Just go back to last Monday's post. Nothing has changed. I didn't finish any books last week, and I didn't start any new ones. This is VERY odd for me.
Next week I promise to have different books.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Why I Cannot Be Replaced
- Who would harass the freshmen?
- My friends would miss out on book recommendations.
- No one would get my chocolate chip cookies or sugar cookies anymore (and I've been told both are some of the best).
- My husband goes a little nutty without me for a few days - I'd hate to see what would happen if I was never coming back.
- The world would lose a little humor from my airheadedness, stubbornness, and general cluelessness.
Monday, September 16, 2013
What I'm Reading - A Slightly Smaller List
At school:
I'm just getting ready to start For The Win by Cory Doctrow. I haven't even opened it yet, so I can't give any info about it.
At home:
Same list as last week - and I haven't touched any of those three except for the race book. Tomorrow, I'll start Covet by my friend, Tracey Garvis-Graves.
So, I guess the title is a bit of a lie because I'll actually be reading more books by the end of the day tomorrow.
What I finished last week:
All of these I'll be doing book talks on, so I'm not going to give much info on here about them.
Escape from Camp 14
Across the Universe by Beth Revis
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
I'm just getting ready to start For The Win by Cory Doctrow. I haven't even opened it yet, so I can't give any info about it.
At home:
Same list as last week - and I haven't touched any of those three except for the race book. Tomorrow, I'll start Covet by my friend, Tracey Garvis-Graves.
So, I guess the title is a bit of a lie because I'll actually be reading more books by the end of the day tomorrow.
What I finished last week:
All of these I'll be doing book talks on, so I'm not going to give much info on here about them.
Escape from Camp 14
Across the Universe by Beth Revis
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Monday, September 9, 2013
Students' Voices
It isn't easy to hand over the reins to other people. Especially when we, as adults, don't think that teens/kids know what they're talking about. How could they? They don't have life experiences or general life wisdom.
But, they aren't complete idiots. They know what works for them, which is why I think students should have some say in their education.
I'm not saying they should sit down and tell teachers what they need to do or write the curriculum on their own, but it doesn't hurt to hear what they have to add. Sometimes, it could be more helpful than a bunch of "oldsters" hanging out for a day determining the next 180 days for 14-year-olds.
At the end of every unit, my students do a reflection on their writing. One of the questions I include on this is "What could I have done differently as your teacher to help you be more successful in this unit?" (And saying "Not make me do it" is clearly stated as not being an option for an answer.). This simple question has helped me frequently since I've added it in. Being an "expert" or having done the unit so often, there are things I overlook. Things that I take for granted because they are obvious to me or done so often, I don't think it needs to be taught. That question and answers clue me in to what I've missed. I've also been given ideas on teaching techniques that could help some kids that are different from my normal style. This feedback is a great gauge for me to determine what I'm doing is effective.
So, while some of the suggestions may be off the wall, some of them are helpful. And, I'll continue asking for your input.
But, they aren't complete idiots. They know what works for them, which is why I think students should have some say in their education.
I'm not saying they should sit down and tell teachers what they need to do or write the curriculum on their own, but it doesn't hurt to hear what they have to add. Sometimes, it could be more helpful than a bunch of "oldsters" hanging out for a day determining the next 180 days for 14-year-olds.
At the end of every unit, my students do a reflection on their writing. One of the questions I include on this is "What could I have done differently as your teacher to help you be more successful in this unit?" (And saying "Not make me do it" is clearly stated as not being an option for an answer.). This simple question has helped me frequently since I've added it in. Being an "expert" or having done the unit so often, there are things I overlook. Things that I take for granted because they are obvious to me or done so often, I don't think it needs to be taught. That question and answers clue me in to what I've missed. I've also been given ideas on teaching techniques that could help some kids that are different from my normal style. This feedback is a great gauge for me to determine what I'm doing is effective.
So, while some of the suggestions may be off the wall, some of them are helpful. And, I'll continue asking for your input.
It's Monday, What Are You Reading? - Too much right now!
I've got several books going right now. I'm having a hard time getting excited about anything right now.
At school:
Escape from Camp 14 by Blaine Harden: This is about a man who was born in a North Korean political prisoner camp and managed to escape. He's the only person to have done this successfully. The book details his accounts of the horrors that go on in these camps (even though North Korea denies they even exist). I've just started this one, so I don't have much to say about it yet.
At home:
Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult: Zoe and her husband have tried for years to have a baby, but they've been unsuccessful. After another miscarriage, Zoe is ready to try in vitro again, but her husband refuses and ends up asking for a divorce. I followed the story up to this point, and then it gets a little different. I stopped reading it because it just wasn't holding my interest. I'll end up finishing it, though.
The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow by Rita Leganski: Just started this one, so I don't have much about it yet. I got it on my Kindle because it was an Amazon daily deal - a book for only $3! Bonaventure is a mute child - so he doesn't speak at all. But, he has amazing hearing abilities. Right now, he's still in the womb, but it follows him and discusses what he can hear and how he reacts to it.
My Best Race: 50 Runners and the Finish Line They'll Never Forget by Chris Cooper: Even though is a collection about runners and their races, this has more to do with overcoming any challenge. This one I'm just reading when I have a few minutes because it is easy to pick up and read one race.
At school:
Escape from Camp 14 by Blaine Harden: This is about a man who was born in a North Korean political prisoner camp and managed to escape. He's the only person to have done this successfully. The book details his accounts of the horrors that go on in these camps (even though North Korea denies they even exist). I've just started this one, so I don't have much to say about it yet.
At home:
Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult: Zoe and her husband have tried for years to have a baby, but they've been unsuccessful. After another miscarriage, Zoe is ready to try in vitro again, but her husband refuses and ends up asking for a divorce. I followed the story up to this point, and then it gets a little different. I stopped reading it because it just wasn't holding my interest. I'll end up finishing it, though.
The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow by Rita Leganski: Just started this one, so I don't have much about it yet. I got it on my Kindle because it was an Amazon daily deal - a book for only $3! Bonaventure is a mute child - so he doesn't speak at all. But, he has amazing hearing abilities. Right now, he's still in the womb, but it follows him and discusses what he can hear and how he reacts to it.
My Best Race: 50 Runners and the Finish Line They'll Never Forget by Chris Cooper: Even though is a collection about runners and their races, this has more to do with overcoming any challenge. This one I'm just reading when I have a few minutes because it is easy to pick up and read one race.
Monday, August 26, 2013
Stressing Out
Usually I am very organized when it comes to trips. I start a list of things I need to take about two weeks out, and I even start piling things up around then to pack. I don't have to worry too much about shampoo, soap, etc., because I have all of those in travel sizes in my "go bag."
I leave for California for four days on Friday. I have none of this done.
I don't know much of what we're doing except running a 10K Saturday, the half on Sunday and then a family reunion after that.
I don't even know where we are eating (which is a MAJOR thing for me; I usually know down to the minute when it comes to food).
However, I do have my sub notes ready, and that never happens until the day before. So that's a little odd.
I am a little sad because I won't be bringing Dutch letters to the reunion (my family is originally from Pella) because it was insanely expensive to ship them out there. But, it's not like we ever have a shortage of food (we are a family of food lovers; I'm one of the few lucky ones in the family though who can eat and eat and eat and not gain weight. There is some bitterness about this).
At least, I don't have much going on any night after school this week, so I will have plenty of time to get this all done. I'm just not used to waiting until the last minute.
I leave for California for four days on Friday. I have none of this done.
I don't know much of what we're doing except running a 10K Saturday, the half on Sunday and then a family reunion after that.
I don't even know where we are eating (which is a MAJOR thing for me; I usually know down to the minute when it comes to food).
However, I do have my sub notes ready, and that never happens until the day before. So that's a little odd.
I am a little sad because I won't be bringing Dutch letters to the reunion (my family is originally from Pella) because it was insanely expensive to ship them out there. But, it's not like we ever have a shortage of food (we are a family of food lovers; I'm one of the few lucky ones in the family though who can eat and eat and eat and not gain weight. There is some bitterness about this).
At least, I don't have much going on any night after school this week, so I will have plenty of time to get this all done. I'm just not used to waiting until the last minute.
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Buckle up!
The beginning of a new year holds so much promise. Of course, most of us usually come in with a mix of nerves and excitement or even dread. Yes, even your teachers still feel that way each and every first year of school believe it or not.
Even though I dread having to get up early every day, and it takes me a while to get used to not being able to do things when I want and only getting 20 minutes to eat lunch, once I get into the swing of things, I love my job.
As dorky as it sounds, it is really cool to see all my students grow and change throughout their freshman year. You come in all scared and quiet and leave a little more confident. Don't get me wrong, you are still a little idiotic (I claim - from personal experience and observation, as well as confirmation from others that everyone is really a moron until they are 25, so don't take that personally). But you know a little more about yourself and you can understand Shakespeare (trust me on that - you won't leave my classroom until you can I'm mean like that because I assure you that it makes you a better person).
I do dislike that I can only remember about 10 of your names for the first week. I do learn them but it does take longer than I'd like. And, it also stinks because I don't know you as a person. So the year is really a journey as we get to know each other. And other teachers should be jealous because thanks to all the writing you do in here ( it's OK, you can go ahead and groan), I get to know more about you than they do. Don't worry ... I don't share any of that with any one unless you tell me to or give me permission. You have to trust me to give me the best writing you can, and I won't do anything to damage or jeopardize that.
So buckle up, keep your hands inside the vehicle at all times, and enjoy the ride! (Although be forewarned there may be some big detours with sharp corners, lots of ups and downs, and different routes for different people.)
Even though I dread having to get up early every day, and it takes me a while to get used to not being able to do things when I want and only getting 20 minutes to eat lunch, once I get into the swing of things, I love my job.
As dorky as it sounds, it is really cool to see all my students grow and change throughout their freshman year. You come in all scared and quiet and leave a little more confident. Don't get me wrong, you are still a little idiotic (I claim - from personal experience and observation, as well as confirmation from others that everyone is really a moron until they are 25, so don't take that personally). But you know a little more about yourself and you can understand Shakespeare (trust me on that - you won't leave my classroom until you can I'm mean like that because I assure you that it makes you a better person).
I do dislike that I can only remember about 10 of your names for the first week. I do learn them but it does take longer than I'd like. And, it also stinks because I don't know you as a person. So the year is really a journey as we get to know each other. And other teachers should be jealous because thanks to all the writing you do in here ( it's OK, you can go ahead and groan), I get to know more about you than they do. Don't worry ... I don't share any of that with any one unless you tell me to or give me permission. You have to trust me to give me the best writing you can, and I won't do anything to damage or jeopardize that.
So buckle up, keep your hands inside the vehicle at all times, and enjoy the ride! (Although be forewarned there may be some big detours with sharp corners, lots of ups and downs, and different routes for different people.)
Friday, May 10, 2013
My Main Goal
FYI: I do not like having to be mean and cranky and super strict. I don't like adding new rules and regulations in the middle of the year.
But ...
One of my main jobs is to keep you safe. Or at least make you feel safe.
I've told you all many times throughout the year that as soon as you enter the door, I want you to feel like you're in a safe place. The only thing I want you to have to worry about in here is your -grade - not that someone is going to be rude to you, post something online about you, or - worst case - physically hurt you. Right now, you may not feel safe being in the halls, and that just means that I need to work even harder to make sure my room is a safe place for you.
So, I have to use some new rules. I'm sorry. But, I'd rather you feel safe for those 43 minutes than just ignore the issue.
But ...
One of my main jobs is to keep you safe. Or at least make you feel safe.
I've told you all many times throughout the year that as soon as you enter the door, I want you to feel like you're in a safe place. The only thing I want you to have to worry about in here is your -grade - not that someone is going to be rude to you, post something online about you, or - worst case - physically hurt you. Right now, you may not feel safe being in the halls, and that just means that I need to work even harder to make sure my room is a safe place for you.
So, I have to use some new rules. I'm sorry. But, I'd rather you feel safe for those 43 minutes than just ignore the issue.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Poems
Today during your quick writes, I actually wrote a poem for almost every period (until my head starting hurting so much that thinking didn't help it). None of them are titled, and the last one is still a work in progress ... I just couldn't get the last stanzas where I wanted them and didn't think I fully finished it.
Head pounding
it won't stop
Have to keep going
but just want to sleep
Taken some Tylenol
No relief
Have drank plenty of water
Still no relief
Tried some caffeine
A little better
Still a dull throb
Right behind the eye
Just want it to stop
Want to not cringe
Light makes it worse
Makes me squinty
Movement adds pain
Sometimes makes me dizzy
Just hoping there's no sick
It helps - but ick
Head pounding
Please stop
**********
Darkness never ends
It builds and builds
but never decreases
You're stuck in it
and can't escape
No matter how hard you fight
You don't want
to give in
to its pull.
But its impossible not
to fall into the hole
So, you just tumble down.
The abyss eats at you.
Drowns your soul.
But this never spits you out
It keeps eating
because it has to take it all
***********
It keeps piling on
It never stops
It's not just figuratively
There's stacks and stacks
all around
Many of them
One of me
It doesn't work
Help would be nice
It will never come
Prioritizing takes more time -
time away from the piles
Time I could be lowering them
Instead they just
grow
and grow
and grow
Their growth is:
overwhelming
Scary
Never ending
One day I fear
it will all collapse
and bury me.
No worries then.
Except --
A scary end.
**********
Everything seems brighter
clearer
happier
Moods have changed
improved
grown
You can see growth
flowers
grass
Smells return
fresh
*??????
Not everything improves
nose
eyes
Pollen flies around
runny
scratchy
Head pounding
it won't stop
Have to keep going
but just want to sleep
Taken some Tylenol
No relief
Have drank plenty of water
Still no relief
Tried some caffeine
A little better
Still a dull throb
Right behind the eye
Just want it to stop
Want to not cringe
Light makes it worse
Makes me squinty
Movement adds pain
Sometimes makes me dizzy
Just hoping there's no sick
It helps - but ick
Head pounding
Please stop
**********
Darkness never ends
It builds and builds
but never decreases
You're stuck in it
and can't escape
No matter how hard you fight
You don't want
to give in
to its pull.
But its impossible not
to fall into the hole
So, you just tumble down.
The abyss eats at you.
Drowns your soul.
But this never spits you out
It keeps eating
because it has to take it all
***********
It keeps piling on
It never stops
It's not just figuratively
There's stacks and stacks
all around
Many of them
One of me
It doesn't work
Help would be nice
It will never come
Prioritizing takes more time -
time away from the piles
Time I could be lowering them
Instead they just
grow
and grow
and grow
Their growth is:
overwhelming
Scary
Never ending
One day I fear
it will all collapse
and bury me.
No worries then.
Except --
A scary end.
**********
Everything seems brighter
clearer
happier
Moods have changed
improved
grown
You can see growth
flowers
grass
Smells return
fresh
*??????
Not everything improves
nose
eyes
Pollen flies around
runny
scratchy
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Is Love at First Sight Possible?
If I had been asked this question when I was your age, I would have told you that you needed to lay off the Froot Loops because there was no way such a thing could ever happen. For full disclosure, though, I am one of the least romantic people alive. I have never been mushy, and in fact, I swore up and down that I wasn't going to get married until I met my husband.
That event, though, probably changed my mind.
I met Jeremy while working at the paper in Pensacola. He was the "web guy," and I was on the copy desk. The first time I actually talked to him, I didn't like him. He had the nerve to correct my grammar in a cutline, which I had been lazy about because I hadn't read through what the photog had written yet (later, this became an even bigger strike against him when I found out he hates their/there/they're, but I'm digressing). But, a few weeks later, my stance changed.
We hung out a few times, and after the first time, I realized that there was something special about him. We clicked right away, and I knew that he was going to have a place in my life forever.
So, while it wasn't really love at first site, I do think that when you meet the one - you'll know rather quickly. And usually it will happen when you least expect it.
That event, though, probably changed my mind.
I met Jeremy while working at the paper in Pensacola. He was the "web guy," and I was on the copy desk. The first time I actually talked to him, I didn't like him. He had the nerve to correct my grammar in a cutline, which I had been lazy about because I hadn't read through what the photog had written yet (later, this became an even bigger strike against him when I found out he hates their/there/they're, but I'm digressing). But, a few weeks later, my stance changed.
We hung out a few times, and after the first time, I realized that there was something special about him. We clicked right away, and I knew that he was going to have a place in my life forever.
So, while it wasn't really love at first site, I do think that when you meet the one - you'll know rather quickly. And usually it will happen when you least expect it.
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