Year Six, Day One

It went well. Too well. Surprisingly well. That worries me immensely.

But seriously... no crying children, no panicky mommies, no major behavior problems. They didn't seem nervous, they warmed up to me right away, and I don't see any serious academic problems yet. (I know it's only the first day, but there's always at least one who can't spell her name or something equally telling.)

I think I have 19 kids total, which is the smallest class I've ever had. And by God, I vow to have every single blessed child reading on a third grade level by November! Okay, maybe that's a bit TOO optimistic, but I think I'll be able to do a lot with such a small class. It definitely bodes well for individual attention and one-on-one conferences for things like writer's workshop. It's hard to do those things effectively with a class of 25 and above.

And I can't get over how small they are! They're babies!!! They all stood in line this morning with shiny new shoes, fresh haircuts, and clean uniforms. SO cute. I have a few characters this year, which will lend itself to several amusing anecdotes, I'm sure. I'm really looking forward to watching them develop over the course of the year.

So far, so good.