Checking-In 2/24

Chris seems to be handling the radiation well.
It snowed here in Colorado and my 20 minute drive to work yesterday was 2 hours long. It was really something. Schools had 90 minute delays, but that doesn’t count for teachers.
I’m teaching one class (Friday) and subbing in 2 others then heading with a co-worker to a Transition//Tri IEP Meeting at the Middle School. Thankfully, I get to count this as “observation” and use it towards Professional Development Time.
Battling a bit of fatigue – not been sleeping well – and am deciding to go to be rather than working on my blog. So, I plan to do some writing this weekend. But wanted everyone to know we were fine and that I have run out of blog posts to share and have to write more. It may be a few days before one shows up – so don’t worry.

Radiation Day

As you have probably read by now, today didn’t go as we expected. It wasn’t a whole day at the hospital and Chris wasn’t sedated. Both of those things were good. I went into work and taught one class. Just before I was ready to leave, Chris called. He told me that he wasn’t having his radiation until 3 (it was 9:30) and he was headed home. So, I met him there.

Cancer Update – 2/22/12

Really not much to report.  Mike drove Chris to U of CO Hospital this morning.  He had his MRI.  His radiation wasn’t scheduled until 3.  So Mike drove him home.  I met Chris there.  Since he wasn’t being sedated, he didn’t need anyone to drive him back to the hospital.  He left at 2:30 and was home by 5:15.  The tumors in Chris’ brain did not grow.  So that is a good thing.

Now we wait to see how he feels. . .

Short Update – 2/22/12

Today, Chris is having a MRI and then radiation on his brain.  I’m going to meet him at the hospital after I finish teaching my one class for the day (I finish at 9:20).  I expect it to be a long day.  I’ll report in after everything is all done.

It’s My Pity Party and I’ll Cry if I Want To

It’s my party, and I’ll cry if I want to
Cry if I want to, cry if I want to
You would cry too if it happened to you

This phrase has been running though my head the last several days.  For those of you who know me well, you know that I rarely have pity parties (although they seem to be more common lately).  Saturday, well, I had a BIG party.

My Formal Observation – Part 1

For those of you who have been following along, you know that I was very undecided about what I was going to teach during my formal observation.  I wasn’t sure if I was going to teach a writing lesson or a reading lesson (you can read the post here).  I was still undecided when I left for work in the morning, although I had two lesson plans prepared.  I got into the car and drove.  I went back and forth in my mind.  Enough so that I missed the turn to go to Castle Rock and ended up having to take a scenic route.

Whoopee: Substituting in Woodworking Part 3

At the end of the day, I walked to the office to turn in my slips from subbing.  This is important because this is how I get paid for the extra teaching I do.  I told the Principal’s Secretary that it was AWFUL!  And my supervisor, an Assistant Principal, was nearby.  He said, “Oh, that was you.  The student told me much of what he did.  So he did own up to it.  Don’t worry about doing the paperwork now.  It’ll wait until Monday.”  He was laughing a little when he told me that the student admitted what he had done.

Over the weekend I wrote up the Referral.  The page explaining what happened was a complete page, typed.  The reasons for the referral were numerous:  unsafe behavior, harassment of a teacher, disrupting class, defiant behavior, and honestly, I don’t remember what else I marked.

I turned the paperwork in on Monday morning and my Administrator looked at it.  He had a meeting with the parent and the student.  When he was talking with the student, he said, “I know this teacher.  Mrs. James teaches in our building.  She teaching English and she was doing us a favor by subbing in Woods.”  Apparently, the student was shocked that I was a regular teacher and not a sub.  The Administrator continued, “Can you understand how she might have been feeling when she told you to go to your seat?  She was probably afraid that you would get hurt.  She didn’t want that.”  The student (and his parent) admitted that I was right in being concerned.  He admitted that he was difficult and out of line.

He was suspended for the day.  It goes on his record.  And my Administrator used it as a teaching tool for this student.  I think all of that was fair.

Now, for the teacher.  I met with my Administrator and showed him the lesson plans.  I told him that I thought that I (not personally, but anyone who was subbing in there) was set up for failure.  That the students were set up for failure and that specifically, the student who got in trouble was set up to fail.  My Administrator agreed.  He felt that having students for 90 minutes in shop class with nothing to do (and power tools around) was not appropriate.  He was going to talk with the department.  So, maybe something good will come of it.

A Different World – Subbing in IB English

Wow.  There was the opportunity for me to sub in IB English and I took it.  First, for those of you who don’t know, IB is International Baccalaureate.  If a student passes the IB exam, they get a TON of college credits.  It is a really big deal.  It is different from AP (Advanced Placement) in that it is an entire program, not individual subjects.  Second, these are the smart, hard-working kids.

That make it very different from my regular classes.  Not that I don’t love my students, I do.  But sometimes it is nice to have kids who can work independently and follow directions.  AND they do a good job.

The lesson plan was to have the kids read their poems (related to the book they are reading and done in pairs) aloud in class and explain their thinking when they were writing the poem and the motif or theme they used in their poem.  All I can say is WOW.

I didn’t really understand their poems, mostly because I haven’t read the novel they were discussing;  The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.  But it was fun listening anyway. I kept the kids moving along and called for the next group, but I didn’t really do anything.

Next, they were to read in their novel and discuss with a partner or small group some questions regarding the reading.  This was all done independently.  There were only a few questions and they were things like, can I go get my instrument from the band room?  Nothing regarding the novel, although I did warn them that I didn’t read it.

The volume was a bit loud, but not chaotic loud, discussion loud.  They were working and discussing and enjoying themselves.  It was nice.  I didn’t have to rein anyone in.  I didn’t have to say all that much.  It was a really nice change of pace.  I got some grading done and I had the time to write this post.

It was a really nice way to end my day.  And I figure that after the Woodworking Classes, I deserved an easy time subbing!

Teaching Writing

Honestly, I don’t think that there is anything scarier for me than teaching writing.  I don’t remember learning to write essays.  I remember writing pages and pages of text with footnotes and annotations.  But I don’t remember learning how to figure out the content of what to write.  It is one of those things that I just do.  I don’t think about it.  I also rarely do a plan for an essay.

Manageable Monday

After saying thanks for not having 2nd period on Valentine’s Day, I prepared to face the students.  The first class of the day is always a bit difficult because the kids don’t want to be out of bed after getting to sleep in over the weekend.  My Monday 2nd period class would be difficult at any time of the day.  However, a couple of kids were missing and it was a bit quiet.  Although my Drama Queen was, well, performing.