Thursday, June 30, 2005

back to work (sort of)

I had to wake up early this morning (oh the horror!) and go to work for a meeting about summer camp. We set up a schedule and got our group lists, and then began arranging our space in the school hall (which is our "cafe-gymna-torium"). My group is the former PK-1, which means they'll be entering K-2 this fall. Seven of them are 1st graders, all but one of whom were in my class last year (the other is a parishioner who goes to a local public school). Three are K (which means they'll be in my class this coming year) and the other three are PK. I'm responsible for reading and writing from 9:30-11:00, and then I help supervise science from 11:00-12:00. After that is lunch, and then I leave when the kids head for the neighborhood public pool. I have class 4 nights a week, so I need to get home, shower, change and eat before 5:30. Lucky me.

We're funded by a local program that provides us with books and materials for a theme of their choosing. This year's theme is "aquarium," which is kinda cool. I'll be able to do a lot with that. I ventured up to my classroom to dig out my basket of ocean-themed books (as well as some other essentials, such as markers, stickers, and flash cards). It's always weird going back into the classroom over the summer. All the desks were in the hallway, because the custodial staff has been buffing the floors. But the hallway still had that school smell. (I know it sounds bizarre, but I simply LOVE the smell of school - especially in September, with all the construction paper and crayons...)

So I spent all morning moving tables and chairs, counting out scissors, putting crayons in cups, and rifling through the crates of donated books, looking for some age-appropriate reading material. The air-conditioner in the school hall was on, but doing a half-assed job, at best. By early afternoon, I was sweating, and my normally wavy hair was beginning to frizz. Time to hit the road.


Camps starts on Tuesday, and so does the Summer II session of grad school. Adios, vacation!

1 comment:

SuzanH said...

Good luck! I hope you enjoy camp as much as your weekend away. Or at least enjoy it.