School’s Out…for the Summer

Hello!

It’s official…

Yesterday, I shared the end of the school year 6th grade interview, and today I’m sharing the last day of school photos.

first day:

vs. last day…

I knew Hayden grew this year, but the proof is in this photo from yesterday!

Hayden:

First vs. Last Day of 6th Grade:

Hayden was involved in:

• Cross Country
• Basketball
• Track
• Beta Club
• Wyldlife

Hadley:

First vs. Last Day of 6th Grade:

Hadley was involved in:

• Dance
• Track
• Chorus
• Wyldlife
• Student Council

When your mom is a teacher…

It’s probably both a blessing and a curse to have a mom as a teacher. When the year started, I wasn’t sure what to expect in regards to communication with teachers and classwork. Their school has two teams for each grade, and my kids were on the same team. The lead teacher sent daily emails with activities, assignments, and due dates. It was so nice because they had the same teachers which meant the same assignments and due dates. I got the notifications on assignments and grades. If an assignment was flagged missing, I definitely let my kids know.

This year, I really tried to help the kids stay organized and plan their time wisely. I encouraged them to talk to their teachers, ask questions, and advocate for themselves. Bless Hadley’s heart. Every year she wants all the colored pens, sticky notes, and cute folders that Target has to offer. While she does tend to stay pretty organized, some of that falls to the wayside as a school year continues. Hayden subscribes to “shove everything in my backpack even though I have folders and binders” method of organization. Aye yai yai!

While sometimes I felt like we had to talk with them a bit too much about expectations, I also know that if we didn’t teach them these skills, then who would?

In the teaching world, we use “gradual release model” as best practice with our students. This year felt a lot like “I do” (in regards to teaching expectations and academic habits) and now we will work towards “we do” and “you do” in 7th and 8th grades. 😉I’m hoping some of these habits will roll into next year, and the kids will know how to manage their time, study, and meet deadlines with less help from Travis or myself.

The kids learned so much this year. It’s a big transition moving from elementary school with one teacher to having 8 classes in a day. Also, with 8 different teachers come a variety of expectations and procedures. They ended the first quarter at home for two weeks with Covid. That being said, both kids made the Honor Roll every quarter and their grades continued to improve throughout the year. The kids are both pretty well-rounded, and with the transition to middle school and as active as they are, I will take it.

Middle school can be a really difficult time for kids. I continue to be thankful for the community of people that it takes to keep my kids headed in the right direction. From teachers to coaches to family and parents of friends, it definitely takes a village, and I appreciate everyone’s help!

I’m going to take a few blogging days off as I finish up the odds and ends of the school year and just take a moment to decompress from the weight of the world right now.

Thanks so much for reading.