Coming Up for Air

Okay, we started school with the kids a week ago Friday, so we've got six days under our belts. It has been pretty good, overall. The students seem to be more focused on learning (I know it's week one.). A great focus has been placed on bell-to-bell teaching. I disagree with this. Focus needs to be placed on bell-to-bell learning. That is what I've been working towards.

It's been a little difficult to adjust to our new regime. It's a deal where we've pretty much been allowed to whatever we want with very little guidance. My room is in the back of a secondary building, so there was very little traffic back there. We've got to have standards up, essential questions, and everything pretty much has to look perfect when an administrator comes in.

Don't get me wrong. I WANT my students to learn and I have been working from bell-to-bell. It's something that I've (with an exception or two) done the entire time I've been teaching. It's just that it feels as if administrators are coming in to "get us," not, as an administrator who left did, coming in to affirm that we are doing our job. It's the punitive tone that is very unappealing. It makes me feel very beaten down. It's not that I don't like the administration. I really don't have an opinion yet about them. I am pretty neutral about them. It's just that I forgot to do attendance for a block and got a very patronizing/inflammatory e-mail about it. Other people have been crawled about things that in the great scheme of things, don't seem very important.

I love my classes. I have two senior-level classes and one predominantly tenth-grade class. They are all very good. my favorite, I think, is my fourth block. This is actually GREAT because I look forward to the end of the day. Planning for me is first block, so it's kind of nice. It's not so good because second through fourth blocks are an endurance test.

I went to my friend Snoopy's house yesterday afternoon and found my friend Fiona there as well. We piled up in the den and proceeded to take a L-O-N-G nap. Fi was on the sofa with her trusty doggie and I was in a chair with a nice blankie, since Snoopy keeps her house cold. We then watched the end of Major Payne and indulged in a great bacon cheeseburger pizza.

Today, I got up a little before 8 a.m. and watched my nephew while my sister went to Weight Watchers. At about 11 a.m., I went to bed for a nap and slept until about 1:30, tried to call Mrs. C., didn't get her, and decided to go back to sleep. I then got up around 4:30. I am not going to have trouble going to sleep tonight either. I am so tired from school, it's not even funny. I sit down during first block (between trips to the main building) and at lunch, but that's it. I think that I'm going to go get fitted for inserts for my shoes. My back has been killing me.

I'm going to go fix some quinoa for supper. That may be part of my problem. I haven't been getting my quinoa quota met. Hmmmmm. Something to think about!