and our students come from families were at least one family member did not graduate high school, let alone go to to college. Teachers don't stay so the students see a constant shift in their teachers, principals, and support staff from year to year. I think this year, 19 of the 27 staff members at the Junior High were new, including our entire administration. We don't have a special education program and we don't have classroom support.

Teachers in my school were less than supportive. Bigger schools offer a mentor to first year teachers. Not us. One teacher told a group of students I as a terrible teacher and should be fired. One teacher went to the principal during our naming ceremony and told a room full of people what a joke I was. And our faculty meetings were a constant time for telling us as a staff all the things we were doing wrong. Teachers walked out and quit. Teachers lost their cool and made huge scenes with cussing and screaming at our supervisors. No one would come sub for us so we had to give up conferences periods to sub other teachers classrooms.

There is a "make it work" attitude that can be frustrating and challenging. How do I make it work in a classroom of 28 6th, 7th, 8th graders: 2 are autistic, 4 are English Language Learners are varying levels of the spectrum, 2 are ADHD with no support or medication, 1 is dyslexic, and 21 of these children are boys. Not to mention these kids are in school an hour longer than most kids their age due to failing scores. My classroom management plan that had worked wonders with my elementary school kids in the past was quickly pushed aside and replaced. I had to find new ways to inspire learning and at times I felt like a failure.

Kids called me horrible vulgar names, I was hit with my share of items from the art rooms, and at times kids even walked out of my room slamming the door as they went.

No. Working where I worked was a challenge to say the least. It was hard to stay positive at times. But when I look back, I look back on what I accomplished. 169 kids recreated a Starry Night using paint or pastel. They created an invention and entered it in Doodle For Google. We took trips around the world as we studied art and artists and we learned about how other people live through their art. Students learned to use materials they had never seen before. We successfully tie died 160 shirts at the end of the year. We made and ate cupcakes. We painted our Halloween candy and made sugar skulls.

My year was hard. But I look back on it and remember the relationships I built a few teachers. The relationships I made with most of my students. The memories we had in Room #7.

From day one I knew it was going to be an uphill battle. Do we remember my classroom the first day we walked in? A work in progress for sure and so was this year.

I am excited and ready for what the future will hold.