180

Well, I survived my first day of 7th and 8th graders.  Whew! I was so exhausted after I got done with school for the day.  I think it was trying to learn all their names.  There are 8 periods of about 50 minutes plus a half an hour for lunch and the same amount for homeroom.  Each class has about 30 students in it, so I have somewhere around 180 students.  Learning their names is going to be a monumental task.

I wasn't too worried about these kids, and I guess I'm still not too worried.  There's only one class of 8th graders that were intimidating; a group of girls were eying me up and they didn't look too friendly.  Most of the students seemed okay with me being there.  One 8th grader asked me how old I was and another guy quickly followed with the question, "Are you married?"

My supervising teacher is really cool.  She's been teaching for 27 years and knows what she's doing.  We actually kind of matched yesterday.  Both of us wore a purple shirt, gray pants, and black shoes.  More than one person commented on it.  One 8th grader remarked as she walked past, "Ms. B, she's like your twin!"

Apparently, these students have trouble keeping track of things...   I asked to see one student's graph and he said, "Oh I don't have it.  Abby has it so I don't lose it."  I guess that's one way to keep your stuff from being misplaced.

These kids are obsessed with their grades.  There are a few computers scattered around the room and the students love to log onto InfiniteCampus to check their grades.  The 8th graders got a test back today and one boy turns to another and says, "Hey, what'd you get? ... I got a 97... backwards."  I take that to mean he got a 79.  Not the best grade in the world.  But there's always room for improvement!