*sigh of relief*

Well I got to try some of the things I've learned so far on human guinea pigs. That was pretty fun. They were just what I expected from middle grades: energetic, open, and well -sharp. I didn't manage my time quite as well as I had hoped but I think we made some major progress. Preparation was a huge thing here, I will definitely do more prep work next time. I thought I was asking good questions but they weren't probative enough so I still had to be more involved than I had hoped. The students didn't read the problem as I did so that was different. It was hard to get them to understand what was going on in the problem without just telling them. It's funny because they made it MORE complex than it was written. Weird. I think my interaction with the students was good. I felt comfortable talking to them and listening to them. I found that they did better when they all worked together and bounced their ideas rather than just the small groups. I had one antsy student that was wrangled after he saw the other students interest in the task. I am looking forward to the notes from my observers on my performance. I do think the kids had a positive experience though and that means a lot to me.