The most wonderful time of the year...

There is something very special about watching children get ready for the holiday season. As a first year teacher, I experienced the joys of Halloween and Thanksgiving, but nothing can compare to the week before winter break. For weeks (literally, since Halloween I believe) my children have been waiting for Christmas. Starting in November, they began practicing their songs for THE assembly (please put a lot of emphasis on THE, it's that important!). They counted the weeks, then the days, and starting last Monday, they began counting the hours. Needless to say, this week before break did not contain a lot of learning.  They tried so hard, but goodness, it is hard to concentrate with that much excitement! What did this week before break contain? Joy. Pure joy. There was joy in their eyes as they watched Santa parade down the hallway (aka the custodian at our school, shhh, don't tell:), joy in the mountain of cookies I watched them demolish in mere moments, joy as they came in with precious homemade gifts 'just for you, Ms. Rajanen!' and joy as I watched them stand proudly and sing their songs at THE assembly. I hope you enjoy the few seconds of singing I caught on video. If nothing else, I hope you can sense the joy, they have plenty to go around! Happy holidays, from Room 206 to you!

The Best Job in the Entire World.

Hello! Welcome to the magical shoe box blog. I am a Special Education teacher in the Chicago Public schools and this blog will document the many wonderful adventures that take place in Room 206. The reason for the title of the blog? When I began teaching this fall, I was given a classroom that was approximately 10 feet by 10 feet. While there are many who would have been discouraged by the size of this small learning place, I began to affectionately call it 'the magical shoe box.' While I was able to move into a full size classroom about a week later (three days before school started...yeah flexibility:), the magic continued on. So, I decided naming this blog the magical shoe box would be appropriate.

Every day I work with 18 students who have learning and emotional disabilities. My students are in 6-8th grade and are bilingual in English and Spanish. Our school is in a low income neighborhood and many of my students have home lives that are atrocious. But, don't let this description fool you, my students are magical. Yes, they have a lot of barriers to success, but is it impossible? Absolutely not. We work hard every day to raise reading and math levels and to work exactly at the place where they feel confident and challenged at the same time. My students are respectful, well behaved and absolutely charming. I am lucky, so very lucky, to be in a school with a fantastic (and I mean fantastic!) staff and administration. I thought I would like teaching, I thought it would be a good fit for a few years, but I have come to find that I love it. I love it more than anything (aside from my dog Picabo, of course!) It is a driving passion, something I cannot stop talking about, thinking about, dreaming about. It is, indeed, the best, and in my opinion, most important job in the entire world.

Picabo, mentioned above:)

I decided to start this blog because there are so many people who are supporting me and my students in Room 206. Whether it is through kind emails, cards, visits, granola bars, books or pet rats, we feel the love. We are so very thankful for all the support we receive and I wanted a place where we could share all that is happening. I hope that this space will be full of the small moments that reveal the magic I work with every day. If you live in Chicago, or are ever visiting, stop by for a visit. See the magic for yourself. If not, visit this blog, read the stories, and I hope you will catch a glimpse of the magic! Thanks for visiting!