busy

Well, when it rains it pours :).  I have been waiting and waiting for subbing more at the Elementary school and I am getting my wish these last two weeks.  It started with Kindergarten all week last week and this week it's one thing after another.  I do enjoy it and am thankful for the opportunity but this week cannot get done fast enough.  Of course when there is one thing going on, there's everything at once.  Our church is having their annual huge Christmas choir concert with all the kids and adults involved this weekend.  Normally it would just be getting the kids to the practices but since Ehren is the main sound guy he's been spending most evenings and nights at church this week.  And on top of that I scheduled our Sunday School class Christmas party for tomorrow night, the night before the first concert.  I really tried to have it another night but nothing worked for the people involved so it had to be tomorrow.  Still, I thought I would have plenty of time for cleaning up and decorating our house since I haven't been subbing much.  And here I am, the night before the party, trying to get everything ready and cleaned up and appetizers prepped because I've been subbing every day with stuff going on almost every night. 

I really can't complain one bit, it is a blessing to be called to sub especially since I was starting to think they are all against me over there. :) Turns out they kind of like me and keep asking me to come back.  Today it was 2nd grade and that was a bit challenging.  Overall it was a good class, but the teacher had so many tasks and worksheets she expected the kids to get done and me correct them that it got a bit too much.  About one third of the class had a hard time with every assignment and needed my personal attention while a few smart kids kept asking for more work to do and while other kids couldn't sit still and still a couple other kids kept coming up to me saying they have a head ache, stomach ache, I need to tie their shoes or give them band aides for paper cuts. :) I was almost losing it a few times and have no idea how that teacher deals with such high-needs class.  So far the 3 kindergarten classes I taught were way better on staying on tasks than these 2nd graders.  But it is good for me to find out what each grade is like and how to deal with the kids.  It is so different from class to class.  Tomorrow I am a music teacher again which means I'll have all different grades all day long.  I'm excited because I get to teach Ani's and Kason's classes and it's fun when I know the kids there already.  Plus, with music there's no work to be done.  It's just playing games or watching something so not that hard.  The kids I've subbed for get really excited too when they see me in the hallways or in the lunch room and it's kind of cool.  It is really something how kids can get attached to a teacher.  I feel like most of the times I sub I am frantically trying to figure out how to do everything in the time given and there's no time for fun or even nurturing with the younger kids.  Yet, for some reason as I walk in the hallways kids get excited to see me and some just come up to me and hug me really tightly as if we were really good buddies.  It makes me smile and think how they don't even know how much it means to me.  Without ever hearing I did a good job because I very rarely hear from a teacher afterwards seeing the kids' big smiles is what I get and that's ok with me.