Why, Oh Why, Do They Torture Us?

I feel like the school system is built to frustrate new teachers.  Texas has absolutely killed me the last three years, just trying to get certified.  Now I finally have a job, for which I'm terribly excited, but the district has us new teachers in training until 3:30 every day for two full weeks before school starts.  I go to training, then spend as much time as I can in the classroom.  My new principal has a philosophy--it's really a good philosophy; it's just frustrating right now--that teachers need to go home at rest.  So he closes the school at about 5:30.  That'll change a little next week, but for now it leaves my room in utter disarray.  Meanwhile, I'm getting overloaded with information daily which causes me to feel underprepared for the whole year and overwhelmed before I can actually get my room set up.  Not only that, but some of the information is repeated.  Today, for example, was the third time in a week that the brand new teachers have heard a lecture about communicating with parents.  All well, but we could actually be doing something productive and necessary instead of stressing over all the things we need to do that do not include sitting around on our bums all day.

In addition, Smart Me decides to go and volunteer for things, such as the family fun day that Anonymous ISD is having tomorrow morning.  I won't be able to work in my classroom until 1:00 anyway, but I could at least use the Saturday to rest.  Instead, I choose to open my rather opinionated mouth and volunteer to work.  Luckily, I have an awesome recruitment in the form of sister-in-law that will come and help me tomorrow.  My brother is coming, too, to help me set up technology in my apartment.  They are truly a blessing to me.

Bedtime again falls way later than it should, but the down time was worth it.  I feel like I'm back at camp:  high energy, low sleep, with a struggle to stay awake at meetings.

Highlight:  I'm enjoying reading kids books that I'm getting for free from the school library, including a very humorous one about a kid that learns some valuable lessons in his search to be perfect.  The methods are somewhat odd and include wearing broccoli around his neck for a day, not eating for a day, and doing absolutely nothing for a day (it's harder than you might think).