Happiness :)

Hello Everyone!

As my title says, I am happy, happy, happy! I have finally got my schedule down at Lake Region, and I have my group of kids who come to me with any homework help. It's so awesome being told hi by your students in the hall ways. And, all my kids have raised their Fs to Cs!!!!!!!!! That is what makes me the happiest. We were having a really big problem with a boy in third period. He does not get along with Cathy at all, and she has sent him to the office several times. I moved a student in from his regular study hall to my classroom so I can keep track of his grades better. Come to find out, the two boys are best friends. I was helping Nick one day and Eli asked if he could please join our group since they have the same schedule. Ever since, both boys have been doing so great. And to top it off, I snuck up on them talking about me in the hallway. They were telling one of their friends that I'm the best teacher they've ever had and that they finally understand math thanks to me. It's truly the little things that warm your heart :) :) :) :)

Cathy has also said several parents have emailed her asking who this Ms. Barnett is that their kids love so much. My heart just melts! I love them. She told me to call my parents and tell them Lake Region is never letting me go. I'm so fortunate to have such an awesome job. I love how things fell right into place and brought me to Vermont.

Speaking of Vermont, I officially have snow tires! And I got to drive on ice for the first time with them. I slid a little bit, but I didn't realize that snow tires would make such a difference. We still haven't got any major accumulation, but we have got one snowfall that covered the grass. I can't remember the last time I saw snow covering the grass.

Something off topic but still amazing to me is the fact that these kids are too young to remember 9/11. I am currently helping a few of my students read and interpret an article about Afghanistan and the Taliban and everything else that goes along with that topic. All of them were two or three when 9/11 happened, so they don't have that emotional reaction when it is brought up like people who remember exactly where they were when they found out the US had been attacked.

The newest word no one understands that I say is oil. I was talking to my room mates the other night about cooking a cake with bananas and Dr. Pepper (Hey Caroline!) in place of eggs and oil, which veered off to all the different types of oils there are. Sam spaced out somewhere in the beginning of the conversation and came in right as I was saying oil. He gave me the weirdest look. I noticed it, but neither of us commented on it. Me and Bridget continued our conversation, and about three minutes later Sam says, "OHHHHH! OIL! THAT'S WHAT YOU WERE SAYING!"

That's all for now! I'm headed to Connecticut on Wednesday to spend Thanksgiving with my room mates' families. I'm excited for a real Thanksgiving meal.