Moving Forward

My last post left me feeling a little down. But I was reminded this week that no matter what, life does go on. And here in Corpus, we are moving forward.

This week I FINALLY had the chance to substitute. I went to the Tuloso Midway substitute orientation a few weeks ago, but there hadn't been any openings until this week. Wednesday I taught a second grade class, which was interesting. It was my first day in a classroom, and I was a little nervous. I had gotten so used to having one-on-one interactions with kids in the hospital, and I hadn't worked with a group of kids in years. I was quickly reminded what it's like to have 20 or so youngsters demanding my attention. My favorite was a boy who came up to me during the noisiest time of the day and said "I can sing a song about the seven continents of the world! Want to hear it??!" I was thinking to myself, "Do you really think this is the best time for me to sit and listen to your song??" But, I smiled and said "Yes, let me hear it!" He started singing, and I continued to walk around the room monitoring the chaotic situation at hand (with the continent-singing boy following me). Every few seconds I'd turn around and aknowledge his song, and each time I turned around he stood a little taller and sang a little louder. When I noticed he wasn't singing anymore I said "Wow, you sang the whole song! You should feel proud of yourself!" Instead of smiling and running off to his seat, he said sadly "But you didn't see the dance I did at the end." Just when I thought I had figured out the balancing act of the classroom, I missed the continent-singing boy's dance. Great. He had worked so hard on this song, and I missed the best part. I paused for a second, and asked him to show me the dance. He gladly did, and after I smiled and aknowledged his dancing abilities he smiled and ran off to his seat. Thank goodness!

Thursday I subbed for a third grade class, and it was a much quieter day. There weren't as many look-at-me's or watch-what-I-can-do's, which meant more time for teaching. I really enjoyed being in front of the classroom and the actual teaching part. It made me really start to think about getting my teaching certification. My degree was in human development, and I chose classes that focused in child development, so I feel like I have a strong knowledge base. And teaching for a few years would put me closer to becoming a Play Therapist, which I would absolutely LOVE.

So we will see. I'll continue to sub and see how it goes. And I'll keep you updated on the certification part. And for anyone who's wondering, Princess is doing great! She's sitting on my lap as I type :)