Hello, again, friends.  It’s been a while, hasn’t it? About 3 years, actually.

Don’t hate me.  During that time, I had embarked on a new journey as a teacher at a virtual school.  Meaning, both students and teachers learned/taught virtually (from home).  While it was a new and exciting experience that gave me invaluable knowledge and experiences, I felt I had more to offer students and could do that better in a face-to-face setting.

So, here I am.

I am now a high school special education teacher at a school nearby and I am STOKED to start this new adventure! Nervous, scared, but stoked.  Let me share a few reasons why:

• It’s a 1:1 school.  In other words, each student is issued a Chromebook.  This was a huge plus for me.  As a teacher who loves to use different techy things with her students, this opens up a lot of possibilities for my teaching and their learning.
• There are some great values taught/instilled in students from the get-go.  I really liked this.  Where my former school lacked in consequences for students, this totes makes up for it.  Kids need that discipline and it’s refreshing to hear that it’s something in place.
• Um, hel-LO?? I get to see kids face-to-face! Don’t get me wrong-I ADORED working from home.  There is no editing button to bold, underline, highlight, emphasize that enough.  I am the type of teacher who thrives off independence.  Give me the rules, and leave me to myself to work my magic my own way.  However, the whole reason why I went into teaching was to feel the sense of fulfillment that comes with it.  I wasn’t getting that in a virtual setting.  And that’s purely a personal thing–it worked wonders for other teachers.

I do realize that some issues arise with working in a brick-and-mortar facility.  There are always behavior issues, there is the drive to work, and the inevitable (ugh) getting dressed for work (yoga pants, anyone?).  However, I believe the pros will undoubtedly weight out the cons here.  I look forward to making new friends, establishing some great new professional relationships, and spreading my tech wings once again for the good of student learning.

So sit tight.  We begin round 3 tomorrow.  And I can’t wait.