Stay tuned, but just a heads up Calls are once a month typically the third Tuesday! More to come! 2026 Impact Refreshed, Recharged, Ready to Go!!

I started with a new school district this year, but I’m still teaching 5th grade. It’s been a rough transition. I knew going to a bigger district would mean lots of things, but I feel like a first year teacher all over again. Their scores haven’t been as high as they would like so they’re forcing us to all follow the “Fundamental 5” Principles and training. Our administration is expected to be doing walkthroughs in 40 classrooms each week so I have 1-2 in my room every week. They’re also a Capturing Kids Hearts district and our principal wants us to be a National Showcase Campus this year, so there are walkthroughs for that too. We barely have time to plan and grade, and I have at least one ARD every two weeks. Oh, and our bilingual teacher was pulled from our campus the week before school started and I have some kids that need to test in Spanish. I barely recovered from the stress over Christmas break and I am not feeling the spark I used to have for teaching. I love my students. They’re really sweet, but they don’t stop talking. I had high hopes for this group of kids since they started school after COVID, but they are still very low and lack some basic “school” skills. I know I’m rambling on, but I also love this community. If you read the is far, thank you for letting me vent. I’m seriously considering not teaching next year. I’m looking into getting into Instructional design and development for corporations or companies so I can still have insurance.

I am so excited to be returning to the IMPACT space! Tonight, I graduated from an intensive trauma therapy evening program. It was the support I needed for gaining the skills to prepare for, cope with, and resolve thoughts and emotions arising from my cPTSD. I made it through the semester while attending program 5 nights (to begin) stepped to 3 nights a week. Because of speaking up and taking this step, I am ready to face second semester continuing to celebrate my students’ growth!! I have missed IMPACT during this time and I am thrilled to start 2026 with 3 major personal wins from 2025. *Embracing my value as a person and fully believing in my self-worth. Including setting reasonable boundaries and standing up for myself when those were not respected. I can now say I am a reformed people pleaser! If it doesn’t align with my values or fails to meet the importance/necessary criteria, I can be like Elsa and Let it go! *Continuous growth is a core value for me. Progress over perfection, celebrating small successes along the way. With my leadership and direction, we acknowledge students for great growth alongside those who are top scorers on our district assessments. My focus on individual growth over hitting specific targets has led to some amazing growth in my students’ reading skills!! My personal growth journey in effective assertive communication, mirrors that of my students’ reading. Applying the skills I learned in my therapy program has only enhanced my overall well being. I can now communicate difficult topics in a way that reflects my affirmation- “I am strong and caring”. *The third and perhaps largest personal win for me is a resolution to a journey of healing that I embarked on in Autumn 2019. Six long years of hiking a proverbial mountain of trauma induced thoughts and emotions that lead back to my teenage years. I had already committed to myself that I would not repeat the cycle with my own children and now I can truly say I have broken that for myself and my descendants. Healing is a journey that will never be truly over- but from this point forward, I’ll be able to cope in a healthy manner and learn from every experience. Instead of student trauma sinking me into reliving my own trauma, I can be a beacon and help young people find their agency and voice to intervene for themselves and have a better, healthier, future for themselves and their descendants.

We are back in action! Let’s make the best of it. For our students who came in not knowing, let’s help them learn something today and continue that growth all the way to the end of the school year. For our students who came in already knowing, let’s help them expand their learning. At the end of the day, let’s see transformation in every child.

What are some of your most loved activities for this time of year? - Activities you use to help kiddos who are maybe a little extra this time of year. - Class party ideas/games that always go over well without much prep?