The Delta has an ELA initiative and we had two assignments to complete at the end of pre-work. One, which was optional, was to gather books for our classroom libraries. This was so much fun!! I guess you can tell, dear reader, that I am in fact a book nerd. I love books. One…
read more »I was I my classroom, waiting for a parent to show up when the administrators came over the loudspeakers. “Everyone in the portables needs to evacuate into the main building.” We’d heard rumors of storms and had been told by our principal to come to school prepared for some rough weather but so far we…
read more »“You were a real nice teacher, Mr. K!” -T.R., former student, after chatting with me for the first time in 2 years. I’m working in DC for the summer, and I’m living in the same neighborhood as before. This, of course, means the inevitable–bumping into students on the street. I was standing in line at…
read more »Tomorrow morning, the headlines will be dominated by a huge tornado that destroyed 30 square miles of Moore, Oklahoma today. Moore is a community that is just south of Oklahoma City. The OKC metro area is huge. It extends from Edmond and Yukon in the north (possibly even Guthrie, to be honest) and goes all…
read more »I held off on telling my students that I was leaving at the end of my corps member experience. My kids don’t know what Teach For America is, but they do know that all of the white teachers in this town have a weird habit of staying for only a two-year period. And I knew…
read more »“Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter—tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther. . . . And then one fine morning—” On January 7th, I received an e-mail from Teach for America informing me that…
read more »I’m getting fat. I’ve picked up a few awful habits in past months and lately have spent a lot of time dedicated to thinking of why I haven’t taken care of myself. Why I’m not on fire. Why these are statements, now, and not raging exclamations, or questions, at least. I’m disappointed in myself. My…
read more »Lately I’ve felt anything but consistent. Ecstatic? Sometimes. Crushed? Sometimes. Exhausted? A lot of times. It’s the end of year three and despite a mostly clean bedroom, despite the kaleidoscope sunlight dancing on my bed, despite long hair and big plans and so many things that push me up today I feel low. I’ve written…
read more »I only have 19 days left in China and then I head back to the states. Soon after I set my feet on U.S. soil I am going to drive to the Delta. I know it is going to be a whirlwind. I cannot leave sooner because of my current job at an international school.…
read more »I watched the tears stream down his face while his mother continued to abscond him in here broken English. “I work hard every day for you. Your teachers, they work hard every day for you. Is this what you want? Is this the life you want to lead?” Eduardo* continued to cry but didn’t say…
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