One Little Word

Here is some more of the fun that I was talking about that I want to be a part of!  I found the blog thirdgradebookworm.blogspot.com last night and right away saw her post about her OLW and I loved the idea. I too am not much of a New Year's Resolution type person.  But I can handle focusing on one word to remember and encourage myself with.  There are so many words that come to mind, things that I definitely need to be focusing and working on in my life right now.  But this isn't "a bunch of little words", it's "One Little Word".
The word I have been thinking about seems an odd one for me to use, but as I went to the dictionary to see the different definitions it used, I knew it would definitely be the right word for me this year.  My One Little Word is FRESH.  I loved some of the definitions I found!   
Fresh: 1. Novel; different;
          2. Bright and clear
          3. Revived or reinvigorated; refreshed
         4.  Novel; original
         5.  Having a healthy appearance
         6. Not stale
Now, just a little insight into why this means so much to me this year.  (I'll try to stick to the short version.)  This year has been quite different for me.  The enrollment in our elementary has gone down a bit, because of this the plan was made to combine 3rd and 4th grade.  At first I was asked to be the secretary while teaching a couple of third grade classes.  For someone who lives, eats, breathes, and bleeds teaching that was extremely difficult for me.  Then someone came to the school who was interested in the secretary position.  So part way through the first quarter since I was no longer needed in the office, I was able to get back into my classroom!...but....only for four classes (which is basically from 9-12, minus the 20 minutes the kids are at lunch).  The rest of the day is spent in other places around the school helping out.  Not my ideal, but I am teaching more.  I miss not having my kids all day and not teaching some of my favorite classes.  Since I have never had so few students before (2 to be exact!) and since I don't have them all day, it has been a challenge to find things to keep them focused and challenged.  So now maybe you can see why this word fits this year.  I am approaching this semester with a fresh mindset...a fresh start.  I am going to really work hard and strive to think of things differently, finding new and different and original ways to keep them motivated regardless of the circumstances.  I want to be refreshed and revived for a new semester that can be bright with new and fun ideas.  I want to have a healthy, happy appearance, even in difficult times.  Then I need to realize, because of a smaller class, because of a shorter time with them, because of things being different for me, this can give me the opportunity not to grow stale in my teaching methods and practices.  So, I'm looking forward to a fresh start to a new year, and a new semester!