Day 1

 30 August 2023

I was moving in slow motion. Everything I was trying to do was taking four times longer than it normally would have. I was trying to cut up poster board to create 4 inch by 8 inch cards that students could turn into name tents for their desks. Not only was it taking me a long time to use the paper cutter but I was creating all kinds of waste. I couldn’t do the simple math even though the paper cutter had that little ruler that comes on all paper cutters. I finally had a pile of what I hoped was 50 cards but I had an even bigger pile of waste to take with me.

I had been so nervous the night before. My first day returning to teaching was complicated by the fact that my middle child a daughter age 13 was returning to school in 8th grade after a long absence due to a mental health issue so I could not arrive on time for my very first day returning to teaching

I had prepared as much as I could in terms of getting ready for the first day and I had talked to colleagues about what they were imagining doing on the first day. But I was still really nervous when the hour of 9:15 arrived and students started arriving for what was their second period of the day and my first period teaching. things were going well. I had planned things out. I had something on the board projected directing them to pick up things in the back of the room that we're going to be part of what they needed to do for the day. but little by little I noticed that more students were arriving first there were 24 which is what I expected and then others began to arrive I knew that sometimes classes or students needed to be added to classes at the last minute so I thought okay maybe instead of 24 I'll have 27 but the students kept coming and I ran out of stools at the lab benches and I finally did a finger count on my own and there were 32 students in the room

I didn't totally panic but I went next door to the department head and told her what was going on. She is suggested maybe they're in the wrong place and then I said okay let me take a 10 minutes and it's sort of shock to me out of my insanity. so I went back to the class I took a ten minutes and then said those of you who I didn't name your name come on up I finally realized they were supposed to be in a nearby classroom. 

Period three was scheduled for 90 minutes but there was an assembly that was going to happen I nervously work through some of the things I wanted to do. I was later told by my daughter who was a friend with one of the students in the class that I had accidentally called a student Lily when she actually goes by Libby. I did not even realize this I don't remember doing it I fully know that her name is Libby but I am also sure that it happened.