Life Goes On

Although the house renovation projects came to a stumbling halt once summer hit and our income became severely limited to only covering the bills, we have been hard at work in other ways.

Summer School was a blast!

My two TFA (Teach For America) teachers that I observed and mentored.

She may not quite be on task but putting the tape on her bun....funny.

Worked on Dereck's mom's bathroom after their plumbing had flooding issues. Too bad I didn't take an after picture. New shower pan installed, new sink installed, new plumbing in the bathroom. Bathroom is now functional!

Earlier in the summer, Dereck installed the mailbox. The old one literally had fallen off its post.

Willy and Janie love their yard space. This is how we find them when we get home. 

We also returned to work for a new school year. Coaching is back in session.

I'm incredibly proud of these students. They all tested above grade level on the beginning of the year STAR Math test (a product our school uses on the computers that tells us what grade level that student's abilities are at). Only 4 of these students are current 4th graders. All the rest of the students in this picture are current 5th graders. Last year, most of those kiddos were barely on grade level. Also pictured is our school Principal and Assistant Principal.

On my birthday, I walked into our staff meeting to find my grade level had worked with the students on putting theses together. It made my heart melt. I got to leave the meeting early to head to a bowling alley downtown with Dereck and attended a Stand Up Comedy Show next door to the bowling alley.  I had a splendid birthday!

Plus I had a double white headed zit on my chin for my 30th birthday. See it?

Then the next day, Dereck broke two of his toes. One toe has 4 total breaks in it while the other toe has 2 breaks. He has to wear a medical boot for the next few weeks.

Today, I was extremely amazed with this class for working so hard. I literally saw EVERY student on task or helping their neighbor. This class usually has a hard time staying on task. Plus, I had 3 eighth grade helpers during this time. I had them assisting students one-on-one.

Look at the above "ST Math" wall (I need to change it to say STAR Math). Each colored section represents the 4 fourth grade homerooms. The cards represent each student. The names below the red line are all the students in that class that are behind grade level in Math. The names between the green and red line are on grade level. The names above the green line are above grade level. This is what I'm working with this year. Here is to hard work to get these kiddos on grade level!!!