Halfway Through

After tomorrow we will be over halfway through with FCAT testing--hooray!

The kids have done a great job so far. I see many of them using test taking strategies we have talked about (reading the comprehension questions before the reading passage so they know what to look for in the passage, "retaking" the test when they have extra time, underlining important words in questions, etc.). No one has run out of time either, which is good. :) They have finished the SSS (Sunshine State Standards) reading sessions, tomorrow is both SSS math sessions, and then next week we have one session each of reading and math for the NRT (norm referenced test). Busy, busy! Then it's two weeks til spring break and Hilton Head with the fam! WOO HOO!

During our "down time" these testing weeks (after tests and on days we don't have tests), we are reading through Mr. Popper's Penguins. Every year I've done this unit during FCAT, the class has loved it. But this year's class REALLY loves it. They beg me to keep reading and are SUPER enthusiastic about it. It makes it extra fun for me. :) We are also writing poetry, and if their brains seem need some recuperation time before we dig into penguins and poetry, I do some step-by-step drawing with them (I still *distinctly* recall Mrs. Love doing some step-by-step drawings with us in first grade, and I teach my kids some of those *same* drawings!). Yesterday we did a frog, turtle, and bunny. :)

Samantha is asleep on the couch across from me, and Matt is playing one of his games for a little bit. He took the last of the leaf bags down for our trash pick up yesterday--hooray!

Last weekend we had the sweet treat of a visit from Dad and Mom. It was much needed! The distance has been wearing on me, and we LOVED seeing them and spending time with them. Their time here involved wrinkle-free clothes (Mom caught me up on some ironing), remote controlled cars (Matt got one before Christmas with some e-bucks, it's like Monopoly money from his company you can trade for real $$, and has wanted to show Dad ever since), fan checking (the light control of our remote died :-(), file transferring (a new-to-us computer), and fabric hunting (for a casserole tote to match the apron), among other things. :) I'm glad Hilton Head is less than a month away. You'd think about 2.5 years after I moved (how can I have been gone that long???), it would get easier. In some ways it does, but it still go through cycles of aching for home more than usual. Ugh. We have lots of opportunities to go home coming up though--Ruthie's wedding, our usual July trip, then we'll be in SC in September, back to TN in November, and both in December. Whew. Matt wants to try to fit in a trip home for the big football game, but I'm just not sure we can make that work this year. I do, however, REALLY want to try to get our condo for our anniversary in October. But we need to go to St. Augustine or Ormond Beach or something between now and then. Maybe some O-town action to see Uncle Randy and Aunt Janie, maybe even a jaunt down to see Kim and the kids (?). I don't know yet what my summer looks like. I know I have summer institute the end of June, and Mom is hoping to come visit this summer. We are getting a new reading curriculum, so I know some time will be spent getting acquainted with it and determining how that affects our new writing curriculum we wrote last year. And I hear we might be making changes to our math pacing, so I don't know what summer committees will look like yet.

Honestly at the moment I am just TIRED. This is the first night this week I did not fall asleep at 9, but it doesn't really count because I feel asleep from about 4:30-5:30. :) I'm EXHAUSTED--and I'm not even the one taking the FCAT tests! And honestly, when I'm missing home, being tired makes me more emotional than usual. So, sorry for this steam of consciousness update. I'm just missing everyone and wanted to catch you up. I wish I had something more interesting to write about, but we're just kinda plugging along right now. :) We miss our family and friends very much and really do welcome you for a visit ANYtime!

I should go check on that hubby o'mine. He wanted to watch the AI results on Tivo before bed... :)

Love,
Becca