so far, so good!

So far, I've been to my school four times, and I love it. The school is in a neighborhood very much unlike the kind of neighborhood that I grew up in. The school is on the corner of a very busy street, and the houses are a little run-down, with paint chipping off almost every single one on the street. It seems to be such a diverse neighborhood, as I saw very few white families but mostly hispanic and black families. I was a little nervous, and remember thinking to myself driving there, "what will these kids be like?" As soon as I pulled up to the school, however, I was relieved. I had gotten there early enough to witness all of the children being dropped off in the recess yard, and I was ecstatic to see that they were all so excited running down the sidewalk to school. They couldn't wait to see their friends, their teachers, and to just be at school.

When I walked into the building, I couldn't help but smile. Right in the main lobby, there are murals on all of the walls of characters that the kids would be familiar with, some Disney characters, Franklin the turtle, Clifford, and many more. The secretary's office is bright and colorful, as are all of the hallway walls. Everything is very neat and clean, and even though the building seems to be rather old, it is taken care of, and shows a lot of love. It seems like a very comforting place to be and go to school in, as well as a great school to teach at. The first floor has three Kindergarten classrooms and another room, and the second floor has three First grade classrooms and the library. There is also a basement floor, where I saw the small cafeteria (so cute), as well as the Nurse's office and the Reading coach's office. I was so excited to see little kids going up and down the stairs in pairs of two or three, following the "buddy system."

The first week was just an informational sort of meeting, where we met the Reading Coach and discussed in detail what we would actually be doing in the classrooms. The second week we were assigned to our classrooms for both Kindergarten and first grade, and were sent upstairs to meet the teachers and children. My first impression of the K classroom I was sent to was that it was very LOUD. When we walked in, the kids were all sitting on the alphabet rug, reciting a little song. They are all so enthusiastic about everything that they do, even if they don't know the right answer. They were so inviting, and seeing the visitors entering the classroom they became very giggly and smily and kept turning around to wave to us. The teachers of this classroom seemed a little harsh the first couple of weeks, but these past two have been much more friendly and interested in us rather than viewing us as a bother. The classroom is very colorful, and decorated on all sides by the children's artwork. In this classroom, there is a great value of respect, for the teachers as well as the other students. The students have to pay attention to the teacher and be nice to the other children. When we were doing an art project that first class, there were only five glue sticks at my table of six children, and it just struck me as so encouraging to see one little girl look at the girl next to her and say, "You use my glue. We share." The smile from ear to ear on her face in response said it all.

For my first grade classroom, I was assigned to the ESL classroom, in which all those students who had gone through or are still going through the ESL program are in. I opened the door, and a little boy sitting close to the door jumped out of his seat, ran over and threw his arms around me. It was such a warm welcome, and the teacher was so friendly and thankful from the very first day. What I feel that is valued in this classroom is that each student feels a sense of belonging. They are practicing their writing skills by telling stories about their own lives, and then telling the other students about it. This classroom was also decorated with very bright colors, posters, but what I noticed especially was the organization of the room. Each wall had two or three sections on it, and for each section was a certain subject, like math, science, or writing. In each section there were some factual posters as well as student work to make them feel proud of themselves.

The past two weeks, I've been working with three students from each classroom. My three Kindergarteners are working on identifying rhyme words, while my first grade ESL students are working on sound-letter correlation. From one week to the next, I saw such an improvement in one of my Kindergarteners. The first week, he didn't seem to understand the concept of rhyme at all, and this past week I was thrilled when he was saying the two words out loud to himself and then telling me whether or not they rhymed. Every week, the time seems to go by faster and faster, and before I know it, it's time to say good-bye. I am already enjoying myself so much and learning a lot from these kids, as I hope they are from me. I'm excited to see how the rest of the semester unfolds.