The End of Another School Year (Sub File #9)

 Even though the students have until next Thursday, my first year as a substitute teacher is over! We're off to visit my California siblings tomorrow for a quick weekend trip and then next week, we'll be at a neighboring city as Grizz has a job training all week. I wouldn't have to join him, but it's a full week of paid hotel rooms and lots of chances to explore a new city AND play with all the fun photos I'm hoping to take in Cali :) Even if I did stick around home, I'm sure I wouldn't get called in to sub as the high schools are only doing semester tests next week.

It's been a crazy year of learning and growing. I don't know how many school days this district has on its school calendar, but I walked into a school building 136 days this past year (if I add half days together, the days I was paid for was 131.5).

I may not have had my own classes in my own classrooms, but I was able to see how other teachers set up their classrooms, how they handle being gone for a day or two, their rules and expectations, and even how they write their lesson plans. This will be helpful for when I get my own classroom again!

• I've been through fire and lockdown drills - even a real shelter-in-place (the precautionary step before a full-out lockdown). 
• I've had to break up a fight.
• I've had to tell students to stop telling their drinking stories. 
• I've seen the lightbulb turn on while helping students on math problems. 
• I've wowed honor kids with my mathematical knowledge. 
• I've wowed myself with random bits of knowledge I remember from non-math classes. 
• I've been thrown into Spanish, French, orchestra and choir classrooms. 
• I've watched countless Mythbuster movies as well as movies about ebola, planet Earth, western expansion... even The Polar Express, Remember the Titans and Gatos en Botas (Puss in Boots!). 
• I've caught students trying to "mess" with the substitute, but I'm sure I've fallen for jokes/pranks/likes that I didn't catch. 
• I've made teacher friends... teachers that know I can handle actually teaching while they're gone... teachers that have invited me to a bridal shower and to their end-of-school-year get-together
• I had students recognize me outside of the classroom, and smile at the same time :)

What a year :) AND if something in the district doesn't open up this summer (they're trying to save money, so I doubt anything will) I'll be back at it next year!

*Until then, I have a whole summer to keep the apartment ACTUALLY clean, make fun suppers for the husband and of course sew and be crafty... and of course hit up the occasional antique store, thrift store and garage sale. YAY FOR SUMMERS!