Objects in Mirror are Closer Than They Appear

The beginning of the school year came rather suddenly this time around. I had more than a week of paid school time before the kids arrived, but it still felt very sudden when the little guys showed up last Wednesday. But I've made it through the first three days of school, though I'm tired and slightly overwhelmed. There are still a lot of changes to be made in student schedules since they're condensing my three Language Arts Enhancement classes into two and spreading out my three Language Arts classes into four. And I still don't have my disclosure document/syllabus done--in fact I haven't even opened it yet. But my room is mostly finished.

After making such a big deal about my quick classroom paint job, I figured I better show it off. Here is my classroom as of Friday after school. There are a few more things I want to do (like put up the fabric that caused me to paint), but otherwise, it's set.


Don't be fooled by the spacious feel, however. It's not as big as it appears. In fact, the desks are rather crowded. Just like the last two years, I have them in groups of four with a couple groups of five. Unlike the last two years, I have all the desks facing foward rather than have the front two of each group facing each other. In many ways I like it better this way. My students, on the other hand, aren't always so fond of it. Who ever sits in the front left desk (from the teacher perspective) is literally boxed in. They have to physically move the desk to be able to sit down. I've just been telling the kids it's good exercise. Whatever Ms. B.