(From Instagram)
Today was our last day of school. It was a beautiful day.
This has been a challenging and difficult school year:
- New school
- New grade level
- New curriculum
- Teaching virtually
- Family members with health issues
- Deaths in my family
Despite all of those challenges, I managed to have a fantastic school year with my scholars.
After being at the same school for fifteen years, I took a leap of faith and left for a new school. It is scary to leave the only "home" you've ever known - especially in the middle of a pandemic with a new grade level and curriculum!
Would I fit in? Would my teammates like me? How can I make this new curriculum work virtually? I was having ALL of the thoughts and feelings!
I was worried that I wouldn't be able to build relationships with fourth graders - I was wrong! Even though we were virtual, I was able to connect with my scholars in a way that I previously was not able to. I learned more about their home life, their likes and dislikes, their siblings and other family members, and much more.
I consider myself pretty tech savvy, but I learned new technology and other skills this year that I will continue to use when I return to the physical classroom.
Image from here.
We have weekly Peace Circles in our classes. I decided to have a special Last Day of School Peace Circle.
We started off by reading the book Last Day Blues by Julie Dannenberg. This is where I started to get emotional.
After the story, I asked them the following questions:
- What is your favorite thing we did this year?
- What did you discover about yourself this year?
- What will you do over the summer?
- How can I improve as a teacher? What should I do differently?
For the last question, I had the scholars think for a few minutes. I then gave them a Google Form to fill out with their responses. I let them know it would be anonymous so I would not know who was writing.
The discussion we had during this Peace Circle was so amazing! The scholars were incredibly reflective about this school year. They had the kindest things to say to me and my co-teachers.
I also had my scholars create a Google slide with advice for my scholars that I will teach next year.
Finally, my co-teachers and I each had the opportunity to share our final thoughts and feelings. One of my girls was in TEARS and did not want to log off. My co-teachers and I were teary-eyed the entire time.
I will never forget this school year.
My co-teachers, teammates, administration, and other colleagues truly supported me and I cannot thank them enough. I am blessed to be working with you all. 💙💛
My scholars made this a magical year for me. They all worked hard and grew over the year! I am incredibly proud of them!
I hope everyone enjoys their summer! Take time for YOU and relax!
