just finished reading a novel i borrowed from a student. engaging, entertaining trash. she reads other stuff so i'm not exactly worried, but i don't think i would want my seventh grade daughter reading it. i would say son, but the likelihood of a 12-13 yo boy reading this is a little silly. what sucks is that i have higher standards for these kids and their character development and education than some of their parents do. how is that possible? well, i know all the theories as to why, but still...and yeah, that's why you have your own kids so that you raise them your way, but there seems to be a certain standard lacking in parenting these days. imo. the library seems to be some kind of calming influence for them. i dunno if it's just the different surroundings or that i am super-strict on the noise level in there as opposed to the classroom, but many of them are more productive in that 47 mins than they can be in twice that time. maybe this year isn't so much about the instruction part of the teaching, but about the relationships i am building with these kids. they are a tough group by anyone's count (well, in our area) and being in my second year i am still learning tons about classroom managment and my own personal style in handling things and since its a new year new issues come up. i love them and i think most of them know that and that is a good thing. i had a couple of days this year where i doubted i was doing what i was called to do, but i got through it with a lot of talking and some crying and prayer and overall i have 99.9% job satisfaction. as far as the actual teaching goes. nclb,high stakes testing, API and PI plans can kiss my ass. cuz i love my kids. which means i love my job. yay teaching!!!