It snowed last night! Declan was SO excited. He has seen snow before, but I don't think he remembered it. So I just had to scrap the moment.

Today I was back at it with my student teaching. Went very well. I was so tired last week, I'm glad to report I didn't feel so exhausted at the end of the day today. I taught all day, so the class is officially mine for the next 6 weeks. I had a bit of a showdown with my last class of the day. They were constantly talking while other members of the class were giving presentations. I eventually gave the whole class 5 minutes detention on lunch. Some were pretty pissed, so I stopped class and gave them my perspective on the constant talking and disrespect for others. I asked how they thought I should handle it. I received some pretty good input from the class and reached a compromise of just assigning detention to work groups instead of the whole class.

When I was in school, I always hated it when the group was punished for the actions of one or two students. As a teacher I can see why discipline is sometimes handled that way. It's very difficult at times to catch the offender, and the best you can do is narrow it down to groups of students. Eventually the class will police the issue themselves. My mentor teacher thought I did a good job of handling the situation and gained respect from the students for asking their input. I really hope it was a step in the right direction.

Also, there is a new school opening up in our district next year. Consequently many more jobs than normal will be available...and much sooner than normal. I need to decide quickly if I want to apply. My plan was originally to move about 4 or 5 hours away - where I could afford to buy a house. I'm sooo confused. Then again, applying for a job doesn't guarantee anything. The district I'm student teaching in is a very desirable district to work in.

M