The 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 their scores from the previous end-of-year exam, and then predict whether we thought the student would pass or fail the end-of-year exam for this course based on those two scores. It was kind of nerve-wracking because we hadn't given that pre-test before so it's not really correlated well (by which I mean NOT AT ALL) with either of the the post-tests.

So that was incredibly stressful. Then I've also had a bunch of doctor's appointments to go to. Speaking of which, I need to call them to let them know I can't come today. But I haven't had a moment free from class, and they'll be closed while I'm at lunch. I'm fortunate that I've been able to schedule my appointments in the afternoon, so that I don't have to miss class (just planning) but even so it's getting to be a bit of a challenge, missing that much planning time.

Then we've had more department meetings this year than we've ever had before. Each month we have at least four - one with just the teachers in our grade level (so I go to two of those, since I teach both sophomores and seniors), then one with the grade-level teachers and the department head and an assistant principal (so I go to two of those as well), then one with the whole department and our graduation coaches, then one with just the department. Today we've also got an administrative meeting during planning about setting up medical insurance for next calendar year.

As a result, I haven't had NEARLY as much planning time as I thought I would this year. And I had so much that I wanted to do that I haven't been able to, because I've been struggling just to get through what I need to do. But I should be at the end of my doctor appointments, and I shouldn't have to do any more extra testing until the next term starts. Here's hoping!

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An Open Letter to Penny Kittle

Dear Penny,

I still hate writing.

But I am also still committed to being the best teacher I possibly can, so once again (even though we're almost a month into the school year, and that's WITH an extra-late start) I am resolving to post daily. It might not be here - probably over at Go Little Novelist - because I still want to make Epic Adventures about teaching.

I tell my students that once they've answered the question for the writing prompt, they can fill the rest of the page with whatever is on their mind. You know, as much as I have heard that getting students into the habit of writing will turn them into writers, I don't think it's really true. Because every time I sit down to write, I hate it. And I'm sure I've been writing for a good while longer than this crop has even been alive.

Blogging is its own beast. I mean, I bet I could write post after post about how much I hate writing. But then, who'd want to read that? And therefore, why post it? I guess it doesn't matter… it's not like I'm killing trees or anything. Except I *am* wearing the battery of my laptop down, and I'll have to charge it sooner. (I think. Who knows, maybe typing doesn't use up battery more than just sitting there does.)

About the only type of writing I don't mind is conversation. Like commenting back and forth on discussion boards … or sometimes in response to a blog post.

I'm starting to wonder if I've written enough. Is it okay to quit yet? We're actually on our way to school (don't worry, it's safe; the Hunk is driving) so I can't pull up an online word-counter. I mean, I've filled up the original screen in TextEdit and now I have a scrollbar on the side.

And I really don't have a lot more to say at the moment. Oooo, McDonald's. I don't know what it is about their food… it's not THAT good, but I like it a lot. At least the breakfast. A well-made Sausage-Egg-and-Cheese McGriddle is just delightful. I love the way the different tastes and textures all meld together. The sausage is just a little bit spicy, and countered by the sweetness of the syrup-nuggets in the little bun they use. The cheese adds a touch of saltiness, and the egg is bouncy and fluffy. It is just SO GOOD. And the Bacon-Egg-and-Cheese Biscuit is good in its own way. It's all savory, but it's different TYPES of savory, don'cha know.

But I have already had breakfast and of course now we're several miles on down the road. Hunk complains about idiot drivers. "Doofus-head!" he calls one. I am so glad i don't have to be the one driving. I like driving when I'm not feeling in a hurry to get somewhere. So, really, driving anywhere kind of sucks (because with gas as expensive as it is, who can afford to just drive around?) because even if I'm going to the store and I don't have to worry about them closing or anything, after I've gotten through checkout, I'm always looking forward to getting home.

By the way, I'm not (entirely) neglecting the Hunk. I am taking breaks for conversation. We're going to Disney World over fall break. WOOOO! Today is Disney Day for Spirit Week (homecoming - each day is themed, and we're encouraged to dress out) so we're bringing the bride-and-groom mouse-ear hats that we got on our honeymoon.

Disney World! Hurray! I can't wait. Even though I'm going to have to wait. (boo!) Also I've asked for professional leave to go to the 2011 NCTE convention as well, so definitely looking forward to that. It hasn't been approved yet, but I'm hopeful. I doubt I'll actually get any financial support, but then, I didn't last year, either. (Looks like I'll be packing sandwiches again!)

The Hunk asked about my writing. "Stream of consciousness?" "Yeah, kinda." I explained that because I want to be a better teacher, I need to become better at the elements of language. And the best way to get better at stuff is to DO it.

Hey, we're here at the school, so it's time to close up and head in. Bye!

Always,

Clicketykeys

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You've Heard This Before, I'm Certain

So there's a teacher I've been pestering to get a blog going, and he finally has! And of course now I feel obligated to resolve to post more often, because otherwise I'm a frickin' hypocrite. :P

I did post earlier this morning over on Go Little Novelist, but it doesn't really count. ;)

You're on my bloglist, now, though, so you better post regularly. Hopefully this post will somewhat redeem me. I was quite ashamed when I went to read your first post and I saw you'd added me to yours, and I was at the BOTTOM because I hadn't posted in over a month.

(But I am the only one with a favicon. /nerdglee!)

Annnnd... it's not adding your blog correctly. DAMMIT.

You know, really? This whole week has been a technology-vs-me week. Annnd now I'm also logged out of Picasa. AURGH.

Google, I hate you. I hate your esoteric password requirements. This combination better damn well work this time... *glower*

"Adding your phone number makes your account more secure." PISS OFF AND STOP ASKING FOR MORE OF MY DATA, JERKWADS.

So we have these brand-new photocopiers. And they are also connected to our school network. And they can print and scan and whatnot. Thing is, the school got RID of the printers that we had. So now when we print... it uses up some of our photocopies. Also? For some reason, when I've sent documents to the copier in the workroom closest to my classroom, they don't show up in the document queue. This was true for at least a couple of days last week, and it was also true Wednesday-Friday of this week. So I had to send them to a different workroom and wait for THOSE teachers to finish their printing/copying, and then log in and print mine out... and then scurry back to my room. It got really tiresome.

Also. Yesterday I had scheduled the laptop cart (which has 24 laptops, which makes ZERO sense because my class, like many other core classes, has 30 students) and we went online to add to our journals on the class wiki.

So. Many. Problems.

First of all, the pages took forever to load, and some students had to switch from Safari to Firefox just to log in. And of course quite a few of them hadn't written down their username and password like I'd told them too and it's "Mrs. Keys, what's my password?" over and over and OVER again.

And then some of the little darlings didn't try to save until they finished their journal entry, and only after they tried to look at the page found out that it hadn't saved. We later figured out that with THOSE computers, we had to use Safari to get the wiki to save.

But overall, the biggest problem was that it was so SLOW.

And then we went over to goodreads and it was BLOCKED? WHAT? it was unblocked last week! I specifically informed the administration that I was going to be using it as part of my lessons!

But one of my students somehow figured out that by typing in not just goodreads.com but the entire http://www.goodreads.com/ THEN it would load.

*headdesk*

I am DREADING the moment I find out just how bad things are when we try to work on the yearbook software online...

Oh, yeah, hey everybody! Go on over there and leave a comment to welcome him to the cheap public cafeteria of blogging! :D

Image thanks to http://thistimeimeanit.com/

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Examining Success

So I've been thinking about trying to write things that might be helpful for other teachers, and it's been difficult. Mardie asked why, and I realized that I hadn't really thought about that.

When things go wrong, it's often fairly simple to point to when: you have a pull of tension in your lower back that shoots up your spine, your ribcage tightens and your breath gets shallower and faster. Often there's an increase in the "audio clutter" - teachers, you know what I mean by that, right? There's just a different tone in the room when conversation is off-task, even though I still have a hard time pinpointing who's talking about the lesson or the assignment and who's out in left field.

Or you get a bunch of faces staring at you blankly before students start leaning towards their friends to see if someone else got it and can explain it in a way that makes more sense.

I guess perhaps I've been exceptionally fortunate in that when things go wrong, they don't go wrong for several different reasons all at the same time. This makes it much easier to pinpoint the trouble-spot so that I can tweak it for the next go-round.

On the other hand, when things go well, it's because everything is working well -- but to greater or lesser degrees. (My thought: Hey, at least it's working.)

So it can be difficult to figure out which parts are carrying the weight and which parts are along for the ride.

How can we pinpoint which activities or strategies best help students learn? It's easy to see non-learning: faces turned away, heads down on desks, fingers texting away under the seat... I'm sure you could keep adding to that list all day!

But when students are reading or listening or writing and appear to be on task, how do we pinpoint the cause? Or, perhaps more accurately, how do we rank the causes?

That's what I haven't figured out.

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?! WTF, Blogger???

Okay, I completely don't know why my cut-tag hasn't worked for my last several posts... This makes me sad.

:(

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Kicked in the Gut (and stabbed in the back)

So, yeah. Every couple of weeks I get a promo email from DonorsChoose about fundraising opportunities and stuff.

Sometimes there's additional funding for STEM, or if you live in a certain state or county, or if your project is part of a college-readiness program, that kind of thing. Other times DonorsChoose enters into charity contests. You can go vote for your favorite chairty, and if DonorsChoose wins, they get like a hundred grand to put toward projects that need funding.

But the most recent email really, really surprised me - and not in a good way. It said that Donorschoose will get money for projects if people pledge to see Waiting for Superman.

Say it with me now: WTF?

I just deleted the email, but reading this post made me realize I was still pretty upset, and I didn't just want to ignore the issue. So I went to the DonorsChoose contact page and sent them this little gem:

Getting an email from DonorsChoose that promoted Waiting for Superman was like a kick in the gut. My stomach literally clenched when I saw that.

Hoping for the best, I went and watched what I guess was the trailer. Guess what - it showed exactly what I was afraid of! Raising test scores is the best way of measuring student progress. Due process for teachers is a waste of time and money. We should expect teachers to be martyrs who dedicate all their time to teaching, neglecting family, society, and personal health. Hygiene, of course, is still important, because you're supposed to look good on camera.

I was shocked and hurt that DonorsChoose would support something as anti-teacher as this. Also, when I went over to their webpage, I didn't see any mention of DonorsChoose, so that was part of the reason that I didn't sign the pledge. The other is that it would've been a lie.

I'm not going to give a dime to that flick.

Now, I didn't cancel my account (although I might have had I been a donor). But... seriously, people, what were you thinking?! I am SO tired of the same old dead-horse stats being used as trampolines to help people with agendas jump to conclusions they like.

Use just a little common sense. Please. Schools wouldn't have bad teachers if they (1) did a better job observing and supporting new hires and/or (2) went through the appropriate channels to remove teachers who weren't a good fit. The issue isn't bad teachers; it's inefficient leadership.

It is just - it's idiocy. The KIPP-charter/TFA model that is soooo loved by anti-union reformers is only sustainable as long as the economy stays in the toilet. I mean, you don't have to be a math major to figure out that working 40% more hours for 15% more pay is stupid.

Also, you're making the profession into an anti-family career. Now, for me (in theory), that would work, because I have no children of my own and no desire for children of my own. None. Guiding other people's children is great a way to give me similar interaction while at the same time keeping me reminded of WHY I've made the choices I have! However, I object to it on principle, because not everyone is like me.

AURGH!

Daily stuff behind the cut.

Anyway. I did NOT go for my walk this morning. I didn't even get up until almost ten. I woke up at eight, sore and tired, and thought, "Eh. It's already going to be too hot to walk." And I went back to sleep.

Given that I performed off-and-on for more than three hours last night, I'm going to say that's a fair trade-in for my walk this morning. My arms, shoulders, back, tummy, and legs agree: OUCH. It's tolerable now that I've taken some naproxen, but still: OUCH.

I was in bed before midnight and I still feel like I could go and sleep for another hour or two. I might do that, since obviously the surgery isn't this afternoon since I HAVEN'T HEARD A DAMN THING. Grrr.

I'm thinking about cutting my word-count requirement down to 250. 750 takes me forever and really cuts into the day. It makes it harder to take time later on for a "real" post, even if I actually have something to say. Plus, I hate it. I think 250 would be a good bit easier to grind out and that'd make it less torturous. And since one of my goals is to begin seeing writing as something positive, instead of something that is full of suck, I think that makes sense.

Last night's ... I don't know, I don't really want to call it a "show" because it didn't feel like that. No stage, no lighting setup... we were at a country club, people. (It makes sense in context - it was a "wines around the world" club dinner. This month was Greece, so: bellydancers! Also because last month it had just been dinner and wine and the turnout wasn't as good as they'd hoped, so again: bellydancers!)

It was a blast. They had a different type of wine with each course, and let's just say that by the fourth course, it was getting harder to hear the music. Hahaha... It was really pretty, too. We were in this sun-room area that looked out over the course - wide green lawns, with rolling forested hills in the distance. The windows faced east, so we got to see the sunset without a glare.

The best part was at the end, when we got these nice proper ladies to get up and dance too! It was absolutely adorable - they were giggly and uncertain but having sooo much fun. They reminded me SO much of girls in middle school. It was sweet.

Images thanks to http://unlimitedmartialarts.blogspot.com and http://www.despair.com/achievement.html

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Ning vs BuddyPress

I've been hearing a lot about WordPress. I know a lot of people use it and like it better than Blogger. And I was kind of intrigued when someone over at ecning mentioned BuddyPress, which has interactive features the way ning does.

I'm thinking about setting up something for my classes with BuddyPress, because it's free, and ning isn't. Dana Huff mentioned that with WordPress, you can use wordpress.com for free hosting. I'd like to know if you can run BuddyPress on a free wordpress.com account.

The other problem I have is that I haven't the slightest idea how to use WordPress. I don't really even know where to begin trying it out. So I guess I'm looking for someone who can point me in the right direction!

A little help?

Image thanks to http://letsgodynamic.com/

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Anxiety is a Good Sign?

Months ago, I came across a post on Joanne Jacobs' blog that I knew I'd want to respond to, probably several times over. But it was one of the comments that particularly struck me.

Palisadesk mentioned something really interesting:

Pressley ... discovered that the most effective teachers were the most self-critical and constantly anxious to improve their practice and learn more, while the least effective considered themselves already outstanding and not in need of any further growth or learning.

So it sounds like a little bit of neurosis isn't necessarily a bad thing. And that's very encouraging for me, because I'm almost constantly second-guessing myself and my methods. If something didn't work, I wonder what I could have done differently. Heck, when things DO work, I still wonder what I could've done to be even more effective!

It's nice to feel validated like that.

On the self-critical side, I haven't done nearly as much summer planning as I'd hoped by this point. It's already July - eep!

But on the improving-my-practice side, I do think I'm doing a pretty darn good job of mowing through YA texts. And I've also got several donorschoose projects currently up over at http://www.donorschoose.org/languagearts.

I've signed up to help out with summer remediation for students who are going to retake the graduation test. (I need to make sure I schedule any doctor visits around that.) And hopefully I can also get some of my journalism staffers together for a couple of workdays.

I'm looking forward to next year. 2009-2010 was a good year, and I have every reason to believe that 2010-2011 will be even better because I've identified clear goals based on what worked and didn't work this past year.

Knowing that I'm a good teacher, and that I'm still going to become an even better one... it's such a lovely feeling!

Image thanks to http://www.flickr.com/photos/spaceodissey/

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Layout Issues

So I changed my goodreads widget - now rather than just showing some of the books in my library, it shows the ten most recent books I've marked as 'read.' Hopefully this will help motivate me to update regularly rather than trying to write up fifteen books at one go :P

That started me wondering about widening my layout, because I had to skinnify the widget kind of a lot. What I'd like to do - I think - is to see if I can't pull the title bar into the middle column, so that the side columns actually start right up at the top of the page. This would make the column for the posts wider and I wouldn't have to redo the title bar. I could also - if I wanted - widen the left and right columns without making the center column narrower.

But I'm not sure. On my screen, I've got quite a bit of free space on the sides, but I can't quite make up my mind to use it. See, my screen resolution may be higher than most, which would mean the right side would be cut off for some people.

And I don't wanna do that. I hate having to scroll all over the place, and I don't want to do that to people who come look at my blog.

So it's up to you! I've added a poll up in the upper-right corner. Please let me know what you see when you look at the page.

Now I'm off to get some reading done...

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Mobile Update

This is soooo slow. I'm visiting my parents and they don't have wireless, so I'm playing with a smartphone. It's making my knuckles sore from holding and typing. OTOH, it's a lot easier to lie back and still surf. I wish the apostrophe had its own key the way @ and ? do.

I don't quite know how much I like it yet. But probably not $30 / month. :P

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Baby Drama

Our school has several vocational programs. One of them includes a unit that is anticipated with both delight and dread every term: the Robot Baby Project.

Robot Babies are life-size plastic dolls with a small computer inside, a switch on their backs, and a shrill, tinny speaker. Every two or three hours, on schedule, the speakers play a "crying" noise. In order to make the crying stop, the switch has to be pressed continuously for anywhere from thirty seconds to thirty minutes (the speakers play a "cooing" sound when enough time has passed). If the switch is released too early, the "crying" resumes.

For years, I've rolled my eyes when the babies come out of storage. Sure, it might be amusing to watch the students' reactions, but it seems like an expensive waste of time. The entire program strikes me as completely inauthentic for several reasons.

First of all, the response is always the same: turn the key. The student hears the robot and knows exactly what to do. This is patently unrealistic. There are numerous reasons why a baby might be crying, and particularly as a new parent, sometimes you just don't know why.

Second, and IMO more importantly, there is NOTHING pleasant about dragging an annoying robot everywhere. When the robot baby wakes you up in the middle of the night and you have to get up and keep that key turned, it just sucks. But with a real baby, a late-night feeding is an opportunity to bond. You can cuddle, count freckles, tickle toes, sing lullabies... it's exhausting, but it isn't ALL BAD. With the robot baby, all you get is teh suck. :P

Finally (but sort of connected to the other points), everyone KNOWS it isn't a real baby. By day two of the project, the baby is no longer "him" or "her" but "IT." Or better yet: That Thing, as in, "God, can't you turn That Thing off?" No one would respond to a real baby as they do to the robots (at least I certainly hope not!). Other students threaten to drop-kick it or throw it out the window. Teachers will - no joke - refuse to have That Thing in the classroom. No one ever asks how old it is or how it's doing or even touches its fingers. The robot babies are pretty much universally loathed.

The project leaves students with two false impressions. Their first reaction is, across the board, "I am never EVER having kids," because according to the project, taking care of a baby is a unilaterally awful experience.

But in a little while, they begin rethinking that reaction. They start to believe that they wouldn't be so annoyed with That Thing if it was a real baby. They explain away the completely legitimate frustration they felt during the project. As a result, these students end up not just back at square one, but at, like, square ZERO.

Lately I've started wondering if there isn't some potential value in the project with an appropriately guided reflection at the end. Students need to understand that what makes the Robot Babies so frustrating isn't just the endless attention and lack of sleep, but the lack of support. Taking care of a baby is an incredibly challenging task, but if you have others who can help you and encourage you, the work is much more feasible.

Image thanks to http://www.flickr.com/photos/willwagenaar

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You Should Read - 2

In fact, sometimes the customer is WRONG. Soooo very wrong...

I don't have a lot to say about this, except that it's incredibly funny. It reminds me that I'm not the only one dealing with inanity. It's nice to know that you're not alone!

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EduCafe - Issue 20 - More Soup?

I scarcely know where to begin. Even THINKING about the EduCafe is an exercise in humility after dropping the ball so heavily back in January.

Over at the EC Ning, I can kind of fade into the woodwork and it isn't as noticeable, as there's always so much going on. Around here? I get crickets and a huge feeling of guilt. *sigh*

But! I am going to go for it again, because it's important to me to exemplify the kinds of behavior I want my students to follow. Part of that means admitting when you screwed up, but not using a screwup as an excuse to GIVE up.

So let's start, once again, with the soup course!

Mr. Halpern's posts always make me smile. I think it's sad that so many grownups leave childish play behind. Sure, some games are a LOT different in grown-up bodies (tag in particular!) but you can still have fun.

I loved Rachel's example of how the internet can shift something from private to public. It very neatly balances "completely believable" with "just a touch creepy." This isn't the actions of Big Brother or The Evil Corporate Empire. Nope. It's us, folks.

The Science Goddess tells a good story about being recognized. And thinks about those who were not recognized. It can be easy to forget that we make a difference (for good or ill!) to all our students, not just those who tell us we do.

Teachin' certainly had an interesting day. You know, I don't think my life is boring, necessarily, but... yeah. I don't think I've ever had anything quite that ... unusual happen. (Knock wood!)

Mrs. Chili is looking at curriculum options for next year. Chili, I am MAD JEALOUS of your opportunities! and your supportive admin!!

I just love Tom's metaphor. It's so... evocative, let's say. And I'm not going to give away anything more than that! Just go read it, really. (Um, but... not around mealtime. At least not if you have a vivid imagination.)

And then Mr. McGuire gives Mrs. Chili a run for her money in the jealousy department. Because... wow. Just wow. I'm trying to think of a Superintendent/Superman word play and failing. :P Oh well!

Hey, at least they're honest? Dr. Pezz and his colleagues were actually told to "do less." Not playin' here.

Siobhan Curious tells a story that fills me with jealousy and regret because it is so beautifully written. It really happened, but the WAY she tells it is just marvelous. Loved it.

Edie, if you come by, don't read the Dr. Pezz post above. It might depress you. Sure, you're losing instructional time too, but... at least expectations are high. That's a good thing, right?

Call me a sucker for meta, but Miss Teacha's comparisons of schools was intriguing. Got me thinking about what I like about my school and system and what I would like to see changed.

And speaking of meta, Dana Huff is always good at thinking about what she's teaching and how it relates to the world at large. In this post she examines the Hero's Journey.

Okay, I cannot WAIT to see the results and/or purpose of this survey by MS Teacher.

Isn't it lovely when your students, like Joan's, magically transform into human beings? With PICTURES, no less!

Poor Ms. Bees discovered that a failure to plan on others' part may actually wind up as an emergency on her part. Don't give up, Ms. Bees! And let us know how it all ran down.

A conversation about facebook turns into something more for Mr B. I love how, in his post, he so skillfully blends the personal, the philosophical, and the professional. Just brilliant!

Mrs. Bluebird's students are allowed to use calculators on the math section of the Very Big Deal Government Test, but not the science section. Even though it involves a good bit of math...

Dina continues her responses to The Art and Science of Teaching.

I am SO stealing Mardie's reading lesson with the Turbo Encabulator hook. Seriously awesome. :D

And while Jim Burke refers to it as fourth-grader wisdom, I think it's more of an example of "fourth-rightness." Ok, ok, I know, bad pun. ;)

I have more posts that I want to share, but I'm stopping here, because I had intended to post this yesterday morning and now it's almost time to leave for this week's narrative theology discussion/study and... if I put it off much longer it won't get done!

Image thanks to http://www.humiliationstudies.org/

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You Should Read

Hopefully you've already noticed (because my readers are smart notice-y folk!) that most of the blogs I link to are teacher-blogs or otherwise have something to do with education. But lately I've started expanding my horizons, so to speak, as I find other blogs that are about reading or writing or otherwise connect to my curricular matter even if they don't have an educational focus.

Since I figure that mostly I get read by teachers, particularly other English teachers, I decided to share some of those other blogs with you. Maybe you don't read them, but you should!

Dystel & Goderich Literary Management is an agency that represents a wide variety of authors. The blog has several contributors, and mostly it deals with issues about writing and publishing and representation.

What I particularly like about this blog is (a) the variety in the topics, and (b) the way the tone is both professional and personal. I really feel like I'm having a conversation with a group of people who really know what they're talking about, but they don't talk down at me.

I've only started reading it recently, but it's been interesting to get to think about books from a different angle.

I'm thinking about making this an ongoing series. I don't know how regular it will be - one thing I've learned is that making promises seems to jinx me! - but I do know that I've got more non-teacher blogs that have helped me as a teacher.

What non-ed blogs do you follow, and why?

Image thanks to http://www.dystel.com/

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Educarnival v2 Issue 17

Alas! This week we have a very sparse EduCarnival. I have not had a chance to go out and collect links, and it looks like others have had about as much time as I had.

I'm still nervous about the book - and about finals - and about HOW in the world I'm going to get all my grading done - and about catching up with my donorschoose proposals and deadlines - but sooner or later, one way or another, I won't be worrying about it anymore.

It can only kill me...

Mrs. Chili presents Ten Things Tuesday posted at A Teacher's Education.

Siobhan Curious presents Dear Auntie Siobhan: Should I Become a Teacher? posted at Classroom as Microcosm.

You can submit your blog article to the next issue of EduCarnival v2 by using the handy-dandy carnival submission form. Past carnivals and future scheduled editions can be found on the blog carnival index page.

Pat, I think I've got you scheduled for next week - please let me know ASAP if that's changed. Thanks for your help!

Technorati tags:
education, teaching, educarnival v2, blog carnival.

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EduCarnival v2 Issue 16

The Hunk and I went out to eat tonight. We had BBQ and iced tea; he read, and I did my unit calendar for next semester (English II; I'm not going to THINK about Journalism before winter break). His iced tea was sweet; mine was Long Island. I'm kind of nervous about looking at that unit calendar.

OTOH, it made exercising much less miserable!

This week's EduCarnival is a little bit customized, though not themed. BUT, there are lots of WONDERFUL posts to read behind the "Continue" link.

Enjoy!

Joanne Jacobs responds to a Washington Post book review about standardized test that aren't so standardized.

Alan Sitomer suggests that if anyone's going to get paid for stating the ridiculously obvious, it ought to be him.

Emily Kissner suggests some tips on getting students to revise thoroughly.

HR Mason has a eureka moment that leads to two important observations.

The Science Goddess is a bit uncertain whether or not the change toward Common Core Standards will "do you good."

Tangent Teacher almost made it until Christmas before she smiled.

Mark laments a lack of logic.

Siobhan Curious ponders what 'growth' means in education.

Ms. Cornelius writes about how cell phones can help students learn Spanish.

Darren received a rebate from his union! Is he happy about it? You decide...

Miss Brave understands what it's like when your class is "a zoo." Literally!

We get to take a peek at Miss Bennett's day.

J laments that some days just suck.

Dana Huff reveals that dissection isn't just for science teachers anymore!

Lightly Seasoned wonders what to do about student apathy.

Dan Meyer looks back at the blogging "giants" upon whose shoulders we stand, and the ones who've supported him in particular.

Mr. McNamar connects education and the world of sports with five innovative reforms.

Rachel continues looking at how to teach literary analysis.

Mrs. Mimi is calculating sleep numbers - but not the way you might think.

Missteacha thinks about what needs to change.

Bill Ferriter has made some important memories from small tokens.

Linda Perlstein lamentseverything that's wrong - and this is just Part 1!

The STEM-ologist seems glad to hear a dissenting voice on Obama's STEM announcement. Kind of caught me off guard! :D

Ben Miller makes a hilarious (yet sadly accurate!) comparison between student loan repayment and the death penalty.

Katharine Beals responds to an Education Week article about using education to meet the needs of business.

RMD discusses what it means to use evidence in making decisions about education.

Debra Viadero noticed a new study supporting an old program.

Jamie Davies O'Leary wonders why there are still bad teachers in Cincinnati schools if everyone knows who they are.

Even if we got to experience several each day, a stunning moment like the one Ms. Flecha experienced is never common.

Ed Beat reports on a charter school that is trying to replicate Rosie.

Lisa Guernsey offers solutions for chronic absence at the elementary level.

Robert Pondiscio acknowledges that sometimes, what works is BORING.

Deborah Meier joins the cast of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in singing, "Where Do We Go From Here?"

Dr. Sara Goldrick-Rab points out that community college seems to be an invisible institution.

Pat gives some suggestions on how to de-stress your class.

Happy Chyck has had some ups and downs in her creative writing class, but lately she's been able tosqueeze good writing out of them.

Technology in Class says that txtspk doesn't count as competent writing.

Rachel Lynette suggests ways to rearrange your room creatively.

Mrs. Chili struggles to define the boundaries of a parent's place.

Under Assault sounds pretty frustrated with the UFT president's response to Bloomberg's speech.

Ms. Understood had her students dancing for democracy.

Dan Callahan doesn't quite trust the Deloitte 2009 Education Survey.

Sarah has put together a wonderful tween book guide for fiction/nonfiction pairs, just in time for the holidays. (It's no coincidence!)

As always, mistakes are my fault! Let me know and I'll fix them ASAP if it's at all possible.

You can submit your blog article to the next issue of EduCarnival v2 by using the handy-dandy carnival submission form. Past carnivals and future scheduled editions can be found on the blog carnival index page.

If you are interested in hosting an upcoming carnival, please email me at uncomfortableadventures (at) yahoo (dot) com. Mamacita, if you'll leave your email, I'll try to email you if I can - next week is open but I'd like to have a way to get submissions sent to you!

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EduCarnival v2 - Issue 14

Yesterday we had an instructional half-day, with parent-teacher conferences in the afternoon. I didn't have any, so I used the time to do parent calls and grade. I had more grading to do than I'd anticipated, but I should've seen it coming.

I bribed my seniors with the promise of food. I let them sign up to bring things in, but reminded them that their Frankenstein final projects were due. Anyone who didn't have a completed project to turn in would be given the opportunity to go to the library to type it during class (rather than sit around chatting and snacking).

Of the 32 students in that class, three were absent - and one of those emailed me the project! 26 of the other 28 turned theirs in at the start of class. I only had to have two of them finish up - and only one of those failed to turn in the work.

Now I just need to go hassle our AP about the newspaper that should have been approved (or returned) last week...

Click 'Continue' to read a WONDERFUL set of blog posts - I am SO THANKFUL for all of you who make this possible!

teachin' had a moment - or several - of frustration.

UA is getting ready to Reach for the whistle, posted at Under Assault: Teaching in NYC.

Pat thinks maybe we should Unblock Social Networking Sites, posted at Successful Teaching.

Siobhan Curious presents Yannick's debts posted at classroom as microcosm.

ms. understood takes a moment to laugh a little, with Good Quotes Good Times posted at Teacher, I Don't Get It.

Mr Teacher has a very full classroom - 34 posted at Mr Teacher.

MatthewPaulson shows you how to Save Money On College Costs posted at Fine Tuned Finances.

Liam Goldrick helped revise the Race to the Top regulations at Under The Hood posted at The Education Optimists.

The rarely-conventional Carol Richtsmeier talks about conventions she's gone to in Conventions, Museums & Yukon posted at Bellringers - also? her new book has been reviewed!.

Tense Teacher writes about The New Girl.

Miss Teacha has Been Thinking about starting over... or not...

John Spencer writers about the Most Neglected Subject.

Miss Bennett is surviving, but back!

Mr. B (no relation, as far as I know!) decided to make a Sacrifice to be there for his grieving students.

Ranting Teacher is trying to help the Little Loners.

Miss Paste is still dealing with a tough situation.

I don't know if I agree with the Peter Drucker quote posted on Education Innovation. What do you think?

Mr. Teacher had his day bookended by a rude parent, but I can't muster up too much sympathy since he got a whole week off and I was in school Monday and Tuesday! (My sympathies to those who are still working today!)

I wish I could send a hug to Mrs. Bees, who is going through NO-vember right now.

Roller Coaster Teacher is back on track with NaNoWriMo.

Angela Powell Watson offers some quick checks.

Do you want to Teach Forever? Then join the 52 Teachers, 52 Lessons Project.

Bill Ferriter muses that sometimes, knowing you're not alone is more frustrating than comforting.

Joanne Jacobs reported on a pair of overdue library books that were finally returned after FIFTY-ONE YEARS. Woah.

Mrs. Mimi doesn't hold back while ranting writing about the NYT article on selling lesson plans. *g* You know we love ya, Mrs. Mimi!

And Dina suggests that all too many of us are martyrs.

You can submit your blog article to the next issue of EduCarnival v2 by using the handy-dandy carnival submission form. Past carnivals and future scheduled editions can be found on the blog carnival index page.

If you are interested in hosting an upcoming carnival, please email me at uncomfortableadventures (at) yahoo (dot) com.

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EduCarnival v2 - Issue 13

No cut-tags this time, and no frills. I'm floundering through our Frankenstein unit and I have NO IDEA how we're going to get six flats done - not just the 48 pages, we'll have that, oh no, it has to be in six flats. AURGH.

And none of them will be our people pages, because there's NO way we'll be able to have the portrait images in time. Eff.

And my journalism students cannot punctuate. Or follow directions AT ALL, it seems - HOW difficult is it to center bylines in the first column of the article?!

Fortunately there is a cheer-up just ahead: carnival articles! yey!

siobhan curious presents choose gratitude posted at classroom as microcosm.

Darren presents Classroom Visits By The Principal posted at Right on the Left Coast: Views From a Conservative Teacher.

Scott Palat presents Choosing the Right College or University with AcceptEdge | posted at TutorFi.com.

Mister Teacher presents Bars, and Pictures, and Tallies, oh my! posted at Learn Me Good.

Joanne Jacobs presents Math teaching without the math posted at Joanne Jacobs.

Miss Eyre presents Murderers' Row posted at Life at the Morton School.

oldandrew presents Health Versus Education posted at Scenes From The Battleground.

Pat presents Lessons I Learned from Knitting posted at Successful Teaching.

Bruce presents Overcome the biggest barrier to good writing: time posted at A Blog about Writing Clearly.

Mr Teacher presents Sex, Ed?! posted at Mr Teacher.

Jim McGuire presents Learning to Read, Adult Style posted at The Reading Workshop.

teachin' presents Sure isn't. posted at I'm a Dreamer.

Liam Goldrick presents Using Value Added to Assess Teacher Effectiveness posted at The Education Optimists.

Darren presents Principal Injured In Food Fight posted at Right on the Left Coast: Views From a Conservative Teacher.

You can submit your blog article to the next issue of EduCarnival v2 by using the handy-dandy carnival submission form. Past carnivals and future scheduled editions can be found on the blog carnival index page.

If you are interested in hosting an upcoming carnival, please email me at uncomfortableadventures (at) yahoo (dot) com.

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EduCarnival v2 Issue 12

(I hope I'm counting right!)

I don't know if it's the season or the weather or the deadlines or the flu, but lately it's seemed like the days are just rocketing past. I blink and it's the weekend and the dishes and laundry and grading and leaves and bills have piled up and need to be taken care of NOW. I blink again and we're halfway into the next week and I haven't promoted the EduCarnival nearly as much as I meant to, and while I've been reading and bookmarking posts I meant to comment on those bookmarks are now how many weeks old?

Don't get me started on deadlines for the newspaper and the book...

But it's nice to host again! (Gives me a semi-legitimate reason to avoid emptying the dishwasher...)

Click 'Continue' and read on!

Joanne Jacobs presents Hip-hop as old-school teaching tool posted at Joanne Jacobs.

Last week's host, teachin', presents Bellwether posted at I'm a Dreamer.

Carol Richtsmeier presents The Richie Hata’s Club, T-Shirts & Interesting Emails posted at Bellringers.

ms. understood presents Ancient Greece posted at Teacher, I Don't Get It.

Mr Teacher presents Rate your teaching posted at Mr Teacher.

Mrs. Chili is hosting a seminar on teaching research over at A Teacher's Education.

Mr Teacher presents Spelling disaster posted at Mr Teacher.

Pat presents Getting Your Administration On Board posted at Successful Teaching.

Mamacita presents Happy Hallowe'en. Eat Up. Sing Along. Read Up. Jerk Down. Smash. Freeze. Blow Up. Enjoy. posted at Scheiss Weekly.

Jane presents Colorado Inventor’s Showcase 2009 – DaVinci Institute Teaches Inventors How to Market Ideas posted at Steve Spangler's Blog.

Sarah Garb presents Dead Class Pets: Little Baby Tampons posted at Dead Class Pets.

Darren presents Languages Spoken At School posted at Right on the Left Coast: Views From a Conservative Teacher.

Joel presents How Do We Show Our Students That We Love Them? over at So You Want to Teach.

Bill Ferriter presents The Torrid Pace of Change over at The Tempered Radical.

John Spencer presents Searching for What Was Lost over at Musings from a Not-So-Master Teacher.

Tense Teacher signed up for NaNoWriMo over at Tense Teacher.

Roller Coaster Teacher did as well, and is well on the way already!

Rob Jacobs presents Dumber Together over at Education Innovation.

Sarah suggests a Teachers Anonymous group over at Confessions of an Untenured Teacher.

Ms. Paste could use some encouragement over at I Teach, Therefore I Am.

Mr. B is reading good books and thinking about them over at Docere Est Discere.

Betty was frustrated by a parent who complained before getting details over at Timely Teacher Talk.

List posts:

Barbara Williams presents 100 Skills You Should Learn (for Free) While You’re Unemployed posted at Online Degree Programs.org.

Diane Steward presents Top 25 Social Media Sites for College Students posted at Undergraduate Degree.

Rachel Lynette presents Creative Writing: The Really Long List posted at Minds in Bloom.

Sophie presents Crucial tips about College Accreditation, learn how it will affect your wallet posted at Sophie's Blog.

Robert Damone presents Highlighting 10 Creative Professors Teaching at Online Universities posted at Online University Data.

Sophie presents 7 FAFSA Myths-Don't Lose this Money posted at Sophie's Blog.

And, since this is Issue #12, I am linking back to my Dirty Dozen, for those who haven't seen it already. And for those who have, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the list!

You can submit your blog article to the next issue of EduCarnival v2 by using the handy-dandy carnival submission form. Past carnivals and future scheduled editions can be found on the blog carnival index page.

If you are interested in hosting an upcoming carnival, please email me at uncomfortableadventures (at) yahoo (dot) com. (Mamacita, I know you commented - have you emailed me? I think I may have deleted it by accident.) And if you're on, pester me to get it set up at BlogCarnival. I haven't kept that updated as swiftly as I'd like!

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Not Writing, Once Again

Shortly after the most recent time that I hosted the EduCarnival, something happened that sent me into an anti-writing sulk. [Brief tangent - if you know me in person and want details, call me. Don't particularly want to discuss things that made be not want to write, you know, IN WRITING. Blech.]

Truth be told, there are a bojillion things I would rather do than write. There are only a very few things that come in behind it - grading, dishes, and putting away the laundry being the big ones. [And mowing the lawn. But I don't do that, anyway, so it doesn't really come into the picture.] [I like including my meandering thoughts this way. I'm not sure why, but it's fun. Also it makes the post longer, as though I actually have something to say. Neener!]

However, in my kettle o' faults, it seems that stubbornness is more powerful than not-writing, so now that I've had my sulk and am (mostly) over it, here we go again. [I've started tagging my images in Picasa with the url I got them from so that now I can use an image I've used previously and not have to find it in my list of posts to give credit for it. In theory.]

I got called into the AP's office this week because during an informal observation (our school was a training ground for administrators practicing with a new form) my observers noted that I didn't have my standards posted. I was relieved that the problem was something easily correctable, but a wee bit frustrated that there was no other feedback for me. Rats! I guess the rest of it must've been ok... still... would've been nice to have some additional specifics.

Journalism is frustrating me. While having the online program is nice in theory, there are a few kinks.

(1) There is no way to upload a list of student names. They're connected to the photos. Sooo, either you can upload them sort-of-automatically with the portrait CDs, or you have to type every. single. one. in. by. hand. And it's a form, so copy-paste is NO help. The portrait CD thing would be fine if our portrait sessions had not been PUSHED BACK MORE THAN TWO MONTHS OH MY FRIKKIN GOD. Our retakes aren't until December 10.

December 10.

I really don't even want to think about how we're going to get this done, but I'm seriously stressed.

(2) Students with accounts can log in and work on images and/or pages from home. This would be great, if they actually did. There's a little button I can click to get a list of activity on the site. It's useful... and perpetually depressing.

I think I have finally figured out my regrets. I don't know if the first two count, because I don't think there's anything I could do about them.

First of all, I wish I wanted to write. I wish I enjoyed writing. I have tried everything I can think of, and it's still a chore. Almost every time I sit down to write, I have to make myself follow through. Heck, most of the time, I don't even want to begin, let alone follow through.

Second, I wish I wanted kids. Mostly because the Hunk would make suuuuch an awesome dad, but also because as a woman and a teacher to boot, there's this sort of general expectation that I want some of my own. And I don't. And I realize that my reasons are totally selfish and I'm sure I would love them and maybe that would change my selfishness but... it doesn't matter. I'm not going to decide to have children based on the hope that I'll be delighted once they're here. That just seems bass-ackwards to me.

Finally, and perhaps the only one that's an actual regret, I wish I'd started dancing earlier. I really enjoy it. And I missed out on years and years of not getting to enjoy it. Not that I had a miserable life or anything. Didn't know what I was missing.

But that's a little sad, right there.

Anyway. I realize that this post really hasn't had a coherent main idea - mostly I've just been rambling - but... don't care. Or, I do, but not enough to change anything.

At least I wrote something.

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