Diary of A First Year Kindergarten Teacher: 3rd Entry
Wednesday, August 26
Dear Diary,
I accomplished most of the stuff on my list! It took me most of the morning but by lunchtime I had a large trashcan and 30+ chairs in my classroom. Now there will be enough chairs for the students to sit at their assigned tables as well as extras for the Writing Center, Computer Center, and Dramatic Play. YAY!
I also set up the basic layout of the classroom placing the tables, chairs, large group area, and shelves in formation. After that, I wiped down all the furniture that I had commandeered. Of course everything was filthy, but the room is starting to look like a real classroom.
I spent the afternoon trying to organize my file cabinet and my desk. Another set of arduous and unpleasant tasks. Ms. Slate, the teacher who had the classroom before me must have been bitter when she retired because the disregard for school property is apparent. The incredible amount of trash she left behind is a perfect example.
To my dismay, I discovered that my desk drawers were filled with mouse droppings, my file cabinet was filled with junk: a ton of broken crayon pieces, dried up markers, stacks of papers, and other miscellaneous items that needed to be tossed. I did find a file with Kindergarten welcome letters and ocean-themed activities that might be helpful. One collection of papers that I was surprised to find were pink slips. I didn't know you were able to write kindergartners up for misbehaving. It seems a little harsh to write a pink slip for a child that is so young. I'm not sure I'll be able to do it.
There may be more treasures hidden in those metal drawers, but it would take hours to sort through the mounds of jumbled papers crammed into them. I can't waste anymore time on that.
Right before 3:00 I had a short meeting with the principal, Mrs. Antoinette Bernard. She's a blondish woman middle-aged woman with a beaky nose and close-set eyes that scrutinize everything. Her office is well-kept and larger than I thought it would be. I had heard rumors that she'd grown up as an army brat and ran her school in a similar militaristic style. She red-lines staff if they were one minute late, she expects lesson plans to be submitted on time to her exact specifications, and she's as blunt as they come, often embarrassing teachers in front of co-workers and parents. I haven't experienced or witnessed any of these behaviors so I'm trying to keep an open mind.
I knocked on Mrs. Bernard's office door and was promptly told to enter. It was much larger and airier than I had expected, almost refreshing after trooping through the dingy, narrow halls to get there. The entire building needs a fresh coat of paint, minus Mrs. Bernard's office, which is a vibrant shade of peach with bright white molding.
Her U-shaped desk was the immediate focal point, a brand new laptop and phone sat neatly on the glass-topped surface. A collection of frames, artfully arranged on one wall, held diplomas and certificates indicating her impressive credentials. A Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education, a Master's in Education with a concentration in school administration and other various educational certifications that confirmed she belonged in the position of school principal.
A large rectangular window hung with lace curtains overlooked a sparse patch of brittle grass and the street beyond. I watched the cars zipping by as I sat in one of the leather seats facing Mrs. Bernard's desk while she finished skimming over a file of papers.
"I hope you're settling in nicely," she said closing the file.
"I am, thank you."
"So what brings you to my office today?"
"I was wondering if you could spare any extra computers for my classroom."
Mrs. Bernard smiled. "I can actually. As soon as the shipment arrives, Kindergarten will be receiving two brand new desktops per classroom."
An unexpected bonus. "Wow. Thank you."
"The shipment may take a few weeks to arrive however."
Crap. I knew there'd be a catch. A few weeks could end up being a few months with this district. "That's fine," I replied, hiding my disappointment. From what I had observed, my grade group partner and the first and second grades already had two desktops in their computer centers. I wondered what had happened to my classroom's computers. "It's just nice to know that my students will have access to them. I was also wondering when we would get our class lists. I'd like to start scheduling parent interviews."
"The lists won't be complete until next week. We're still registering students. There's always a mad rush the last week of August and the first week of September."
Double-crap. I'd wanted to send home letters introducing myself to the children and their parents before they came for the interviews next Thursday. How would there be time to schedule and complete them all before the children started school?
"Thank you, Mrs. Bernard."
Disheartened, I left her office, my mind struggling to come up with a game plan for scheduling the parent interviews that were destined to flow over into the first day of school. If parents don't meet with me before their children start school they're not going to know me, my classroom policies, the supplies they'll need, or where to drop off or pick up their children in the schoolyard.
Great, just great!
In Head Start there were often delays getting a complete list, but there were only 19 children per classroom and a full-time teaching assistant to help set up the classroom if I got caught up in parent interviews. What would have happened if I hadn't come in a whole week early to start setting up?
I've wasted three days on tasks that I hadn't anticipated doing.
Tomorrow I want to start decorating the boards. After I left work, I picked up borders for the boards, tags for labeling the cubbies, and nameplates for the tables. I'd like to be frugal and just make some of this stuff, but since I'm doing a lot of heavy duty cleaning, I need to get some things done quickly. I'm exhausted! I'm sore! I'm aggravated and the school year hasn't even started. Maybe I should stay home tomorrow and relax.
