Milestone: Under 50

Today is the last school day of the 3rd grading period of the 2011-2012 school year here in Escambia County, FL.  Next week, schools will be closed while we all celebrate our Spring Break.  Then, when we return to school on the 26th of March, we will have only...

48 days left

until the school year is over!

This year has been so different from the year I had last year.  I don't know if this is because I'm more settled into the unpredictable nature of the job this year, or if it's because my daily schedule is so different.

In some ways, this year has been significantly better than last year.  I feel appreciated more days than not, at least by the teachers I directly work with.  Most days, I am able to leave work feeling as though I accomplished all I needed to during that day—unlike last year when I never felt like I was even approaching being caught up.  This year I've been able to get onto friendly terms with some of my co-workers, rather than just being professionally polite and making small talk.  I feel more free to be myself at work this year, and not as if I have to squeeze myself into the restrictive mold of predetermined expectations.

However, this year hasn't been all peach pie and picnics.  While I worked with only one teacher last year, I was able to learn her routines well enough to begin to anticipate what would be asked of me.  This year, working with many different teachers increased the time it took for me to learn these routines.  I have also had to be more adaptable throughout the course of each school day to change to fit the needs of the classrooms of these different teachers.  Moving around the school during the day has also increased my visibility within the school's faculty and staff.  Last year, there were teachers I never even saw....literally.  Now, however, most everyone knows who I am.  Sometimes this is great; more often, however, it just means more people scrutinizing my job performance and finding unnecessary criticisms.

Regardless, this school year is rapidly approaching its end.  Hopefully, budget cuts won't prevent me from still having this job next year.  And, if I am still working this job next year, there's no telling what my day-to-day will look like.  But that's all many months away.

Hello, Spring Break!