Big News

Friends, I've been holding out on some very big things happening in my life lately. First of all I graduated from my beloved Texas A&M this May with my degree in elementary education. It was an incredibly proud moment in my life.  The last four years have flown by faster than I could have imagined. I also passed all my certification exams and am now certified to teach K-6 in Texas.

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                                        And the even more exciting news is......I got a job!! 

I was incredibly blessed and fortunate to land the first job that I interviewed for. It was also my first choice for a number of reasons. It's literally 2 minutes from home. Hooray for no traffic mornings! I'll be teaching 4th grade language arts, which is the grade level I student taught in and have the most experience in. I also love that I get to focus exclusively on teaching reading and writing. The kids will have a homeroom class and will move together to three different teachers, myself included. 

And finally, it is a brand new school in a fantastic district. And when I say new, I mean new. They're still in the process of construction right now. Here's some of the progress pictures from a few weeks ago. 

This will be the front office/administration office area. 

This will be the library, right at the front of the school. 

Here's what we'll be a beautiful courtyard in the middle of the school.

And this is my favorite part. This is the incredible view we'll get from the back of the school. Gotta love those Texas plains. 

And last, but certainly not least, here are pictures of what my classroom may look like. All of the rooms have virtually the same design. Plenty of room, plenty of natural light, and lots of storage. 

This is the wall where my board will be. 

The window area over in the corner will likely be my reading nook. 

This was a feature that had me scratching my head for a while. I later found out that this little secondary room connects two classrooms together, and can be used for any number of things. We'll have tables in there and can use it as a workspace for kids, perform assessments, etc. Each room will have some kind of foldable wall to close off the space if needed. 

LOVE these big, dark cabinets. 

Looking out one of the windows from the flex space room. Good reference to see just how HUGE these windows will be. Bring on the natural light!

Rest assured I will keep you updated on the progress of my classroom. When I finally get my keys in August, I will be a mad woman, decorating like crazy. I've decided on a forest/woodland creatures theme. Plenty of trees and apples decor along with cozy, reading themes. I've been collecting fabric with plans of sewing giant squishy floor pillows,  a colorful bunting for across the room, and maybe some curtains and seat cushions as well. It's going to be a busy summer!

Oh and teacher friends (or non-teacher friends) please, please send any great first-year teacher resources my way. I'm especially interested in 4th L.A. lesson plans and resources. 

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