Nicole feels

Today is N@than's "Moving Up" ceremony. Rather than call it a graduation, they have deemed it a moving up to middle school celebration.

N@than was chosen from his class to read the essay he wrote on personal greatness. I think he is a little nervous - and I am a bit nervous for him too! - but I know he will do just fine once he gets up there and starts reading.

And it is the last day of school with students for me. I will head up there after N@than's thing and help with lunchroom duty and then ride a bus with another teacher. All to make sure they don't try to kill each other.

Should be interesting.

The teacher I've been subbing for came up to the school with her new baby yesterday. We were able to finish most of the stuff for check-out. So, woohoo on that. And the rest of the PE teachers were very kind and told her that I have done a great job.

It's been interesting to say the least.

Yesterday, I filled out 21 failure slips and turned them in. Do you think they know that they can fail PE and still pass the year?

That is seriously sad.

And so it has been an education for me as well, this teaching gig. As crazy and frustrating as it has been at times, I still want to do this "for real" some day.

I won't kid you. It was really tough at times. There were a few kids I would have loved to really say what I thought of them. Their lack of personal responsibility and general disrespect of authority was frustrating at best.

But amid all of that, there were some really cool moments, moments like an unsolicited apology from a 6th grader. Or a hug from another. Or seeing that look on their face when they "get it".

It's moments like that that make teaching a really cool thing.