I have spent a good portion of the last couple days grading procedures quizzes. Again, a lot of students. This is the last time I'll say that. Maybe.

I realized after printing all the quizzes that there were a couple of true or false questions that were almost trick questions, so I felt guilty and therefore gave silly extra credit questions. The questions were: What is Ms. Kroon's first name? and What is Ms. Kroon's favorite color?

While grading tonight, I was a little surprised to see which students did well and which ones didn't. More often than I would have expected, the ones who I'm starting to feel like I know didn't do that great and the ones who I generally know nothing about did pretty well. The guy in the back who I think is never paying attention? A perfect 12/10. The kid who I think hates my class because he's goofing off all the time? He knows all the expectations AND the reasons behind them (which was not required). The girl who sits quietly in the front row? She knows my first, middle, and last name, AND knows that I don't usually use my middle name because I'm not convinced my names go well together. And she wrote the answer to my favorite color in purple pen.

The first week I felt invincible. I felt like the world was my stage. If I could get names down, I could do anything. Or something.

This week I'm learning how much more there is to learn. And I'm learning just how many people are listening. The responsibility is feeling greater.