I am a teacher

and I love it. I had no idea how much I would fall in love with my students.
This is something I haven't really talked about with many of my friends, but Richard has seen me come home with tears of joy because I adore my students so much. I definitely feel I am meant to be here now with these students. I know that the Lord put me here for a reason, it's like a calling of its own.

My charter school tends to attract students who are very hard workers, and as a result the dynamics are unique compared to a public school. I'm not saying it's a perfect school, but the policies and the curriculum are making a big difference to these children's education in a positive way.

I teach 6th and 8th grade. Sixth grade is elementary school!! I technically wasn't trained to teach such tiny babies, but I am so so so grateful to be around these pure, happy, sweet children. They are everything good you would find in 7th graders and more. They are innocent and still very cute....they have that little kid look to them. I love to sing songs with them, get on our feet and dance to learn the material, see them answer some difficult questions, and watch them grow every day. They have gone so far in a short amount of time. My sixth graders know all of the organelles to a cell, basic scientific method skills, all of the organ systems in the body, and the major bones in the skeletal system among many other things. I'm speeding them through lots of material and they are succeeding so well, and I only see them 3 times a week! They get 3 days of chemistry and 3 days of physics, too! That's 9 hours a week of science!

8th graders are completely different. They are learning high school level material very quickly. They are mastering cellular respiration (Krebs cycle, Glycolysis, photosynthesis), as well as Osmosis, the basics of the lipid bilayer, etc etc. It can get complicated memorizing how many ATP each biological pathway produces and what steps take place when, but they are seeming to enjoy it...:-) They are sometimes "too cool" to do cheesy things like songs and dances, so I have avoided them almost entirely, but as a whole the group is absolutely hilarious. I love the energy they bring to the classroom with their humor and good nature. I enjoy teaching higher level biology and it's a treat for me to finally teach biology the way I WISH I was taught.