I should probably have mentioned that I hate my job. It is hard. There’s a constant stream of angry middle school students in front of me, who aren’t sent to me until the situation is so dire that the teacher feels helpless. They are explosive and defiant and wildly irrational and I have to…
read more »Day 166: We had indoor recess today, due to rain. I had to tell five girls to get into the classroom three times; they finally went in when the building sub walked by and said, “Do what you’re told.” So, you know, that had me in a good mood, the whole not-following-my-directions thing. TC was the…
read more »So the last few days of my life have been CRAZY! I was supposed to arrive Home at 7:00am Friday, but one of my flights was delayed and I missed my slight to LAX. Ugh! So I didn’t get in until Friday night at 9pm (After purchasing an additional ticket because the Chinese airline forgot…
read more »Day 165: Every time I teach a lab, I make a point to reinforce the importance of respecting materials, even when they are everyday materials that you might have in your house. This usually results in on-task behavior. And then, sometimes, kids are kids. Like Friday, when JM ate the bread that was meant to be…
read more »Day 164: Thursday was our annual 6th grade field trip to Blue Hills, a hiking area and nature preserve south of Boston. Last year, I had to sit out due to car accident-induced concussion and whiplash, so I was excited to get to participate this time around. The weather was perfect – 85 degrees and sunny.…
read more »Day 163: Tuesday, I committed to a better Wednesday. By better, I mean not only helping my kids be more focused in class, but also writing plans that were worthy of class – not end-of-May crap. Mission largely accomplished. Fourth period was grossed out by the decomposing rabbit slideshow I began class with, and then was…
read more »Helping students to internalize knowledge, skills, and mindsets (one of those tfa phrases that has stuck with me!) is a large part of what we do as teachers. Of course, there’s also bringing out the positive already in the child, but that’s for another day. What I’d like to celebrate today is those parents, coaches,…
read more »Day 162: Sometimes, you just get caught off guard. Tuesday morning started innocently enough. I had two classes come in and nail class. And that’s despite the fact that second period featured a skit on energy pyramids that totally bombed last year (ah, the wonders of improved management). I let myself think it was going to…
read more »I am walking a hungry boy home from dinner when we see his mom on the porch across the street. She doesn’t have custody and he’s seen her very sporadically over the last year. His face lights up like he’s ten years younger and he waves his hand over his head while he yells “Mom!”…
read more »It’s called The Defining Decade by Meg Jay. It’s really helpful, especially for those of us who are just finishing TFA. Oh yeah, I’m done with TFA, by the way, as of Friday afternoon. I can’t even write about it yet — too much to process. I’m packing up, and leaving Arkansas on Wednesday. Wow.
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