End of year evaluations

It is that time of year: the end of it! It is so close and I am doing everything I can not to begin packing my car now.

Yes, I am anxious to get home for a visit (I've made a bucket list here) but I am also anxious to see next year's new opportunities.

I had my end-of-year evaluation yesterday in which I got to gush about some of the items on a long list I have been keeping for Open Gym re-vamp-age. Dennis and Meghann seemed pretty excited about the things I would like to see happen, from physical clean-up to more organized craft/game/activity offerings. We also talked about the hope for library changes and continuing with the food bank. And Meghann asked about my help in organizing funding and facilitating Civic Engagement.

But perhaps the most exciting prospect for next year was the idea of my role in the school. I had expressed interest in being in the elementary school and Meghann and Dennis were supposed to fill me in at this meeting. When I asked them about it, Dennis sort of took the vocal reigns and delicately told me that the elementary school principal/superintendent whom I'd taken issue with for some time had, in so many words, caught on to my distaste for her. I wasn't surprised since I'd made it rather clear in one of our main exchanges during an event a while back. But in retrospect, perhaps I could have been a little more cordial. "You will learn a lot about dealing with bureaucracy in this role" mentored Dennis. The two didn't seem upset with me personally, necessarily. But they had not pursued the idea of me in the elementary school because they were sure Karen would say no. However, now that she was leaving, we had a fresh start.

After talking about possible ways for me to be involved without spending too much on gas or confusing the teacher's reliability on me with such limited hours, we arrived at an idea I found especially intriguing. Apparently the school has been hoping for a recess monitor for some time, with an emphasis on behavioral management. This didn't mean discipline etc however, but meant teaching the kids positive problem solving and behavioral skills in creative ways through games and exercises. I was thrilled. I had done some reading on the topic this year and it just seemed meant to be that I would take this role where I had reason to invest in even more learning of those methods and had an environment to practice them in.

I feel hopeful next year. And I feel like it will demand more effort and work than this year but I am determined to challenge myself.