This was yet another busy week at the Davis household.  It was the first full week of school, due to inservices and holidays, and with such a busy weekend prior, it certainly took its toll.  My allergies have been acting up something awful, Ken now has either a cold or the flu, and Jocelyn has started to feel yucky.  Earlier in the week Taylor had a bout of vomiting and kindly didn’t pass that bug on to anyone in the family!  Wesley has been relatively healthy, only clumsy!  He has scabs all over his little chest, knees, and elbows from a couple of tumbles on the concrete driveway!

Jocelyn had her first Brownie meeting for the year and came home with a mouse that had a long tail.  We were instructed to tie a knot in its tail every time she does a good deed around the house.  Does going to bed without complaining count as a good deed? Probably not.  Oh well, we’re working on it.

Our annual neighborhood block party is Saturday night and as the coordinator, I am officially resigning.  This is my last year to put it together as well as it being my Dad’s last year as President.  Someone else will have to get the petition signed to close the street, put together flyers, solicit businesses and individuals for prizes, coordinate bouncy castles, games and other entertainment for the kids, just to name a few of my duties.  I’ve already told the President that I’m not doing anything for them anymore (yes, that goes for the Easter Egg Hunt for 2008 and the garage sale of 2007!).  I’m going to be way too busy hopefully as a first year teacher than to worry about that kind of thing.

My first night of seminar class was Tuesday night as well.  Fortunately we only met for two hours but they were indeed a jam-packed two hours!  First we went over all of the paperwork and fees associated with getting our teaching license.  You’d think with all of the money we’ve already spent on getting our education, the least they could have done was grant us a license for free.  Of course not!  At least since I already have a substitute license I don’t have to pay the $44 to get an FBI background check.  Overall, on top of being in the schools a minimum of 9 hours per day, we have to complete interviews/topic discussions via the internet, build our file, and write a “mini” KPA (Kansas Performance Assessment) which is approximately 12 typed pages.  (The KPA is a required document from the state of KS to gain our permanent license.  We have 2 years to complete this once we start teaching.)  Our “mini” KPA is half the size of the one that we’ll need to submit later.

Let’s see, something that happened at school this week.  I figured that I’d have to deal with this at some point but I wasn’t prepared!  One of my female students came up to me and asked if she could call her Mom.  That was really unusual since 5th graders don’t usually ask this.  She seemed concerned about something so I asked her if she was all right.  She whispered to me that she thought she was starting her period and didn’t know what to do.  To be honest, the thought hadn’t even crossed my mind that this was her first time.  This gal is taller than I am, wider, and very well-developed.  She put her head down on her desk and cried because she was scared.  Her Mom ended up coming for her after lunch and I saw my student again after school when she was picking up her sister from kindergarten.  “Was it what you thought it was?” I asked. “No,” she replied.  I’m not sure what the deal was in the end but she ended up missing the last two days of school for the week.

I am beginning to get more responsibility in the classroom, too.  I was getting tired of watching my cooperating teacher (CT) teach the main math and reading lessons so she gave me the second reading block to teach next week.  I’m looking forward to it.  We’re starting a new concept at calendar on Monday and my advisor/professor will be coming to observe me teaching on Thursday.  I tried to videotape myself teaching today as I have to do reflections on what I see but the battery was that old that it didn’t charge.  Fortunately the technology gal helped me with a different battery and its back on the books for Monday.  I’m always nervous about videotaping, mainly because I hate watching myself but also because the students don’t act natural.  At least I can observe myself with my discipline technique!

Well, I’d better wrap it up as I still have block party issues to contend with and the agenda’s full for tomorrow.  So much for a relaxing weekend. . .