Still Alive... Just Busy
There has been a lot going on over the past week. I could tell you about my horrendous car repairs, or Eamon's preschool graduation, but I think I'll save those for my next couple of posts. Right now, I'm almost completely focused on education - so if you want to continue reading, keep in mind that I've got a bad case of tunnel vision going on. Proceed with caution.
School starts in less than 2 weeks, and I'm not anywhere near ready for it yet. I moved into a new classroom this year (I'll be teaching 5th grade instead of 6th), so there's a lot of work to do getting all my stuff unpacked and making the room "mine." The room used to belong to a teacher who'd been in there for 17 years! She retired last June and left me most of her supplies, as well as the books she's collected during her many years of teaching. The room is like a mini-gold mine! I've found a lot of great things, but there is also a lot of stuff I won't use. Like the reference books from 1961. Or the encyclopedias from 1975. Or the mimeograph books filled with old worksheets. I'm going to date myself here, but until Tuesday, I had no idea what a mimeograph was or how it looked. For those of you who are also in the dark, you may click here to get more info. Or not.
On Monday afternoon, I found myself standing on a chair in the corner of my class, heart pounding in panic, staring at the piles of stuff all around my room. I put in a quick call to my friend (and teaching partner from last year), Janeenz and yelled, "May day! May day! I'm going down!!!" Wonderful person that she is, she came by on Tuesday and helped me sort through probably 500 books. And I'm not really exaggerating with that number. With her help, I was able to select the diamonds in the rough and gain some storage space in my cabinets. Love ya Janeenz! (in case she's reading)
In addition to cleaning out/setting up my classroom, I've also been attending G.L.A.D. training. As Eamon says, "It's to make you happier!" Well, it does, kind of.... But what it's really good for is making information meaningful for English Language Learners - which, in California, is essential. However, the techniques are great for all kids, since they involve a lot of visuals, chants and games to make learning more fun. I'm looking forward to implementing it in the classroom. Unfortunately, some other teachers aren't as enthusiastic, and over the past two days, I've become quite good at tuning out the grumbling and negative comments made under the breath by a few of my fellow educators. I wish Vika's first grade teacher had received G.L.A.D. training. I think it would have made the year much more successful.
If you've stuck with me for this long, I'm going to impart a G.L.A.D. gem for you, which you can use at home. This strategy is called "Personal Standards." Basically, these are the rules to help make a classroom or a home run smoother:
1. Show Respect
2. Make Good Decisions
3. Solve Problems
The rules cover almost everything and are great for guiding behavior. Last night, we implemented them in our house and scrapped the other list of 10 rules (Vika and Eamon were thrilled!). So far, the personal standards are working well. I used them in my class last year, and they worked great - hopefully they'll be just as successful at home.
School starts in less than 2 weeks, and I'm not anywhere near ready for it yet. I moved into a new classroom this year (I'll be teaching 5th grade instead of 6th), so there's a lot of work to do getting all my stuff unpacked and making the room "mine." The room used to belong to a teacher who'd been in there for 17 years! She retired last June and left me most of her supplies, as well as the books she's collected during her many years of teaching. The room is like a mini-gold mine! I've found a lot of great things, but there is also a lot of stuff I won't use. Like the reference books from 1961. Or the encyclopedias from 1975. Or the mimeograph books filled with old worksheets. I'm going to date myself here, but until Tuesday, I had no idea what a mimeograph was or how it looked. For those of you who are also in the dark, you may click here to get more info. Or not.
On Monday afternoon, I found myself standing on a chair in the corner of my class, heart pounding in panic, staring at the piles of stuff all around my room. I put in a quick call to my friend (and teaching partner from last year), Janeenz and yelled, "May day! May day! I'm going down!!!" Wonderful person that she is, she came by on Tuesday and helped me sort through probably 500 books. And I'm not really exaggerating with that number. With her help, I was able to select the diamonds in the rough and gain some storage space in my cabinets. Love ya Janeenz! (in case she's reading)
In addition to cleaning out/setting up my classroom, I've also been attending G.L.A.D. training. As Eamon says, "It's to make you happier!" Well, it does, kind of.... But what it's really good for is making information meaningful for English Language Learners - which, in California, is essential. However, the techniques are great for all kids, since they involve a lot of visuals, chants and games to make learning more fun. I'm looking forward to implementing it in the classroom. Unfortunately, some other teachers aren't as enthusiastic, and over the past two days, I've become quite good at tuning out the grumbling and negative comments made under the breath by a few of my fellow educators. I wish Vika's first grade teacher had received G.L.A.D. training. I think it would have made the year much more successful.
If you've stuck with me for this long, I'm going to impart a G.L.A.D. gem for you, which you can use at home. This strategy is called "Personal Standards." Basically, these are the rules to help make a classroom or a home run smoother:
1. Show Respect
2. Make Good Decisions
3. Solve Problems
The rules cover almost everything and are great for guiding behavior. Last night, we implemented them in our house and scrapped the other list of 10 rules (Vika and Eamon were thrilled!). So far, the personal standards are working well. I used them in my class last year, and they worked great - hopefully they'll be just as successful at home.
I can't believe you didn't know what a mimeo was! I have fond memories of them. Using the blue goop to correct mistakes. Running them on the machine. Man, you young whipper-snappers really missed out.
Oh, and my security word starts with "pez"! Just for you, I imagine.
I have never seen the machine, but those were the worksheets that came out in blue type. I think they used carbon paper didnt they? Anywho, that sounds awesome getting all that free stuff. You could donate the rest to a library or something.
The drama of our first day of school was that the principal wanted Rita with a teacher who had that training.
I was bitten last week. BITTEN! It was by a frustrated esl student who wanted my attention and thought that was a good way to get it.
Hope your fingers don't stray to anyone's mouth in your first week with students!
And, I'd love to hear more about GLAD.
Those are great rules. They really say it all. Having a few rules that cover 100s of more specific rules is so much better. Easier for the kids to remember. Good luck with your class!