How Do You Get From 5 to 29 years?

My move to the middle school was GREAT! I had a wonderful team to work with; L-Man, D-Girl, T-Man, and J-Girl. For 5 years we were on FIRE! We did team units starting with the overnight campout for the 7th graders. We had 'putting up your tent' lessons, hiking, fishing, storytelling, flora & fauna, campfire cooking, camouflage class, wood-burning class, creative writing, art, and, of course, journaling. The best activity was the evening campfire, student and teacher skits.

Other units involved traveling to Topeka, touring the Capitol and Kansas Historical Museum. We designed a GREAT trip through the Flint Hills, highest point in Chase County, a stop at the cattle pens on I35, Cottonwood Falls Court House, Strong City, historic sights of Council Grove, a stop at the Bazaar Cemetery and Flint Hill Prairie National Park (before it was a National Park)

Another on-the-road adventure included the Lindsborg Mill, Coronado Heights, and hiking through the sandstone at Kanapolis Lake. We, also, took a tour at the Kansas State wildlife reserve and ended at Mushroom Rocks.

We did this with 5 to 8 teachers, very cooperative bus drivers, packed lunches and the all-famous PACKET. The Packets were the students' assignments for the day. Each packet was a 'travel-guide' complete with mile-marker attractions as we traveled down the many, many roads of Kansas. Packets included instructions for 'sketches,' journaling, creative writing, and of course, the Evaluation of the day.

The energy we had was incredible!! We learned to team, collaborate, challenge each other, support each other.... I said more than once; teaming was harder than being married! I would not trade those experiences for anything. We were the epitome of teachers teaching and allowing learning to happen....just like we were told in 'teaching school.'

Several things happened, pretty much at the same time to put an end/quiet death to our 'success days.' Our Board decided we were doing too much; 7th graders weren't old enough for these experiences...which we fought for a while. Then the funding for 'extras' began to dry up. People were transferred or left and our time in 'heaven' was over. I was probably the one who took this the hardest....because that's what I do.

I was transferred out of 7th grade to 8th grade because "I was a great math teacher and I was needed in 8th grade." That was what I was told and I still don't believe that to this day. However, interestingly, I loved being in 8th grade...especially when I gave up being mad about it. I have been teaching math and science in 8th grade for the last 19 years. D-Girl moved up to 8th grade after another 5 years. We still work together along with our new partner K-Girl. We are a mighty fine team!! I LIKE 8th graders. I LIKE being the last grade in middle school. I LIKE being the 'last step’ before sending our middle schoolers to high school. Eighth grade teachers take this responsibility very seriously....our last chance to prepare our students to succeed.