I finally got my teaching assignment yesterday. I will be the Reading Enrichment teacher at another school in our district.

At first, I was nervous/upset. There was about an hour where I thought I was going to throw up. Reading Enrichment is a special area class, so I'd be like the art or PE teacher. 850 kids is a lot. And I see each class for just 35 minutes once a week; that doesn't seem like enough time to get much done. I was sad that I won't have classes I see every day where I can really build those relationships that are so important to me. And I was so nervous about starting at a new school!

But then I remembered that I did request a reading position for this year, and it's pretty cool that they gave me what I wanted, even though I'm not actually certified for it yet. And I remembered that my friend who used to teach next door to me is the PE teacher there. He texted me when he saw my Facebook status and told me we'd be on the same team and have the same lunch period, so I don't have to worry about who to sit by at lunch. Then his wife (who also teaches at that school) wrote on my wall, welcoming me to the family. She is excited that I'm coming and invited me out for drinks next week with her and some of the other teachers. She is going to introduce me around so I'll have friends. So the part of me that's scared of being the new girl is feeling reassured.

Then I started thinking about the position. I talked to my new principal, and I have total freedom. She's heard a lot about how I teach and thinks it will be perfect for me. I won't have to deal with textbooks; I can use whatever methods I want to help kids become better readers. I have tons of ideas already.

Also, I think this position will be less work. Instead of 25 lesson plans per week (5 subjects a day, 5 days a week), I'll only have to do 7, one for each grade level. Although I am nervous about teaching kindergartners! Also, grading will be really easy. It's pretty much just based on participation, so I won't be bringing home stacks of papers to grade every night. This is ideal because I start practicum this year and won't have a lot of time for work stuff outside of work.

One thing that still makes me nervous... My classroom is right next to the principal's office. I've heard she's nice, but still... what if I have to yell at the kids, and she hears me? I'm going to have to be on my best behavior.

But overall, I'm excited!