I teach straight through from 7:45 a.m. until 12:41 p.m. with a brief 18 minutes to stuff lunch in my face during a morning time that actually suits itself better to breakfast. Then, from 12:41 p.m. until about 1:35 p.m., I'm at meetings all over the school. Sometimes I'm on hall duty, sometimes I am meeting parents in the guidance office, and sometimes I am meeting my teammates or colleagues. Either way, by 1:36 p.m., my normally scheduled planning period, I'm so exhausted and overwhelmed that there are times I just sit at my desk and stare off into space.
Today we flip our schedule with the grade 6 team, meaning our meeting time and planning time come first. FIRST! This, of course, means that we will be teaching flat-out for the remainder of the day rather than front-loading all of our mayhem.
Damnitall.
Not only is it inconvenient, but it is also life-sucking. Seriously, I swear I can feel the joy leaving my body with every passing moment of work or planning that I should be doing but cannot do because my planning period already passed by.
In the end, I am still just as exhausted as I am when I teach straight through first rather than last. Either way, this schedule is a demon, and, for once I'll say it, I cannot wait for Tuesday when we go back.
Okay, truth: I cannot wait to steal back the regular schedule.
