Week 7

It felt weird to write the title- Week 7.  It's been over 50 days since I've had students in a classroom.  It's been 50 days since I've been in my classroom. That's insane.  All of this has certainly changed me as an educator and as a person.

Progress on Clock hours:--And what else I'm doing
PGP session 3- 2 hours
Grades 09-12 SEL- 2 hours
Actual PGP being done- 25 hours
When I picked my personal growth plan in the fall I had no idea how on point my topic would be.  My plan - To increase para professional use and competence with technology. Well we are certainly doing a lot more than I planned on us getting to this year. They have had to step up and grow and learn in ways no one planned for. But they did it.  All of them. Every para educator on our staff has grown in their use of and competence with technology. And it's awesome because next year they will come back with those skills and be more effective.
Total Clock hours this week: 29
Clock hours done previous to this week: 6 hours
Total so far: 35 hours

Where are the other 65 coming from?:

My 43 eLearning credits are going OKAY- My original goal was an hour a day- that was too big, so now the goal is 3 hours on it a week.  I was able to finish 3 of the 20-some modules I have to do last week but nothing this week I may have bitten off more than I can chew- I honestly have no idea where this week went.

Next week I signed up for WA state standard and special education, so that will be another 6 hours.- Classes I sit in and engage occasionally are way easier than self-driven online learning...there's a lesson in there for us right now....

I will probably do one WEA trainging a week they will average out to about 3 hours a week so maybe if I'm on it 24 hours this year from WEA.

Further down the road I am looking at attending the AP institute in the spring thanks to some reaching out from the amazing team I work with to include me and a supportive administration. That will be 25 clock hours if we can make that work.

At first when I set the goal of 100 hours before the start of school next fall, it felt crazy.  Given that I completely lost all sense of time this week it still may be crazy. But it's something I have control over and that's important to me.

Anything else?

I wrote a whole essay almost on other things that are going on, but I got pulled down a hole of negativity and things I cannot control so I deleted it. So I leave you with this.  Do something that brings you some joy each day.  I have found listening to musicals online or streaming orchestra hall concerts from the past.  Tonight's joy is Sondheim  I encourage you if you are a musical fan or even if you aren't to take a listen.

Signing off for now

-C

Inclusion

This has been the week of feeling the positive inclusion JUJU.
From my administrators being open about co-taught and greater inclusion in classes, to a colleague reaching out about how we can increase participation of all students in AP classes, to union presented sharing training opportunities to negotiate with inclusion in mind.

If it took being closed as a building and being forced into online models to have everyone move from thinking and talking about inclusion to REALLY DOING something about it, then all this craziness, all the stress of this process, it's 100% worth it.

If at the end of this we all go back to classrooms and actively work to make them more accessible all the time, then this has all been worth it.

It's brought positivity and joy back to my week to have all this inclusion WORK.

-Signing off for now
-C

I had a problem...

I am a make-up and beauty Junkie. There were YEARS where I was a VIB Rouge member with Sephora- that's at least $1000 a year on make up and beauty products. 
Over the last year and a half I have been working to reduce my addiction to pretty things I don't really use that often. 
Last year I did a Low-buy, where I reduced purchases each month, but didn't limit myself if I "Really wanted something".
This year I am 4 months through a No-buy.  That is NO new purchases in the WANT category.  So this does not include: Shaving creme, shampoo or conditioner, body wash or face wash. But I am using up all of my sample sizes this year before buying more.
I will say that I do have a subscription to FabFitFun where I do get some beauty products Once a quarter so that's my exception this year. 
At Christmas the plan has been to get myself a nice product that I have been wanting for the year instead of lots of mid-range and cheap products throughout the year.

So what exactly am I trying to use up: YEARS of makeup hording, lotions, foundations and concealers, eye shadows, mascaras, Masks so many masks. So today I am taking stock of what I have so I can refer back to this when I think about what I have completed each month.

Primers: 11
Foundations: 11 full size, 3 sample size
Highlighters:20
Blushes:10
Bronzer/contour: 7
Finishing Powder: 2 full size, 4 sample sizes
Eye shadow Pallets: 6
Individual Eye shadows: 11
Eyeliners: 8
Mascaras: 3 (only 1 open at a time)
Brow products: 4
Lip products; Glosses, sticks, pencils: At least---41 I have many hiding in bags and purses that I am not going to track down for this count
Lotions: 2 open an additional 6 after that to work through
Face masks: 5 sheet masks, 5 full size mask products
Peels: 3
Serums: 8

Just in making this list there are clearly some products I may never need to buy again.  Blush and highlighter take the top of that list. 

I also need to be okay with getting pretty with no where to go. It's okay to look nice for myself during quarantine and in fact I need to if I want to make progress on any of these products this year. 

Okay well that's it for me for now...
-C

Good-bye April- Hello May Goal update

My goals for April were with Updates in RED

Clothing 1 in 1 out at least.  Now that I've done a large purge it will be harder and I can start to really curate what I want/need and what works for me. Well I have done another PURGE and after 3 years made space for J in the closet in our bedroom, I also cleared out 3 drawers for him.  I have purchased no clothing.  (I guess I did buy 2 pairs of jeans, but they don't fit so I'm returning them when we are allowed to go places and return things again).

Make up-- I'm not using much so I don't need anything more.  Keep going with the no-buy. I certainly have a wish list, but again I'm curating it and I'll get myself something nice for Christmas.
I certainly had things I WANTED this month, but still doing great on the No-buy even through the SEPHORA VIB sale- I don't think I've ever done that before, so that was a win. 

I am making great progress on using up products too: 
Half way done with a new lotion, finished half of a face milk, Serious dents in shampoo and conditioner. Half way done with a face scrumb and my shaving creme is nearly done as well.  

Health- Keep enjoying quarantine.  Get out for a daily walk in the sun.  Make food at home.  Enjoy time off and high levels of rest.
Thank you to J for pulling me out of the house and making me get outside. I sometimes throw a fit about it, because it involves getting real clothing on, but he pushes and I'm happy he does. It's been good for me to get out. 

I am still working on balance and mostly failing, lots of fails on this one right now. Not a lot of balance in the special education world right now. 
 
Communication- Stay in contact with people, stay connected, have those tough conversations.
I talk with my parents a few times a week. I have connected this month on Zoom to all of my family and several friends and I need to keep that going. If I've ignored your invites keep sending them I need to pull myself out of this funk. 


Goals for May:
1) Try at least 4 new restaurants or food locations in the Seattle area using take out/ delivery
2) Keep using up those beauty products and take real stock of what I have, and how to use it up.
3) Keep staying active
4) Connect to family every week
5) Finish 1 of my eLearning courses so I can chip away at my clock hour goal.

Bomb DROPPED!

Well today my district dropped not 1 but 3 bombs on special education employees.
My first rant is a side note- why do people ask for advice or input when they have no plans to listen to it or take it into consideration? Like why even bother?

BOMB 1:
We will be following the Seattle Model A or Incomplete.
I am worried about the mind-set shift this will take for building.
I am worried that proficient looks sounds IS different for many of our students and if they don't fit into boxes they will be deemed incomplete.
I am worried for students who cannot access equitably because the same IEP and MLL supports simply cannot be provided this way will default to incomplete and that sucks.
I am sad that I tried, actively tried to influence this and I feel completely ignored right now and that's a hard place to sit.

BOMB 2:
Also today is the day that progress reports would be due, but without guidance for weeks and because we aren't doing grades at quarter we were told not to worry.  Well today, we are told to do them, and have them done as close to today as possible. Let's talk about the stress, anxiety and shear overwhelming feelings that this induces in me and my colleagues.

Progress reports for 1 student with 3 goals is going to take 1-3 hours between creating the forms to collect the feedback, waiting SEVERAL DAYS for the feedback to come in, going through sorting, averaging and organizing feedback and actually completing the write ups.  Now multiply that by 20-30. I provide data on at least 3 goals for roughly 25 students. Some students I provide feedback on 5 or more goals. That's a minimum of 25 hours of work, in addition to my normal daily duties, but what it really looks like is 40 hours another FULL TIME JOB each progress reporting cycle.  So to say that it's just a little paperwork, or just some data, you have no idea and have clearly never done this before.



BOMB 3:
Special education teachers- Because you didn't have enough to do now you need to create plans for every kid on your case load about what can and cannot be done at school. I understand the purpose of this- but where is the time for this. I am keeping meticulous data of what I do when, how long students are getting support, what that support looks like.  We still have no guidance as to what this will look like. We have not been trained on it and are simply expected to DO for between 10-25 kids depending on the case load- and just because I think a goal can be worked on doesn't mean the teacher providing that service thinks so, so each one will take more time so we can actually collaborate on them- we barely have time to meet as it is.

I am writing this holding back tears because I feel unsupported, unheard and that my district lacks understanding of the time commitments of this work.  Not to mention half my data is in my classroom that I cannot access.

Quarantine Week 6

6 weeks in- This is when we thought it would be over.  Originally I thought I would go back to the classroom next week.  But that world has left us and we are online for the remainder of the year- at least.

The novelty of Teams and Zoom has faded- I HATE looking at screens all day.  Normally in a classroom setting I'm maybe on my computer a few hours a day for paperwork- but now it's my everything and I'm over it and I know my kids are too. I am working on projects that will allow them to be off line and learning more, now if I only I could do that myself.

I have established a new sleep schedule- specifically that I sleep in more and work later- but now I find myself in planning meetings that have me having wake up early.  I may need to gracefully exit some of those- It's not healthy for me to work as late as I am and as early.

I set some personal goals for myself this week.  Specifically around Clock -Hour accrual.   For those who don't know Clock hours are not only how I keep my license, but they are the only way- shy of me going back to school that I can move over columns on the pay scale. Going into Co-vid crisis land I was 290 Clock hours short of the next jump up or 29 credit hours short. SO my goal is to complete 100 of them during co-vid.  It's alot. So let's use blogging for accounability yet again:
This week
Inclusive Practices 2 evening training- 6 hours

Next week
PGP plan completion sessions-2 hours
PGP completed (it's done but I can't turn it in til next week) - 25 hours
SEL (social emotional learning) training for grades 9-12-2 hours

On Going for next 3 months:
eLearning - High leverage practices- 30 hours
eLearning- All roads lead to employemnet- 11 hours
eLearning- Autism - 12 hours
Total signed up for or planned so far: 88
Left to figure out- 12

So really not as much as I thought. I am trying to do at least 1 e-learning module every day to break it up- I have 3 months to complete that course work.

I miss my classroom and my students.  Online learning has some benefits but many deficits.   I am thankful for my friends and team that are help making this work, but I really need to unplug from work this weekend and focus on me.

Signing off for now
-C

Disability History - Links included

 We are all probably watching more videos than we were a few months ago- because what else are you doing? Honestly?

So let's have you learn something that you likely never learned in a history class.  Did you know that Washington state has a LAW that all students are supposed to be educated on disability- ALL STUDENTS.

The Revised Code of Washington (RCW 28A.230.158) includes this statement of findings:
“The legislature finds that annually recognizing disability history throughout our entire public educational system, from kindergarten through grade twelve and at our colleges and universities, during the month of October will help to increase awareness and understanding of the contributions that people with disabilities in our state, nation, and the world have made to our society. The legislature further finds that recognizing disability history will increase respect and promote acceptance and inclusion of people with disabilities. The legislature further finds that recognizing disability history will inspire students with disabilities to feel a greater sense of pride, reduce harassment and bullying, and help keep students with disabilities in school.”

Well I can tell you as high school teacher that October came and went and this was not included in the curriculum of any teacher at my school (that I am aware of) outside of special education.

During closure a wonderful movie called "Crip Camp" came out on Netflix.  This movie takes a look at the disability rights activists who made major shifts during the latter part of the 20th century-specifically around putting section 504 into law. It got me thinking about the progress that we have made as a society to support students with disabilities in the last 55 years but also how much we are still failing and how far we have to go.

Brown v. Board of education was in 1954- it determined that separate but equal is unconstitutional  when applied to race, why should disability be any different?
But I watch now as students with disabilities are separated, contained and taught by someone who may or may not have a license in that content area. It's not equal and it's a fight we continue to have.  Every student deserves access to general education setting, it may look different, sound different, but it's about access and inclusion.

What is now called IDEA- Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act was put into effect in 1975-But it took until the re-authorization of 2011 for General education teachers to be included on the IEP team- when all students are general education students first.

Inclusion students in the truly LEAST RESTRICTIVE setting as much as possible is the goal for all of our students no matter how impacted they are. When we set high bars students reach them. There is significant evidence to suggest that ALL students learn better in inclusive classrooms. 

It's important to know and understand the culture of disability in this country. To understand where we have been in the last half century, the mindsets that still exist in this country and where we are going.

Where we have been:
Willowbrook- If you are not familiar with Willowbrook or have not seen the documentary you need to. This is what it meant for thousands of people and families to live with disability in this country in the last half of the 20th century. It is not easy to watch. It is painful and sad and distrubbing, but if anything that's why it needs to be watched and understood. There are several follow up films to Willowbrook, 10 years later, 25 years later and 30 years later Part 1 and Part 2 if you are interested.

Crip Camp- On Netflix- I wish I would have learned about these amazing people when I was in school. To connect to someone like me who was different but a badass would have been life changing.

Ada Legacy Project With 31 unique moments to look at or use as classroom supports.  

One out of 5 is a series of videos and lessons that are differentiated for all learning levels and access needs to talk about disability. A colleague of mine was part of this project- super proud of her for doing this she rocks. 

Time line
Timeline 2
A 25 year history of IDEA

Well you got all the way to the end- thank you. Thank you for taking the time to learn about something that is a part of me. That is important. That is why I do the work I do. Hopefully next fall we can all teacher about disability.

Signing off for now
-C 

Quarantine Listening- Links provided

I spend dedicated time every day listening to music. Music has always had the ability to change my mood, set a tone for the day, change my outlook, heal my heart or sit with me in sadness when that's what I needed.
I recently had to reset my laptop and in doing so lost most of my music library and all of my play lists.  All of those moods that I either wanted to sit with or change to have to be re-organized and re-discovered.
In re-organizing and re-discovering my music library and have curated a play list for quarantine.  Not that there is 1 particular mood for this event, or that I am only listening to this music, but there is a slower hum to a life. A calm wave and a need to look to a brighter tomorrow. This is the music I have found myself gravitating towards. These are the songs getting a greater number of plays than others. This is how I am surviving quarantine.
  We must remember when the world came crashing down we turned to the artists to get us through.
The video Links are to Official Videos when possible

Stay- Gracie Abrams
Long Time Coming- Caitlyn Smith
21 Days- Brian Fallon
Power Over Me- Dermot Kennedy
Rise Up- Andra Day
Shotgun- George Ezra
Good News-Ocean Park Standoff
Underdog- Alicia Keys
Vor I Vaglaskogi- KALEO
Hope in the Air- Laura Marling
Kings & Queens- Mat Kearney
Losing Hope- Shawn Smith


Sometimes I just want a whole soundtrack to get me through the day, Hamilton and Pirates of The Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl are my two favorite.

Share with me what you are listening to, I'm in the market to expand my library.

Signing off for now
-C

Grief-The loss of a student

The loss of a student is a grief and pain I would not wish on anyone. It's a pain the hits at the core of your being when your a teacher. It's a pain I know in many forms and every time it happens all of the emotions of previous experiences come flooding back.

21,20 and 21. That's how old they would be now: Rhameek Tuitt, Heavenlie Rodriguez and Charlie Gathings.  I hold them in my heart no matter where I am teaching. Their charisma, compassion, kindness, friendship and drive made me a better teacher.  Their lives may have been cut short but I will not let their impact be.

Your absence has gone through me like a thread through a needle. 

Everything I do is stitched with its color

W.S. Merwin 

We are told to "be strong" for our students. But over the years I have learned the importance of being honest with my students. The importance of being real about feelings and pain, not staying in them, but honoring them. Our emotions as educators are valid and students need human connection when they are hurting, not a robotic response.

So be humble, be honest, be present. 

This time is complicated by the separation I have with my classes and colleagues in social distancing. I cannot provide a hug for my friends who are feeling a very real and painful loss. We cannot gather in support of this family or our community due to the current rules in place. Students cannot gather together to support each other.

I can be a listening ear and social-emotional support for my students who just want someone to talk to, but it feels simply not enough.

I did not know this student well. I said hello to him every morning when I came in and during passing time in the halls. Our limited interactions don't make it suck any less.

I am sad for my friends who knew him well, who taught him. I am sad for my students who are grieving the loss of a friend. I am sad for the family who doesn't get a proper goodbye because of the state of our system currently. I am sad for all of the students I have lost.

There is no one right way to do this. No one right way to heal. No one right way to grieve, mourn, move forward. I would just ask that people not try to do it alone. We may be physically distant, but especially now we should be socially connected.  I'm here if you need me. 

Signing off for now
-C

Spring break in Quarantine- Week 5

I was supposed to spend the better part of spring break in Spokane,WA debating and voting on union matter and business for the upcoming year.

Clearly that's not happening.

I have never wanted a house and yard more than I do right now.  The weather is beautiful,  I want to just sit in the sun with a lemonade and just relax.


So what have I been doing with my break?
CLEANING
We did a FULL SPRING CLEANING.  Everything was vacuumed, every linen and article of clothing washed.  So many bags set for Charity---and no one will take them. I have called or reached out to EVERY charity in King County- NO ONE will take clothing donations.
So if you know of any donation centers open please let me know. 

PLANNING-Work
I created the timeline and plan for my 2 Targeted classes for the remainder of the year.

• Sent to students and families- It's 1 pager to show all assignments, test dates and other due dates for the remainder of the year. - I had to let go of getting even HALF of what was left done.  We should get about 1/3 and I'm good with that.

I scheduled my 1:1 student meetings as Re-occurring opportunities throughout the rest of the year.

•    These meetings are my most productive time with students and valuable social-emotional connection for all of us.  By having the meetings be a consistent time weekly students can plan the rest of their week around them. 

I scheduled all of my classes and invited the appropriate parties.

•    Invited para educators to classes so that they can support students throughout the week. 

PLANNING- NOT WORK
When all of this is said and done- I get a vacation. So I've been looking at different vacation opportunities throughout the country. Primarily going to NY and MN to visit family, but also probably another each coast destination to do some sight seeing- just because.

Current top choices: Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Boston- I'm a bit of a history nerd and museum junky so these all meet my needs for a relaxing trip. 

WATCHING YOUTUBE AND BINGING NETFLIX
I always tell my students to be honest- so here is my honest.  NCIS has gotten a lot of attention as has Sortedfood if you've never seen sorted before I highly recommend.  I also watched the entire 100 Humans mini series- again if you want to learn about yourself and the people around you, great option.

Less Beauty videos than normal- as I am on a no-buy still so it is hard to watch an not want to rush out and buy something.

STAYING ACTIVE:
 This is hard when all of the state and federal trails and parks are closed, but we are lucky, we live right on a walking/biking trail and have been enjoying it.  I try to get out for at least a 2 mile walk every day.  J has been taking the bike out and going on adventures as much as possible. I still wish I could just sit in the sun with a cup of lemonade, but such is life.

NAPS/SLEEP SCHEDULE:
I have always loved a good nap after work, but this quarantine is seriously effecting my sleep schedule. My class schedule at work now always has me starting later and working later so there is NO REASON to wake up at 5:30am any more. Nor is there anything stopping me from taking an hour long nap during lunch.
Starting work next fall will be AMAZING for so many reasons, but it will also be very hard given my new fondness of noontime naps and sleeping late.


Signing out for now
-C

Week 4 update

We have now been home for 4 weeks.
I haven't seen my students in person in 4 weeks.
I did start to have them turn on their cameras a little this week just so I could feel more connected to them. I don't think I'll make that a habit, but it was a nice treat to get to see their smiles.

This week we were told we wont be going back to school for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year.
This means I wont go with my Olympic Group of Seniors to prom.  Normally a final celebration in our autism program.
I wont get to scream obnoxiously as my students who I have spent 3 years with walk across the stage and get the diplomas that we have ALL worked very hard for, especially now.
I wont get to hug all the students who have made my life better a tunnel of tears- a tradition in our school where in we say goodbye as a staff to the senior class.

But I can still control some of my traditions.
I will still write every Senior I work with a letter.  I will spend a little more on stamps and envelops, but they will all get their notes.
I will still continue to thank the people I work with when I catch them doing both the big and the small stuff- I may not have my post cards, but I can send you all emails.

As we end week 4 we go into our spring break- which honestly I have no idea how I am going to spend it other than to work.  I'll get the rest of the year set up and then actually hibernate. Yeah that sounds good.

To take care of myself I have been video chatting with family and friends, enjoying happy hour more frequently and taking naps.  I have also started to sit down and play piano again and sing.

When we come back it will be the start of week 6 of quarantine.  This is not anything I ever thought I'd go through as an educator.  I hope to never go through it again, but I'll be a better teacher because of this.  I will continue to put students' mental health and social emotional well-being first, because I know the academics will follow.  We'll get there, together.

Signing off for now
-C

I'm sad

I don't have much capacity beyond the emotion of sadness.
My school year is over as I had planned it. I wont get to see my students in person again til...who knows when but it wont be this school year.

I wont get to say goodbye to my seniors in the way that I had planned. I wont get time goodbyes and send offs for the staff that so much deserve that as they head off to new adventures.

I am sad because this is our normal now. I am sad because I don't know what this means for my students who were already struggling.  I'm sad because I don't know what this means for next year.

I'm sad because the only thing I have control over right now are my emotions, and it's all I have energy to be.

other than work

Trying to think about what I've done OTHER THAN WORK since being stuck at home.

1) Cleaned out the closet (and bagged up 4 bags for clothing for charity) yes I still have clothing left- probably too much, I'm work in progress.
2) So much laundry.
3) Vacuuming
4) Grazed on sweet and salty things.
5) sandwich making...so many different kinds- Panini press was BY FAR the best and most used wedding present.
6) Movies: Most recent starwars, Hunger Games trilogy, Ford vs Ferrari just to name a few.
7) Binged TV: NCIS
8) Naps- I will miss mid-day naps when I have to go back to a normal work schedule.
9) Video chats with family
10) Connecting with old friends and colleagues about how we are all handling this.

March Update and April Goals

This month I made good on continuing my No-buy on make up, though I did get new brushes and got rid of old bad ones.
 Though I finished almost no beauty products because why put on make up when I literally have no where to go. I finish a face milk, and am making pretty big progress on a few lotions and lip balms.
This year (2020) I have so far spent $49 on make up and beauty related products.
By March 31, 2019 I had spent $191 on make up and beauty
So far over last year $140 in saving. 

I surpassed my 1 in 1 out for clothing.  I brought in 4 new items of clothing and have 4 large BAGS of clothing ready to go to charity when we are allowed to leave our homes again.  I got rid of a lot of things I have been holding on to for far to long.  If I haven't worn it or used it since moving to Washington 3 years ago I have no reason to keep it.

We are in lock down, so any desires to see medical professionals about non-life threatening things such as food allergies have gone out the window. I have been feeling much better health wise those.  A few migraines with pressure changes and a few episodes of food that didn't sit well, but nothing compared to my normal life.  Eating everything at home and food I made/ that J made he cooks way better than I do I think has really helped. We are eating a lot healthier and that's been good for both of us.

I am finding a normalcy in isolation.  I am finding ways to connect with family and friends that I want to make sure we keep doing when this is all done.  Zoom happy hour is something I'd like to make a monthly event in my family.  This has helped bring us closer.

Spending 24/7 with someone can drive you crazy, but it can also drive you to have those conversations you've been putting off and to look at the ways you impact each other and how you can both grow.  It's good and we need to keep doing it, even when its hard.

Goals for April:
Clothing 1 in 1 out at least.  Now that I've done a large purge it will be harder and I can start to really curate what I want/need and what works for me.
Make up-- I'm not using much so I don't need anything more.  Keep going with the no-buy. I certainly have a wish list, but again I'm curating it and I'll get myself something nice for Christmas.
Health- Keep enjoying quarantine.  Get out for a daily walk in the sun.  Make food at home.  Enjoy time off and high levels of rest.
Communication- Stay in contact with people, stay connected, have those tough conversations.

Finding normal-week 3 update

As week 3 of work from home draws near to close, I feel like I am finding a rhythm. 

I wake up at 8 each morning (yay for sleeping in).
I work from I teach or prepare for lessons from 9-11 every day.
I meeting with students or trainings from 12:30-3:30 every day
After 3:30 I send emails, communicate to my team, to parents and ask questions of administration that pop up throughout the day.
My dedicated time on work is greater now than it normally is during the normal work day, as the distractions of other people around have faded. 

I put in extra hours on the weekend now that I didn't use to do, in order to have a more flexible schedule during the day.  I will miss this flexibility when it's gone. 

I am doing more evening trainings. I am balancing my time with zoom sessions with family. I hope to keep zooming with family even after all this is done.  It's nice to connect with them more consistently.

I have found I am more comfortable in my own skin working from home.  I don't have to Mask when I'm at home. I get to just be me, autistic quirks and all, and it's brilliant.

Our students schedules will stay the same again next week.  Work will be required, the normalcy of grades is starting to creep back in and I've got mixed feelings, but we shall see what happens.

I am finding a routine that works for me. That helps me get my work done and feel like I am still a good teacher, and good partner.

I hope that you are finding a normal that works for you too.

-Signing off for now
-C