Another First Day of School in the Books!

Year 31 in Education and I still get nervous the day before school! I absolutely love the first day of school. Teachers feverishly getting their classrooms ready, students and parents walking around the school peering in excitedly to see a familiar face, and the love and energy buzzing around the hallways. It's almost like Christmas! Yesterday was our first day of school and I had the pleasure of hanging out with the PreK and Kinder students ALL day. Whew! What a day! But so much fun! There were hugs and lots of them! There were tears and lots of them - parents and kids! But the best part of the day was getting to talk to 4 and 5 year old's. It's true what they say, "Kids say the darnedest things!" Here are the highlights of those conversations: “My dad’s name is daddy.” “I work out!” “My yogurt has m&m’s in it! “Get your hands out of your pants!” And then 4:15 on that same day when the last car rider pulls away you realize your body is old, tired and your energy level is zapped out! You go home and fall asleep early and dream about the next day! Welcome Back to School!

Back to School!

As I sit in my little office, next to the fourth and fifth grade teachers getting ready for our first day back to school, I hear sounds of happiness, summer stories, planning details and hints of excitement in their voices! It reminds me of the hard work and the fun work some of us are privileged to be able to call our careers. It also reminds me of how important the work we do matters! While I am catching up from my "busy" summer of providing professional development to educators, I am also sitting here remembering that my work matters only a fraction to the tireless hours my neighbors are putting into getting ready to greet new students. The dedication they exhibit and excitement is compared to few places I have ever worked outside of education. It makes me proud to be apart of something really big - educating children!