Three Days In

I walked in the door from school this afternoon, kicked off my shoes immediately, and made a little snack: I counted out 30 bittersweet chocolate chips, measured two tablespoons of Adam's smooth peanut butter, and nuked the two of them together in the microwave until it was a bowl of ooey, gooey bliss. I told myself that sticking to the suggested serving size meant it wasn't as gluttonous as it sounds... right? Right? My college roommates can attest that this is a step up from the stressful days of undergrad when I was often found at odd hours, incoherent from sleep deprivation, pouring hershey's syrup into my mouth already crammed full with Jiff.

So maybe I'm feeling a little stressed. I've got 130 students (give or take-- my class list still changes daily) and I'm scrambling to find chairs and books for everybody, not to mention prepare to teach them all-- but I really, really love it. I've got one squirrely class that was giving me guff the first two days (Sean made fun of me all afternoon for using the word 'guff'. He wanted to know if I am 80 and asked if those darn boys were wearing short pants again) but we had a breakthrough today and I think I'll quit wanting to reinstate corporal punishment in that classroom soon.

Overall, my students are great. I have one German exchange student whose knowledge of American history far surpasses any of the Americans. I have a girl from South America who I get to speak Spanish with on occasion. A boy who told me on the first day of class that he has no academic strengths at all raised his hand not once, not twice, but three times today during class discussions.

Oh, yeah, remember this guy?
Yeah, that's Ronnie "Sunshine" Bass from the classic "Remember the Titans." I swear, I have the real-life incarnation of Ronnie in class. The kid is a dead ringer for him as far as looks go, but it goes much further than that: He just moved from a very warm, sunny state and loves to surf. He also plays football.

Needless to say, there's more than enough to keep me entertained everyday, and so far I've managed to develop a decent rapport with most of the 130-ish students I have. Still, being a first year teacher has me incredibly nervous all of the time. Are they actually learning anything from me? A student made a comment today that made my heart soar. He was the last one out of the classroom and we were chatting as he packed up. He asked what other schools I had taught at and when I told him none, he looked at me, shook his head and said, "Really? I never would have pegged you for a rookie. You're doing an awesome job." He gave me a thumbs up and left the classroom. I don't think he realizes how much he made my day (week? month? I'm still smiling)

It's still incredibly surreal to me that at 23, only 2 months out of graduate school, I've walked into such an amazing job to start my career. Although a little overwhelmed at times, I primarily feel supremely blessed and humbled, especially in this economy. I hope I can keep the rest of them fooled this year.