Yes I am a teacher, and I have a life.

The rights of passage known as an awkward high school dance:

This last week I had the mighty honor again of being asked to chaperone a dance. I think that being asked speaks pretty high about me, or that we are pretty desperate for chaperones. Fingers crossed for the first excuse. I like to post in my class when clubs are meeting, sporting events are going on and major things in the town such as community dinners. This shows that kids that I care about what they do outside and that I am aware that there is life outside of my amazing epic math class. These notifications are more of a reminder to me that I need to get outside and see my kids in their natural environment. The students love to hear that their teacher showed up, as a teacher this should be a requirement. It seems taxing at first but as your kids excel from Freshmen to Varsity it is inspring to see them change in and outside of the classroom, maybe that is why I like my small school, I know all the kids on the sports teams, in the play, being my waitstaff at the local restaurant. 

I make it my job, goal leaves room for failure, to attend one event a week. I want these kids to see my face at their major event so that they see I care about them more than just a number in a book. I want them to understand that I experience me outside of the classroom wearing normal clothes hollering for the home team and also showing them that I am a human as well. That I care for more than adding numbers in my head quickly or providing boring homework/tests that seem impossible without my guiding hand. 

Speaking with Mr. H. at the meeting of the minds, or the school valentines dance, he concurred my theory. He has also made it a precedent that he attends one of everything each year. This way he is not bias towards a sports group, club, etc. I think this is a great goal for all teachers to set for themselves. I do not know much but what I do know is that as a kid I loved seeing the support of my teachers, they were like a second parent to me. Many kids, like mine, have parents who work hard to provide them with the ability to play the sport and thus miss a bunch of playing time, and to see an adult face that cares and wants you to do well was very inspiring to me. 

This week I have heard" This class sucks" More than usual. I am being told that my subject is awful but I'm the best. Why I am confused is happening more often. I think that students are being too open with me about things, I am no offended but I am not cool with this. Why does no one want to learn math anymore? It clearly can not be a topic that we provide as an elective. I am trying ways to make math more engaging, productive and enjoyable, however there are only so many ways to skin a cat before the cat is bare. Kids are surrendered to the all powerful cellphone and seek instant results and gratification to which I can not provide any...yet! I will crack this code and I do welcome such a challenge that this new class brings. Each go around provides a learning opportunity and learning is why I teach. 

Lastly, When is it ok to apply to a new location and leave? Would I be considered a flight risk if after a year I was unhappy and left. Is what I am upset about looking to be prevalent at most schools? I am weighing my options heavily. Lots to think about in the cold weather, and the grass is always greener somewhere else when you have no grass at all. 

Snowdays: Students vs. Teachers

Who do you think likes to have a snow day more, teacher or student?

Giving you some back story I live in Maine at a semi private boarding school. I live with about 50 boys from around the world and I have 12 that I mentor on a weekly basis. We are like a very large extended family, to which i am their "dad." I try to guide them on life choices teach them about life and above all help prepare them for life after high school should it be here or anywhere. A good example, I had to teach Fly and George how to hammer and screw, quite the adventure. When you live with a bunch of teenage pre/post and everything in between puberty boys a snow day can be like winning the mega millions with your last dollar, but little do they know, I am also thinking that I have stroke gold.

Being a teacher I have realized that a snow day is liked just as much by me as it is by the students. Sure I can not stand that we are going to lose a day of instruction and I might have to move my test to the next day, etc. I wake up today half awake and busted out my room to check and see if the snow looked to be accumulated enough to be a good chance. There was no snow, however the forecast was very expressive of the potential danger and thus, we closed!

There is a true benefit to teaching up in the north, other than the high rigor and the beautiful scenery, there is the occasional snow day. The thought of being able to stay in sweats and get even further ahead drink coffee all day and not have to answer a million questions about the directions I just gave sounds wonderful to me. Teachers want a break too and sometimes more than the students. a snow day allows me that chance to really get a solid handle on the week and more of lessons. Sure thinking that I am going to have to make this all up on the other end is frustrating but at the moment I am very very happy. My feet are up I am ahead of schedule I have no kids and life is good.
I love my kids and I love teaching this job has given me the most but I think that I am ok to say that teachers like to have a break more than the students. since we have no chances to run errands, get ahead, organize, clean, and enjoy a good cup of coffee. Enven more when you life with boys from all over the world.

The snow is still falling and though I tell all the guys, "it will pigs will fly before we have two snow days in a row," it would be a lie if I told you I did not do a little snow day dance again just in case. Couldn't hurt.

Reteaching, why it's not as boring as you think.

Will you become a recorder, can a monkey/parakey do this job?

The school I work at is on a semester schedules. Research will go both ways on the productivity on having such a long class and ending half way through a year and blah blah blah. My blog is about teaching not research. Anyway, we have turned over and I am teaching the same two courses again. My worst nightmare, that I am going to be placed as the "FST teacher" and fall into the slump of teaching the same subject twice a year for each year for the rest of my life until I sound like the teacher from Charlie Brown.

This is not the case, as I found recently. As I have started to teach lessons for the second time I am better prepared, more confident, and able to look for more connections though out the topics. I am able to locate topics that created large struggle and those that were not really needed. This is my first repeat however i am finding myself more interested in doing it better. I want this course to run smoother, more activities, self discovery, task learning, questioning, and higher cognitive thinking. I want to actually apply what my 50 thousand dollar graduate schooling told me to apply. This is what excites me, this is why I know, I am not able to be replaced by a tape recorded.

The already planned lessons have given me that ability to be more stern in the classroom, be better at getting kids to the board, enrich learning so that everyone has a chance to understand. I am prepared for questions that are going to stump the kids, but I am also surprised to the knowledge each class brings.
I spoke with a older mentor science teacher this morning at brunch, he has been very welcoming and helpful. To have a well experienced teacher who has taught all levels including AP talk and interact with you as an equal has been inspiring and motivating. i am sure I will speak of him more often as I interact frequently with Mr. H. An ex-service man I find talking to him to be like my dad, and it is why I encourage the conversation. He has been a great mentor and guider, constantly enforcing me that my path is correct and I am doing great work, similar to my father as well. Mr. H, spoke with me about repeat teaching and that it has enriched him to create better labs, enforce topics that will later create less questions when teaching the same students in a high course. He has been able to intergrate subject topics and encourage learning.

I hoep that this reteaching will keep pressing me forward to try new activities to enrich learning styles in my classroom. This will also help me to have many new problems to differentiate learning for those students in my course that are special. I want to teach all levels of learners in mathematics and I feel that I can connect very well with all as well. I seek trust from my students and motivation to succeed. I can build on these structures as I teach more material and become better versed in topic areas. Like working out I do not want to become stronger in specific muscles I do not only want to be well equipped in one topic of mathematics. Later as I have mastered one topic I will hope to venture into other subject areas of math and round myself. I want to be the perfect circle of teaching mathematics.

I hope this is a realistic goal for teaching.

Ryan