So today was my first day back to work. B/c I’m new to the system I have to go to the new teacher orientation week activities. Today I was surprised that there were so few people there. When I went to orientation for HCPSS, there were at least 100 new teachers either new to teaching as a profession (as I was) or just new to the system. There were so many b/c its for all levels of school Kindergarten thru high school. This orientation was the same, but there were only about 40-50 people there. I was shocked, that the numbers were so low, especially b/c I had a sense that most everyone showed up.
It was a fairly easy day, they spent 45 minutes with introductions and explaining what our week would entail (as if we couldn’t just read it in the program they gave us that broke it down hour by hour). We had a 15 minute break then spent 2 hours listening to a school system lawyer discuss VA laws that relate to education. It was kind of interesting but I nearly fell asleep.
We were allowed to go to our home schools afterwards. There are 3 other new people at my new school. . . that’s right, I said 3. At CHS we probably got 10 new people every year for the 4 years that I was there. This school isn’t smaller, the English dept. alone has about 15 teachers. Again I was blown away.
Anyway, everyone was very nice. I have my own classroom, thank God. There was a bunch of math stuff in my room that had been moved out of the math storage room next door. The AP in charge of helping new staff was extremely diligent about making sure that it was all moved out of my room by 3:00. I got a teacher’s desk and they’ll be getting me a file cabinet by the end of the week.
I’m at the end of the hallway with mostly other English teachers. A handful of them were there, and they enthusiastically introduced themselves, and said that I could let them know if I needed anything. Its a young dept. and I was told that they eat lunch together, so that should be fun. They really seem like they’re fun to hang out with.
The rest of this week is typical. Tomorrow and Wednesday they have orientation sessions for us all day, then Thursday we have a breakfast. After the breakfast we can spend the rest of the day at our home schools which is awesome b/c the breakfast is being held at my school, then Friday the day is for us to be at our home schools. Then next week all of the other teachers return.
I’m pretty excited, but it was strange not to be back at CHS with my usual crowd. I MISS YOU ALL!

Like all movie buffs, I have a laundry list of films that I watch over and over again every time I come across them. Some b/c they’re funny or heartwarming or dramatic and others simply b/c of their powerfully intriguing story and the way it unfolds.
ayed too, so on Friday we had a full band with LD on drums, his brother on lead guitar, his sister singing and me on the base. LD and I put together most of a Lego Yoda. He had to finish the head by himself b/c we ran out of time, but it was fun to do that with someone. It definitely didn’t take the 6 hours that the first one did.
