Here We Go Again

Pre-planning started on Wednesday and we kicked it off with the first of many looooong faculty meetings. One of the first things anyone said to me was, “I’m surprised you’re back.” Thanks. Nice to see you too. We talked about a whole bunch of nothing for 4 hours and were released to start working in our rooms.

This year, much to my delight, I HAVE A CLASSROOM! It’s difficult to explain how wonderful it is to have a home and a place to spread out. Other teachers keep walking in my room to tell me how happy they are for me. Other than the fact that all the furniture had been waxed to the floor over the summer, it is a great room. I inherited 4 filing cabinets full of chalk, 4 globes from the 80s, an American flag, and a step stool (which I will definitely be using). They also issued me my very own classroom key. No more searching the school at 6:50 am for a janitor because I am locked out of the room where I parked my cart!

Thank goodness for the classroom, because nothing else about the school year has been decided. Since my last blog, my class schedule has been changed twice. The students’ first day is tomorrow and I currently have no idea what I will be teaching when I walk in tomorrow morning. Now, I don’t have a degree in educational leadership, but it seems like a schedule would be the number one thing you would want to have figured out before the kids actually come into the building. But, what do I know, I’m just a teacher. I guess the first day will just be a meet & greet…

In other news, only 2 out of last year’s 5 Social Studies teachers returned this year. The administration only decided to hire 2 more, so we have a smaller department (and bigger classes) than last year. My department chair was one of those who “got out” over the summer. The new department chair seems nice but I feel so badly for him as I watch him realize what kind of situation he has gotten into. He is an FSU fan, so thankfully, I’ll be hearing a lot less out of him this fall than last year’s Bama fan department chair.

So, I am entering this year completely in the dark but completely thankful that the Lord has gone before me and knows exactly what is headed my way. It’s probably better that I am clueless- less to worry about that way!

I'll Call You If Anything Changes...

This post is an attempt to give you a snapshot of the see-saw that I've been on this summer when it comes to my expectations for this upcoming school year. Last spring, my assistant principal asked if I would take an AP history certification course this summer. She said I could choose between AP U.S. and AP World. Since I prefer U.S. history, that is the course I chose. Before turning in my paperwork to take the certification class, I checked with this principal 3 times to make SURE she was still OK with me taking AP US instead of AP World.

The very first week of summer, that principal called me and said that they didn't need me to teach AP US after all and that she would try to register me in a AP world certification course instead. (see-saw) Shortly after, she told me to take the AP US course anyway and she would stay in touch with me about AP World. (see-saw) So, I took the AP US course, but didn't look at any of the curriculum after that week since I knew I wouldn't actually be teaching it.

A few weeks later, I heard from the principals that they were still waiting on me to choose which week I could attend the AP World seminar. However, I hadn't even been informed that I was supposed to be choosing a week, the other principal was supposed to be in charge of that. (see-saw) So, I chose a week and waited for confirmation from the administration that I was successfully registered to spend yet another week of my summer in training. Finally, I got a call from the principal saying that the school didn't have the money to send me to another workshop and that they just wouldn't offer AP World this year and I would just be teaching general World History instead. (see-saw) This was a welcome turn of events because I have taught that class before and would be well-prepared... and I wouldn't have to go to another workshop!

So, last Friday I stopped by the school to make sure that I had actually been assigned to a classroom and to drop off some supplies in that room. When I arrived, the principal said she was glad I stopped by because she was about to call and tell me that I would, in fact, be teaching AP US History. (see-saw) Another teacher from last year had just left and they decided to move me to AP US. [please note, this means that only 2 teachers from the Social Studies department are returning this year] Begin panic attack: an AP class is a big deal and NOT something you want to start preparing for less than a week before you go back to school. But that's how we roll in DeKalb county.

As I walked out of the principal's office in a state of shock she said, "I'll call you if anything changes." And it wouldn't surprise me a bit if something does.

Oh Yeah, I Have a Blog...

Oops. Ok, I can explain why I haven't blogged since January 11th. First, I got extremely overwhelmed with a whole new set of kids and classes. Then, I had so many good stories to write about that I knew it would take me forever to catch up on the blog and I didn't have enough time to do these stories justice. And finally, as the end of the year approached, I cared less and less about anything remotely related to school and couldn't pull myself away from Facebook, Twitter, and everyone else's blogs long enough to force myself to recount all the funny and/or depressing anecdotes from the semester.

Second semester found me still pushing around my cart which, fortunately, evoked enough sympathy from those in power that I am high on the list for actually having my own classroom next year. As anticipated, my 2 classes of Juniors (or repeat juniors...) were significantly more tolerable than the freshman class from Hades which welcomed me into my new profession last semester. By Junior year, many of the kids have acquired their street names (this is entertaining but also doubles the number of names with which I have to be familiar). Bootsy, Cole Slaw, Juice, and Pork Chop were some of my favorites.

Second semester was also characterized by the same mismanagement, confusion, and incompetence on the part of DeKalb County that I quickly recognized in the fall. You may have heard that the DeKalb County superintendent, Crawford Lewis, was indicted this spring and eventually forced to resign his position. This event was certainly not a proud moment for the county, but it was most definitely not a surprise, either. Unfortunately, he seemes to have set an example for leadership that many others in the county appear to be following.

There are so many ridiculous things from this past semester that I have been meaning to write about, so I'll try to add them as the summer goes on. Let me just leave you with some teasers: fights every day after school, getting called to the Principal's office because too many students were failing my class, and being forced to eat lunch in the classroom with my students every day for 2 weeks.

If you don't already know, I signed the contract to return to AHS next year. I know, I'm still surprised myself. There was a lot of praying, a lot of discussing with Kenneth, and a lot of tears that went into this decision. I'm just glad that the Lord is in control and knows exactly what I'm supposed to be doing. Honestly, the idea of returning for Year #2 doesn't make me all warm and fuzzy inside right now. (actually, it's more like sweaty and short-of-breath) But, summer is a nice separation from the chaos and has given me the opportunity to take a few steps back to realize that the Lord can use his children where ever he wants to use them, even if they feel inadequate, unprepared, scared to death, and very, very small. He is BIG and he has a plan. Thank goodness! So, it looks like I'll have plenty of more material to fill the blog...

Somebody lost her weave...

For real. I had just pushed my little cart into the classroom at the end of the day when a student came in and asked my department chair if he had seen the fight outside the room. When Mr. Flowers asked if it was a real fight, the young man responded,"Oh yeah, they hooking for real." (which was his way of saying 'yes')

We both stepped out into the hall to make sure it wasn't still going on, and immediately saw the remnants of the fight strewn down the hall. Right outside the door we saw 2 big hoop earrings, a shoe and (you guessed it) a handful of braids. As the students began to clear out, we saw pieces of the weave scattered about 20 feet down the hall. I feel like it was some sort of initiation; I am now officially a teacher at AHS.

Also, completely unrelated, one of my students told me that he is a vampire. I'm not sure what to do with that. Since I didn't jump on board that whole New Twilight Werewolf Vampire Moon book/movie bandwagon, I was significantly less impressed than he probably intended.

Round 2

Alright. This gig is officially more than halfway over. I was back at work today (no students, just teachers- making the whole situation deceptively pleasant). With just one day to get everything in order, the day was rushed but also fairly productive. I hardly did anything over the break to prepare for this semester and was able to have several days of absolutely no stress and complete enjoyment of the all the other parts of my life which have been neglected for the past several months.

This semester's lineup: 1st period World History with 32 students, 2nd period planning, tardy table duty with a new set of teachers (more encouragement/gossip time!), 3rd period US History with 24 students, and 4th period US History with 23 students. My schedule and student lists were changing through the end of the day today, so all of this may not be permanent. I am floating again, despite the fact that several new classrooms were opened just before the break. Most of my teacher workday was devoted to updating my posters so I can maintain my title of "Model Cart Teacher."

I am nervous/excited about my first time teaching US History. If you know me, you know American History is my favorite... not to mention that it is an 11th grade course, which generally means less behavior problems than 9th and 10th. (by 11th grade, the students that really don't want to be there are old enough to drop out) Also, the class sizes are on the lower side. It would be fabulous to keep those in the low 20s. The downside is that US History is a "high stakes" class because it is tested state-wide and it comes with a series of benchmark pre-tests and post-tests. And, unique to Avondale, the high-stakes class teachers are required to create and present 6 presentations about the results, preparation, and improvement plans for all of these benchmark tests. (a.k.a. more work which really does nothing to help the students but everything to stress out and frustrate a teacher)

Ready or not, the students come tomorrow. I feel completely unprepared, especially since I haven't been living in my house for the past week (new floors- that's another whole story). Whatever happens tomorrow, I know that the Lord has faithfully carried me through 18 weeks and that He is more than able to get me through 18 more.

Sad

I'm discovering that things around school don't get any easier as we get closer to vacation. In fact, it is quite the opposite. I haven't posted in a while because there have been so many "incidents" in my classes that I have been overwhelmed with frustration thinking about how to put it down into words. If you see me over the Christmas break, remind me to tell you the full version of these stories. For now, let me leave you with this teaser: 2 screaming/cussing fights involving a pregnant girl, one physical fight between 2 guys that I almost ended up in the middle of, and countless administrators, resource officers, and school police officers in my classroom (all at the same time one day...) This is all just in the last 2 weeks.

I am constantly amazed at the aggressiveness and combativeness of this group of kids. They seem to gain strength from cursing, screaming, and totally ignoring any and all authority.

In other news, my geography class is completely hopeless. I hope they forget my name so I won't be blamed in the future when they mistakenly identify "Afghanistan" as a religion (like one young man did today). I just finished making their final exam. It will focus only on vocabulary terms and identifying major geographic features (like North America).

Today, my co-teacher pulled one student out of class due to her constant disruption, foul language, and absence of any work. After spending some time with the student and another special education teacher, my teacher came back and informed me that he had "figured out the problem" with this student. She can't read. He said she couldn't even recognize some basic words. No wonder. No wonder all of her work is copied from her friends. No wonder she acts out every day during our school-mandated 20 minutes of silent reading. No wonder she talks and goofs off during classwork. So sad. She is in 10th grade. She was in special ed for behavior disorders, but I guess no one ever figured out the main problem. This is what happens when we aren't allowed to fail students. Maybe she could have benefited from another year of 1st grade.

Wow. I am so ready to take a step back from all the madness for a couple weeks. Christmas break is almost here. In the words of Pat Green,"just 3 days." (3 long days)

The Home Stretch for 1st Semester

Before leaving school for the fabulous 3-day Thanksgiving break, the whole school (well, everyone that decided to show up the day before a break) assembled in the gym for the "Thanksgiving Program." Every homeroom class was supposed to assemble a basket of canned foods for needy families to present during the program. My kids brought in a whopping total of 2 cans. Thank goodness Kenneth took me to stock up a few days earlier, and I filled the basket so it didn't too pitiful.

Someone at the school is in the Christmas spirit. There are big snowflakes all over the walls, light-up reindeer in the lobby, and ornaments hanging from every intersection of the ceiling panels in the front hall. Whoever hung the ornaments was probably trying to show a little school spirit by choosing only blue and silver decorations; however, to the untrained eye, that color scheme makes it looks the the Hanukkah aisle at Target.

I can't believe I have less than 3 weeks left in this semester. Praise the Lord for carrying me through this far. Things will be extra hectic these last couple weeks, but it helps to see the light at the end getting a little closer. There have been many moments this semester when I sincerely did not believe I would make it to December.

Here's an intriguing question that one of my freshmen asked me today: "What would you do if you accidentally killed someone?" From the way he asked, I knew this wasn't just hypothetical. I decided it was probably my responsibility to make sure that he hadn't actually killed someone, so I had to find out where this question was coming from. He didn't give too much information, but from what I could tell, he and his friends had been involved in a practical joke that caused another friend to pass out, which scared them all. It seems that everyone is fine now, and hopefully a little more cautious with their jokes too. Oh dear.