Over the Hump

Greetings Apples,

While I love the start of a new school year for its fresh-start-feeling (who doesn't love pristine notebooks and newly-sharpened pencils?), it is also the most strenuous time of year, in my opinion.

First, you have a group of new students to learn about and "train" in the routines of your classroom. On top of that, there are meetings and district trainings galore. Before you know it, your first set of progress reports are due and it's time to set up parent/teacher conferences.

Parent/Teacher conferences, in theory, should be pretty simple. You have a 20-minute chat with each child's parents about his or her progress in class. The kids have minimum days, so you are only teaching until 12:30 each day.

Simple, right?

In reality, I find parent/teacher conferences exhausting and my least favorite time of year. Yes, the kids leave at 12:30, but starting at 12:40 you begin back-to-back 20 minute sessions with a revolving door of parents. There are translators to be scheduled, talking points to be written, data samples to be copied for each parent, and a tight schedule to be made that is nearly impossible to stick to. Talking for two hours straight is even more exhausting than teaching! Plus, to accommodate working parents, I offer two morning slots beginning at 7:30. Which means that this not-a-morning girl had to get herself up between 5 and 5:30 each day to get to work in enough time for my 7:30 meetings.

This year, I completed 34 conferences. I averaged between 6-7 conferences a day, and found myself working until 5:30ish each night to get caught up on all of the mundane clerical-type tasks I had been putting off in recent weeks.

While I do feel caught up after this past week, I am mostly relieved conferences are over (with the exception of the two that I have to re-do this week).

Now I feel like I cam just solely focus on the kids and their learning needs. (Until it's time to write report cards, of course...)

What is your least favorite time of the school year?

Miss H.