Hypathetically speaking, of course

Imagine you are a 1st year teacher and you have just started the 4th quarter, today actually.... Part of your course load includes a 7th grade exploratory class that changes every term- so you teach the same thing every term just to different students... Oh, and you teach at a school that is on an A- B block schedule (meaning 4 classes one day, 4 other classes the next) You check your email as you are getting ready to start your 2nd period class and see an email from the 7th grade counselor and it's about your 7th grade exploratory class that you will meet for the first time tomorrow. You read the email (duh! Isn't that what you do with email?!) And you find out that your class is not rotating. You will have the same students for another term. AND they want you to teach something completely different.... giving you only ONE day notice. What in the HELL do you do?!?!?!? You have to have a lesson ready not only for tomorrow but for the rest of the term- not to mention the lessons for the other 3 curriculum's (or is it curriculi?!) you are teaching at the same time?!?!?!?!?!?

Ok, so this isn't really a hypothetical situation. It really happened to me today. I was so stressed out about it that I gave into the temptation and had a Dr. Pepper... (Damn Lent! That's what I get for trying to go without Dr. Pepper my first year of teaching... ) I was ready to scream I was so frustrated with having ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA what to do for this class... But it came to me as I was getting ready to start my last class... Teach them maps- I know, sounds corny but you would be surprised how many kids these days don't know where Wyoming is or even the Great Salt Lake! I figure this will better prepare them for when I have them for Geography in 9th grade. Hopefully it works!!

And since we are on the topic of school/work, I can't believe the 4th quarter has already begun. This year has gone amazingly fast- sometimes it felt like it would never end but now that they end is so near it seems so surreal that I am so close to a summer break! Not that I am excited or anything.... Ok, I admit it, I think I am more excited than my students. It has been a good 4 years at least since I have had any kind of a break- I can't wait!