when i first got my own class of students, in the fall of 2005, i started what would become a little tradition. on september 11th of every year, i invited my students - 11th and 12th graders - to share their memories of 9/11 because i think there is power - and catharsis - in telling those stories. i have very vivid memories of the moment i found out about the attack and the moments after that, and i don't think i'm alone in that.
and every year, my students were younger and younger when 9/11 happened. stories changed from "i was in middle school" to "i was in elementary school and our teachers didn't want to tell us and then my mom picked me up early" - memories they were only on the periphery of. today i teach kids born in 1997 and 1998. they were too young to remember, really, and today i didn't ask them to reflect on it as a class. 14 years. since my students no longer have personal memories of that day, is it time to call it history?
i'm doing - as you can tell - some reflection today.
Showing posts with label teaching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label teaching. Show all posts
Friday, September 11, 2015
Tuesday, September 16, 2014
i am…
…feeling sad about dropping ruby off at the boarding place for a few days while i go to a conference. but the new lady there is persevering and making ruby be her friend even after ruby was a BITCH to her the first time they met. i'm glad the new lady isn't holding it against her. at least while i'm around.
…feeling victorious at beating my friend josh at fantasy football this week. and though i do not care one lick about the NFL, i have found myself discussing recent events more than once in my government class. my attempts at deep conversation ("why would a woman stay with a man who abuses her?" "what's the difference between punishing your child and child abuse?") have gone…okay…in my class. even if they aren't thinking as critically as i want them to, i hope some of our conversations are sticking with them.
…feeling so excited to see two groups of fantastic friends in october, even though one of the plane tickets cost about $200 more than i wanted to pay. pennies may need to be slightly pinched this month, but it will be totally worth it to spend two long weekends in a row with good good friends.
…feeling sad about dropping ruby off at the boarding place for a few days while i go to a conference. but the new lady there is persevering and making ruby be her friend even after ruby was a BITCH to her the first time they met. i'm glad the new lady isn't holding it against her. at least while i'm around.
…feeling victorious at beating my friend josh at fantasy football this week. and though i do not care one lick about the NFL, i have found myself discussing recent events more than once in my government class. my attempts at deep conversation ("why would a woman stay with a man who abuses her?" "what's the difference between punishing your child and child abuse?") have gone…okay…in my class. even if they aren't thinking as critically as i want them to, i hope some of our conversations are sticking with them.
…feeling so excited to see two groups of fantastic friends in october, even though one of the plane tickets cost about $200 more than i wanted to pay. pennies may need to be slightly pinched this month, but it will be totally worth it to spend two long weekends in a row with good good friends.
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
what i'm listening to right now
people, coming back from spring break hit me like a ton of bricks. monday was a teacher workday, but anyone who works in schools knows that it was jam packed with meetings. i had research papers to finish grading, a week of lesson planning to finalize, some things that had to be done in preparation for AP exams (i am the AP coordinator for my school, which is a scary job because if i forget to do something and we have problems on exam day it is a VERY VERY BAD THING), and we started meeting with rising 9th grade families this week to plan their kid's schedule for next year. eek! on monday i was drowning, but i'm back on top (for now). and this song is a good one for calming myself down.
"i choose you," by sara bareilles:
what a fantastic voice. i thought i had more of her music, but i only own a couple songs. i'm about to correct that on itunes!
"i choose you," by sara bareilles:
what a fantastic voice. i thought i had more of her music, but i only own a couple songs. i'm about to correct that on itunes!
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
the germs of 578 high schoolers have gotten to me and i've got a cold. sigh. this was bound to happen right about now... ruby is at the boarding place because i have a 7:40am INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT UGH I HAVE TO BE AT THE AIRPORT 2 HOURS BEFOREHAND flight tomorrow to canada for a conference (!) and that plus the cold means that i just might go to sleep in the next half hour. do not judge me.
Monday, September 16, 2013
i realized today that i haven't posted much about my new job. so here's the update! i like it a lot: great kids, some on par with my favorites from atlanta. they are smart and eager and i get a chorus of genuine, eye-contact "thank you!"s when class ends every day. this means so much. i work in an office with 5 other deans who are smart and funny and caring and SO helpful, and we are building a camaraderie similar to what i had with my co-deans in atlanta. and these are the most important things about my kind of job: good kids and great coworkers.
i am learning the answers to the questions i get asked and am building confidence in myself and comfort in my job. whew.
there have been some late nights recently - we put on parent programs for each grade level, plus open house night, plus a few new-to-the-school parent programs...all beginning of the year stuff, but it gets tiring doing that once a week. we're far enough into the year now that most of this is done, which i am very grateful for. and so is ruby: she is a crazy kitty when i get home from work, and if i rush back off for a couple more hours she is not a happy camper, having been home alone all day.
i am still accidentally falling asleep for a 30 minute nap every day after work. you would think it wouldn't be an accident any more, but i lie down on the couch to watch some tv and 10 minutes later my eyes are so heavy i can't keep them open any more.
so yes: the new job is going well. hooray!
i am learning the answers to the questions i get asked and am building confidence in myself and comfort in my job. whew.
there have been some late nights recently - we put on parent programs for each grade level, plus open house night, plus a few new-to-the-school parent programs...all beginning of the year stuff, but it gets tiring doing that once a week. we're far enough into the year now that most of this is done, which i am very grateful for. and so is ruby: she is a crazy kitty when i get home from work, and if i rush back off for a couple more hours she is not a happy camper, having been home alone all day.
i am still accidentally falling asleep for a 30 minute nap every day after work. you would think it wouldn't be an accident any more, but i lie down on the couch to watch some tv and 10 minutes later my eyes are so heavy i can't keep them open any more.
so yes: the new job is going well. hooray!
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
one of the best parts of grad school is being around other smart people and learning things from them. this essay was recommended by a classmate of mine, and i find it incredibly interesting. it's a bit of a long read, but worth it: the disadvantages of an elite education.
the parts i found most spot-on:
I learned to give that little nod of understanding, that slightly sympathetic “Oh,” when people told me they went to a less prestigious college. (If I’d gone to Harvard, I would have learned to say “in Boston” when I was asked where I went to school—the Cambridge version of noblesse oblige.)
um, i do this. ugh. "i went to school in north carolina." only if pressed do i say i went to duke. i am incredibly proud of my duke education, but you get a lot of reactions. it stalls a lot of conversations. i am fearful of sounding like i'm bragging.
...students from elite schools expect success, and expect it now. They have, by definition, never experienced anything else, and their sense of self has been built around their ability to succeed. The idea of not being successful terrifies them, disorients them, defeats them. They’ve been driven their whole lives by a fear of failure—often, in the first instance, by their parents’ fear of failure. The first time I blew a test, I walked out of the room feeling like I no longer knew who I was. The second time, it was easier; I had started to learn that failure isn’t the end of the world.
so accurate, both about the experiences of my very bright students, but also about my experience: this year i was a finalist for two jobs that i did not get. the first rejection was like getting punched in the face. then i ate a lot of bad food and laid in bed for many hours feeling sorry for myself and then i was okay. the second rejection was so much easier. learning to deal with academic or job-related failure is something that bright kids don't often have to learn how to do - something that i didn't have to learn how to do until i was 30.
We live in a society that is itself so wealthy that it can afford to provide a decent living to whole classes of people who in other countries exist (or in earlier times existed) on the brink of poverty or, at least, of indignity. You can live comfortably in the United States as a schoolteacher, or a community organizer, or a civil rights lawyer, or an artist—that is, by any reasonable definition of comfort. You have to live in an ordinary house instead of an apartment in Manhattan or a mansion in L.A.; you have to drive a Honda instead of a BMW or a Hummer; you have to vacation in Florida instead of Barbados or Paris, but what are such losses when set against the opportunity to do work you believe in, work you’re suited for, work you love, every day of your life?
preach it.
there are many more fantastic passages in the full essay - i'd highly recommend it, especially to those interested in education!
the parts i found most spot-on:
I learned to give that little nod of understanding, that slightly sympathetic “Oh,” when people told me they went to a less prestigious college. (If I’d gone to Harvard, I would have learned to say “in Boston” when I was asked where I went to school—the Cambridge version of noblesse oblige.)
um, i do this. ugh. "i went to school in north carolina." only if pressed do i say i went to duke. i am incredibly proud of my duke education, but you get a lot of reactions. it stalls a lot of conversations. i am fearful of sounding like i'm bragging.
...students from elite schools expect success, and expect it now. They have, by definition, never experienced anything else, and their sense of self has been built around their ability to succeed. The idea of not being successful terrifies them, disorients them, defeats them. They’ve been driven their whole lives by a fear of failure—often, in the first instance, by their parents’ fear of failure. The first time I blew a test, I walked out of the room feeling like I no longer knew who I was. The second time, it was easier; I had started to learn that failure isn’t the end of the world.
so accurate, both about the experiences of my very bright students, but also about my experience: this year i was a finalist for two jobs that i did not get. the first rejection was like getting punched in the face. then i ate a lot of bad food and laid in bed for many hours feeling sorry for myself and then i was okay. the second rejection was so much easier. learning to deal with academic or job-related failure is something that bright kids don't often have to learn how to do - something that i didn't have to learn how to do until i was 30.
We live in a society that is itself so wealthy that it can afford to provide a decent living to whole classes of people who in other countries exist (or in earlier times existed) on the brink of poverty or, at least, of indignity. You can live comfortably in the United States as a schoolteacher, or a community organizer, or a civil rights lawyer, or an artist—that is, by any reasonable definition of comfort. You have to live in an ordinary house instead of an apartment in Manhattan or a mansion in L.A.; you have to drive a Honda instead of a BMW or a Hummer; you have to vacation in Florida instead of Barbados or Paris, but what are such losses when set against the opportunity to do work you believe in, work you’re suited for, work you love, every day of your life?
preach it.
there are many more fantastic passages in the full essay - i'd highly recommend it, especially to those interested in education!
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
i've changed my blog title!
i hadn't loved "a passing fancy," and since i've been blogging for almost three years it clearly isn't a passing fancy any more. and it's a little cliche. ugh.
to explain how i got to this new title, i'm going to excerpt a portion of the speech i gave to the seniors and their parents few weeks ago in my role as twelfth grade dean of students. during the final week of school, the parents hold a senior dinner for the students and their families, and invite the head of school, principal, twelfth grade dean, and a faculty member specially chosen by the students to speak. here's what i said:
Tonight I want to talk a little bit about friendship as you leave high school to go your separate ways in the world.
C.S. Lewis, most famous as the author of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, said this: “Friendship is the greatest of worldly goods. Certainly to me it is the chief happiness of life. If I had to give a piece of advice to a young man about a place to live, I think I should say, 'Sacrifice almost everything to live where you can be near your friends.' I know I am very fortunate in that respect. ”
For the last 1, 2, 10, 19 years you have lived near your friends. Some of you will continue to live near your friends as you attend the same college or a college in the same town. I have lived in the same town as my friends for the last 7 years, and I, like you, will depart this town in August for a new adventure, leaving friends behind. I have loved this C.S. Lewis quote for a long time; I have several close friends who are almost like family, and I agree with Lewis that friendship is one of the most important things in my life. One of the scariest things about moving is leaving my friends.
C.S. Lewis says, “sacrifice almost everything to live where you can be near your friends.” There is a time for this in your life, certainly, but I would say to C.S. Lewis that he’s wrong. We can’t restrain ourselves that way. Lewis very famously met with his friends (including J.R.R. Tolkien, the author of The Lord of the Rings) – he met with his friends every Thursday evening for 20 years. When I move away – and you move away – we will certainly miss those rituals we had with our friends – whether we had a standing Thursday night together talking about literature, as Lewis did, or whether our ritual was going to Blimpie’s for lunch on Fridays. But if you “sacrifice almost everything to live where you can be near your friends,” you sacrifice a great deal. You get the Blimpie’s sandwich with your friend on Fridays, but you may never become the person you are meant to be if you don’t leave your comfort zone, meet new people, listen to new ideas, see new parts of the world.
Helen Keller famously wrote, "Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing." So how do we balance this – the daring adventure with the advice to live near our friends? I would argue that Lewis’s quote doesn’t hold true in a world with cell phones with unlimited calling plans, affordable airfare, skype, and Words With Friends. We don’t have to sacrifice everything to live near our friends – we can find other ways to connect with them. That is my advice for you. I hope you do allow yourself a daring adventure, picking a roommate you don’t know, taking classes in areas that interest you, joining clubs and organizations that help you meet new and interesting people. Your best friend from high school will always answer your phone call when you get home at the end of the day.
Make the most of your daring adventure.
friends, i love you all. thanks for reading, and thanks even more for being a part of my life.
i hadn't loved "a passing fancy," and since i've been blogging for almost three years it clearly isn't a passing fancy any more. and it's a little cliche. ugh.
to explain how i got to this new title, i'm going to excerpt a portion of the speech i gave to the seniors and their parents few weeks ago in my role as twelfth grade dean of students. during the final week of school, the parents hold a senior dinner for the students and their families, and invite the head of school, principal, twelfth grade dean, and a faculty member specially chosen by the students to speak. here's what i said:
Tonight I want to talk a little bit about friendship as you leave high school to go your separate ways in the world.
C.S. Lewis, most famous as the author of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, said this: “Friendship is the greatest of worldly goods. Certainly to me it is the chief happiness of life. If I had to give a piece of advice to a young man about a place to live, I think I should say, 'Sacrifice almost everything to live where you can be near your friends.' I know I am very fortunate in that respect. ”
For the last 1, 2, 10, 19 years you have lived near your friends. Some of you will continue to live near your friends as you attend the same college or a college in the same town. I have lived in the same town as my friends for the last 7 years, and I, like you, will depart this town in August for a new adventure, leaving friends behind. I have loved this C.S. Lewis quote for a long time; I have several close friends who are almost like family, and I agree with Lewis that friendship is one of the most important things in my life. One of the scariest things about moving is leaving my friends.
C.S. Lewis says, “sacrifice almost everything to live where you can be near your friends.” There is a time for this in your life, certainly, but I would say to C.S. Lewis that he’s wrong. We can’t restrain ourselves that way. Lewis very famously met with his friends (including J.R.R. Tolkien, the author of The Lord of the Rings) – he met with his friends every Thursday evening for 20 years. When I move away – and you move away – we will certainly miss those rituals we had with our friends – whether we had a standing Thursday night together talking about literature, as Lewis did, or whether our ritual was going to Blimpie’s for lunch on Fridays. But if you “sacrifice almost everything to live where you can be near your friends,” you sacrifice a great deal. You get the Blimpie’s sandwich with your friend on Fridays, but you may never become the person you are meant to be if you don’t leave your comfort zone, meet new people, listen to new ideas, see new parts of the world.
Helen Keller famously wrote, "Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing." So how do we balance this – the daring adventure with the advice to live near our friends? I would argue that Lewis’s quote doesn’t hold true in a world with cell phones with unlimited calling plans, affordable airfare, skype, and Words With Friends. We don’t have to sacrifice everything to live near our friends – we can find other ways to connect with them. That is my advice for you. I hope you do allow yourself a daring adventure, picking a roommate you don’t know, taking classes in areas that interest you, joining clubs and organizations that help you meet new and interesting people. Your best friend from high school will always answer your phone call when you get home at the end of the day.
Make the most of your daring adventure.
this has been a really interesting year - applying for school as the seniors applied for schools, hearing back as they did, worrying about financial aid, taking "college days" to visit schools. more than ever, i felt like i understood what my students were going through as they prepared for one of the biggest transitions (yet) of their lives.
friday was my last day of work - it's summer! - and it seemed an appropriate time for the blog to reflect the changes in my life.
in addition, this video is bad ass and you should watch it.
friday was my last day of work - it's summer! - and it seemed an appropriate time for the blog to reflect the changes in my life.
in addition, this video is bad ass and you should watch it.
friends, i love you all. thanks for reading, and thanks even more for being a part of my life.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
LOVE this: rubber stamps i wish i had for grading freshman composition papers.
i need every one of those stamps.
i need every one of those stamps.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
let me tell you the number one worst thing about my job: that sometimes my students don't appreciate what i'm trying to do for them. in any number of ways. i didn't give you a 70 on this assignment because i dislike you or take any joy in it: i did because you didn't perform well. there were 100s. this isn't me - your preparation for this assignment is up to you.. i didn't give you a detention because i want to spend my lunch hour with you: i did it because your behavior fell below our standards. i care about our standards. your behavior is up to you.
please don't be mean to me.
some days i wish i had a desk job.
...and even as i write this, i know that i don't want a desk job. i know this is the job i want.
it's just...every day isn't a picnic.
please don't be mean to me.
some days i wish i had a desk job.
...and even as i write this, i know that i don't want a desk job. i know this is the job i want.
it's just...every day isn't a picnic.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
today i made two very exciting discoveries:
#1: oxyclean powder, mixed with water and made into a paste, can be rubbed on armpit stains on white tshirts, let to sit for 20 minutes or so, and then washed and - voila! - armpit stains gone! not "better" - gone! (i feel like an oxyclean commercial right now.) this is a trick courtesy of my sister becky, and she gets a GOLD STAR for her efforts.*
#2: i love corn chowder. (this is not a discovery from today, but this is necessary background information.) i've been wanting to make my own corn chowder, but sometimes when you make things you realize that they are not good for you, and i am in denial about corn chowder's caloric content and/or fat grams. i found this recipe today, and decided to give it a go. i only made a half recipe, using vegetable broth instead of the chicken broth, omitting the bacon, and using 2% milk instead of half-and-half. and no bread bowl - i made some biscuits to go alongside it. IT WAS AMAZING. a tiny bit sweet because of the fresh corn, and chock full of corn and onions and peppers - obviously the best part. it feels healthy...enough. i would really recommend trying it!
*a lot of times in class i will ask a particularly tough question and tell my students, "i will be so excited if someone gets this right!" if someone does, i award an imaginary gold star to them. (you might not be surprised to know that my class is a mixture of fun facts, positive reinforcement, and real world applications.) the other day i was on the phone with someone who said (i am not joking), "of all the people i work with, you get a gold star for being the most prompt." we were immediately best friends, as she knows the value of an imaginary gold star. and people? i was feeling good all day after she said that to me. these imaginary gold stars work!!
#2: i love corn chowder. (this is not a discovery from today, but this is necessary background information.) i've been wanting to make my own corn chowder, but sometimes when you make things you realize that they are not good for you, and i am in denial about corn chowder's caloric content and/or fat grams. i found this recipe today, and decided to give it a go. i only made a half recipe, using vegetable broth instead of the chicken broth, omitting the bacon, and using 2% milk instead of half-and-half. and no bread bowl - i made some biscuits to go alongside it. IT WAS AMAZING. a tiny bit sweet because of the fresh corn, and chock full of corn and onions and peppers - obviously the best part. it feels healthy...enough. i would really recommend trying it!
*a lot of times in class i will ask a particularly tough question and tell my students, "i will be so excited if someone gets this right!" if someone does, i award an imaginary gold star to them. (you might not be surprised to know that my class is a mixture of fun facts, positive reinforcement, and real world applications.) the other day i was on the phone with someone who said (i am not joking), "of all the people i work with, you get a gold star for being the most prompt." we were immediately best friends, as she knows the value of an imaginary gold star. and people? i was feeling good all day after she said that to me. these imaginary gold stars work!!
Monday, December 12, 2011
oh boy. just read this line in an essay that one of my students wrote:
First of all, Smith lacked the needed experience in government to be a liable candidate from the gecko.
viable candidate from the get-go, liable candidate from the gecko - you know, being a teacher is all about translating.
and giggling.
First of all, Smith lacked the needed experience in government to be a liable candidate from the gecko.
viable candidate from the get-go, liable candidate from the gecko - you know, being a teacher is all about translating.
and giggling.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
GRE - check!
UPenn application - check!
(more order in my life - check!)
Columbia and Stanford - started (no exclamation point, as there is a ways to go there)
Thanksgiving break - starting in 5 hours!!!
additionally, if you have never asked 18 year olds to write letters to a presidential candidate they are considering vote for, you must do this. you get all sorts of awesome stuff like "President Obama, you have made a lot of changes, but you could be doing more for gay Americans" and "Herman Cain, experts say your 9-9-9 economic plan will raise taxes for 84% of Americans. How is that okay when many families are struggling financially as it is?" and "Mitt Romney, your opponents have detailed plans of how to fix the economy. How do you expect to win without telling us what, specifically, you will do?" their ideas are so thoughtful and honest and varied. i'm loving it.
UPenn application - check!
(more order in my life - check!)
Columbia and Stanford - started (no exclamation point, as there is a ways to go there)
Thanksgiving break - starting in 5 hours!!!
additionally, if you have never asked 18 year olds to write letters to a presidential candidate they are considering vote for, you must do this. you get all sorts of awesome stuff like "President Obama, you have made a lot of changes, but you could be doing more for gay Americans" and "Herman Cain, experts say your 9-9-9 economic plan will raise taxes for 84% of Americans. How is that okay when many families are struggling financially as it is?" and "Mitt Romney, your opponents have detailed plans of how to fix the economy. How do you expect to win without telling us what, specifically, you will do?" their ideas are so thoughtful and honest and varied. i'm loving it.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
what i'm listening to right now
sugarland & matt nathanson, "run":
whoever decided to put two of my favorite singers in a duet together deserves a cookie.
what i'm DOING right now:
helping my students write letters to presidential candidates and then printing them out on school stationery and mailing them. so fun. four years ago when we did this about a quarter of the letters got a response...
whoever decided to put two of my favorite singers in a duet together deserves a cookie.
what i'm DOING right now:
helping my students write letters to presidential candidates and then printing them out on school stationery and mailing them. so fun. four years ago when we did this about a quarter of the letters got a response...
Friday, November 11, 2011
just another day on the job...
this morning at 8am i was involved in a meeting in which a police officer told an 18 year old boy to "stop acting like you're batman."
this was a serious meeting...but it was everything i could do not to laugh out loud.
this was a serious meeting...but it was everything i could do not to laugh out loud.
Monday, October 10, 2011
look for me here on december 5th! very excited. now i have to start getting nervous about what i will write...
(don't worry - i'll be sure to link to the blog once my post is up.)
(don't worry - i'll be sure to link to the blog once my post is up.)
Friday, March 18, 2011
an extra credit question from my test last week:
what country has the world's longest total set of land borders with other countries, slightly ahead of russia?
(taken from ken jennings' tuesday trivia emails. i like to have extra credit questions that are entirely unrelated to what we're studying - i think it's a fun addition to a test. if you have a guess, leave a comment!)
actual answers i received:
japan (a country with 0 miles of land borders with other countries)
the philippines (ditto)
ireland (only slightly better)
the vatican (ahh yes - pick the smallest country in the world)
crikey. who is taught these kids geography?? SERIOUSLY. i would like to speak to that person.
what country has the world's longest total set of land borders with other countries, slightly ahead of russia?
(taken from ken jennings' tuesday trivia emails. i like to have extra credit questions that are entirely unrelated to what we're studying - i think it's a fun addition to a test. if you have a guess, leave a comment!)
actual answers i received:
japan (a country with 0 miles of land borders with other countries)
the philippines (ditto)
ireland (only slightly better)
the vatican (ahh yes - pick the smallest country in the world)
crikey. who is taught these kids geography?? SERIOUSLY. i would like to speak to that person.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
today in chapel one of the seniors was speaking about black history month, and she gave me a shout out for what we've been talking about in our AP government class (we're finishing the unit on civil rights). and she called me "young, inspiring, and beautiful."
then she said, "extra credit?"
it made my day either way.
then she said, "extra credit?"
it made my day either way.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
“How paramount the future is to the present when one is surrounded by children.”
--Charles Darwin (1809 -1882)
over the past two days, i've shown my classes parts of when the levees broke, spike lee's documentary about hurricane katrina and the aftermath in new orleans. we spent half an hour discussing what we'd seen today before they embark on a mini project on the film. and ohmygoodness, what a great discussion we had. some days are like this - kids are on the ball, take the issues seriously, really think, really listen, have insightful things to say. not every day is like this. but i was so heartened that today was.
--Charles Darwin (1809 -1882)
over the past two days, i've shown my classes parts of when the levees broke, spike lee's documentary about hurricane katrina and the aftermath in new orleans. we spent half an hour discussing what we'd seen today before they embark on a mini project on the film. and ohmygoodness, what a great discussion we had. some days are like this - kids are on the ball, take the issues seriously, really think, really listen, have insightful things to say. not every day is like this. but i was so heartened that today was.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
a tip
want to keep 55 high school seniors quiet for three hours while on a field trip to a courthouse? here are my tips:
1. tell them they'll be in big trouble if they aren't quiet (aka threaten them). repeat this as often as necessary before going on the field trip.
2. have them sit in the presence of several police officers and a judge (aka scare them).
3. give them 500 post it notes and tell them to pass notes (aka distract them). this is the best idea i have ever had in my 28 years of life. they passed notes - both on topic and off topic, i'm sure - and just were genuinely the best behaved kids ever. attentive, interested, thoughtful, present. i am so proud of how they acted.
today i was reminded of how amazing it is to be a teacher. i'm lucky to have such great students.
we sat through the final three witnesses and the closing arguments in a murder trial, and i'm now on pins and needles waiting to hear the outcome. the jury is out. the judge expects that they'll be back by the end of the day. i am waiting by my computer. more about the trial soon...
1. tell them they'll be in big trouble if they aren't quiet (aka threaten them). repeat this as often as necessary before going on the field trip.
2. have them sit in the presence of several police officers and a judge (aka scare them).
3. give them 500 post it notes and tell them to pass notes (aka distract them). this is the best idea i have ever had in my 28 years of life. they passed notes - both on topic and off topic, i'm sure - and just were genuinely the best behaved kids ever. attentive, interested, thoughtful, present. i am so proud of how they acted.
today i was reminded of how amazing it is to be a teacher. i'm lucky to have such great students.
we sat through the final three witnesses and the closing arguments in a murder trial, and i'm now on pins and needles waiting to hear the outcome. the jury is out. the judge expects that they'll be back by the end of the day. i am waiting by my computer. more about the trial soon...
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