The rain has come...

Hello friendlies! So sorry it has been a little bit since I have posted. Busy busy busy, as I'm sure everyone is.

Well, the rain has finally come. Thankfully, it won't last forever. Being the coast, there will definitely be some sun later this week. So many culture shocks have come with moving here. It is great to be learning so much, but hard sometimes too.

Yesterday was not a great day. It was just one of those things where one thing just set off a string of bad mood bad day stuff. My third period has been my most challenging yet. I have tried many "teacher techniques" and they are still frustrating. Most days, they aren't awful. It is a wonderful learning experience. Sadly, I almost never talk to people on the good days. It is always in those week moments. I am lucky enough to have a pretty fantastic support system.

I will say, today has been much better. I left my third period class yesterday and said "tomorrow will be a better day". I think some of them took that to heart. By far, it was the best day in the last few weeks. So, yay for the positives. Let us hope that there are more happy days than not so happy ones. In truth, I know there will be.

Alright, I'll try to be a little more interesting in my next post. Hope all is well with everyone (or the two or three that read this).

Oh wonderful moments....

So, one of the coolest things about being a teacher, especially an English teacher, is that I get to bring in works that I am truly passionate about. Some of them are works that I actually read for the first time when I was my students' age and they resonated with me. The first instance where I have been able to do that has been with our short story and poetry unit. I brought in Ursula K. LeGuin's short story "The Ones Who Walked Away from Omelas"(which can be read by clicking here). I also had them read Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken" (which can be seen here). If you saw my earlier post, you'll note that Frost's poem is my favorite poem.

Now, I love my choices and I feel like I was justified in picking them. What I forgot is that some things mentioned in the short story may not be appropriate for all audiences. So, of course, my students picked up on that. Awesome. It was all fine and good until my principal came in today to observe a class. It was awesome because this particular class had a huge debate about the protagonist and antagonist (something NONE of my other classes had done)....then they started mentioning the inappropriate parts. I started sweating like nobody's business.

To be fair, I have talked extensively with my amazing department (I can't fail to mention that my department is so awesome, we have started color coordinating in the dorky way we do and documenting via photos). They have talked to me about my motivations and everything. I don't think I'll get in trouble, but it is still just so awkward. If I could have turned a bright shade of red, I probably would have.

I will say this; today was kind of frustrating. However, it was beyond wonderful to end with such an amazing conversation/ debate and have my students really respond and be into something. I loved it and it makes me excited to build in debates in the future. Okay...that is all for now. Thanks to those of you who continue to read!

What a difference a body makes!

My students crack me up. I told a few of them today about a child I used to watch when I worked at a daycare. This kid was awesome but often found himself doing things he shouldn't. When he would do something "bad', he would crack a joke or start laughing. He was adorable. It made it hard to get after him. Many of my students are the same way.

I have seen it time and time again, but it never ceases to amaze me. One student or two students can change the entire dynamic of a room. It is so funny to watch how students change how they interact both with me and one another. It is the same as when there is another teacher in the room. Today, in my hardest class [this class is difficult for me to manage, lots of different behaviors and definitely a learning experience for me] I got to have a second adult in there. What an incredible difference. We did a Gallery Walk and it actually wasn't a disaster. I was shocked.

My Creative Writing class consistently makes me crack up. They are working on a poetry packet; one student has his overall theme being tacos. A group of students today did a brief stint of Batman impressions (Chris Nolan versions) including Bane and Joker impressions. They were awesome and I laughed.

Sometimes we just need to laugh. I get so frustrated, it is hard to remember to smile. I'm working on relaxing a little and not taking things too personally. It is difficult, but hopefully people can see that I am truly learning a lot.

Happy Monday!

"Ms. Colburn, that is a contradiction."

"No, I am just trying to convince myself that it is a happy monday."

Mondays are hard. No way around that. So, since I am here having a serious case of the Mondays, I thought I would share what I did this weekend. Slowly but surly my classroom is coming together. This week most of my classes will be working on Literary Terms along with their short stories/ poetry unit. So, I am trying to get them ready for all of that.

Take a look at some of the pictures:

Here is my wall of posters. I got this idea from a teacher who was in my room before me. He had ordered posters from another website. I used a free poster maker online (where you pay for the poster to be made and sent to you but not for the software) and had these done. [Poster maker used is Poster My Wall]

I kind of made a Shakespeare/ poetry wall. This wall has a poster for the Kenneth Branagh version of Hamlet and then Shakespeare's head made with the titles of many of his works. Then, a poster of my favorite poem, Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken".

Finally, I have a picture of the pared down version of reading strategies I am teaching this week. Again, this is crazy whittled down, but it is the basics. 

Comment with what you think. If you are a teacher, do you have better reading strategies? How do you have students interact with their texts? Do you have a place you use for posters? Ideas about where to get free stuff? Let me know! 

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Okay, lets be real. This has been a long week! So, I thought I would post something a little fun and lighthearted. One of my colleagues shared this with me and it made me laugh.

Happy Friday ladies and gentlemen! Have a great weekend!

Sometimes my heart hurts...

Sometimes my heart hurts. I read what some of my students write and I want to scoop them up and tell them that they are worthy, smart, kind. Sometimes I see a student who seems to put together, then writes something sad and I remember. I remember what high school was like for me, I remember how teachers didn't see me. I remember days when it felt like no one saw me. It hurts, but then I get angry and inspired. I strive to be the teacher who sees her students, even when it is annoying to them. I strive to be the teacher who hears the sadness and struggles to show students that there is greatness in them.

It is the 13th Anniversary of 9/11 today. I had my creative writing class respond to a poem written by a man whose brother should have been in the Twin Towers but survived. I then had them write a poem that would be their last message to a loved one. Finally, I asked them to write their own Eulogies. I know, super depressing. It was interesting to have them think about these seemingly outlandish situations. It was also interesting to hear their responses.

All of my students directed their "last words poem" towards a parent. Some expressed gratitude, some forgiveness, others regret. One student, who I have only known for a short time but seems to be one of the most kind students I have ever come across, wrote about how sorry they were to be a disappointment to their parent. This made my heart hurt because this student is so kind, smart, helpful and generous. I had a student express forgiveness towards a parent who was not there for them. How sad that children must not only grow into a world that is unforgiving, but have parents who fail them.

I have students who drive me crazy. Today, a small group of students made me check myself. These wonderful creatures are so tough. They can withstand far more than we give them credit for. They shouldn't have to. We should not teach them simple survival, we need to teach them how to thrive in this world. How to make this world a better place, instead of allowing an increase in awfulness.

On this day of remembrance, I remember how I felt on 9/11. I remember the innocence I felt prior to that fateful day; then I see some of the innocence and hope reflected in my students' eyes. Let us get that hope back, let us all strive to improve this world and our role in it.

Okay...sorry to be so preachy. I just wanted to get out my initial reactions to reading my students' writing on this topic. Thanks everyone. As always, please comment.

Needing that smile!

I feel like every teacher in the U.S. has the ability to lament about teacher pay. It sucks. My favorite argument is that teachers shouldn't get paid much because they are just "glorified babysitters". Well, in all honesty, I'd love to get paid like a babysitter. I would love to be paid an hourly wage plus an extra amount per child I teach (I only have a measly 160 students but still). Furthermore, I'd love to be on an hourly wage so that I could get paid for the 12 hour days and weekends. That would be awesome. Yesterday, I found out that due to a counting snafu, I will be bumped into a lower pay bracket than I originally was in. While the decrease doesn't sound significant, when my budget is already tight, I'm certainly not a fan of less money.

Due to that wonderful news, my mood hasn't been the best. I want to be very clear; I am not in this profession for the money. The rest of this post will attest to that. However, I would love to be able to make a livable wage (something I am aware many people struggle with more than I do). Since my mood has be dour, I needed a pick me up. In comes my fourth period class. It is a small, creative writing class of mostly upperclassmen. They were a hoot and a half today! We got work done on poetry, but it was pepper with outbursts of songs ranging from Bastille's Pompeii to a wonderful rendition of "Call Me Maybe" which was sung by a boy who at first glance did not seem like a Carly Ray Jepsen fan. They were my redemption today.

With all of the budget issues, pay issues, curriculum and behavior issues, I strive to remember the funny times. I love when my students make me laugh. I love seeing them become passionate about something or really get into something. It is so much fun and I clutch those memories close to my heart.

Funny People

My head feels like it weighs a million pounds, my voice goes in and out, I have a cough that makes me gag and some student sprayed perfume in my room so everything is exacerbated.

Getting over that, my students sometimes crack me up. Today was...well I don't want to say that it was a redeeming day, but it definitely had it's moments. I find myself consistently dealing with a sense of culture shock. Today, one of my students asked me if I was "from the ghetto" because of my usage of the word "ain't" and some of my accents. There is a part of me that is ridiculously offended; mostly I could only sit back for a second and roll my eyes.

I have to laugh at their ridiculousness because what else can I do? They drive me crazy, and their chattiness and lack of listening is going to make me go batty. Sometimes though, their silliness is just endearing. I cling to the little moments because things have been crazy lately. I cling to the silliness of the students because I have to remember that I got into the profession of teaching for the students. I have to remember that no matter how low the students are and no matter how snarky they are, my job is to teach them. My job is to work hard and give them my all.

Alright, I wanted to give a more light hearted update since my last one was kind of sad. Happy Monday!

First Week of School: Friday

What a week this has been! I have learned so much this week, it is unbelievable (almost). The day is only half over and already I am exhausted. I'd like to say that I'm exhausted in the best way, but I'm struggling.

Honesty time: my attitude sucks right now. I know that it'll get better, and I know that this is part of life. Still, it's hard. I've been very disillusioned this week, and while I am glad for the learning experience, it's put me in a mood. So, I am so sorry but this blog post may not be as upbeat as other posts.

Lets start with the positive though. I have found amazing support here in a lot of ways. The administrators have checked in with me multiple times this week, which has been really nice. They are very willing to help in whatever way they can. The realist in me recognizes that really, they are hindered by the nature of their job. They can't possibly spend a lot of time mentoring me because they have so very much to do. The pessimist in me wonders how long this support will last. I have also found support (as I've mentioned before) in the form of my department. We are a small district/ school so there are only four of us in the department. This is really nice because we can form a cohesive group.

The hardest part of this week has been...well okay one of the hardest parts of this week has been the culture shock. Part of me honestly believed I was prepared; part of me was trying to keep an open mind about what I'd find. I think most of me was just so spoiled and so wrapped up in the culture I grew up in that I really didn't believe it would be that different. What does that even mean? It means that I grew up in a place where the district and all of the surrounding districts had very diverse populations. These different groups were generally very in touch with their own culture and proud of it. Furthermore, students tended to be fairly open (especially at young ages) to learning about other perspectives and cultural groups. I don't find that as much here. Now, I want to be very clear: there are wonderful people here and wonderful students. There are some with open minds and a willingness to be exposed and learn from different perspectives. What I refer to mostly is the overall climate that I've been exposed to thus far.

I needed a new experience, this is true. So, I am glad that I have come to a place that is so different. I've enjoyed getting to hear different perspectives as we've been doing multiple ice breaker activities. For example, we did a peer interview and this is where I heard things that were somewhat alarming. It is just jarring to have such a difference.

During grad school, we learned about the importance of creating a specific type of community within your classroom. We learned that we, as teachers, set the tone. Still, sometimes (and I know, it is only week one) it feels like I'm swimming up stream. I need to be a leader (or one of the leaders) in my school, I need to be joiner. I know this. The knowledge of what I need to do does not in any way make it easier to do so.

All in all, it has just been an incredibly long week. I know things will get better. I truly have met some wonderful people (staff and students). I can see both the wonderful things that were already in place here and the bright future that this school has. I'm just working on surviving the fire swamp so I can reach the brightly lit forest (props to those who understand the reference). Sorry to be such a downer, I'll try to be more positive in the future.

Day 1: COMPLETE

I feel like I ran a marathon. Or, at least what I imagine I would feel like I would feel post running a marathon. We ended our day with a PLT (a.k.a PLC) meeting and the entire time I felt like my brain was in a fog. Thankfully, I am not alone.

I did finish my first full day of teaching, which I am so excited about. I definitely have an interesting mix of students and no doubt there will be anonymous stories about them. For the most part, they seem like such awesome kids. I teach mostly Freshmen, so, many of them were kind of "deer in the headlights" today because they were getting used to getting to their classes on their own and with the halls more crowded.

Already, I have learned a lot. Throughout the day I improved and I just hope to continue getting better. There are definitely things that I worry about though; there are issues that have already presented themselves. Things I struggle with thus far, in regards to students:

• multiple levels of learning in one room
• classes with high levels of IEPs
• classroom management with classes of predominantly 14/15 yr old males
• noise levels in a class with high ceilings and an echo

I know these are things many teachers struggle with. Still...definitely things to work on. Sorry, I feel like I have been a major downer during this post. There are some really exciting things, and I can't wait to get to the know the kids more. At this point, I think the exhaustion is just overwhelming. I have had multiple jobs in my life, but I have never had a job that requires both physical and mental abilities all of the time for 8 hours straight. Not including the time after school when I stay until 8pm planning and trying to get things in order. Ugh, okay. Enough whining for now. I will try to sound way more upbeat on my next post.

As always, thanks for reading.

Classroom!

Alrighty. Here it is friendlies. I feel like these pictures don't really do it justice, but essentially, here are the before and afters of my classroom (OMG my classroom!!!)

AFTER:

        Still some work to do, I have a lot of blank space. I know that will come though.  

BEFORE:

Okay, what you can't see as well is that the room was full of boxes of junk and books. It was kind of used as a dumping ground. So, I had to use most of my "prep" time to clean it out. I (with some wonderful help) organized the books, got rid of a lot of the clutter, had someone paint one of the bulletin boards fully blue (one of the school's colors) and a strip on another board to cover up where someone painted "2009-2010 Yearbook". I got rid of a podium, added a new podium, took down a lot of the stuff on the walls, re-organized the desks and added my own touches here and there. I still plan to cover up the hideous chalkboard in the back and I have a blank bulletin board still up front and right outside of my classroom. More things are coming though. At least this way, I am semi-prepared for students to walk into my classroom tomorrow. Thank bananas for soft starts!