love

My first graders are the most loving people I've ever met. They greet each other at the door in the mornings, applaud each other when questions are answered correctly, smile incessantly...I could go on & on!

During rough days (typically Mondays) I like to keep track of the things they do that really make me smile.

Today included:

• "Can I stay in first grade next year? So you can be my teacher again?"
• 25 hugs received throughout the day
• "Ms. Castro, I don't ever want to lose you."

They have a way of articulating love that is unmatched by adults.

Despite the fact these cutesy actions/words are from 6 & 7-year-olds, they never fail to make my start to the week a little bit better.

"Princess Machine"

Loved the message from this GoldieBlox commercial, considering fewer than 3 in 10 graduates in science, technology, engineering & mathematics are women (UPWORTHY). Food for thought.

Princess Machine

college repeat

"What are your plans after you finish Teach For America?"

I feel like college graduation is slowly approaching. Again. & again, the question is consistently asked, slightly altered from two years before.

For the most part, my corp members & I dread the question. It feels weird, to not know what the next part of your life will look like.

Many of us recently attended a job fair in order to learn about other jobs within the metroplex - jobs that fight educational inequality, yet remove us from classrooms.

"You're a certified bilingual teacher? Wow. You know, these districts really need you." - Comment from a man discussing his company at job fair.

Did he really tell me I need to stay in the classroom, instead of considering working for his organization?

I'm lucky to have so many options & opportunities.

"the function of education"

During independent practice of a math lesson earlier this week, a student asked me, "why do I need to learn this?" [We were learning how addition & subtraction were related to each other (fact families), & practicing how to find all number sentences given 3 related numbers.]

After explaining why knowing how to use addition & subtraction, he smiled & said "OK." Quickly, he went back to work, while I thought about what had just happened.

A big part of teaching content is explaining why the learning is important. How will these kids use this knowledge in the future? My class is motivated to learn, but I know they would work even harder if I made more of an effort to set purpose during lessons.

Teaching is not just about content mastery. This MLK quote captures what it's all about. As this semester has come to a close, I'll take the winter break reflect upon how to teach the "whole" child.

ICEpocolypse

ICEpocolypse canceled school this past Friday, December 6th, & I believe teachers were more thrilled than students…I know I was! After prepping for an uber important observation Thursday (which ended up being canceled at around 12:30 a.m. Thursday), as well as other usual teacher tasks, I mentally needed a day off!

@emirolla

My days in ICEolation have meant lots of Netflix (Scandal + House of Cards) / cleaning / catching up on school work. NOTHING is open because the icy roads make driving nearly impossible. DFW just doesn't have the materials to handle this type of weather. & while ICEmaggedon has provided a nice vacation from real life, I'm hoping the roads will be better for school tomorrow…assuming we actually have school tomorrow. Roads are still VERY bad.

@j_jimenez

Each workday I venture towards east Berry to get to work. I see a drastic change along the drive from my TCU neighborhood to Stop Six. Besides the difference in infrastructure, I see a lot of people outside, walking. Less cars, more people walking to school, work…more homelessness.

On my mind are my students in/near stop 6. I hope their houses are warm enough, that they have enough blankets to stay covered, that their parents were not called into work during this awful weather, & that their food supply has been big enough. I hope school is not canceled tomorrow, because school might be more cozy than home to these kids during this time. Fingers crossed DFW can take care of the ice today.

bunny ears

"Teacher, can you tie my shoes?"

Everything that comes out of my students' mouth is a reminder of the special age in which they are. So dependent, so innocent, so honest...I absolutely adore it.

I remember when I learned how to tie my shoes. My older cousin was given the task to teach me & taught me the bunny ears way - make two bunny ears, loop them around each other & voila, problem solved! Since then, this method has been the sole way in which I tie my shoes. Such a tiny moment from my youth is part of my almost everyday routine. Insane.

I marvel at the fact that I have the same opportunity to impact so many tiny lives. These reflections make me realize how wonderful my job truly is.

Overcoming weaknesses

Sucky October happend around this time last year. Looking back, I don't think I've ever been as stressed, tired & miserable as I was then. I worked harder than ever to seemingly fail everyday - which takes a toll on you both mentally & physically.

This October is like a breath of fresh air in comparison - mostly because of an acquired skill developed all throughout last year. I'm now able to collaborate with a network of people (sounds silly, but it's a skill to me!!!)

As a college student, I hated group projects. I preferred working by myself. I kept up this mentality when it came to planning. I placed myself on my own island last year. I didn't lesson plan with others, share resources, etc...mostly because I didn't think I knew what I was doing. Little did I know this wasn't just affecting my health & happiness - it spilled over to the kind of education my kids received.

This year, I am in charge of everything math-related, while other members of my 1st grade team take care of literacy, writing, science, social studies, literacy centers, homework, parental outreach...everyone has their place, & I've never been prouder to be part of such a great crew! They are amazing. We meet 1-2 times a week to work, bouncing ideas off of one another. I am surviving this year because of them.

Advice to anyone in over your head as a 1st year teacher: ask for help from your fellow peers! You will be in such a better place because of it.