tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-341611792024-03-21T11:04:56.820-04:00Epic Adventures Are Often UncomfortableClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.comBlogger679125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-86639490814383503282015-09-24T10:09:00.002-04:002015-09-24T10:24:47.670-04:00Shakespeare Ponderings
Ever since I began teaching at this school, English II (10th grade) has studied Julius Caesar. When I was first assigned English II, I hated the play. I'm not a "words for the sake of words" person (Mercutio's Queen Mab speech feels like a tiresome detour) so a lot of the pontificating seems overlong to me. Plus it's another bunch of dudes; Portia and Calpurnia get some words that end up not Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-89425830971920529572015-09-18T12:28:00.002-04:002015-09-18T12:28:52.466-04:00A Little Kindness Goes a Long Way
Today has been fairly peaceful. I have a few students who want to put their heads down, but so far if I offer them the choice between going to the nurse and sitting up and doing their work, they've picked the latter.
And I can't blame them too much. I'm tired too. Right now I'm feeling frustrated because I KEEP having to rearrange my research unit to accommodate state or district mandatedClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-47124645172539927342015-09-01T13:24:00.000-04:002015-09-01T13:24:32.770-04:00Pledge Procedures
Last year there were a couple of posts talking about the Pledge that I meant to respond to, and didn't.
I teach in a high school (9-12). This year I have all sophomores, but I've taught students of varying ages in previous years. Every morning, over the loudspeaker, someone recites the Pledge before we have the announcements for that day. However, I do not tell my students that they are Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-14442683652095466912015-08-27T20:12:00.000-04:002015-08-27T20:12:25.490-04:00PaperworkIt's hard to believe that I've now been teaching for more than ten
years. Sometimes it feels like there's not that much that has changed,
but that's only because most of the changes have been so gradual.
It
feels like there's a lot more paperwork than there used to be. I'm not
sure if that's true, or if I'm just experienced enough that I'm actually
DOING more of it. And some of it is what Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-14413507410612591732015-08-21T06:50:00.001-04:002015-08-21T06:50:07.789-04:00I Only Have One LifeI just read Maya's post and it really struck a chord with me. I often feel like I don't have enough time in my day. It's very hard for me to slow down - and waiting is even worse! I hate waiting, because if I'm not doing something while I wait, it feels like I've lost that time.Jupiter Ascending is a movie I really like for a lot of reasons, but one of the most important is a remark by one of theClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-23820728026506065092015-06-19T18:24:00.000-04:002015-06-19T18:24:26.995-04:00Challenge Olympics
I have been meaning to respond to this post for some time, but every time I read it, I get angry. In it, Janet Givens states:
American
teachers, the ones teaching at American universities, colleges, and
even some high schools, are spoiled. - See more at:
http://janetgivens.com/american-vs-kazakhstani-teachers-a-frustrated-pcvs-point-of-view/#sthash.IAiMcZy1.dpuf
American teachers, the Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-28664989077025893612015-05-14T13:07:00.000-04:002015-05-14T13:07:00.331-04:00Zero Sum
In his post "How the American education system doesn't fail," David Brin responds to a Washington Post article by Fareed Zakaria. Zakaria's article warns of problems that may arise from focusing too heavily - or even exclusively - on excellence in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) disciplines.
Brin says that Zakaria takes too pessimistic an outlook. He suggests that Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-16932725528745090312015-05-09T23:04:00.000-04:002015-05-09T23:09:08.717-04:00Perspective
One thing that really grinds my gears is when students claim that they "didn't have enough time" to finish an assignment.
Our school system policy is to allow students to turn in late work with no penalty to their grade, which, okay, I can accept because according to the standards we are supposed to be evaluating demonstrated academic ability, not behavior. It also helps that we are given (someClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-34021111170219544072015-03-19T09:10:00.000-04:002015-03-19T09:10:00.313-04:00Leadership / Citizenship texts - POSITIVE examples?
The major texts we use for English II happen to have leadership as a common theme. It wasn't planned, but it works out nicely. We use Animal Farm, Julius Caesar, Lord of the Flies, The Prince, and Antigone.
The thing is, those are all kind of... well... dismal. And I've been trying to think of a work (ideally not one by yet another dead white guy!) that focuses on what it takes to be a goodClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-89877773558929071322015-03-09T16:13:00.002-04:002015-03-09T16:13:37.366-04:00How to Weather the Storm
I'm tired.
I'm tired of students ignoring directions. I'm tired of having to repeat myself because students weren't paying attention. I'm tired of students acting like they should be allowed to do whatever they like (play on their cell phones, chitchat about weekend plans instead of working, sleep in class), and throwing a fit when I attempt to redirect them.
I'm tired of Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-21980460612957866782015-01-12T14:22:00.002-05:002015-01-12T14:22:58.125-05:00Companion texts
We'll be starting to read Animal Farm in just a few days. I think the overarching question I want to push students to examine is "What is the citizen's responsibility to society – and why?"
See, I've taught it before, and the students often come to the conclusion that the pigs just should have been nicer. I don't know if it's because they're that naive, or because they're slacking off and not Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-88985642153142477412014-12-27T14:13:00.001-05:002014-12-27T19:30:53.803-05:00End of Term Exhaustion
One of the buzzwords this year has been "grit." In the reading I've done, I've heard it explained that students who take responsibility for their achievements are more likely to be successful than students who attribute their success or failure to external factors. This makes sense on the surface, but when I was reading my students' reflective essays, I noticed something interesting.
I had Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-76924088101715797622014-11-11T15:23:00.000-05:002014-11-11T15:24:41.004-05:00Social Networking
I am, by nature, a solitary person. Most people would not suspect this, because I make an effort to be not just polite, but friendly. But when I get home from school, I am perfectly content to spend the evening (or an entire weekend) surfing the web, watching TV, listening to music, reading books, and doing household chores.
However, I know that having a good relationship with one's colleaguesClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-14197655473008870102014-10-17T11:32:00.001-04:002014-10-17T11:33:29.503-04:00Friday, October 17 - HomecomingBrief note - it seems like blogger has changed things and my 'Continue' links aren't working the way I wanted them to. That's frustrating. Part of me feels like I ought to take just a little bit of time this weekend to check and see what I can do to make them work again, but then there's another part of me that says "you haven't been keeping up with your blogging anyway, so it's not like it Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-72206139868479514932014-08-27T15:00:00.000-04:002014-08-27T15:17:02.215-04:00Wednesday, August 27 - Lesson: "Beginnings" Every story starts with the promise that reading it is worth your time & effort, and gives clues about what to expect. In the first sentence, the author establishes this promise, enticing the reader to continue, and hints about what the reader can expect from the rest of the book. Consider these famous beginnings:
Call me Ishmael.
It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-73416695408032498402014-06-08T16:38:00.001-04:002014-06-08T16:38:51.994-04:00Summer FeathersGoals for the summer:
Change the address on my driver's license √
Register to vote (waiting on card to arrive)
Create Antigone unit
Check the used bookstore for The Hunger Games (√), Catchphrase, and Taboo (didn't have the latter)
Read Things Fall Apart
Practice doing voice work √
Write sample video game quest trees
Continue learning to code √
Continue tap lessons and practice √
Daily cardio/Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-59463881223005530372014-06-07T00:22:00.000-04:002014-06-07T00:22:28.668-04:00Socialism!
So at the end of the school year we were informed that next year, the lowest grade we would be allowed to put into the computer gradebook, for any assignment, would be a 60. Needless to say, this news caused a bit of a kerfuffle.
My biggest concern is that I don't know of any schools that have used it and found it helpful. If there are some, it sure would be nice to see HOW they implemented it Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-46514381153497689642014-05-08T09:34:00.000-04:002014-05-08T09:34:12.578-04:00Pushing for independent-choice readingSo... I had the meeting with my administrator to discuss my annual evaluation. Overall it went well. I made a strong push to reinstate my individual-choice reading IN CLASS. The administrator has been against it (!) and seemed to see it as "free time." (Actually SAID that at one point. I somehow managed to keep my cool.) Well, I brought a bulleted list of how my practices for CR support Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-64486032395040863222014-01-11T10:53:00.001-05:002014-01-11T10:53:37.075-05:00Why Do We Study Works We Can't Read?
The first semester is winding down and somehow
I've managed to get (mostly) caught up on grading and end-of-term
paperwork. So I've got some time to look over my unit plans and think
about what I teach and how I teach and why I do things that way.
The thing is, I'm rather conflicted about my reasons for teaching Beowulf.Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-81346847253591428792013-12-13T14:50:00.002-05:002013-12-13T14:50:42.093-05:00Stupid updateWe are having issues with our online gradebook. I am so frustrated I can't even begin to put it into words. I never feel like writing. I've started to resent all the time and money that it's just assumed I'll dump into MY JOB. And then that makes me worry that I'm burning out, that I'm turning into a dried-up husk like everyone complains about -- that I'm becoming a Bad Teacher.
Money is SUCH anClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-52660039816295354282013-10-28T16:12:00.002-04:002013-10-28T17:42:19.767-04:00Three Rules of WritingEvery day, when I read my students' journals, I am encouraged and amused by the ideas that they share with me in their writing. They are creative, thoughtful - well, sometimes - and often even passionate writers. They share about their weekends, about boyfriends and girlfriends, family life, friends, football games, jobs, birthdays, chores, and many other topics in addition to the assigned ones (Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-76838993634426590482013-10-21T16:52:00.002-04:002013-10-21T16:56:18.030-04:00The Road to Hell I feel like half of my posts are "hi, I'm back from an unexpected hiatus!" This year has been more challenging than I anticipated, for a number of reasons. (See the 'continue' link if you really want to know about them.)
First of all, we've had extra paperwork. We had to give a pre-test and then fill out a spreadsheet with students' scores. Then we had to go into an online database, find theirClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-38455351554865825262013-09-14T06:58:00.000-04:002013-09-14T06:58:53.833-04:00I was reviewing the Wikipedia entry for caesura in order to feel more confident about explaining it to my students. (I'm still not entirely clear about its purpose in Anglo-Saxon poetry.) And it included examples from the Iliad and the Aeneid. In those examples, they first quoted the line in the original language (including the double-pipe to mark the caesura) and then below it they gave the Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-31929705118152209562013-09-10T17:14:00.001-04:002013-09-10T17:46:31.183-04:00Tuesday, September 10: CSS GlossaryThe weekly goals are going well! I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and had to leave early, so today during planning I doubled up and finished my parent calls (yay!) as well as getting some practice in over at Codecadamy. The downside is that I wasn't able to update the class webpages in advance like I had hoped. Oh well!
As I continue my lessons in CSS, one of the difficulties I'm facing isClixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34161179.post-90070078046574079812013-09-06T11:19:00.001-04:002013-09-10T17:16:29.195-04:00Friday, September 6
Just a brief update. Things are overall going really well. I've been able to meet just about all of my goals so far. The one part that was difficult was getting EVERYONE called during that first week. I almost got there, but not quite.
I've also decided that I want to update the class website with the notes and assignments BEFORE class. I used to have the student assistant update it during Clixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04460380696875928585noreply@blogger.com0