2nd Year DOWN!

At the end of my first year of teaching, I put into words all of the things that students had taught me over the course of that year. I actually put that list into my thesis presentation, sharing how I felt that I had grown since starting the crazy, overwhelming, and amazing Fellows process. I met amazing kids [who are now amazing adults], learned from some of the best, grew to be a better partner for my [now] husband, and somehow managed to work on my craft in the midst of it. My first year of teaching was amazing.

With that said, I have now finished my second year of teaching. I moved to a new district to work in a brand new position. Moving into Special Education was the scariest, hardest, and most rewarding thing I've ever done in my career next to being a Fellow. Would I be good at it? Can I really help these kids? How will I figure out all of the paperwork? Who will help me? Questions like these floated around my head for the duration of summer last year. I was fearful that I wouldn't build connections like those that I had with my former students. I was fearful that I wouldn't feel like I belonged as part of the staff. I was terrified that I wouldn't pass my SPED certification test to legally be able to keep my job. Alas, I did all of those things.

  

Moving into SPED was one of my greatest choices. I met and was moved by children in a way that I never thought possible. I was able to watch students celebrate small victories, like growing their reading level by 6 months, because progress is PROGRESS. I was able to support students in their extracurricular activities [and even learn some things about FFA along the way]. I was able to help struggling learners connect with the content by providing the support they needed, while doing everything in my power to allow them to keep feeling like a human. I talked sports, I asked questions, I even helped arrange for students to have coats who didn't have them. This year has been a learning and growing process for all of us.

 

  

I finish my second year of teaching thankful that I was able to be here, in Cameron. It has been a blessing to come to know these students, my mentor, and to be taken in as [almost] a real member of the English department. I'm looking forward to coming back here next year to watch some of my kids graduate, co-teach FIVE sections of English, sponsor the junior class/Prom again, and maybe even make some sort of difference. It's gonna be a ride!