First day

Even after 16 years on the job, I still get first day jitters. I know that my brain is still partially in summer mode and the kids' brains will be more than partially stuck in summer. I study over mostly faceless names and I hope that I pronounce them correctly as names are important.

This year is going to be hectic. I have five unique classes that I am teaching, which means 10-15 hours of planning a week. That's 10-15 hours of my own time. That doesn't count the number of papers I always grade. And, let's not even mention the political atmosphere surrounding public education. That all just depresses me.

First days are usually uneventful. Everyone approaches the day with just a little trepidation and even the most reluctant student makes noises about turning over a new leaf. I rattle my sabre and try to show them that my class will make them smarter, but only if they give their full effort.

Today was really no different that most other first days. A lot of kids were missing because those are the types of kids I teach. Maybe they'll show up tomorrow, or next week. Whenever their parents get around to sending them. Far too many show up without even a pencil. Three 10th graders tried to sleep in my seventh hour class. The majority, however, were polite and tried to put their best foot forward; "please" and "thank you" were abundantly used today.

Problems? For two of my classes, the 35 desks in my room are not enough. One student sat at my desk, while another sat at my work table in the front of the room. We'll have to fix that. How? I don't know. There is no more room for student desks in my room. Adding more would be a fire hazard.

I'm tired and drinking a little Zen green tea as I still have work to do this evening. I've already put in an two extra hours, between before school and since the school day ended. I still have about 45 minutes more to go. I guess I better get to it.