El Fin

Wow! I can't believe that this year is already over. This weekend I graduated with my Master's degree in Childhood Education, thus ending this completely insane internship that has been consuming my life for the past year. Incredible. This time last year I was also graduating, but in looking forward to the M.A.T., not knowing what it would have in store, I was a completely different person than I am now. This year has grown me and changed me in ways I never thought possible. Last year Erin and I always talked about how big this would be. About how this was our mountain, thinking how on earth would we ever survive this. But now we're on the other side. We did it! And it feels so strange because what do you do after you've climbed that big mountain? Move on, I suppose. There will be other mountains. But just for today let's take a second to bask in the glory of surviving this extraordinary year.

This year started out crazy! I was so nervous about becoming friends with the other interns and meeting my first mentor teacher. We started off the year feeling like there was no way we were going to ever get good at this.

Then, just when I was getting really good at first grade and really connecting with my mentor, I moved to 4th. At first I felt like a visitor in someone else's class, not like it was mine. But before long I knew those kids and that class like the back of my hand. I absolutely adored everything about that class! I conducted action research and then defended it in front of my professors, teachers and administrators. Nothing like making what you're teaching your own!

Finally I went down to kinder and, OH what a change that was! Kinder was hard to get used to and not exactly my favorite grade, but I really loved those kids and bonded with them. I'm going to miss them.

Really, I'm going to miss all of them. I can't even imagine how hard the end of next year is going to be! I'm nervous about starting my own classroom. Fourth graders are my favorite but they're kind of scary. And what if my Spanish isn't good enough? But if there's one thing I learned this year, it's that you usually start out nervous and uncomfortable but by the end, you're loving it and doing well!

This quote really sums up this year:
"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think!"- A.A. Milne