20 days to go...

Only 20 days -not counting weekends and 1 holiday- left of school. We have 3 more days of state testing and several days of AP testings. I am hoping that I don't have to give any of the state testing - I am a bit over-tested from last week's testing. It is hard to spend an entire day testing.
We finished Romeo and Juliet yesterday. Now we are going over the characters and talking about how they contributed to the story. Some understand the story more than others.
I am looking forward to summer break. Kelsey is going to take microbiology during the summer session and we will watch Robby on Mondays and Wednesdays. She should be applying to nursing school soon. She was going to go to the UTHSC but she wouldn't be able to start until August of 2013. She would lose a semester of school at the very least. She is considering the nursing school at University of Incarnate Word. It is a private Catholic university. It is the school that Holly goes to. Also, the nursing school has just gotten a new building and brand new classrooms and labs. She would be able to apply for this fall admission still. UTHSC's deadline is July 1 & her microbiology wouldn't be completed in time for consideration.
I am going through the scope and squence for English 2 to help prepare for next year. I am also scheduling & refining the scope and squence for English 1 that I just finished with my kiddos. I am trying to refine what I taught this year to make it a bit easier for next year. It will help me in teaching the additional preps. I also may be teaching an even lower level of English to the ALE students. Their lessons will go even lower. I will need to simplify the stories even more than I have previously. It is hard to move to a more functional but I am going to give it my best shot. I am going to take an inservice class on using boardmaker. It is a program that uses pictures to represent the words. The students can use the pictures to read the story easier. Hopefully, I won't have more than 3 preps. I just keep praying for that!!
I can't wait for Shimelle's Cover to Cover to start. I am looking forward to having some fun creative time.

Spring Weight Lost

I have been working on my weight loss goal. I'm down about 15lbs. Since my surgery on March 12, I've been off the hormone replacement & I feel so much better. My mental outlook has also improved according to the family.
We are going grocery shopping this morning but not sure if we are going to brave the new HEB plus. We went yesterday for some coffee & a few other things & it is huge. It was also a bit overwhelming to try & find things. It might be just too big.

Testing week & Fiesta

Looking forward to the end of state testing week. I'm so incredibly bored. We have to "actively monitor" the students while they are taking the test. So we walk around the classroom and stare at the kids. For hours. And hours.
This is also Fiesta week & we have a school holiday on Friday for Battle of Flowers Day. Yep, we have a day off for a parade day. Only in San Antonio!
My school club,GRACE, is having our annual conference next Friday. We have a lady from the Hedi Search Center who will talk to the girls about online safety. I think it is a great subject. I worry so much about the kids on line. This world has become so unsafe for young women.
We are going to use my Groupon for Picture People & have Robby's picture taken on Friday. It should be lots on fun for him. We have never done professional photos before for him. Not sure how he will do.
Summer temperatures are here. Today it was 96. I need to pull out my sunscreen for my car to keep the car cooler. I was seriously uncomfortable on my ride home!!

Shimelle has a new class!

So excited for a new online scrapbooking class from Shimelle called "Cover to Cover". I love her classes since the first Journal Your Christmas class. I'm also participating in 31 over at Big Picture Classes next month.
We are starting our state testing right now. We will be testing till practically the end of school. This week is really bad with all four days of the week with major testing. We have Friday off for a city holiday for Fiesta - it's Battle of Flowers Day.

Testing Madness

Next week, the state of Texas will be testing 10th & 11th graders in Science, Math & Social Studies. In May, the 9th graders will be taking the End of Course Exam. Also in May, seniors will be taking AP exams. The testing countdown has begun and with only 29 school days left, we will be testing almost everyday until the end.
My students have enjoyed the more difficult curriculum. We have read To Kill a Mockingbird, The Odyssey & Romeo and Juliet. I think the Odyssey was the hardest story & many didn't understand it. I think that by exposing them at least to the material they will learn a bit more of the classics. Next year, in addition to these stories, I will be teaching Julius Ceasar, Antigone & John Steinbeck.
I also may have a couple of English classes in ALE but that is still up in the air. I am still worrying about my kids & the End of Course Exam but we may make it through. I just have to keep working on their writing skills. That is going to help us pass.
In other news, Robby is now two & his vocabulary is growing by leaps & bounds.