I think I’m going to link up with my BFF, Rebecca, for the Thankful Thursday post. After a long week of working with my students to set up their Khan Academy accounts, I need to purposely look for things to be thankful for.
This week, I am thankful for . . .
Two observations are behind me. My principal came into my class on Monday – the first day we began working on the Khan Academy stuff. This is my first experience with it, and of course he came into my first period class . . . aka the guinea pigs. Sigh. We had a few technology-related-password-email-blocked-website issues, but heck, that’s the real stuff of teaching. My second observation came today. It wasn’t so much about what I’m doing as a teacher but what my classroom flow is like. Three other people from the district came in, along with my principal. Thankfully, the Khan Academy stuff went smoothly, and the kids were able to explain what they were doing when asked. I’m rather proud of them and the classroom culture we’ve established.
I am thankful that my stations are set up. Stations are skills-based activities designed to give students much-needed practice with the standards they need to master for their standardized tests. They are a bit of a pain to set up, but once they are done, swapping out tasks is fairly simple. This is my seventh year doing stations, so I’m fairly good at it by now. Still, it’s time-consuming to write the instructions, anticipating what questions the kids will have (when they are supposed to be autonomous).
I am so thankful that my classes are about half (in some cases, a third) of what they were when we started school in August. A lot of kids have tested out due to their hard work. I’m going to be able to provide really good individualized instruction now that my attention won’t be split across thirty students per class.
I’ll say it again and again and again, but I am thankful for YouTube videos like this one . . . a stretching workout that I found as part of the Hurt Foot Workout series. I actually did two videos this morning. The first one was a floor barre workout, but since it was only nineteen minutes, I wanted to do a second one. I found a stretching video and wow, were my muscles warmed up when I finished. I’ve missed my Piyo. This was a gentle way to ease back into things.
I am thankful for each day that passes, bringing me closer to complete healing (whenever that will be). On Wednesday, I did my first session of at-home physical therapy exercises since having my surgery in December. I couldn’t do everything; I’m following the doctor’s orders by sticking with low-impact moves. My quads were screaming at me when I finished, and the outside of my ankle hurt pretty good when I walked around at school. Still, I’m finding that I’m able to navigate around the tables and chairs in my classroom with less difficulty than before my surgery, when the hardware in my ankle limited my range of motion. I was very swollen by the time I left school, so there was that.
If you wouldn’t mind praying for me, I’d appreciate it. The incision on the inside part of my ankle is still yucky. It’s not infected, but it’s not healing very well either. It’s still very red, and I seem to have developed a rash an inch away from the incision – not something I had after the first surgery. I have a follow-up with my surgeon in a couple of weeks, so if it’s not better by then, I’ll make sure I discuss it with him. I am hoping that the triple antibiotic ointment, vitamin E oil, and other essential oils I’m applying will help clear things up.
I am thankful for this salad recipe. The edamame MAKES this, as does a peanut dressing I got from my No Excuses Detox recipe book and swapped out for the one in the salad recipe (it was horrible, and I had to throw it out).
I am thankful for new books . . .
A new devotional, which I read each night before I go to bed.
The second in the Scythe series (I am making myself wait until I finish a book I’m currently reading)
Her first book, which I just ordered and received. I have the second one, but in typical fashion, I did things backwards.
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