Monday, everyone needs a break once in a while.

It has been ages since I posted and I really need some reflecting......

        My kids are not being pushed nearly hard enough but this is coming mostly from my seniors, I think that they are just used to being not forced to working hard. I think it is time that a couple get on the wagon or get out of the course. An e-mail is being sent home in the morning about their son/daughters grade and their work ethic.


      Phones have started to disappear and that is helping my boys are starting to be more and more interested in my lecture now that I know their names enough to call them out about their TERRIBLE note taking skills, man do you have to spoon feed freshmen. They're tough and require WORK! They are quick to chatter and get off topic, typically about nickelodeon which is wicked cute to me that they really do talk about kid shows still even if they play "cool."
   
     I am getting to the point of being Mr. Shannon the loved Sargent, I feel that I am getting more and more assertive with the students in the classroom while still being caring and interactive with their lives. I like to pause and ask about their days and their interest. I think it is important that we start to learn more about each other, it builds trust and respect. They respect that fact that I care and I want to know, and that I listen. Mostly that I listen and let them have a minute to discuss about things. Everyone needs a break once in a while. My classes are molding into their forms and becoming the unit that I think they should be. I will be known forever as having a louder classroom and I am adjusting slightly so that I can be more learning constructive community and not so much side talk about problems on the board and non-math topics.


     My foundations course is getting better since I am getting more and more clear about my directions, expectations, and encouraging them to be successful in my course. I think that I have laid some great ground rules for them as far as the computer is concerned and it has helped with their focus in doing well. Algebra, is algebra and been a little tough but I think that I am doing better with the boys now that I have goten into material that is more challenging and they are struggling. Guys love a good challenge.
     I am thinking that I do not want to give my FST class a final. I feel that we should instead do something far more interesting, maybe I should have them write a five page paper about all the math they have learned while being here at WA, a reflection on what they felt was most important and least important. I'm thinking this will really help them to understand why we learn math.

Cheerleading was EPIC last thursday and we have an amazing practice. The girls are really starting to respond to my style and my ideas. I am laying down some great ground work and functions for the future here at WA. The kids really enjoy my style that is forward but sincere, they like being told they are wrong AND how to fix it to be better. It is very easy to say what is wrong, being able to help fix it is far better. I was on duty this weekend and all the residential students and I are getting along so well. I really enjoy all of them. It can at times be overwhelming to be around them constantly but I do really enjoy their company and their liking for me. They are wicked funny and I love how they do whatever they think is cool and are not heavily swayed but others opinions.

The most importnat part of this reflection to me is that a student, a very high profile student came out to me. The found me on campus and asked to speek. after a long walking talk i found out that the student is afraid of their parents, the school, and the community. They are scared but confident that this is them and that they were chosen to bring great things. They feel as though this was always them and something that they can not change. They love the way things are and want to fel safe about being themselves. It was such an amazing experience, I felt so honored and inspired by this student to continue to do the things I do. I am changing lives and inspiring youth to do well in their lives. I am blooming as a teacher and this is myr route in life. All the hard work, papers, late nights paid off at that one moment. What an electrify day, I wanted to be lifted to the highest level it was the best high I was so elated. How incredible that the student felt confident in me to share such news, I can not stop thinking about it still.

A bit of a long post but a shout out to my best friend Logan and Melissa, I love you millions and their is so much great that you two give to me. Thank you.
     

Monday, Funday?

     Yet another Monday is done and I am glad that I am alive.

Today we got through quite a bit in my classes. I feel that I am getting better at being organized to give out work that is missed by students during the week. I feel that things are going smoother and that I am getting better at being aggressive with kids in the classroom to foster a better learning community. That was quite a bit of feelings however it is true.

Starting the day I had a great meeting with administration and a minor issue that has happened with a lesbian student at the school. I heard GREAT news from the AD and things just keep going well. My thrid period course went smooth the guys are really trying but they're guys so yeah.

I think this evening was the real reason for my post. I have been really connecting with my international students. I have heard a ton of great things from there, and I really like it. I think that most people on this campus see that I am very hard working and caring to everyone here. The international kids have been so open recently and I really enjoy being exposed to everything that offer.

What I have been learning most is that even just a small note from your worlds best friend and change anyday.

Oh the difference getting a hand written letter from the world's best friend can make.

I think this is an all ove the place post again... Be Ready.

Today we finally had a good touch of success with my boys! I made them work in paris while I rotated the lesson from group to group in six minute sections. This took a long time in class but the constant movement was great for their attention spans. I think that the guys really liked it, least I hope so. I was able to keep their attention for longer which was nice. I have been having such a great time with my FST(seniors) that I can not place that all in one small box. I love that class. I am still on my toes as most of them should be in AP calc and they ask some big questions, but typically I'm ready and no sweating is needed. I'm startin to become really close friends with my coworker and that is making things go nicer here at school. It is really great to have a few friends. The teacher across the hall is GREAT and we are like two best friends with what we share and how chatty we are sharing so many students. I love that I feel welcome in our segmented building on the other side of campus.
For foundations I finally got the computers and as much to my surprise the kids HATE them. Most think the work is boring and annoying and they are above, however they're not. they keep thinking that it is easy and stupid and I am very upset with how they are acting. Mostly the oler ones retaking the course. The students that are doing the work are seeing success, which is what I love to see. Iim going to probe more about they hate about ALEKS.


My professional goals are to work on TOTD's for timing concerns. I have been working on them and things are improving from them. I am noticing where students are dropping and misconnections. I feel like the chapters that I am teaching are taking forever to get through and I need to pace better next chapter for a better more rich learning of the material. I think the professional I am making better choices inside and outside of the classroom. Who I speak with and who I am distant from has been a big agenda of mine recently as I have found, education can be a touch sticky.

I have taken a seat back from cheerleading so that I can focus a little more on the res-life students and their needs here at WA. I feel that the res-life students get no time with me and I will be able to get to bed earlier at night since I will be helping them sooner being in the dorm more. I love how much the kids think that I am a person to listen to and lead. I noticed that the kids at the dorm respect me and like me very much. We have each others backs.
I am going to miss not being at cheerleading and I'm going to bug out with how I do not know what is going on. I hate that part and it is going to kill me, but it will be better for me to be free now so that when I help in the winter I can be all hands in. I am really hoping to get some great girls on the team, we have so many already I could only imagine. I love helping this team I have some big goals for us and I think we can tackel and whole bunch right off the gate. This team wants to be great, and I'm just the guy to help lead them that way. I have been more dilate about being a leader and teacher in the classroom to foster better learning. I have a couple kids that are adjusting and might need a touch more adjustments but overall we are settling nicely.

I was told again but another teacher, "You're always making things seem way better than they are, I admire your optimism." I feel that I have heard that a lot recently, it really struck me when my best friend wrote it in a letter to me.  Am I really that positive all the time to make people notice it? I think this optimism should be a trending topic. The kids are talking abut how I am fun and a great teacher, I think that means things are going wicked good this week. I keep getting compliments and kids keep popping up in my room just to say hi from time to time. I am pretty pumped about all the kids wanting to be in my room. Maybe I'm way cooler than I think....NOT!

Since when do weekends feel like a weekend day?

Yep, it is Already late Sunday,

I haven't graded half the papers I needed graded and I haven't made half the lessons I needed to make! This is getting to be a bit ridiculous. I have no time for my family soon and no time for anything other than school. I think that the load I was given is pretty stupid for being a first year teacher. I am I do admire a good challenge and I really enjoy being so busy but I can NEVER catch up on my work. It is a constant and I hate that there is going to be an open house Wednesday and grades close for report cards friday, Joy!

Phew (insert huge breathe)

Now that is over I can really reflect on the real situation... my students.
I have had a student that was accused of stealing from the school, the football locker to be exact. This is the student that I made a binder for because he was less fortunate. He is also the one that was stapeling his pants together because they had holes and it was his only pair for school. I knew that he was working against the odds to be turned to trouble but I tried my best to be a mentor and help him before something like this happened. He is such a good kid, well to me he was. I feel terrible that he has done such a thing. I know that it is out of my control but I really wish the best for him and that is all I can do. I guess we get warmed up to the kids way sooner than we think.

I am the advisor for Gay Straight Alliance, this group is my joy, I love the support. I had a few approach me about how a student was made to remove a bumper sticker from her computer stating, "Excuse me for not attending church, I was busy practicing witch craft and being a lesbian." I know I laughed my tail off too. However they saw it "offensive" to who? I'm not sure! I am going to have to meet with officials about this and work all the problems out for this girl, we are having quite the trouble with families that are very vocal about their "church view" This is not a battle for church versus gay, it is a few parents being ignorant at a fews expense. The students are great and have no worries about it but the parents are being foolish. I need to help my group understand that we are not at war with other students but with making others aware that being gay is ok, and we are not against anyone expect those who are not exposed or educated. Slowly we are opening eyes and ears and minds, I think we should not rest on our success so far however can not forget all the ground work we have accomplished by a single action.

The football game was another success, I had a girl leave the game early, I'm hoping that she is ok. I am only the helper so I am unsure of the situation and well I am I will never find out. I am still beyond proud of how hard these girls work, we had a tough start to the game with a few missing from being sick but overall it was still great. I think they lack some discipline but we just need to mold that as they all have it but we need to find tone it. This is the same situation that I am working on with my own classroom. Hm how fitting that coaching is like teaching.

My weekend was filled with the family again, I had my mom help with grading. My niece lacks any understanding of work time, and she is a real jerk about not being able to play. She is geting to the turning stage of being a toddler to being a kid, her brattyness will go soon. It really is just her loving the time she has with me and knows that I have to leave soon so she gets upset (I hope). Helped my Dad again in what seemed to be a "stupid" chore to me but he was grateful for my help so I was ok with it.

 I got to sit with all my advisee kids today and learn more about them. They let me try some weird fig ginger thing, roasted cashews and Vietnamese noodles mind you I was not told of what any of these were before tasting. They also help out pulled pork but said ,"try it!" without hesitation "YOLO" status I tried it. I think they are really starting to like me, I feel the same about them. It is so different living with so many people from around the world. I want them to do so well in life and here, I watch over them and protect the best I can. I have so many it gets to be over whelming but they know that I do care about them. I really sat down and talked to them like they were my kids and it is great to see them appreciate having a person talk to them about school and their grades and hearing,  "I'm proud of your hard work." I might like saying it more then hearing it.

As a math teacher I want to make people feel better about their work and the work they accomplish in Math. I want everyone to be successful and do well from adding numbers to finding ground breaking mathematics. Each day I want to make my students feel like math really aint that bad, and I can do this! Heck if I get a "This is cool Mr. Shannon, or this is totally easy." I'll punch my time card for the week!

Oh and next weekend, maybe I will feel like I have more than just one day.

Whoopie and Tea, Ending Week Three

Here I am blogging while eating a Whoopie pie (My favorite) and drinking sleepytime tea.

Da Da Da, Another one bites the dust!
There we go folks another week another dollar. I really feel like I am starting to get an understanding and rhythm for this whole teaching thing. My planning is taking FAR less time. I am able to see other teachers and say hi and of course get a cup of coffee. I see the stress relieving and the sleepless nights slowly fading away. This is starting to feel like a real job that is really something I can get into.

My seniors and I fought for a second, and naturally as in any fight I enter, I was the winner. I asked for perimeter of a 3D figure and they were misunderstood of my asking of the question. It is ok, I will shut them down tomorrow. I love the open discussion that this caused though, it was firey. My co-worker has been around to help em add a fun twist to the warm-ups for my algebra boys. They are starting to use literacy to make the warm-up more fun and in turn getting far more response from them. It has been great. "describe in a poem using words of the day, how you feel about Mr. Shannon's tie." They are still very loud and I haven't mustarded up the energy to pull a couple to the side and speak with them about their grades. I think it is parents time as grades close in a week. I think I need to really step up to the plate and be a teacher, not a best friend.

 My foundations class has been going well, I think that we are starting to really make some huge ground now that we have the computers. I know that it sounds really exciting to be able to do your math on the computer, but this is no game and the kids get annoyed very quickly, I will need to think of alternatives this weekend. I feel that my lessons for this class lack the structure that I have in FST and algebra, this is something I need to address. Like Algebra, I have started to use tickets out the door with foundations. These have been so helpful to realize who is getting the material fast. I am able to repeat sections for all students and kit extra points for those who already understood to keep them engaged.

Gay straight alliance has really made me feel so comfortable on campus, I love this group. They look up to me for so much, least I think. I feel the kids want to really make a difference here and I love to be part of that. We are getting topics covered in our meetings that are helping those around us to be educated about our community. I love seeing the kids interact with each other and really get into the workshops. I am blow away with their abilities. We have some big events coming up, (homecoming,coming out day, and halloween dance.) I hope that these are big fun, as I plan them to be.
Cheerleading has been epic! The girls have been the biggest award I could ask for. The coach and I have been meshing so well recently. I can not tell you have fun it has been. Watching the girls improve and just get so much better. They are so confident in themselves and all their talents. We might not be the best, but we have the biggest hearts and drive. I love what they have done already, things are going to be great. I keep getting compliments about how they look, and I plan to get hundreds more!

The students here have been more and more kind to the idea of me being me. I think that they are far more accepting than those around us make them seem. This town has great people here, I see them everywhere. I know that I am typically overly positive but this time I am telling the truth. We have a dog on campus with us and things keep getting better for us, as far as tolerance is concerned.
PS the fire alarm went off in my foundations class and as we were waiting outside to go back in, I did a backflip for them. Mr. Shannon is Winning at life!

Want to make your kids think you are the coolest, do a backflip.

Tuesday, the new Monday

Today was a long but I feel all together a great day. For me Tuesday seem to be worse than Monday. I think that it finally sinks in that you are no longer on the weekend on Tuesday. Anyway I need to start excepting the fact that the Tuesday is a rough day.

I think that as the days are going by I am getting better at planning my time in class. I have been doing a great job with FST and we ave a schedule that seems to be working for us pretty good now. Algebra seems to still want to fight with me about everything that includes work. I have a boy that will not do any work but will love to distract those around him constantly. Well that's typically all the boys in my classes some are just worse than others. Foundations is proving to be the most rewarding class for me, but FST is my favorite. I have a nack for talking to seniors, I feel like I treat them the way they wanted to be treated and I talk their lingo.

These last few days I have been learning more about the staff and picking the side of the chain I would like to be on. I have found those who I feel best telling stories and confined in. I think that I have to be careful well use EXTREME caution when trusting collages since you never really know who is who and just how small your school is. I feel that I have found some great people to shoot the breeze with during breaks and that I know who to keep at a distance. I called the wrong teacher today and totally made an as of myself. that was awesome and a great laugh.

I have been asking to inquire about the AP stats program and getting one started. I have never really seen myself as a STATs teacher but let us be honest, stats sucks, I do not and I think I can make it a real exciting and fun class. The root to all learning is having fun. Who knows, maybe I am not as cool as I think I am. I am in the end a math teacher. I feel that I am connecting better with the students I am feeling way more at home and I think I'm being successful as well. There are great things going on, even if I am on 24/7 living on campus with kids.

My personal goal for this year is to do more TOTD and learn how to better place my classes. I think that I move pretty fast and he students need more examples in their notes of what I expect and how I work out math. I need to be more rigid on myself how I write on the board and finish problems. I think that I am not aggressive enough about how I answer my problems and it is turing to laziness on me which is ten fold on my students. I have been asking for me work and been better about grading and placing it in the grade book, My papers are still everywhere and I love to have my back pack, however the kids are learning and having fun, the rest is just politics. I am getting better and better and continuing to learn, today was a success. Sometimes I will not feel so hot.

"You win some, you lose some. I just hope I win more than I lose."

Weekend catch up = still behind. I'm Ok

Another weekend has rolled by and yet I'm still behind.......

I have found that the weekends are for me and not for trying to find better lessons. I can stress about work when I'm at work and I need to enjoy the beautiful scenery that is around me. My family is such a nice getaway and having a sleep over with a 5yo niece is as good as the cookies we eat in bed together. This is why I'm glad to say no, I did not finish grading your test and homework over the weekend, you will get it tomorrow. I am discovering that teaching is really 24/7 and that I need to put the pencils down and enjoy myself. My dad gave me some whoopie pies too, gosh he knows me way too well. I really can not write how much I love how my dad and I are friends again. I hate that I lost so much time with my mom and dad, but instead I rejoice in all the time we spend together and love being so close. They have helped me so much and I want to give them ten fold back.

Friday was a great day and I keep thinking the world of all my students. The test that I have been through have been nice and it is great to see that my kids are learning. I am trying to get better lessons and not be so boring as to read from the book. It is tough to do such an act for all three classes, and I think my seniors rather just do the book work at this point.

In FST the tests are going very well, I think I am going to allow for a re-do for half credit to students. I am not a fan of making this a precedent as students will crutch onto this re-do. I'm still thinking to which I would rather. In algebra students did better on the in class than the take home, still trying to figure that out. A lot are still not showing their work and it is getting to be frustrating. Foundations, the programs are in and we are off and running! It was a very great friday indeed! The students were happy to work and I let them work with headphones so they love it even more, and I LOVE the silence even more because it is my fourth period.

I sent a boy to the office friday for his use of the language "Fing Queer." When I said, language. His response was ," what the word means weird?" This was clearly not the word I was speaking of since queer in this context to me really is not that bad, but the fact that he tried to cover it and lie was disappointing. I had a real life eye opener this week too grading binders and I graded a binder that was put together by tape and no dividers. I grabbed a binder of mine, organized his and gave him dividers. I even left the front pouch open so he could draw another great drawing that he does all the time in class. This was the same boy that was stapling his pants together because they were holy, and they are his only ones.

I am advisor for GSA, homecoming and cheer coach. We have so much to do this week with GSA and I hope that slowly over time we can change the minds of this small town. They don not know the Ryan that they are lucky enough to have here. I will help them see that being gay is A-ok! Homecoming is coming together nicely and I think it is going to be a great one. As far as cheerleading, what is there not to love about the love of my life. This is why I am here, to teach these girls how to be great cheerleaders and for them to remind me why I love this sport so much. Our game on Friday was so much fun, I might be a bit forceful and overbearing but I just love it! I live for Friday nights and having the school rally together for any sport, this one just happens to be football. My girls looked so good and they really did an awesome job, they love it you can tell. I rather teach them than a talented team of brats any day.

Things were really tough last week, had a couple of moments that I wanted to disappear but those I think will pass and I continue to grow and learn about myself as an educator. My goal is get more frequent assessments of my day so that I can get more grades and better understanding of how my students learn. I want to reflect more often as well on my lessons. I think the ticket out the door (TOTD) will help greatly as well. Looking back it really wasn't that bad, and I think I am doing a pretty darn good job! The most important part of teaching is that I care, caring people teach so much more than a book. So if that's the care, I am doing just fine!

Why sleep when you teach?

It is yet again another way too late night staying up working on lessons and things for my students. This si a true sign of being a first year teacher, just trying to stay afloat. I had a much better day today.

FST is such a joy to teach, the seniors are way fun to talk to a joke with and work so super hard. They are well behaved and well focused. We just finished a chapter and the test is friday. This class I consider to be my baby. This is the one that really matters to me. I love all my classes and the last thing I wish you would think is that I do not care for them all but I really feel like I have a grasp of the direction and ability of this class. I think the maturity level was way this course was easier to feel out.

Algebra, my boys figured me out today, I think that tomorrow (test day) wont be too bad. We established grounds that you are a strike and then out. A warning and then off to see Mr. Detention. This helped out ten fold, and we covered so much material. I really enjoyed it today. I have given them a take home test that I think will be pretty helpful and I am going to count it as 30 percent of their test tomorrow. I am hoping this will kick a chunk off the anxiety shoulder tomorrow. The guys are working very hard and really starting up pick up the material.

Foundations, what a great bunch fo kids! We fixed he flow of the classroom today and woah nelly did we get work done! We played bingo today using operations that would sum, difference, product, or more than one operation and yield a number from 1-20. I think it was pretty interesting and that students liked it. I have handed them a LARGE packet that I will collect tomorrow for a "test" grade without telling them it is a test. This is the class full of strugglers that can do all the material but freak during an exam I want to see if this will increase their scores and ability to prove they can complete the material. still fighting with the computer people but we have made an alternative that will serve for now until i can make some more grounds. I really appreciate the students being so understanding.

There is always something about wednesday that is great, I think that everyone is getting ready for friday and the grudge from tuesday has been lifted. I have always had bad tuesdays and I go into each one thinking of how great that day could be but it ends and epic fail. Living with the guys is really tough, I am their morning alarm clock, their teacher, their friend, their hard-ass parent. I have to constantly change and constantly stay attentive to what each guy is doing. It is very tiring on me and my patience. It is even worse when I really like the guys, their great kids but they need to be refined for sure. I hope to be a mentor that will guide them into a life that is successful and I wish them all the best every morning.

Lastly, I have been asked if I would like more responsibility for the cheer team. I can not tell you have great that felt, there has been tension but I really just love to help the girls there is so much more that goes into being the coach that I am unaware of and I am ok with not having to be on top of it constantly. I think the coach is a great coach that has done great things with the girls and continues to run a great program. I'm not a hawk, I just love the team, the sport and helping. I'll keep you posted on how the coaching is going as well.

Week One done, two and a few

It has been a few days since I posted, and I'm about to explain why.

I have been all over the place with planning, coaching, res. life, and seeing my family. I have been soo lucky to have found a career near my parent's house so that I am able to visit on the drop of a hat. I love being able to go home help my dad with the house and labor, my mom in cooking and cleaning, and being able to see my wonderful niece. It really is such a blessing to be here and see them at any moment. It is strange how the older I get the closer I cling to my family that I once pushed away. My parents have made some really great friends up here which has been wonderful as well. This is such a great place.

Teaching is tough, that is no joke. This skin I thought that was tough as nails seems to be a frail as wind. I am growing and learning and making mistakes left and right. I feel that I have such a great support system here at the school and people that really care about my success. I have the teacher across that hall and next door that are so eager to help and listen to my ideas, I feel that they really like what I come up with. I'm getting better about implementation. I tried a different idea with my FST students and it was a total fail. I wanted them to rotate in groups working on questions from a chapter as a study guide, well people went the wrong directions and kids changed groups and their work was all over the papers..... it was bad, but we reflect, rebuild and continue to improve as every aspect in life. That's why I'm writing a blog to better myself as a teacher. I have been given the ok to slow my class down from admin and I think this has made the kids explode with success, we are a touch behind but I'm sure to the fact we are going to catch up wicked fast. the kids are very hard working, respectful, and determined. Together we are a great working machine!

As far as Algebra, I'm sure you're busting at the seems to know what I'm doing with a class that has 16 boys and no girls! First, I'm going crazy and second I'm thinking there is a serious need in a revamp of my authority. The guys are wicked funny but they are off task a lot and slowing me down. There are a couple that are "too cool" to do the work, still thinking of ways to get him working, I think a trip to see the admin might help me. In the end the guys are really boys, and man they're a riot and wicked fun. I really do like them.

My foundations class has been a ton of trouble. The class was designed to be computer based, well I have no program for the class. This means we are up the creek folks. We have been using worksheets and printing a ton, and I keep trying to save trees. Epic fail. Good news is that the students are beyond polite and hard working, they respond well to me, least I think. I have a couple of ideas for the course so that we can get working even without our computers for a few more days.

My overall theme for today, is to me the kids are worth so much more than any drama or frustration. I like to hear their stories and their heartaches. I love going to watch the teams play ans support those who might not have support. My mom and dad worked their tails off so I could play and had they had the chances they'd be front row. I am so grateful they gave me so many chances, and were able to attend everything that they could. I want to do that for kids here, and even for the ones with more support, it's nice to know your teacher cares.

I might not be the smartest math teacher, but I do care the most. I want them to be successful in so many more areas in life than just math, as there is so much more to life than math. That last statement isn't my favorite but true. This year has already taught me so much, and these kids are teaching me things everyday, I have been blessed. What a wild ride this is going to be...

On my Second day of teaching...

Here we go with day number two....

This day I felt so much better and far more prepared. I feel that I had a far better understanding of my day and the tasks needed to complete assignments. I am still working on making my classroom look decent as I have been all over the place. I think my students are very understanding of me since I am a first year teacher.
I finally got to meet my senior class students and I have to say they are high on my favorite list. They are hard working and very self motivated. It is a joy to see kids that are respectful, honest and hard working. This FST class has been moving with smoke from out feet and I think some of the students are not ready for such a light speed review, but they will get on board fast and be ready, I am sure of that. My algebra class I was a touch slow in and I think I need to pick up the pace in there with the 15 boys and boys only. Makes asking engaging questions easy when they all hunt. I have my foundations course that moved super slow today, and I was unaware of how much of the material they already knew, nice rookie mistake. I feel that they are hardworking but I know there are two that need to be separated for sure!

I have been planning and planning and planning, ti never seems to get any easier, as it is 12 and i just finished tomorrows lessons. I think I need to be more willing to borrow and steal lessons instead of constantly making my own, I'm sure this will come with time. I have enjoyed my first couple of days with the students, most here are very hard working and even more respectful. I think they understand my authority in the class and how I feel about the classroom dynamic.

Tonight was duty night and for some reason the boys can't get it together that you need to go to bed, I care that you're up but I feel that they are well aware they are breaking the rules. I will need to start putting my foot down harder next time I am here and they are up way past curfew. This job has had a great start and proving to be quite rewarding, i know this year is going to be long but I think I'm ready for the challenge and it will make me and even more caring, understanding, and above all better teacher and person. I continue to learn from these young adults both local and international.

It's a great day to be a Raider, and I know tomorrow will be just as good.
Cheers to making it two days, now tomorrow is our first official full day. Jesus take the wheel!

Very First Day-Frantic

9/3/2013 

Day 1, Millions to Go!

Let me start by saying that I live a ver different lifestyle than most teachers. I am working at a private boarding academy in a wicked small town on the down eastern seacoast of East Machiais Maine. I am a residential faculty member, with about 15 boys from other counties living ehre to attend school, and I am their parent. there are about 50 guys in the building total, which makes for quite the it of testosterone and hormones as most as freshmen/sophomores. I am a new aspiring mathematics teacher at a higher level secondary school, I had to attend cheerleading practice where I am the helper that runs the team. The coach is letting me do quite a bit and I really appreciate it the reins that she allows me to have. The team is full of a bunch of hard working girls with a great attitude, I really enjoy helping them and trying our best to make things look better for the program. They are improving everyday and want so badly to be good cheerleaders that I can not ask for a better set of girls, until maybe next year.

Today was my very first day of teaching and it sure was interesting. My classroom to start is at the top of a very old building that includes nothing but all the heat that exists in the state of Maine. I have been working on setting up a classroom that is presentable to all students and comes to find out I'm very lost and forgetful. I missed placed tons of things, hardly anything was ready to be handed out. I was a wreck in a nutshell but it is over and we are moving on. My room has been decorated with cloth, ribbon border, and paint sample stencil letters, it is pretty crafty I must say. Clearly, I am very proud. My desk is full of god knows what since I have been throwing things in it all day. My desks are messed up and I didn't create a seating chart like I had planned. This is way too much to remember while you are too far away from teachers to ask for advice.

Today we started the classes with only freshmen and up and coming new students from other districts and such, thanks for the heads up. Missed that e-mail but I was grateful since I was a total wreck. I covered the syllabus lightly and had some color for the day, It was a waste of a day but id helps the kids feel the school one day before getting blasted with classmates.  I have mostly seniors in my homeroom and I have seniors block 1. We are on block scheduling and I hope that I can stay focused that long. I have mostly freshmen block 3 for algebra 1, and foundations. These classes are going to be quite a bit of fun and I'm pretty pumped. I think that I can really have a good chance to connect with the kids in these courses.

Teachers are begging me to be in committees and I laugh because I read books that would state that first year teachers get hammered to be part of so much, I have to remember at some point, that I can not be part of everything.

In algebra 1, and Foundations I typically have the lower level learners and I think that is one of my best areas, we I guess we will find out. Tomorrow we have a starting assembly and students will be removed from classes periodically so it's another wash of a day, this time I am far more prepared. As always tomorrow is a new day, may the odds be ever in my favor.

Go Raiders,
Ryan Shannon