What happened...?

I've been to Sam A. Baker State Park a couple of times with second grade field trips. It's a very nice place. I still don't know who Sam was. I looked on the all-knowing internet and couldn't really find anything in my limited search, so I guess I'll find out another day.

The beauty of God's creation was very evident. The weather was sunny and in the 70's. We got a chance to take a hike, play, and check out some animals. It was a great reminder of why I love teaching. Kids can soak stuff up. This time of year can be rough because of testing, testing, and more testing. DIBELS benchmark, Terra Nova, getting in some grades, amongst others. It's time to focus on the good and beautiful.

I say this because I'm tired and really hate the type of teacher I am right now. I don't know where I lost my teaching ability, but I think it may be laying amongst the scraps of all the PAPER stuff I've got to keep up. Scores, numbers, stats are what we seem to focus on. Yes, they do give us an idea whether or not kids are learning, but we're pushing them pretty hard. It seems like all we do in my room is work, work, and more work. I'm always pushing them to get something done so we can move on. If we don't finish it, it pushes my plans back and then it's a matter of trying to keep moving forward while making sure I'm covering stuff I'm supposed to cover. Summer is almost here and I'm planning to come back next year refreshed, a better teacher. What happened to me? I almost don't enjoy my kids anymore. The Sam A Baker trip was a great break away from all that crap. We had a chance to have some fun. What happens to us...what happened to us in education?