7:00 PM and I'm still in my classroom.  I've been filing and reading IEPs (Individual Education Plans) for the last two hours and still have four grade levels left to go.  The bad news is the Special Ed department tells me that today's mountain of paper is only the first half.  The information is extremely helpful, however, finding the key info I need in a 10-page form can sometimes be a challenge, just wish there was a faster way. So far, in the first two days of school, I've seen the Third grade and most of the Second.  Today I saw all of the Kindergarten.  Wow.  Kids travel such a long way over the course of a school year that when the beginning comes again it always gives me pause to consider just HOW little and young they are, and just how clear and simple I need to be. This year's batch of K is cute, as they always are, however, there are some significant needs in this year's group, more so than in previous years.  Fortunately, it looks like there is enough adult support across the grade level.  It doesn't always happen (sometimes you can't predict when a group is going to need extra services), but I feel confident that we're going to be able to cope with the extreme behaviors we may be seeing over the next few months. (You can tell it's going to be a bumpy ride when you see outrageous behavior on the first day!) It's a good staff team, I think. Need to organize the info for the cello studio (after school lessons) and send out an e-mail before I leave tonight, then I can go to the gym and workout with a clear conscience.  I don't know if I'm going to be able to wind down in time to be able to bike in tomorrow.  Have to get up at 5 for that, won't happen if I'm up until 11.   More later, maybe.  Might be the weekend before I have enough brain cells to write again.