When the hugeness hits me

I'm a pretty laid back dude. I don't get too worked up about major life changes. It's not that I don't appreciate the hugeness of the changes, it's just that I'm okay with change, and look forward to the new opportunities that result. I'm currently in the middle of some pretty huge life changes (i.e. moving from Michigan to Connecticut). However, I haven't had much time to reflect on their hugeness due to my crazy grad classes and end of the year school craziness among other things.

Today I received my first batch of exam projects from my 1st hour, and set right to grading them during my 2nd hour prep period. The first exam I opened looked like this:

Exam Cover

Needless to say, this looked like a pretty good exam. I was excited to go through it. Then I got to the first page (as seen below):

Exam1

The hugeness of the changes going on in my life became a little more real to me after reading that.

I'm going to miss this place. 🙁

Career numbers

My attempt at a sentimental "goodbye" to my students at Whitmore Lake:

My career stats

(I had students guess what each stat was for)

8

The number of different courses I've taught here.

8 courses

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34

The number of teachers I've worked alongside for the past 6 years.

34 teacher names

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822

The number of students I've had in my classes.

822 Smiling Faces

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1062

The number of school days I've taught.

1062 Days

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749

Miles away my new school is from Whitmore Lake High School.

Around the lake 163 times

Which is equal to running around Whitmore Lake 163 times.

From WL to CT

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0.18%

The percentage of my career to date I have left at Whitmore Lake

0.18% Chart

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At this point I launched into a sentimental moment of which I'll save you the details. I really will miss this job. I'll miss this school. I'll miss the staff. I'll miss the community. I'll miss the students. I wouldn't be the teacher I am without the opportunities and challenges this position has given me. I will always look back at this position fondly. It served as a personal proving ground, a testing ground for new ideas, and a sounding board for concerns. I've made some excellent friends that I'll miss horribly and it's helped me successfully transition from newbie to knowledgeable.

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Image credits (all via Flickr):