I Don't Know...Do I? Pew Pew

too funny...

Let me just say that me and the medical world have a love hate relationship. But I'm going to give it another try. I got my temp license in the mail. Now I have to decide what area to work in. Wish me luck.

Open House

Each fall public schools open their doors to curious parents and let them get a snapshot of their child's day-to-day life. If you were a teacher like me, this would make you nervous, in a healthy way, because it holds your work to a different light than you're accustomed; it's not the principal checking in on you but some one who (hopefully) has an even loftier interest in your student.

Each year I walk away from the experience happy that it happened. The parents, sometimes as anxious as the teacher - the father's arms behind his back, the mother adjusting her purse - show such a high degree of hopes for their child. They are concerned, and even worried, since it seems like so many more things can go wrong at school for kids these days than right. They are in the middle of letting their child go out and come of age in the world. I try to always keep this in mind when I'm at school.

Because some day it will be me!

Short-Order Cook and Catering

We concluded tonight that although Kyra and I undergo a good deal of daily stress, our life's demands are different in form. Kyra, we decided, is more of a short order cook, with immediate demands she tries to problem solve on the go, putting out fires as they come. I on the other hand, like a caterer on mother's day, know my time zapping adversaries almost months in advance and wake up to them each morning like a deer in the headlights.

What's your stress brand?

No Room at the Inn

I'm always pretty proud of the work my father does, but am especially proud of him right now. He left this morning to fly down to Texas where he manages a large motor repair shop. What the hey does that mean?? Right now he is coordinating the repair of the large motors and generators of the Houston area and beyond that have been damaged due to the hurricane(s), these repairs are to the equipment of the major oil refineries of the south. He's managing the repair of one of America's major needs right now and moment by moment making a difference this week. He has my respect.
In my small experience as an adult... making a difference hardly looks like we ever grew up imagining it should look or feel like. It's rarely simple, comfortable, or cute. Thankfully, this story ends up a little more on the humorous side.
Tonight, my father is sleeping in a barn with no electricity with a cow, donkey, a tons of chickens, and a hog that he admits he's a little afraid of. My father may be the biggest city boy those animals will ever see and they may be the only animals my father will ever sleep next to. He is doing a good thing, making a difference, this is what it looks like. Proud of you Dad, you're the real thing.

Rose says III

Oh! That's what my mean!
Reave it on
I like the ween one
Watch my new boobie (don't worry...movie)
I'm just a-tendin'
My so happy to see you
A yittle bit or a big daddy one

Then there's "sue" which is a new coverall verb
Sue Leo a tiss, Sue it over there, Sue it on

And our personal "fraaavorite":
"Time to say doodnight, rerax and tose you eyes..."

The Hook

Going from what I know about the 90's and Pandora, there is a realm of pop music that are derived and charged by generation y's need to sing fun and pointless lyrics together in a sway that resembles a late night drunken sailors chorus. The artifact above is my submitted proof.

Ants Marching - Dave Matthews
The General - Dispatch
Piano Man - Billy Joel (This may be a stretch but the 90's family embraced the retro version of it)
Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Intro - Will Smith
Any Sublime Song
Where the Streets Have No Name - U2
Semi-Charmed Life - Third Eye Blind.

and on and on and on

Pandora says that I like these songs because of my affinity for "major chord tonalities". I'm glad they've pinpointed it. But I'm noticing that kids these days don't sing these types of songs anymore - the ones that everyone knew the words to and would howl out when somebody brought their guitar. Hopefully there was some one there that remembered the verse order. The music trends these days are so splintered and diversified, I'm not sure these people are unified by anthems to the extent my peers were.

Why did we sing together? 90's children are you out there?

OW

I read an article on Ethiopia and the web of problems surrounding their famine. This was on Monday, and I keep finding myself exploring practical ministries that "teach a man how to fish vs give him a fish". I love this one called Hydromissions.
With that shared...It kills me to keep dreaming like this! I'm at home with two children who are very dependent upon me and I see these dreams going nowhere soon. I'm embarrassed to share my ideas of ministry and missions with anyone but Oliver b/c I know how ridiculous it might look to anyone looking in. I mean what have I done so far...nothing. So, my fear in sharing is that I'll seem like a ridiculous, big-headed hypocrite.
I was awakened to an idea tonight: I'm not prideful to dream, I'm prideful for trying to make myself look completed when my insides scream with hopes that I fear someone might scoff at, and just about the humblest thing I could do is admit
"I HAVE BIG RIDICULOUS DREAMS OF MISSIONS AND MINISTRY!!! AND RIGHT NOW, MOST DAYS, I DON'T HAVE TIME TO TAKE A SHOWER!!!"
So, there it is, I'm purposefully broken. Any dreams you're hiding?

Self-evaluation

With elections coming up in November, I have obviously been revisiting my convictions that spur my support of a particular national party. There are many convictions I have that steer my decision (as we all have), but there is one value of mine I feel stands out among the rest and I find myself choosing my party and candidate based mainly upon the support of this value. I'd love to hear what you have to say. So, here's my political self-evaluation tool:

Where do I believe healthy (inspiring, growth-promoting, thought-provoking, life-transforming) support happens? System to person? Person to person?

Freshmen Routine

My assistant Principal is a great guy. He interviewed me for the job last August and I look up to him a lot. We were talking after school today about classroom order. I'm seeing his recommendations come to life left and right. The freshmen need order a lot. This is what we do every day:

1. The students stumble in before and after the bell. I check that their shirts are tucked in and that they have IDs on. I take IDs of tardy students and put them on my desk for attendance.

2. After the bell I tell them conversations are over in 5,4,3,2,1..."be quiet! he gon' start counting mississippis!"...1 mississippi 2..."shut up man, he's counting." They know they will owe me each mississippi after the bell rings at the end of class.

3. "I'm grading you on your participation and diligence...I need pens out and papers on the desk. There is no help or conversation. "Can I go to the bathroom?" During CHAMPS...."What does that word mean?" "Did you get my assignment" I can't talk to you right now...there's no conversation or help".

4. (5 minutes later attendance is in and late IDs are returned) Alright participation is allowed. Raise your hand if you know the answer to number 1...

5. Next we do slate work. I've cut up sections of white erase boards and each student has a marker to answer review questions on. I ask the question and count down from five. They answer furiously...I give them public affirmation for correct answers. They erase furiously...I give them 5 or 7 more questions.

6. Students copy the EQ. For teachers outside of SC, this is a question that guides the lesson. Today the lesson was, "How did early River Valley people solve problems?"

7. I tell the students that for the next ten minutes there is no talking or help while we go over notes or silently read. I know this sounds bad not to let them ask earnest questions but you don't understand that their questions at the wrong time COMPLETELY throw off others because they don't ask questions for the good of the whole.

8. I've been doing reading strategies lately. I am committed to using Social Studies to teach reading and not the other way around. I think they need these repetative reading exercises. They have been reading paragraphs at a time doing outlines and summarizing the main points. I learned this from the teacher at Frazee center who works with elementary students...teach with pictures, motion, questioning, modeling, summarizing etc. they don't do these things on their own.

9. Today we did a practice MC quiz where they answered Multiple Choice questions on the reading they just did. This is similar to standardized tests they will take.

10. Once they have given me 15 solid quiet focused learning I explain what to do for CHAMPS. CHAMPS means EVERYTHING is allowed. Coversation (80 percent work/20 percent social), Help (from students and teacher) Assignment, Movement, and Participation. They are excited to get up and sit with their friend and work together on different ongoing assignments. They all work at different speeds and pick among several options of assignments for their points...poems, journals, outlines, maps, essays. These all get put together every two weeks for PORTFOLIOS.

11. With 5 minutes left of class I count down from five again and end CHAMPS, hopefully its been a good class. Marker captains go and pick up the whiteboards and markers and students sit at their desk to complete their "ticket out the door". Today and most days its simply to answer the EQ from the beginning of class to summarize their learning. They tear off a half sheet of paper and give it to me when they get up at the bell. That is if they don't owe me mississippis from during class.

We've been doing that every day. The students seem to like it. I know it's easy on me. Some one said at the beginning of the year: "Aren't you concerned there is too much external motivation and they won't learn to manage their actions?" I think my reply to that is simply that they don't come from worlds with any positive motivation. I'm not an expert but I think that if they were at a certain level, autonomy would be the next step. But for now I can see their starving for measurable goals that they can work toward and receive feedback. They don't trust that the world offers rewards for those that wait. I see this method as something that nurtures that trust.

house mom

I've heard many tributes to the stay-at-home mother over the years and to be honest I always thought in the back of my mind that it was spoken of with respect because we couldn't not speak of it with respect. Kind of like the attitude we have about the elderly in America. Catch my drift??
...........I've written and rewritten the rest of this blog 4 times now trying to come to some kind of conclusion.............
but here's the best I can do:
I've changed my mind.