3 of my recent favorites

These have been playing in my jeep for the past week. I just can't stop listening to them.

Today is kind of like a weird Friday for me. Tomorrow I have the day off, but I have to spend time driving over seven hours total to get to a job fair for teachers. I'm not complaining, really, but I also can't say I'm too thrilled. It is nice to have a little extra time to sleep in the morning. So, I feel rather adventurous and called my friend to have dinner with me! :) I plan on getting the soup and bread--it's that kind of weather today.

I think I mentioned how frustrating and bad the last couple of days went before Thanksgiving break, so I want to update to inform you that the past two days have been great! Maybe it's because we haven't had a huge load of work for class, but I really think the kids understand that even though they frustrate me, and I frustrate them, I still come back each day to help them learn. They know I'm not getting paid, and they see the patience I have with them.

Some ideas for classroom management that I've used, and they really work!

1. Broken-record: If a kid tries to argue with you, simply restate what you asked them to do. Say it again if they try with another argument. This really does work.

2. Bathroom Passes-YES! Even high school students need these, depending on the class. I gave each student 6 BR passes for about a month and a half. They reacted surprisingly well! I told them in the beginning that any bathroom passes they save will be Extra Credit. This is what made the students really go with it. They were not being punished--rather, they were getting order put upon them--however, a reward for that order is always nice. Which leads me to number 3...

3. Positive Reinforcement/Reward for BR passes. In the end of the 6 week period, I gave them two options:
a) I will take the amount of BR passes left over, double that, and add the points to your test
b) 1-3 BR passes = 1 Free HW pass, 4-6 = 2 Free HW passes

They loved having the CHOICE between the two, and the idea that one would help them with their grade RIGHT NOW, and one would help them more LATER. I heard no complaints, and they actually seemed excited to choose. In order to keep things organized, I passed out their progress reports so they could see their grades. I then had them write choice A or B on the back and give it to me.

I absolutely love this student teaching experience and how much I've learned. I can't believe I have a little less than two weeks. The students are all asking me if they can add me on facebook (noooo) or if I can be a teacher at their school. That makes me feel awesome. It shows I'm doing something right.

Since they asked so much about me yesterday and my ring and my life and my dog and my "boyfriend," I decided to show them a quick few pictures of .. ME. They loved it. After they had asked so many questions, I realized that they didn't know anything about me, except that I was an unpaid student teacher and my college. Now they actually see that I'm a person, too, and I really can have (even more fun) outside of the classroom. I even showed them the (waist up) Halloween picture of my friends and I all dressed up. They loved it.

Until next time... I'm off to get some Joe and dinner! Bringing my camera....

Ok fine...

...I'll share with you the other item I got a great deal on during Black Friday...

Last Day of Break

Leftovers

I am eating leftovers from yesterday, reminding myself of the fun I had over my small break. We left Tuesday evening and returned last night. I had a great time with family and friends, and I spent a good amount of time shopping for black Friday, which is something I always used to say I would never do.

One specific difference between where I live and "back home" is how many people I see (though this is changing because of how many students I teach I'm starting to see in town). The first outing I took with my friend Dana was one filled with seeing people I know from the area. Right when I was telling Dana, "This sounds mean, but I really just don't want to see anyone I know in here," as we headed into Walmart, I saw one of my favorite people in the entire world: Daniel. It was so worth it! He gives the best hugs, and I felt how much I miss him sometimes!

Thanksgiving was nice. We went to J's grandparents' house for meal #1 and my parents' place for meal #2. We only had snacks at the first, and the latter was the grand finale. It was great to see everyone! I held my niece for a while, bottle-fed her, and watched her while she slept in my arms for almost an hour. Someone said I looked like "a natural," which is ridiculous, but I still liked hearing it.

Black Friday was crazy. At first, I had planned to go out around ten with my friend Dana for some light shopping. This was until J and his sister said that they would like to experience the early morning craziness. I decided to go with them because J had never gone, and I wanted to see his reaction. Turns out, this year was definitely worth it!! As much as I hate spending (too much) money, I bought a lot of wonderful things that are going to help now and in the future.

For instance, I got a great deal on:

1. GPS
2. Printer--desperately needed one!
3. Blu-Ray DVDs
4. Paper shredder
5. a few Christmas gifts...

and one more thing......but that's my favorite, and I want to wait a few days. It needs a grand entrance.

On the topic of GPS, I want you to know that I was once a strong enemy of the idea, and I completely hated them. I believed that "they make people stupid." Even though I still believe that to an extent, and I plan to keep myself from being distracted by it, it already helped me! On the way back from the hometown, I wanted to snag a coffee at one of my favorite places. The only way I usually go there is through downtown. However, I turned on the GPS for fun to see what it would say. Sure enough, there was a way to get there from the bypass that I didn't even know about! We got there in just a few minutes--far less than what it would have taken if I had gone through town. So worth it!

After getting in really late last night, I slept in until noon today, and I've been relaxing with movies and animals and playing with my new purchases. I'm going to spend the remainder of the day doing the same, but I'm also going to do some school work and go downtown! Some of my good friends are in town, and I'm really excited to go hang out for a bit. I'm so glad I still have Sunday! AND get this--two more weeks of direct teaching, and I think I'll be done!! CRAZY.

PS: Job fair 3.5 hours away this Wednesday. Wish me luck!

PS

Have I shared this picture with you? It's a favorite of mine. I'm so punk.

Late night, baby!

You will be shocked to know that it is 11:23 pm and I am still awake. Darn, it feels good!! Do I have to work tomorrow, you ask. Yes, of course! However, it is the last day before Thanksgiving break, all my classes are watching movies, and I am frankly ecstatic. I spent most of my evening grading papers, but at least I can hand them back tomorrow! I was observed today, and she said I did a great job (despite the lack of respect that went on today).

In other news, I did something girly and bought lip gloss tonight. Maybe it's my attempt to look older for the job? (Kids guessed I was 19 the other day.... then they jumped up to 27, then back down to settle around 25)--(No I didn't tell them my age!)

I can tell a big difference--though I have no other make up on, so it might be hard to even notice:

Disclaimer: Ignore the crazed (I'm up way too late) eyes and the messy, messy hair.

And lastly:

Something I've thought about lately is this continuing this blog when I'm a teacher; I don't think I can. If I do, it would have to stay private in some way or another, or be completely anonymous, which is very hard for me to do. I would really miss writing (yes, to the many, many people that read... and I say so much!) because it puts my mind at ease for a variety of reasons. Writing in a journal with pen is my roots, but typing is a way to write while I think---almost real time.

Any ideas of how I can continue? As you ponder, consider the many things students could do with my information and/or pictures if they were to get a hold of them. It makes me a bit uneasy.

Until then....

Oldies

Every now and then, I sift through my old film-developed photos (so sad I've lowered myself to mostly digital) and find some fun ones I've forgotten about or haven't seen for a while. Here's what I came up with tonight:
(for some reason, this thing doesn't want to upload them the way I told it to. Sorry for the sideways pictures)

Beach Trip 10th

Hippie Competition

Good Times

A favorite of mine.

Beach Trip '06?

LOL.

Two favorite boys at the time--love this picture!

Oh god.. cross country.

Laurie and I! Didn't even know I had this one.

What a tired, sad face Edgar Allan Poe had and what respect I have for him. He reacted beautifully to the horrifying deaths that repeated throughout his life with melodious, dark words. These words soon formed works such as "The Raven" that give readers a bitter taste of his sorrowful ideas, but still only a taste of what he went through.

Tomorrow when I teach a lesson on Poe, I hope to portray to them the marvelous achievements he had, considering the events in his life.

I will read a quick biography on him while they fill in the blanks, and I will show a wonderful A & E biography on his life that gives a little more than what I will read aloud. Overall, I hope to show the students his life, his importance, and how he traveled as best as he could through life.

TGI(almost)F

Thank God!

No need to say much about my day today except that it was exhausting! As you know, my teacher is out for a conferences, so I have the kids through Tuesday. Turns out, today the spec ed teacher was out, and she'll be out tomorrow too--so that just meant more substitutes all over the place and more of me being the head-man....which I actually prefer, but not when I have subs sitting in the back watching haha. Oh well! Anyway, the kids were a little crazier than usual--tried a little more on me than other days--I think they were mad because I didn't bring them food. Ah, the life of a teacher--the moods change every day. I also had to stop three different people from almost starting fights today, which is never fun. By the end of the day, I was SO ready to go home.. but I had to go to a school meeting instead. Anyway, I need a shower and some down time so I can go to sleep soon. Have a good Friday!

To show the class on Monday...

I had a kid tell me I was his favorite "teacher" today. It was really nice. As much as I replied hastily with, "it's all lies" (jokingly, too), he repeated himself again rather seriously. Even though this student probably likes me because he's in my end-of-the-day class, and I'm in a goofy mood usually, and it's a small class, so I can pay them all attention, it still felt good to hear. He's hoping I'll get a teaching job and teach at his school. I wouldn't mind that either! I had another student say that she thought that I would "be a good teacher" when the time comes. As much as the kids argue with me or fuss, I know they appreciate me being there, unpaid and all.

Times like these make me feel bad when I don't do more for the kids...like bring them more snacks because they did their homework. Rather, I'm not bringing them snacks because none of them read the directions and they all did it wrong. It's very hard for me not to just give in though because I want to have some fun, too!

It will be so nice to have my own class where I can start my rules and expectations from day one.

I feel sorry for those of you that continue to graciously read my blog when all I talk about is teaching!! I'm very sorry...it's pretty much my life at this point because of the amount of hours per day I spend working at it, so it's all I have most of the time. However, when I am a full-time teacher, I doubt I will want to continue writing about work all the time ;) This is simply my first real experience with high schoolers and with English, so I'm documenting what I can.

In other news, this weekend is going to be very quiet in town because all of the college students get out of school tomorrow... I'm so jealous! I get out next week, but I can't go home until next Wednesday or Thanksgiving day. It'll be nice to be home for a bit. So far I have planned many, many coffee trips to my favorite coffee house (per usual) and black Friday shopping (as much as I dread it) with my dear friend back home. I told her I wouldn't start until 9 am at least--no earlier! We'll see. This year I'm actually planning to snatch a GPS (for the trips I want to have in my near future), and maybe even a camera. We'll see how low they go with those prices....

Enjoy Thursday!

One of the most talented singers, in my eyes. This is from his solo album (that I was just informed about from a friend--thank god!)

4 days to go

I have four days with no head teacher. It will be fine, but it's always a little different not to have her there to call IF I need her (I've never had to call before). The other difference is that I'm in charge of all day instead of just my classes I usually teach. This is okay, too, though because it gives me the full experience. My teacher leaves each day anyway since I'm fine in the class, but it will be nice to see her in the school again after Thanksgiving break!

Possible Opportunity

All I can say is I am scrounging up my resume, letters of recommendation, and the best possible words as quickly as I possibly can for an application to be sent off tonight. Wish me luck with this job opportunity!!!!

Glee gone wrong...

Sorry to everyone who liked the GQ photo shoot of the Glee cast members, but I wasn't a fan. First of all, what was the point? Glee began as a semi-nerdy show with a ton of mostly innocent high school kids--and for those who weren't, it was funny to see them get close to the lines but not completely cross them. Lately, Glee has become the show for crossing a new line each week to see who reacts. I just think it's taking away from the show--and I'm a big fan! Recently, GQ had a photo shoot where, big surprise, the girls are half-naked in the most sexual positions possible (leaving nothing to the imagination), while the one guy in the shoot is fully-clothed, banging on a drum. What the heck? It just disgusts me that a show that seemingly conservative (you know, all ages could watch it easily), has turned into this random, chaotic show of let's-see-what-we-can-do-next-week to surprise everyone. So far, we have a completely out-of-character Britney Spears show, a lesbian scene (also random), and now we have a football player kissing the gay guy. What's going to happen next? I'm all for breaking the line of conservatism, but it at least needs to make sense!!

Recording

Who has two thumbs

and loves being an English teacher?

I had to record my class on Friday to show my teaching. I knew ahead of time that if I didn't tell the kids the camera was there, they would find it and flip out, but I also knew that telling them would also cause issues. I ended up telling them, just in case any of them had an issue with it--they didn't, thank goodness. However, they could not calm down. I had one student trying to get me off-track every now and then, and another trying to ask stupid questions. For the first time, a student argued with something I said about the author. Another first time occurrence I had was a "brain fart," or in other words, my mind when blank for about two seconds--right in the middle of a sentence!! Luckily, I'm pretty good at covering up any mistakes, so I simply repeated the first half of the sentence and remembered what I was saying. It is a very scary feeling to just....forget something like that. It was only scary, however, because of the stupid camera peering at me from the bookshelf. Normally, I would be okay with forgetting what I was saying--I'm only human, right? Anyway, overall, it went alright-- I got a successful recording with a few errors. It was just irritating because some of the kids who are usually just fine were getting silly and squirmy because they either wanted or didn't want to be on camera.

1. A girl turned and put her arm up to throw a balled up piece of paper away--saw the camera (very obvious), shrinked back and handed the paper to her neighbor to throw away. Priceless.

2. A boy turned and mouthed "A** H*** to the girl behind him. Also priceless!

Even if I can't use the video for my portfolio, or if I leave it out, I'm so glad I captured 45 minutes of the first class I've officially been teaching. They're great kids. I'm really going to wish I was back in the school the day this job ends. Maybe maybe maybe....

Days like today are why I teach. It's not that it was a particularly amazing day; however, it was much better than yesterday--even though yesterday wasn't the worst day. Some days just feel better than others, and unfortunately, sometimes I am in a better mood one day than I am other days. I try very hard not to let my mood shine through, though sometimes it's hard. For instance, yesterday my stomach was feeling sick for the morning, so all I had was coffee until I got home. Since my stomach was a little sick, anything I did eat didn't seem to do anything, and the water loss I had affected my overall mood, making me feel more tired or stressed than I would on a normal day. Today I felt fine, and the kids were fairly well-behaved. I think we all feel a little rushed with the amount of reading a content needed for each day, so today I let them do an activity related to the content, but it was less brain-teasing than usual. I think they enjoyed it :) If only I could let them do that everyday!

Other than that, get this: I will be done with student teaching the last week before Christmas break. Turns out, I will get all my hours in. My teacher will be gone for four days, and with me teaching all day, that will add up. It's crazy!! I really can't believe it. That means 5.5 weeks, and I'm done. You know what's crazy?? I feel like time has flown by--maybe because I've been so busy. I don't want to leave them that soon! I am really going to miss them--especially the company of my co-teacher--she's such a great help each day. I'm also going to miss all the other teachers I work with. I feel, honestly, like I'm an aide there now full-time (minus the pay), and working with the other teachers and staff is something I look forward to. Going to work each day has not been a chore--just the getting up early part!

Please, please let them have an opening for Spring!! I simply cannot go back to retail or anything less than teaching at this point. Wish me luck!

What a Day!

Although nothing bad happened today, it just seemed to crawl by as slow as it possibly could. I have a true "case of the Mondays." Luckily, I stayed after and discussed plans for tomorrow, so I don't have to worry about it. I could easily take a nap, but I guess I'll try to pleasure read, sing, plan ahead, watch a movie, or look up honeymoon locations :)

The Lazy Sunday

Every now and then, there is a Sunday that is just perfect. Even though there is work to be done, it can be done with ease and peace. There is the availability of sitting in loose fitting clothes with the choice of whether or not to wear a bra. Coffee can be made as many times as desired without being in a rush. A drive around the country would be fitting, with no need to put make-up on. It is just so, so good.

Saturday Goodness

Life has been steadily flying by. After talking to my dad today, he and I both noted how we hadn't talked for weeks. I have been meaning to call my grandma, but I just haven't. I'm not sure how long it's been since I've talked on the phone with mom. Phew.

So, I'm not sure how I can adequately express how happy I was this morning to finally have a Saturday to sleep in--without getting a headache! Most Saturdays lately, I wake up with a headache, whether it be related to caffeine, dehydration, or simply sleeping "too long." I should mention that usually I have the headache by 8 30 am. Unfortunately, I did wake up a couple of times rather early--7 30 and 8 30 or so, and I was wide awake by 9, but at least I didn't have a headache!! I've had a great day so far, too. Saturday is just so, so good. We're hosting a spaghetti dinner tonight for our friends, so it can only get better!

Oh, and get this: I went to my first high school football game since about 6 years ago. All of my students were asking if I was going to be there, and I totally backed out last time, so this week I decided I had to go! My lovely friend came with me, even though she made fun of the idea. As soon as we stepped on the pavement surrounding the field, we noticed one of the teams were the same colors as our old high school, and it totally brought us back!! Haha. IT was so long ago, but really only 6 years. Crazy. Overall, we had a great time! I also was able to see at least 10-12 students (a few of which were very happy to see me) and some teachers. It made me feel so good to be there. I am seriously going to miss these kids when I'm done student teaching. I wish I could work with them all year! Maybe I'll get a job in the Spring at that school. I'm attached.

PS: It's official: I bought a gym pass today! Haha. Everyday I will be at the gym after work! I can't wait to lose 10 lbs again lol. Hopefully I will lose more this go around!

I don't do naps.

Once again, I am convinced naps are horrid. They may feel good in the moment, but the aftermath is insidious. I have just woken from a three hour nap that I didn't mean to take. The oven is on, my body is exhausted, and all I want to to right now is sleep. I have work to do, so I can't. Somehow I have to wake up to do things all over again! The weekend needs to get here.

Today is a half-day at school for the kids. This means I have to get through about 35 minutes of each class (I think). That's pretty awesome! However, I have to admit to not preparing as well as I should be for this lesson. I had the class read three pages last night, but I feel like we'll probably read them again today in class. Being an English teacher is going to be hard; how will I be able to tell they haven't read? How can I make them read without punishing the ones that did read? I'm giving a reading quiz, but it's not like I'll know how they've done until I grade them, so I guess today is a strange trial-run of sorts. I just hope the kids don't go crazy! Yesterday was odd enough...

Happy Thursday (almost Friday) everyone.

I had a pretty rough day. There was something in each block that cause some sort of stress or frustration. This song gives me the calmness I've been lacking all day:

Fun Song for a Tuesday Night :)

Today went well. I was able to have lunch with my cooperating teacher at a local dive restaurant/deli. I got a chicken salad sandwich, and it was awesome!

I've spent my evening singing my heart out, reading my favorite magazine, and playing with my animals. How about you? Now I have to sit down and do some planning! I'm getting a late start tonight....

(maybe because I know that tomorrow is a full day, but then Thursday I'm getting out early, and then it's Friday!) Can I really be thinking about the weekend already??? :)

PS: I have something new I do for fun. I take my cat, hold her into submission, and lower her to the dog. The dog then sniffs and licks the cat's ear. It ticks her off so bad! I also chase both of them into my room and they chase me back. The dog and cat will continue to do this back and forth. I love them so friggin' much.

Happy November!

Wow, can you believe it's already November? It's getting close to Thanksgiving, Christmas, and on top of all that, the time when I'm supposed to be finishing student teaching (mid-late December). We will see if that actually happens! I've been trying to get as many hours as possible each day.

THANK GOD tomorrow is a teacher work day. I didn't go to bed until around 1 am last night because I waited the entire weekend to grade papers. Needless to say, I was exhausted today--it felt like a mix between Monday and Friday--since the kids were aware of the day off (for them) tomorrow. All I know is I finally get to sleep in a little bit--until 6:45 or so (yesssss), and I'm already envisioning my pumpkin spice latte with breakfast. I have the day to myself to work and plan and plan and plan.

As a side note, I think my neighbor sings in the shower like I do, and he's got a pretty good voice! Maybe he has heard me sing? Who knows. I think I'll keep it down now that I know how easily I can hear him! Haha.

Off to pleasure read and get to bed. Enjoy Tuesday, everyone :)