It’s a little after 9pm and I’m catching up on some reading before school starts next week. We have a week-ish of faculty meetings, and then orientation for new students. By this time next week, I think, I’ll be in the classroom.
Today I went over to school. It’s about a 4 1/2 mile commute. I need to get my bike tires pumped up, and then I’m going to try riding to and from work.
I think the biggest difference is how many emails I receive from colleagues that deal with substance, and how many emails I received from parents over the summer. I wasn’t even supposed to start checking email until this week; I discover quite a lot of people wanted to talk to me or communicate before school started.
Oh. And my teaching assignments haven’t changed twice since June.
On the other hand, I’m now running a trip to Washington DC come April. Funny, that… Didn’t I do that for years and years already? And they’re so excited that I have a school van license.
But the school day ends at 3:30 pm. So there will be time to do a great many other things.
This is going to be very different.
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Location:Middletown,United States
Mr. Watt! where are you teaching now? Im assuming from “Ben’s” comment that you are currently at a day school! Im very excited for you and I miss you. I hope you don’t let those who stand on your shoulders keep you down!
Dear Hirsch,
I am at a day school. You can e-mail me privately to find out where, but I’m fairly sure I don’t want a text link between old and new schools, and this blog, any time in the near future. Feel free to contact me privately.
I’m so excited for you…! The best parts of the first month of school will be:
1) Realizing that your students love to learn and that the administration isn’t standing in the way of them doing so.
2) Realizing that your colleagues are consistently trying to become better teachers because they have the time and energy to do so.
3) Spending that first Friday night wherever you spend it — out with friends, home watching t.v., or any combination of the two — and realizing that you don’t have dorm duty and that you never will again.
I’d have to say, though, that I still get a kick of going into school on the first day, soaking up the excitement and novelty of it all, and then going home exhausted — not going back to the dorm and having to go to opening chapel, dinner, meetings, and then putting the kids to bed!
Also, your school probably doesn’t have tutors. THANK GOD.