Friends, I apologize profusely for being absent so long. I got caught up in this teaching thing... well, that and watching TV... and just forgot to do anything else. But I'm back.
Things have been going delightfully well at school and otherwise. I'm proud to report that I have the names of probably near 75% of my 160 students. That's first and last names. I'm doing better than my cooperating teacher. This is progress.
I've actually taught a few classes here and there. Jeff has been running off to elementary schools all last week to lead Irish Way Kids' Club rallies, frequently leaving me and the special ed co-teacher to handle the 3rd hour. It's a bit of a challenge... the special ed teacher is there for a reason, and there are some discipline issues, but nothing compared to what it would be if she weren't there. It's very nice to have her help managing the major problems. We have one student in that class who, we've been told, is not allowed any hall passes because, rather than going to his locker or the bathroom or wherever he says he's going, he goes down to the principal's office to argue about various school policies. Apparently he feels his powers of logical reasoning are enough to convince the administrators that he should be allowed to drink Coke in class.
I took the 6th hour yesterday because my teacher just had too much other stuff to do, and practically begged me, which I thought was rather funny. The end of next week, when we start our new unit "The Roots of Democracy" I get to teach full time and plan everything and so forth. I'm actually looking forward to it, and trying to get on top of things a little. I spent some time tonight doing a little research on Athenian democracy and Cleisthenes and such. Takes me back to Paideia... But don't worry, I haven't broken out the old Ancient Greece text yet. Yet. hehe.
Although classes have been going well, I've come home with a screaming headache every day which I think is due to the temperature and climate in our classroom. The air conditioning is broken in a very bizarre manner, which causes some rooms to be ice cold and others to resemble a tropical environment. Ours experiences the latter. The teacher next door loaned us a thermometer today. It registered 85-86 degrees pretty steadily all day, with humidity right around 70%. It's disgusting, but hopefully the weather will cool soon.
There was an unfortunate incident in front of the school this afternoon, involving the collision of a middle-aged woman on a bicycle with the new speed-mountains that have been erected in the parking lot. Apparently it was rather gruesome, ambulances were called and everything. I'm hoping there will be no lawsuit. The speed-mountains used to be even bigger than they are now; they ground them down a bit because cars kept getting stuck on them. I haven't had any trouble so far though.
Let's see... other news... This is turning into a novel of a post. I finished the painting in my room, and it really feels very much like home now. I love my new bed. I sleep so much better and no longer have a stiff neck upon awakening. Speaking of awakening, these 5:30 mornings haven't been as bad as I thought they'd be. I've actually pushed it back to nearer to 6:00 and I can still manage to get ready in time. I have a 7th hour prep, and Jeff is always off to football practice, so since I do most of my planning at home where I have a computer, there's no reason for me to stay at school. I'm home most days by 2, which means I can sneak in a nap in the afternoon, which really keeps me going for the evening. I had one today, which is certainly why I'm still awake and typing at this hour.
On that note though, I do need to get to bed. This post is certainly long enough as it is.
Things have been going delightfully well at school and otherwise. I'm proud to report that I have the names of probably near 75% of my 160 students. That's first and last names. I'm doing better than my cooperating teacher. This is progress.
I've actually taught a few classes here and there. Jeff has been running off to elementary schools all last week to lead Irish Way Kids' Club rallies, frequently leaving me and the special ed co-teacher to handle the 3rd hour. It's a bit of a challenge... the special ed teacher is there for a reason, and there are some discipline issues, but nothing compared to what it would be if she weren't there. It's very nice to have her help managing the major problems. We have one student in that class who, we've been told, is not allowed any hall passes because, rather than going to his locker or the bathroom or wherever he says he's going, he goes down to the principal's office to argue about various school policies. Apparently he feels his powers of logical reasoning are enough to convince the administrators that he should be allowed to drink Coke in class.
I took the 6th hour yesterday because my teacher just had too much other stuff to do, and practically begged me, which I thought was rather funny. The end of next week, when we start our new unit "The Roots of Democracy" I get to teach full time and plan everything and so forth. I'm actually looking forward to it, and trying to get on top of things a little. I spent some time tonight doing a little research on Athenian democracy and Cleisthenes and such. Takes me back to Paideia... But don't worry, I haven't broken out the old Ancient Greece text yet. Yet. hehe.
Although classes have been going well, I've come home with a screaming headache every day which I think is due to the temperature and climate in our classroom. The air conditioning is broken in a very bizarre manner, which causes some rooms to be ice cold and others to resemble a tropical environment. Ours experiences the latter. The teacher next door loaned us a thermometer today. It registered 85-86 degrees pretty steadily all day, with humidity right around 70%. It's disgusting, but hopefully the weather will cool soon.
There was an unfortunate incident in front of the school this afternoon, involving the collision of a middle-aged woman on a bicycle with the new speed-mountains that have been erected in the parking lot. Apparently it was rather gruesome, ambulances were called and everything. I'm hoping there will be no lawsuit. The speed-mountains used to be even bigger than they are now; they ground them down a bit because cars kept getting stuck on them. I haven't had any trouble so far though.
Let's see... other news... This is turning into a novel of a post. I finished the painting in my room, and it really feels very much like home now. I love my new bed. I sleep so much better and no longer have a stiff neck upon awakening. Speaking of awakening, these 5:30 mornings haven't been as bad as I thought they'd be. I've actually pushed it back to nearer to 6:00 and I can still manage to get ready in time. I have a 7th hour prep, and Jeff is always off to football practice, so since I do most of my planning at home where I have a computer, there's no reason for me to stay at school. I'm home most days by 2, which means I can sneak in a nap in the afternoon, which really keeps me going for the evening. I had one today, which is certainly why I'm still awake and typing at this hour.
On that note though, I do need to get to bed. This post is certainly long enough as it is.
posted by stoerzie at
11:09 PM
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