The End

Thursday was the last day of school for students, and Friday was my last day. It has been a very emotional, rough few days....

I received my pink slip on Wednesday. I knew that I was going to get one when I accepted the job, but it still hurt. Knowing that I was going to have to start the whole applications process again, and also practicing my patience again was disappointing. Thursday was Awards Day, and 4th grade Promotion Day. This day is when all the kids, K-4 are recognized for certain achievements, and 4th grade gets their certificate of promotion to the 5th grade. Our school is a K-4 school, and the 4th grade goes to a different school for 5-6 grades. It acts as a graduation ceremony for the 4th graders. The promotion went great, and the students were very excited about the awards they had received for their hard work.

I only had 6 students stay with me that Thursday. The rest couldn't wait to get out of there and start their summer vacation! I was sad of course. These kids were my first class, and I had grown to love them very quickly. Remember, I only had this job for 5 months! The ones that stayed helped me get my room emptied into the hallway for cleaning and waxing.

Friday was our last work day. We had a meeting first thing, where I got emotional once again. One other teacher who was also pink slipped made a speech about us, and I couldn't hold it together. Afterwards, I went to my room to get all my belongings. I fixed my resume, and am in the process of getting it checked to start applying for jobs again. I am most definitely going to miss the people at the school I worked at. They were so wonderful and helpful to me. They made me feel like I had been there for years, and treated me like family.

I probably wouldn't be so sad and worried about a job if things would look positive. They aren't. I found out Thursday that our school is 1 of the 2 that were picked to lose a unit. That unit is the position that I was in. As of right now, they have decided to to keep my position in 4th grade. That will bring the current 4 units down to 3. They have a plan of how it is going to work. If they were keeping that position, I would feel much better about my future. I believe from what everyone, including the principal, has said to me that I would be strongly recommended for the position again. There is only 1 position available at that school, and it is 1st grade. There are 6 of us that worked at that school wanting that position. Like the principal said, it's going to be a hard decision. 6 teachers wanting 1 position.

I am praying that students move into the area over the summer and they have to bring that 4th grade position back. If they do, I feel like I have a very good chance at getting it. I'm praying that they change their minds about cutting the position. Maybe they will really analyze what they decided, and decide it will be better to have 4 teachers. If not, I know something will come to me. I just have to be patient, which is not my strong point!

End of the Year

In teacher world, the "end of the year" is May. In the real world, it's December of course. December is the halfway mark in teacher world.

It's been well over a month since I last blogged. So much has happened since then, I don't even know if I can remember it all. I can't believe that my time in the classroom is already over. It went by super fast, and I am going to miss every one of my "kids". They are off to intermediate school, and they are really excited about that.

We have 4 days left of school and those days are full of activities. We have awards day, auction day, a visit to the intermediate school, and going for a day of fun to the splash pad. We completed field day, and my class came in third place in two events. I was so proud of them for showing such great sportsmanship, and trying their hardest during competitions.

I haven't heard anything about next year, but hopefully I will soon. I'm hoping I can stay there and teach 4th grade for a full year instead of half the year. If not, I will be applying at different schools and hope I get a teaching job somewhere.

The wedding details are coming together. We have engagement pictures done, and I have my dress ordered. We are spending most of our time working on our house. Remodeling is a pain, but in the end it will be worth it. I feel like we are on the right path on starting out our lives together. I'm not wanting a huge, expensive wedding, and our house isn't expensive either. After we are settled and on our feet really good, we will start discussing building a house. I like that we are starting out small and inexpensive.

I'm really excited about marrying him and starting a new life with him. 70 days until "I do"!!