Haven't had much time to write lately, but I'm still here. What to talk about? The twins turned seven on Sunday and they are madly in love with Lego Star Wars these days. Kara made them an R2D2 cake and it turned out really well (it also tasted yummy). Julie had their party at the park, so everyone had fun, there was plenty of room, the kids had a blast on the outdoor toys, and no one had too much clean up to deal with. It was fun to see Emily and Ian, along with Brian (Josh's out of town family) all here for the party. Since their dad couldn't be here, it was really wonderful of everyone else to make the effort and come. Josh and his unit will be heading to Iraq soon, so please keep him (and all of them) in your prayers.
School continues to go well. I feel a bit overwhelmed with the responsibility of being the department chair, but I'm trying to do a good job. Today there was a mixup over whether or not the sophomore classes could take their six week's test over one or two days (allowing a second day gives them more time to complete the reading and avoids having kids rush through the test). First thing this morning we were told that it all had to be finished today. Then this afternoon, after everyone had hurried through it, we hear that they can have tomorrow. I knew that some talk about giving more time was going on during the day, but no one ever gave us the official word and I certainly couldn't make that decision at my level; it had to come from further up. So, now I have some upset teachers and I feel guilty that I couldn't do more, but I really didn't have the authority to do more.....Hm....responsibility without power.....not much fun sometimes.
On another front, a parent who was upset with me a few weeks ago, now turns to me to help her kid. Apparently I said something that upset one of my students one day. As you know, I talk a lot and we discuss current events all the time in my class. Anyway, although I have no idea what I said, apparently I inadvertently upset a young lady and her mother was very unhappy. She called our dean, complaining long and loud about how I had been disrespectful toward her culture. (Schools are very multicultural these days, and really, to avoid offending anyone, you would have to limit your comments to the weather). But I digress. This mom came to open house, we talked, I apologized and explained that I would never intentionally hurt a student and I really am harmless, and I felt pretty good by the time she left. She must think I'm okay now, too, because she needed to find a teacher to help her daughter with a rather sticky problem, and guess who got the call? That would be me. Additionally, the girl was virtually silent before her mom and I talked, and now she participates in class every day. So, at least that one worked out well.
By the way, I do realize that my posts about school have to be intentionally vague--confidentiality laws prohibit and specificity at all. But, I have to admit, it is interesting every day.
As some of you know, I stand at my door and shake hands with my students as they enter. I greet them by name, we talk briefly, and, amazingly, I have almost no discipline problems. It's a bit magical what a personal touch can do. Anyway, it's funny to see students that I had last year passing me in the hall. They too often stop for a handshake--even some of the ones who were, shall we say troublesome, come by and shake my hand. Amazing.......... Teenagers are an interesting group of people.
Yea! It looks like I have enough kids signed up for next summer's Europe trip!! With six paying students, I go free!!!!! I'm thrilled. And, I have some really great kids going. We will spend two weeks, beginning June 22, in London, Paris, Berlin, Prague, Budapest, and Vienna. By the way, adults are welcome to come along, so if anyone is interested, let me know. The trip includes air fare, hotels, trains, busses, two meals a day, and entrance to some sights, all for about $3,000. Of course, if you're a shopping maniac, you can certainly spent a lot more, but all you really have to do is pay for lunch every day, a few subway tickets, and entrance to things that are not included in the tour. I'm really getting excited to go. I love, love, love to travel.
Kara is absolutely swamped with school this year- 4 AP classes, 2 preAP, plus symphony orchestra. It's a big load. She basically comes home, does homework, goes to bed, gets up, studies some more, goes to seminary, school, home, homework, repeat, repeat, repeat. Since she was officially changed from the class of 2010 to the class of 2009, though, something truly wonderful has happened. In addition to graduating a year early, she is now 4th in her new senior class, when she was 12th in the other class. (she's wondering where she can go to be first). I'm hoping this helps in the scholarship quest.
Lauren will be graduating from BYU in December and WE ARE SO PROUD OF HER!!!!!!!!! I can't believe she's all grown up.
I loved the Relief Society (church meeting for women) broadcast on Saturday. I was particularly impressed with Elder Uchdorf. (I probably got his name wrong---sorry). He talked about all of us doing creative things and I realized that even though I have no talent for needlework, I'm no solo singer, I don't play anything well (just plunk a bit on the piano), I am very creative. I create new ideas and bring new light and knowledge into the lives of my students every day. My job is endlessly creative and I love it.
And of course, I cried almost all the way through the children's presentation at church on Sunday. They sang so beautifully; their testimonies of Jesus were so sweet. It was wonderful.
Plus--church ended with a delightful discovery. An old friend, one I haven't seen in almost 30 years, has moved back into our ward. It was so neat to see him and meet his daughter. Old friends are a treasure.
Not much else to share today.......later........
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Scattered Thoughts
I'm thinking about, praying for, worrying about:
My friend Jenny and her family who lost everything in the deluge called Hurricane Ike.
My friends Jenni and Bonnie and the rest of their tribe whose father has had a series of strokes and is now in rehab.
My son-in-law Josh who is training in Georgia and headed to Iraq
My daughter Julie and my wonderful grandsons who are missing their husband/dad
Some of the kids at my school (and really, kids everywhere) who often have very difficult lives at home........
I pray and try to help and I really feel like my calling in life is to teach. I love my students. I love my school. I love the people I work with. I know that the Lord has blessed me with this love so that I can go out and do some good in the world. So, I'm trying to do that.
So, you must be asking, what's a day in the life of a teacher like? I'll try to tell you.....
I try to arrive at school by 7 a.m. so that I can have a few minutes of quiet to compose my thoughts and prepare for the onslaught. Once the bell rings, everything moves very quickly and time to think is at a premium. The first bell rings at 7:25 and I'm at the door, a smile on my face, trying to remember all these wonderful children's names, and shaking every hand as they walk in. I greet each one by name and welcome him or her to class. I think knowing their names and taking the time to see them as important individuals is vital.
First period begins at 7:35. It's an AP Language and Composition course, devoted to rhetorical analysis and argument. We read and analyze non-fiction--lots of essays and speeches and controversial arguments. Today we learned how to determine the tone of an author's writing. We started with identifying tone with something simple--music. We listened to three versions of The Star-Spangled Banner-Whitney Houston singing it, Jimmy Hendrix playing on his electric guitar, and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra performing a more traditional version. Then we discussed the differences in tone, what we saw as the each performers' attitude toward the work, and how that translates to deciphering tone in written works. We then looked at a whole series of rhetorical terms that they will need to know in order to analyze rhetoric well. Their assignment is a poster and teaching project in which they will teach each other many, many more terms--familiar things like metaphor and simile and unfamiliar ones like epistrophe and asyndeton. Tone was the first term on the list, so that's why I taught it today. We then divided into eight groups and each group analyzed a short passage to determine the author's tone. The passages are great--some are hilariously funny, other ironic, one is an excerpt from Jonathan Swift's satire "A Modest Proposal" and one is a very angry tirade about trumped-up charges and a kangaroo court. I explained unfamiliar terms and they tried to discover tone. It's rewarding to see them catch on, to lead them with questions and to continue digging with why? and what evidence from the text do you have to support this? They are smart and quick and fun to work with. Our discussion finished as the bell rang, off they went, and in came second period. Rewind, repeat.
Third period is a different class--AP Literature and Composition--a course which focuses on imaginative literature. It's lots of poetry, drama, fiction--totally and completely different from the AP Language course. I feel much more comfortable with AP Language, mostly because my training is more in journalism and I'm very familiar with nonfiction. I like it, I know how to analyze it, and I have a lot of fun with it. I'm working my way into the Lit course. I'm no expert on poetry, but I think I'm doing okay on analysis of fiction. This week we're working on understanding how an author creates a character in a story. We read what the author gives and make educated conclusions about the characters. The little acronym we use is SATDO. Look at what the character says, the character's appearance, what the character thinks, what the character does, and what others say about the character. From that we can discuss the character as someone we know, we see how the author created this person. Today we read a very, very short story that had two characters and tonight the students are writing a one page discussion of both characters. The story is called "Ripe Figs" by Kate Chopin. Here it is--see what you can come up with regarding these two:
Ripe Figs
by Kate Chopin
(1851-1904)
Maman-Nainaine said that when the figs were ripe Babette might go to visit her cousins down on Bayou-Boeuf, where the sugar cane grows. Not that the ripening of figs had the least thing to do with it, but that is the way Maman-Nainaine was.
It seemed to Babette a very long time to wait; for the leaves upon the trees were tender yet, and the figs were like little hard, green marbles.
But warm rains came along and plenty of strong sunshine; and though Maman-Nainaine was as patient as the statue of la Madone, and Babette as restless as a humming-bird, the first thing they both knew it was hot summer-time. Every day Babette danced out to where the fig-trees were in a long line against the fence. She walked slowly beneath them, carefully peering between the gnarled, spreading branches. But each time she came disconsolate away again. What she saw there finally was something that made her sing and dance the whole day long.
When Maman-Nainaine sat down in her stately way to breakfast, the following morning, her muslin cap standing like an aureole about her white, placid face, Babette approached. She bore a dainty porcelain platter, which she set down before her godmother. It contained a dozen purple figs, fringed around with their rich, green leaves.
"Ah," said Maman-Nainaine, arching her eyebrows, "how early the figs have ripened this year!"
"Oh," said Babette, "I think they have ripened very late."
"Babette," continued Maman-Nainaine, as she peeled the very plumpest figs with her pointed silver fruit-knife, "you will carry my love to them all down on Bayou-Boeuf. And tell your tante Frosine I shall look for her at Toussaint--when the chrysanthemums are in bloom."
See--really short.......
Fourth period--my conference period--used to prepare lesson plans, check in on new teachers, grade papers, answer emails, talk with administrators, talk with parents--all sorts of things. The three brand new English 3 teachers all have conference this period, so I usually visit with them to see how things are going and I also grade and plan.
5th period--back to AP Language and our study of Tone
6th period--Conference period for my duties as department chair--more emails to answer and send, mentoring for our new teachers, consulting with everyone in the department on whatever they need. This month we're doing a book study on Deeper Reading, a book filled with ideas on how to get kids into reading and also get them to read more than once and with greater understanding. I'm also working on a book study for department heads on classroom management techniques that work. Plenty to keep one busy.....
7th period--one more group of AP Language kids and our fun discussion of Tone.
The final bell rings at 2:45 and teachers take a deep breath. It's almost like running a marathon. You have to pace yourself and keep the energy up all day. Every class deserves your best, and you must try to give it. I love my work, but until I started teaching, I had no idea how completely exhausting it is.
So, now you know.....Hopefully you haven't been bored on this journey through a day in high school. Come visit some time and see all the action in person.
My friend Jenny and her family who lost everything in the deluge called Hurricane Ike.
My friends Jenni and Bonnie and the rest of their tribe whose father has had a series of strokes and is now in rehab.
My son-in-law Josh who is training in Georgia and headed to Iraq
My daughter Julie and my wonderful grandsons who are missing their husband/dad
Some of the kids at my school (and really, kids everywhere) who often have very difficult lives at home........
I pray and try to help and I really feel like my calling in life is to teach. I love my students. I love my school. I love the people I work with. I know that the Lord has blessed me with this love so that I can go out and do some good in the world. So, I'm trying to do that.
So, you must be asking, what's a day in the life of a teacher like? I'll try to tell you.....
I try to arrive at school by 7 a.m. so that I can have a few minutes of quiet to compose my thoughts and prepare for the onslaught. Once the bell rings, everything moves very quickly and time to think is at a premium. The first bell rings at 7:25 and I'm at the door, a smile on my face, trying to remember all these wonderful children's names, and shaking every hand as they walk in. I greet each one by name and welcome him or her to class. I think knowing their names and taking the time to see them as important individuals is vital.
First period begins at 7:35. It's an AP Language and Composition course, devoted to rhetorical analysis and argument. We read and analyze non-fiction--lots of essays and speeches and controversial arguments. Today we learned how to determine the tone of an author's writing. We started with identifying tone with something simple--music. We listened to three versions of The Star-Spangled Banner-Whitney Houston singing it, Jimmy Hendrix playing on his electric guitar, and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra performing a more traditional version. Then we discussed the differences in tone, what we saw as the each performers' attitude toward the work, and how that translates to deciphering tone in written works. We then looked at a whole series of rhetorical terms that they will need to know in order to analyze rhetoric well. Their assignment is a poster and teaching project in which they will teach each other many, many more terms--familiar things like metaphor and simile and unfamiliar ones like epistrophe and asyndeton. Tone was the first term on the list, so that's why I taught it today. We then divided into eight groups and each group analyzed a short passage to determine the author's tone. The passages are great--some are hilariously funny, other ironic, one is an excerpt from Jonathan Swift's satire "A Modest Proposal" and one is a very angry tirade about trumped-up charges and a kangaroo court. I explained unfamiliar terms and they tried to discover tone. It's rewarding to see them catch on, to lead them with questions and to continue digging with why? and what evidence from the text do you have to support this? They are smart and quick and fun to work with. Our discussion finished as the bell rang, off they went, and in came second period. Rewind, repeat.
Third period is a different class--AP Literature and Composition--a course which focuses on imaginative literature. It's lots of poetry, drama, fiction--totally and completely different from the AP Language course. I feel much more comfortable with AP Language, mostly because my training is more in journalism and I'm very familiar with nonfiction. I like it, I know how to analyze it, and I have a lot of fun with it. I'm working my way into the Lit course. I'm no expert on poetry, but I think I'm doing okay on analysis of fiction. This week we're working on understanding how an author creates a character in a story. We read what the author gives and make educated conclusions about the characters. The little acronym we use is SATDO. Look at what the character says, the character's appearance, what the character thinks, what the character does, and what others say about the character. From that we can discuss the character as someone we know, we see how the author created this person. Today we read a very, very short story that had two characters and tonight the students are writing a one page discussion of both characters. The story is called "Ripe Figs" by Kate Chopin. Here it is--see what you can come up with regarding these two:
Ripe Figs
by Kate Chopin
(1851-1904)
Maman-Nainaine said that when the figs were ripe Babette might go to visit her cousins down on Bayou-Boeuf, where the sugar cane grows. Not that the ripening of figs had the least thing to do with it, but that is the way Maman-Nainaine was.
It seemed to Babette a very long time to wait; for the leaves upon the trees were tender yet, and the figs were like little hard, green marbles.
But warm rains came along and plenty of strong sunshine; and though Maman-Nainaine was as patient as the statue of la Madone, and Babette as restless as a humming-bird, the first thing they both knew it was hot summer-time. Every day Babette danced out to where the fig-trees were in a long line against the fence. She walked slowly beneath them, carefully peering between the gnarled, spreading branches. But each time she came disconsolate away again. What she saw there finally was something that made her sing and dance the whole day long.
When Maman-Nainaine sat down in her stately way to breakfast, the following morning, her muslin cap standing like an aureole about her white, placid face, Babette approached. She bore a dainty porcelain platter, which she set down before her godmother. It contained a dozen purple figs, fringed around with their rich, green leaves.
"Ah," said Maman-Nainaine, arching her eyebrows, "how early the figs have ripened this year!"
"Oh," said Babette, "I think they have ripened very late."
"Babette," continued Maman-Nainaine, as she peeled the very plumpest figs with her pointed silver fruit-knife, "you will carry my love to them all down on Bayou-Boeuf. And tell your tante Frosine I shall look for her at Toussaint--when the chrysanthemums are in bloom."
See--really short.......
Fourth period--my conference period--used to prepare lesson plans, check in on new teachers, grade papers, answer emails, talk with administrators, talk with parents--all sorts of things. The three brand new English 3 teachers all have conference this period, so I usually visit with them to see how things are going and I also grade and plan.
5th period--back to AP Language and our study of Tone
6th period--Conference period for my duties as department chair--more emails to answer and send, mentoring for our new teachers, consulting with everyone in the department on whatever they need. This month we're doing a book study on Deeper Reading, a book filled with ideas on how to get kids into reading and also get them to read more than once and with greater understanding. I'm also working on a book study for department heads on classroom management techniques that work. Plenty to keep one busy.....
7th period--one more group of AP Language kids and our fun discussion of Tone.
The final bell rings at 2:45 and teachers take a deep breath. It's almost like running a marathon. You have to pace yourself and keep the energy up all day. Every class deserves your best, and you must try to give it. I love my work, but until I started teaching, I had no idea how completely exhausting it is.
So, now you know.....Hopefully you haven't been bored on this journey through a day in high school. Come visit some time and see all the action in person.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Too, too much
I have so much to catch up on, I hardly know where to begin. I guess we'll start with school. Exciting and Exhausting. That's how I would describe the first two weeks. The kids are great, great, great. I love teaching. Even being department chair has gone well. Everyone in our department is terrific--always willing to help each other, share whatever they have, offer advice, support, it's great. But, at our school, we've been living in scheduling hell. Classes with waaaay too many kids, and a brand new teacher with four different classes to teach--like teaching English 1, 2, 3, and 4 every day. In teacher lingo we call that four preps and it's stressful and difficult. I have been assigned as a mentor to my brand-new-teacher neighbor and he had four preps. After seemingly endless hassles, finally, finally he has only three. I can't go in to it all, but I do feel good about trying to stand up for him and be his advocate and also for standing up for my students, who did not deserve to be crammed into a classroom. I don't want to be a whiner or a problem, but I do plan to fight for what I see as the best interests of my teachers and students. I'm can say, though, that I have absolutely no ambition to move up the administration ladder. Dept. head is enough (sometimes more than enough) for me. My greatest talent lies in teaching and that's what I want to do.
How about a little politics? Was Rudy great the other night or not? His comments on Obama voting "present" rather than yes or no on more than 100 issues as a state senator were priceless. I also loved this one: "Change is not a destination, and hope is not a strategy." By the way, if you're interested in politics, you should go to www.nationalreview.com--best political commentary (from a conservative point of view) available anywhere. Smart people--great analysis.
And wasn't Sarah Palin fantastic? Mayors, as opposed to community organizers, have actual responsibilities. (As do governors). I can't help it, I love a great strike and she was masterful. I know that the president doesn't actually have the power to fulfill all the promises these people make, but he (or she) can have a huge impact on national security and that's the number one issue for me. If we're attacked, suddenly healthcare and the economy become far less important. We need to secure our nation as well as we can, then worry about those other issues (at least in my humble opinion). I have definitely had problems with McCain in the past--I disagreed with him on campaign finance reform and immigration reform as two examples--but he really "gets" security. Obama does not. Sarah Palin is great on all the other conservative issues, and maybe she can persuade McCain to move a bit on his opposition to drilling in Alaska, and on his fairly open-borders stance on immigration. By the way, I have no opposition to the immigration of hard-working, law-abiding people. I just want a system where we know who is coming in--I'd really like to keep the terrorists OUT.
It's getting late, I'm way behind on grading, and I gotta run. More later in the week.
How about a little politics? Was Rudy great the other night or not? His comments on Obama voting "present" rather than yes or no on more than 100 issues as a state senator were priceless. I also loved this one: "Change is not a destination, and hope is not a strategy." By the way, if you're interested in politics, you should go to www.nationalreview.com--best political commentary (from a conservative point of view) available anywhere. Smart people--great analysis.
And wasn't Sarah Palin fantastic? Mayors, as opposed to community organizers, have actual responsibilities. (As do governors). I can't help it, I love a great strike and she was masterful. I know that the president doesn't actually have the power to fulfill all the promises these people make, but he (or she) can have a huge impact on national security and that's the number one issue for me. If we're attacked, suddenly healthcare and the economy become far less important. We need to secure our nation as well as we can, then worry about those other issues (at least in my humble opinion). I have definitely had problems with McCain in the past--I disagreed with him on campaign finance reform and immigration reform as two examples--but he really "gets" security. Obama does not. Sarah Palin is great on all the other conservative issues, and maybe she can persuade McCain to move a bit on his opposition to drilling in Alaska, and on his fairly open-borders stance on immigration. By the way, I have no opposition to the immigration of hard-working, law-abiding people. I just want a system where we know who is coming in--I'd really like to keep the terrorists OUT.
It's getting late, I'm way behind on grading, and I gotta run. More later in the week.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
A Quick Note
No time to actually write much--way too tired (you wouldn't believe how exhausting it is to teach rooms full of teenagers every day). Anyway, school has officially started and life is totally crazy. I'll try to write a long (probably exhausting to read) saga of what's happening in a couple of days.
We had a wonderful time with Lauren and now she's gone back to BYU. I miss her silliness and her hugs and her funny jokes and her crazy songs and her argyle socks cluttering up my living room.........
We had a wonderful time with Lauren and now she's gone back to BYU. I miss her silliness and her hugs and her funny jokes and her crazy songs and her argyle socks cluttering up my living room.........
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