Playing School

I've been here at work for almost 2 hours already. I must admit, although I know I am a nut job for waking up at 4:45 every morning, I love my wee early morning hours at school.
My routine is the same. The first thing I do is turn on Pandora radio and go make photo copies. I love that there is no one else in this building who needs some serious copies at 6 am but me. I hate the feeling around 7:30 when I walk past our two copy machines. The tension is thick. Teachers milling around 2 copiers with coffee in their hands. Everyone exchanges pleasantries, but, very much like being in line at the bank, no one moves too far to the right or the left- lest they loose their place.
I then go back to my room and check email and eat dry cereal of some sort. I'll do my agenda board and then start typing my papers for the next day up. This way I rarely have to bring my work home with me. Bringing work home doesn't really work for me anyway.
I do love this whole teaching gig. Sometimes- before the sun has really risen, before the building starts to fill with noise, I sit back and look at my classroom. Is this for real? I do what? I still giggle to myself when people ask me what I do for a living. I teach (hee hee).
It's funny because I used to play school all of the time when I was a kid. I used to love pretending that I was the one in charge. I loved writing on chalk boards and saying God knows what to stuffed animals!
I remember my first weeks here. I had no clue what to do or what to expect. What I did know was that now I had an actual purpose to go into Staples. I was given license to buy sticky notes and dry erase markers. OK, so my school supplied me with both, but not the ones I wanted.
Oh, and transparencies. I was so excited to have transparencies. I really felt like a teacher the first day I taught vocabulary and used a transparency with a brand new Vis-a-vis wet erase marker. I knew, at that moment, that I had made it.
I know that teaching is all about shaping lives and molding minds- It is- but the instruments are just as exciting to me. Sad, I know, but I was also the kid who was excited in September for new copybooks. Every blank page was a fresh start. Each sharp pencil was another chance.
Hmm, my goal is to post a picture of my classroom by the end of the week. There is the bell- no joke. Alright kids, tuck your shirts in, place all items not related to today under your seat, and give me your eyes to show me you are ready. Live your dreams!