It already feels as though I've been at Wellstone forever, even though it's only been about five months. I started back up on January 4th, the day that the St. Paul Public Schools got back into session. This past month I feel like I've really gotten a flow going, and have found where and how I fit in. I also was finally able to finish my own schedule, so that more or less every part of my day is loosely structured. Granted, working in a school requires flexibility and there are always changes in the schedule, but it's nice to have something to work off of on those days when things are slow and there aren't any crises.
I'm down to only two days a week now, since I now have a class on Friday right in the middle of the day. There was never much going on on Friday anyway, just supervision and 6th grade girls group. Nevertheless, I was disappointed to have to say good-bye to that group. I had enjoyed working with those girls, but at least I'll still see them around all of the time. So here's a sample of my schedule so you can get a feel for what I do during the day. This is my Wednesday schedule:
9-9:30 Individual work with 6th grade girl, working on building relationship skills, independent living skills, etc.
9:30-10:00 1st grade classroom -- Spending time working with some of the kids who have IEPs
10:00-11:30 Dog therapy program -- Our darling dogs, Maybelle and Dusty arrive with their owner Michelle and I run the schedule, going to get the kids from their classrooms to go read with the dogs. I have small 15 minute breaks between getting kids during which I check in on various students, write e-mails, finish up any last minute group lesson plans.
11:30-12:00 1st grade group -- This is a brand new group that is being run all by me! Miss Amy's Friendship Group is composed of three 1st graders (2 girls and a boy). We're working on basic social skills and things like feelings vocabulary, sharing, manners, respect. Last week we practiced safe ways of "getting your angries out." They are so much fun!
12:00-12:15 Usually eat lunch really quickly, but if I don't have time, I eat later.
12:15-12:45 5th grade boys group -- This is the same group that Julianne and I have been working with all year. It's a great group of 5 boys with varying levels of cognitive and social skills. I love working with this group. Right now we've been focusing a lot on impulse control and not interrupting.
12:45-1:40 This is a time when I can eat lunch if I haven't already and kind of go wherever I might be needed.
1:40-2:30 Individual work with 6th grade boy. I'm working with him both in the classroom and outside of the classroom. We're working on writing and reading and also some math.
2:30-3:15 Individual work with 1st grade boy. This is the boy that I wrote about once before (I think I referred to him as "Ian"). He's a kiddo with ADHD and some impulse control. He's also one of the few African American students in the dual immersion program. I'm giving him classroom support to provide on-the-spot help with his focus and impulse control. He's such a sweet boy. It's always fun to go into that class.
3:15-4:00 This is all dismissal time. I usually go down to one of the kindergarten classrooms and help them finish up snack and get their things together. Then I go with them for the first round of buses, come back to the classroom and read with them, then go with them for second round as well. These kindergartners are some of the most darling, entertaining kids in the world. I love ending my day with them!
So now you see some of what goes into my day at Wellstone. As you can see, I'm doing a lot more individual work this semester, including working with my very own group. Mondays I work with a couple of the same kids plus some others (a 2nd grade girl and boy, a 5th grade boy, a kindergarten group, and a group composed of a 4th,5th, and 6th grader.) I'm enjoying my new responsibilities, and am loving the chance to get to know so many of the students.
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