Last Sunday we loaded up the kids and the bikes and headed to Woodward Park to ride the trails. It was a lot of fun exploring the park, riding, getting dirty, and hanging as a family being active.
We have now finished an entire full week of school (plus the two days from the week before). I think we are settling into a good groove of work, new classroom, and iPads. The learning curve for the iPads has been so much quicker this year! All but two of my 8th graders are returning students, so they didn't even need to be told how to access files or how to upload assignments.
The 7th graders have caught on quickly as well. Tablets are second nature for most of these kids. I'm finding it interesting that most of the kids are accessing their textbooks on their iPads even if they have a hard book available to them in the classroom.
My 8th graders working on a religion assignment. They are doing really well taking care of our classroom, being respectful of the new furniture, and taking the opportunity to be comfortable and focused.
A surprising thing to me is that many of them like to hold pillows. I think I need to get more throw pillows for them to hold on their laps. I also want to get squishy balls/toys for them to squeeze and manipulate if they need to wiggle. We don't think twice when kindergartner needs to wiggle, but expect 13-year-olds to maintain for long stretches of time. It's just not realistic. They have the ability to move and be comfortable in this new setting.
I'm very curious each day to see which chairs are going to be the favorite. The couch seems popular as well as the regular low table and the shelf table (in front of the red bulletin board).
Eric has done a lot of work for me. We were at school today and he hung a bunch of pictures, oiled my squeaky glider, and is going to reset my projector. I still want to get curtains. That will be one of the final big things that I get to complete the room.
We had our first rally of the year on Thursday. Evan is a student council member this year. He is the boys sports commissioner. The student council members help Mrs. Davis plan and run the rallies. This year's back to school rally was a Hawaiian theme. I was proud of Evan for getting into the spirit and helping to lead his school.
We have seen such great effort by Evan so far this year and could not be more proud! He is working harder than ever before to keep up with his work, stay on top of assignments, learn a new iPad program, participate in sports, and get good grades. So very, very, very impressed by this young man. Plus, it's been fun having him in my classroom for Algebra and Social Studies. So far, we are getting along!
Right now, both Evan and Hudson are taking a break from soccer, and I am LOVING it! We have been going going going for five straight years with practice each week and games on the weekend. It's so strange to come home after school, make dinner, and relax. I know things will get busy in time, but for now, this break is quite welcome.
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