Today marks the start of a GREAT school year!  And I do mean GREAT!  I have been so excited to get back to school this year because I know that means there are GREAT things in store for all of us!  I know that my students are going to become better readers and writers throughout the school year and that gets me excited! 🙂

But first, I’d like to give a shout out to my students from last year!I am extremely proud of them.  When I received their OAA scores, I just wanted to give them all a “high 5”.  To be honest, I really just wanted to hug them and give them a great big pat on the back and a “Great job! I’m so proud of you!”.  They really put forth a tremendous effort on their OAA tests (I couldn’t have asked for more), and their results reflected that effort.   Most importantly (at least in MY eyes, if not the State of Ohio’s), I am extremely proud of the personal growth that they showed, especially during the last two months of the school year.  There were days at the end of the year when I had to do a double take and ask myself “Are these really the same kids that walked into my room last August!?”  Wow.  I know their 8th grade teachers will enjoy them this year!

And now for today, the first day of another school year.   After meeting each of my students today, I am even MORE excited!  There are a lot of changes and challenges in our curriculum and testing this year, but I am as excited as ever to prepare my students for those challenges!

I hope that all the teachers and students who are starting another school year feel as excited as I do.  IT’S GOING TO BE A GREAT YEAR!! 🙂