Well, if I hadn’t already, I’ve officially gotten used to teaching. Or maybe I’m just burned out. I’m not sure. The year is almost 3/4 over and it’s like I’ve run out of stress to put towards teaching. I simply don’t have the capacity to be too stressed out about my job any more. What’s…
read more »overheard today, in the middle of a discussion about scatter plots: “Do moles have cancer? Do they affect your life?” I don’t know why I found that funny, but suddenly everything my students said was hilarious. Sometimes when I’m tired, I get really cranky or really loopy — either one, not both. Today I was…
read more »I’m tired of picking up after my students and maintaining the sharpened-pencil supply. Does anyone have any suggestions?
read more »When TFA made me an offer, it was the Mississippi Delta and secondary math. That was my placement. And, because I was so desperate to do TFA, I accepted math as my placement. Honestly, I’ve been trying to make peace with that placement ever since. I am completely neutral about math. I really don’t care…
read more »TFA has a few essential qualities that they look for in prospective CMs, and I memorized them when I was interviewing (yes, I did — see my “applying?” page for how ridiculously over-prepared I was for my interview). I don’t remember them any more, but I think that TFA should definitely add resilience to its…
read more »Does anyone else have 1 class that is disproportionately difficult/loud/obnoxious/poorly behaved?
read more »Second Semester Edition! 6:00 am — alarm goes off. I open my eyes and wonder where on earth I am. I reach for my phone and try to unlock the stupid screen so the noise will stop. 6:01 am — finally succeed in pushing the right combination of buttons to unlock the screen and turn…
read more »“That little bird has chosen his shelter. Above it are the stars and the deep heaven of worlds. Yet he is rocking himself to sleep without caring for tomorrow’s lodging, calmly clinging to his little twig, and leaving God to think for him.” – Martin Luther
read more »I need more ideas for individual consequences that aren’t disruptive, don’t disrupt the flow of the class, and, most importantly, WORK! What do you do that works?
read more »I don’t know what my deal is. I’ve been in a funk all week, and I’m trying to figure out why. I feel like I’m going through the same cycle of emotions that I went through first semester, and this is the equivalent of September. I’m going through the whole I’m-jealous-of-every-single-person-on-my-facebook-newsfeed thing, and it’s easy…
read more »For the first time, I’ve begun to think of my job from my students’ perspective. This shift in perspective happened yesterday when I was working at school. It was Sunday morning, and the hallways were pitch black because there was nobody at school except for me. I know those hallways backwards and forwards, so I…
read more »Because I’m in a quote-y mood. And yes, that is a word. “Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise.” -Victor Hugo “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” -e.e. Cummings “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day…
read more »It’s time to actually write a substantial post, but I will share a quote that is going to become my mantra. “People constantly tell you to choose your battles in teaching. What they don’t tell you is that some of the battles not worth fighting are with yourself. Being harder on yourself is not the…
read more »http://heygirlteacher.tumblr.com/page/2
read more »I was just flipping though the Art and Science of Teaching by Robert Marzano, and it talked about effective teachers having emotional objectivity. Marzano describes a teacher who has developed emotional objectivity as one who “implements and enforces rules and procedures, executes disciplinary actions, and (even) cultivates effective relationships with students without interpreting violations of…
read more »“God does not tell you what He is going to do; He reveals to you who He is.” -Oswald Chambers I can’t accurately/objectively assess my life right now, and it’s bedtime, so I’m not going to write a long post, but I will share. Today was the first day back, and it wasn’t really that…
read more »I love this poem this time of year! “Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky, The flying cloud, the frosty light; The year is dying in the night; Ring out, wild bells, and let him die. Ring out the old, ring in the new, Ring, happy bells, across the snow: The year is going,…
read more »Well, here I stand, 4 days before the beginning of spring semester and recently returned from 9 glorious days in California. The time with my family was glorious, as always, and I didn’t really do much. I had a head cold the entire time, so it was a nice excuse to lay around as much…
read more »How do you arrange your desks, and why?
read more »I only do exit tickets when I’m feeling really ambitious (read: almost never), but if TFA asked me to write an exit ticket showing what I’ve learned so far, this is what it would look like: You will spend money on your kids. This is a very expensive job. I’ve bought everything from Twizzlers to…
read more »First of all, my favorite quote from the day: One of T’s classmates is bugging him. T: QUIT!!! Me: Never raise your voice to a lady – P: — or you won’t get one! Me: It’s good that you’ve realized that at a young age. My babies crack me up sometimes. Anyway, the current issue…
read more »I think I’ve hit the wall. I’ve never been a snooze button kind of girl, but lately I’ve been doing the whole “just five more minutes” thing. I get to school on average 25 minutes later than I have been. The kids are done, and I’m done. I still enjoy my day-to-day classroom life, but…
read more »I’m going to echo all of the recent posts and say that Thanksgiving break was GLORIOUS. It was so nice to be home in sunny California and see my family for the first time since the end of May. Coming back was very difficult, though. It’s amazing how in one week you can forget all…
read more »One of the things I dislike about TFA is that it ALWAYS makes you feel like you’re not good enough. I know I still suck as a teacher in many ways, but I am making progress and my administration keeps telling me how great of a job I’m doing. And every time I have an interaction…
read more »Kids get crazy the week before holidays. Even the kids that are normally angelic have been bickering, and some of my more difficult students have been well-behaved. One week from today, I’ll be in California!! I don’t know how I’ll react to seeing my friends and family, honestly. I left my first-name self in California,…
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