Here's to the end of April

I feel as though I have been doing things from sun up to sun down for over a week now. So it was with a great sigh of relief that I used today as a catch-up/relax day and a much-needed one at that.

I have been lagging behind on laundry and general household chores for the last 2 weeks. I had planned to do a ton of wash and baking and other goodies last weekend but wanted to head North to be with my lovely family and celebrate my Uncle John's life who passed away recently. As tough as such things always are, it was a wonderful day. My cousins were doing extremely well and my Aunt Sug, who has endured so much in the last few months is just a rock and so emotionally strong. Between the passing of her sister, my grandmother a few months ago, a broken arm which took a very long time to heal and the nursing of her husband of over 40 years who had cancer and alzheimers - Aunt Sug is a model of sheer determination and someone I truly admire.

The school week has been hectic, too. My students in Coop began their final projects which involve research, typing and a presentation. Many complained. Some are really taking the project seriously and realize that every component is something they can use after they cross that stage at graduation later this month. Last week also marked PSAE month, the state school testing exam that determines how our school is doing on teaching the "essentials" to students. It left me a bit out of sorts because the 3rd floor where my office is located was closed for the 2 days of testing. I made it through and work is now back to normalcy.

Thursday night was "Buddy Night" as always and was quite a fun time. Friday was my department chair/mentor's birthday so spent a celebratory 2 hours at a local pub with him and some of his friends before heading to church for Game Night. That led me into yesterday which was the Illinois Marathon. I left my house around 6:45am to meet up with a buddy. The plan was to park near the start, see part of the 5k to cheer on some school colleagues then see 2 spots of the half/full marathon around miles 3 and 12 in Urbana then drive to Champaign and see miles 18 & 22 which nearly intersect. All in all, we saw more people running than we expected and only missed seeing 2 people. My biggest reasons for cheering was A) I love cheering marathons in Chicago so I had to cheer this one and B) the new teacher coordinator at Urbana was running the full marathon and I wanted to support her. (She did awesome by the way!) We accomplished all of our goals, including driving through a part of the course (streets are not shut down here in entirety the way they are in Chicago) between some of the lead runners. It was a gorgeous day, a few sprinkles on occasion and in the 70's. I jumped in to run with Melissa around mile 18 since she seemed to have been off her pace and stayed with her for about 1/2 mile. It was warmer than any day of training the last few months and it took its toll on a lot of runners by knocking them off their training pace. But everyone I know that was running completed their races and that is always Goal #1.

After the marathon I came home and took a nap. Shorter than I had wanted, at just an hour, but it refreshed me enough to get me through the rest of the day's activities. First up was dinner with David, who had been my marathon buddy, and 2 of the student teachers who wanted to experience prom. It was a bit strange, them being so young and still talking about graduation and things of a bit more frivolous nature but they are nice and I wish them well. From dinner we headed to the iHotel for Prom 2010. The theme was Casablanca and the movie showed on a continuous loop throughout the night. We stood ground as greeters at one of the entrances which is a perfect role for me. The students looked so glamorous and I know so many more of them now than I did when I chaperoned Homecoming in October. I wore my green Swing dress and I felt a bit overdressed but my students thought it would be cool if I dressed up. Next year I'll opt for something a little more casual, I think.

Prom ended at midnight. There was talk of one last social outing before parting ways but I needed sleep and bid everyone good-night. I tried to sleep in this morning, tired as I was I knew I could sleep for a long time, but having been outside all day yesterday for the first time this season got my nose in a bit of a sniffle. I have handled this viscous allergy season with determination and come through it fairly unscathed due in part to NOT being outside at all and in taking every medication I possess. It was worth it though and I'm going to aim for a few more outdoor days this month in the hopes that allergy counts reduce somewhat in the coming weeks. I am hoping for some nice evenings on my back patio in a chair and a glass of vino watching the sun set. There have been some brilliant orange and red sunsets lately, seen only from the vantage point of my couch, safely behind windows in my allergy-free zone home.

The first day outside means there are many more to come. And the coming of summer. Less than 40 days until I'm done with my first year of teaching. It is going to fly by...

The so-called 2nd worst week of the school year

At least that is what some of my colleagues are calling this. It is PSAE time. For those of you who grew up in Illinois that means state testing. In our state, it is Prairie State Achievement Exams which now also mean taking the ACT as a built in component.

The last two years as a sub, I proctored the PSAE to kids with learning disabilities. I read the test and sat in a room, one on one, with students for 3 days. A lot of that time it was agony, watching the choices some of these students made while desperately willing them to fill in a different bubble on the test scantron sheet. You have to work really hard not to read the test answer selections so that you emphasize the correct choice. And when my student would ask questions, as a teacher, it was hard not to try and help them reason out the answer. I wanted to make it a teachable moment right then and there. But I couldn't. This year I get a break from PSAE.

I don't really think that having 1/2 my students out of the classroom will make this a bad week. The tough part for me will be the lack of access to my office on the 3rd floor. On testing days, the entire 3rd floor is blocked off. So to be extra prepared, I stayed late at school today to get my grades submitted (grades are due by midnight tonight) and made sure I had every textbook, test, review guide and DVD I could possibly need the next few days, not to mention my Italian language book that I've been lugging around in an attempt to brush up on my skills now that my trip is all systems go. My huge teacher bag weighs probably 15 lbs.

(To paint the big picture, I stopped at the grocery store on my way home so when I got to my front door I had what my students refer to as my "diaper bag" plus 3 bags of groceries, a purse and a stuffed, accordion file containing all my handouts and to-be-graded papers.)

Another downside to this week is that my students are really getting a handle on their final projects in Coop yet they can't work on it during testing. Each day more and more of them say "I can really use this someday, huh?" which makes me respond with "Yes!!" Both the computer lab and the library are on the 3rd floor so I'm resorting to a review guide and quiz the next few days covering our last unit, "Living On Your Own." They aren't going to like it. Oh well. Hopefully I can show a little video on Thursday. The quiz is just 32 questions.

I also had a 15 minute hallway meeting with a counselor today. Essentially, my one student who has been to my class just 4 times since January (2 this week alone) needs to pass. She has the potential to get 3 credits from my classes and needs 4 to graduate. So what has the principal said? She needs to pass both of my classes. Personally, if you don't show up to school and your absences are unexcused, you don't deserve to make up the work. It was a personal choice. This student says she wants to be there. Well, BE THERE! If you can't summon the desire and will power to face high school then how do you expect to wake up and go to a job the rest of your life? Anyway, this student and I spoke today and I showed her exactly what she needs to *hopefully* pass my 2 classes. At least she has great ideas for her project and has really been working hard on it the last 2 days. If only she could be this dedicated all school year. She has great potential.

I'm beginning to ramble now so I'm going to bed. It's long past my school-night bedtime anyway. 42 days till summer break. Hopefully the pollen season will have tapered off by then and I can spend some time outdoors. While I visited a few students at work earlier today I found this great bench rocker that would be lovely on my back patio . Dreams...

Buonanotte!
KB

The End is Near

WE had our department meeting today and as I've discovered, this time of year teachers are concerned with one topic at every meeting: How many school days are left? 

I have found that most count the school days. We're at 31 contact days, 32 total school days remaining. I'd rather count down the total DAYS until we are done, weekends and all. Its a more realistic picture, and as much as I am a dreamer, I am also the one who has to sit in the window seat on the plane so I can see our progress and tend to like being the driver so I can control how long it takes to get there. I want reality, not just hope.

It is with this in mind, as my seniors have verbally told me that they are through taking notes and caring about school that I announced that this is the last week of taking notes. (In my class of 10, 3 have stopped coming). REALLY? one of my students asked today when I made the annoucement. In their minds, May 25, last day for Seniors, is a long, long time away. They are all thinking of Prom on May 1st, which also seems like a long, long way away. In a way, the joke is on them. Because along with the ending of notes, comes their biggest challenge. Serious, dedicated, individual research and work.

I have created a final project for my students. Three of them, actually. They have a choice (choice is big in education today, its what the big guys call individualized instruction) of 3 options for their project. I've given them kitschy names in the hopes to real them in. But the true hook is the fact that if done correctly and with serious intent, each project could really help these kids down the road.

The first option is called "Moving Out - Independence." Students are going to research apartments, insurance, cars, furniture - the works. In 3 weeks they will present their findings and tell me how this project will help them once they get that graduation certificate. 

I know this has a possibility of success because one of my students is already asking me questions. This girl is not my brightest, but she comes to class and pays attention and does try. And unlike many of the students, actually asks what she misses when she is gone and what she needs to make up. In short, she has initiative. Well, yesterday this student informed me that she has been threatened by her landlord to be evicted. She moved in last month and has had some issues that were partially out of her control. We sat yesterday looking at her lease agreement during study hall. We also called the Federal Housing hotline to determine what her rights were (Not very helpful, but they did confirm the little I do know about housing law). As we went through everything, she took notes, so that she could know what to look for when she does her final project. Today was the last day before her landlord took action. We talked for a few minutes and then she called, using my advice on how to handle the situation. It was just another sign that my students trust me and are listening. GREAT!! I really needed this, considering I've had very little sleep the last few days due to the record pollen counts here.

My other 2 options should also prove to be helpful to my students. Option 2 is called Mission: Career Goals. In this one they explore how they get from where they are now as a high schooler and part-time worker to their ultimate dream job. I figured this would be good for some of my 2 sophomores and handful of juniors who are not quite at the moving out stage. They'll have to do some interviews of people in jobs they want among other research and a presentation, which may either solidify their desired job choice or make a change.  Option 3 is called Entrepreneur Extrodinaire. In this one, I gave a way for my students who want to start their own business to develop their plan of action. Again, a few interviews of other entrepreneurs and a bunch of research, but I know of at least 1 student who will probably pick this one.

So as I completed my last powerpoint for the year (I hope), I am sending good vibes for these projects. This is going to be really tough for these kids. I don't think they realize how spoon-fed they are here. We go easy on the amount of homework. We give them guided sheets to take notes on, otherwise they won't take them. We make quizzes a bit easier. This project is going to be all them. I've taught them all of the tools this year. Now they've got to put it together and show me how they will be real citizens in the world. I'm remaining optimistic!

In other news, the Mayor of Champaign has been taped stating that Obama is not an American since he won't show is birth certificate to the world. Ebertfest is underway. My allergy nurse is on the news just about every morning giving advice about "the worst pollen season." And in case you didn't know it, our Illinois State Representatives and Senators who are being pressured to pass a balanced budget for our sinking state are out playing an annual softball game. Only in America...

KB

Historical Perspectives on Dating

A few folks whose opinions I cherish have asked me to be a more regular blogger. In that vein, I'm going to expand the things I write about. I won't abandon all aspects of my teacher-life here in Urbana, but rather give a broader glimpse into the things I am thinking about and learning. Because, after all, I am a lifelong learner and crave the little nooks and crannies that make life interesting!

Spring Break was a few weeks ago and while away from school I was able to catch up on some television. My favorite show, Psych, is off for the summer so I've been updating the world of the Tudors on Netflix. This might surprise one or two of you, since the show is not necessarily made-for-family viewing. But much like the period dramas that have made their way to cable television, I think it is as realistic a depiction of life in 16th century England as allowed. (Season 4 trailer is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sawkFsNSrAk)

I've always been fascinated with English history. I don't know why. Perhaps the old stories and myths and magic that seems to permeate through the textbooks of my junior high years. I can recall in 6th grade a women, probably slightly older than I am now, coming to speak to our class who studied medieval England. I thought she was so cool! I don't think I ever told anyone that. And to know now, that I am distantly related to a queen of Henry VIII, his most loved 3rd wife, Jane, makes me all the more curious about life then.

As I've watched the show, I've become intrigued by the figure of Mary, Henry's oldest daughter, known to us now as Bloody Mary. She was devoutly Catholic, something remarkable considering her father broke England from the Catholic church and founded Anglicanism. She could not have lived a happy life, being turned against once King Henry VIII divorced her mother, the great daughter of Spain's Isabella & Ferdinand. Following this move, Henry made her illegitimate, demoting her from princess to lady. This followed the birth of a half-sister, Elizabeth, to be revered through the ages as the Great Virgin Queen, born of a woman who tried to have Mary put to death. Mary's father went on to marry 4 more women, two of which helped reconcile the father with daughter, to the extent it was possible.

What makes Mary's story more poignant to me is that here is a girl, whose own father was marrying women younger than she was at a time when women married in their early teens. The threat of being a bastard of a kind prevented her marriage. The fact that she was Catholic caused Henry VIII to avoid marrying her, in case the pro-Catholic factions in turbulent England decided to rise again. And Mary wouldn't think of marrying a Protestant. Yet through all of this, Mary's greatest desire was to have children and be married. When her young brother, Edward VI, was born, Mary was 21. She treated him like the child she was destined to never have.

Yet when little brother, King Edward, died Mary took over the throne, the final gift her father had bestowed onto her should his longed for heir pass away. She married at age 37, well past the age of the women of her time, to her cousin, Philip of Spain. She would die just 5 years later, childless and ill-remembered. Out-shined by half-sister, Elizabeth.

Despite Mary's futile efforts to turn England back into a Catholic nation (Bloody Mary comes from her attempts to destroy the Protestant leaders in England from her father and brother's reigns), her story can lend a bit of hope, if you just look for it. This is a woman who persevered through threats of death, desertion, isolation and separation from family to achieve the marriage of her dreams at age 37 and goal she had always fought for - her rightful place as the eldest child of Henry VIII on the throne of England.

If you can put in perspective that Mary was not the only monarch of the period to put hundreds if not thousands of people to death for their religious beliefs and focus on the humanistic side for a moment, you would see that circumstance created the person she was to become. Elizabeth, too, suffered similar threats and abandonment, but not to the extent of her older sibling, especially because Elizabeth was staunchly Protestant. Mary was there through all 6 of her fathers' wives and was the only member of the family to stay Catholic. I can't imagine what Mary went through but I can learn from her perseverance in holding out for love.

I hope you enjoyed the history lesson. And in case you are curious, Jane Seymour's mother was Margaret Wentworth, a cousin of my ancestor who immigrated to the USA in the 1600's. Who knows what I'll write about next!

Long Time Gone

It's been a long time since I updated my little blog here but I figured it was time! This one may be a bit lengthly. Keep reading though. I have a few success stories to tell you about!

It's been a very blessed day here in C-U. I am finally seeing the fruits of my labor in connecting with students and seeing learning sink in. At least in my Law class. And it all started with a scantron quiz.

Let me first say that yesterday ended on a frustrating note. I am a planner and not a procrastinator, but with spring break and Easter coinciding the last 2 weeks, I'm not as ahead as I would like to be. That means, I am probably ahead on planning than most new teachers but not enough so that I feel wholly comfortable. To paint a picture of my schedule, I teach periods 1 through 4 in an 8 class-period day. I may be the only one who does this at the school but it works well for me. I tend to eat lunch 5th period and then either visit my student worksites during 6th-8th periods or do some grading or lesson planning at my desk. I have 35 students to visit at work (twice a semester) and most of those visits occur between 5-8pm due to student work schedules. Many days I sit working until 3 and then head back out to jobs in the evening. This week alone, I have visited 10 students in 3 days. 

Yesterday, I checked my mailbox and found a letter stating that 2 of my students would be out all next week and they needed the homework and worksheets for the entire week. Being a little behind, I had ideas on what I wanted to teach next week but nothing written, let alone copied for my Coop class. Law, thankfully, is a semester class and I was able to quickly pull those items out from fall semester for one of the students. But Coop, that was another ballgame (my subtle reference to the start of baseball season which is being relived on the news as I type this).

What I had planned to be a 6-7th hour grading session and an 8th hour worksite visit turned into a frantic rush to put worksheets together and copy textbook pages for my Coop student. Her absence occurs in the midst of a unit I am creating about Stereotypes in the workplace and the Changing Role of Women at work. It is given just 3 pages of text in our book. Pretty heavy stuff, since these kids have probably never thought of it and so I have pooled resources from books I read in college and from online. I've got some great ideas including a 1955 article from a magazine that describes what the proper wife should do while her husband works. I'm hoping it shocks my students. That will be followed by a few letters/speeches written by women in the 1890's when the women @ work movement began. We'll then look at race and equal pay before diving into the final weeks leading up to their final projects, which I'll detail in another blog.

All this to say that yesterday resulted in my getting absolutely no grading done and job visits pushed back between 3:30 and 6:15. I sat on the couch last night after the visits refusing to work. I was fried. So when I checked my email during my 1st period study hall this morning, I was pleased to see an email from one of my inquisitive Law students saying I was her favorite teacher and wondered why I never reply to her emails. (She's been sending me links to various law cases and stories she's heard about to which I always respond verbally in class). 

Today, my law class took a quiz over Employment Law. I was worried, as I think this is a tough unit, with a load of laws to memorize and understand. The average was a 90% though, the best on a quiz I've given all year. I was pleasantly floored. Were these both signs of success?

Later in the afternoon, I had to run a worksheet downstairs for next week for another student who would be absent. In the classroom was another of my law students who saw me and gave me a big hug. I guess I've been more engaged with my students this week and we've talked about different types of humor people have (somehow this stemmed from a discussion on right vs. wrong). Teachers are told not to be personal with students. I disagree. Sharing a little makes connections, just like it does in any other relationship. 

I often wonder if I've been doing the right thing here. I came from a job where I wanted to be cool, have prestige and be noticed. There is a small part of me that wants that but I've washed most of those feelings off in the shower of career change. Right now, I just want to have students learn. (Having them act mature and respect each other would be great too, but thats going to take longer). I know I'm getting through to them but the outward display of such penetration hasn't happened yet. It was refreshing to know that just by laughing a little and getting off topic just a tad yesterday, my students are feeling a little more comfortable with me. 

The ones who are not doing well, I'm pulling aside and encouraging them. I even made one of them smile today. He's been a tough nut to crack, because he wouldn't ask questions. Wouldn't take notes. Wouldn't try. In the last 2 weeks he has taken notes, asked questions when there is time in class to do work and turns his stuff in. SUCCESS! Another student that I visited at work today, has had a rough home situation and hasn't been very focused at school. He's going to college for music and I told him that just in the last week, he's been more attentive and trying and that's great. SUCCESS! I told him to tap into the music for a little bit when home but that the work has to happen too, until graduation. I told him his D should be an A. He's got the smarts. His actions over the last week or so are a success that he is overcoming the problems in his life. I think he needed to hear that. And for me, one of the things I do best is encourage and tell people I'm there for them, that I'm on their side. I told that to my job student today and I hope it will bring him around to be a bit more dedicated to his studies.

I know this was a long composition, but after 3 months, I think you can afford me a little grace. It's been a good day. There are only 40 or so days lefts in the school year. Hopefully I can report on a few more of them over the next 8 weeks.

Take care folks.

KB

Sick Days Reluctant

I never take sick days. To me, sick days are for caving in to whatever is making you sick. I'm a fighter and I always try to stick to my regular schedule, even when sick. (Funny, the only thing I cave in on is working out because I don't want to use up my energy).

At any rate, the temperatures last weekend swung over 30 degrees warmer than they have been. What that means for someone with sensitive allergies to mold and other fun elements of nature is an instant sinus infection. I don't handle temperature swings well. So last Thursday, as the temperature broke the dreaded 40 mark, my lungs started to show asthma symptoms. By Friday, my nose got stuffy and my ears started popping like crazy. Now, the later two signs are normal for oncoming chronic sinusitis. But the asthma takes it to a whole new level. One that should mean "book a doctor's appointment!" which I had done a few days earlier just to be safe.

So Friday night I had a fever. It lasted all day Saturday, too (hey, I saved some $$ on heat!). Sunday I caved in and went to Convenient care. Pretty painless, actually, except for the fact that I still had an ongoing asthma attack and they made me wear one of those little face masks which made it doubly hard to breath. Hello people! Asthma symptoms = make it less difficult to breath not more! I told the doc there what I had and he said I was wrong. That I just had a cold and would be better in 7-10 days. I questioned his assessment and despite my pressure he told me I was probably misdiagnosed in the past. Huh. 

On Monday I had a CT scan. It surely proved the diagnoses I knew I had: bad sinus infection. They gave me a few power pills (I'm allergic to regular antibiotics that would normally be given) and I began to fell a little better. Except for the asthma.

And so it was that I took off work on Wednesday. I'm a controller (shocking, I know). I've got most of my semester plotted out and I didn't want to get off course. But I needed a day to try and sleep and crack open my lungs. It was a good decision. On Thursday, I attempted to work all day but was still feeling pretty lungless. At that point, both of my mentors told me I couldn't come in on Friday. And despite the inner turmoil I had all day with myself over that decision, I took Friday off too. Again, a great decision. I slept (Finally!!) and worked on my lungs all day.

Today it's Saturday. I can breath. Air is the most beautiful thing you can't see. I'm still sick but feel like myself. So much so that I want to go do my usual 4 miles. I'm smart enough not to dive in yet. 

I'll get my classes back on track and recover from this bout of sinusitis. It's never fun but I needed to be humbled and experience a few days without the reigns in my hands. The typical me would save those sick days and see if I could carry them over year after year. I'm a saver - in everything. The challenge now is to investigate costs for sinus surgery #2. The last one was not fun. But after this round, I'm prepared for another surgery. I know it's the right move.

See you on the next post. Rested and Recouped.

KB

FInals...Overshadowed

My motivation for this blog is to write about the "big picture" of my experience teaching in Urbana. And as teaching goes, this has been a big week, wrapping up my 1st semester as a full-time teacher with Final Exams. Yet, every day I have come home from work and sat in front of the television watching the horrific scenes of Haiti. So this blog will be dedicated to the people of Haiti, those struggling to help rescue and provide sustenance and the people from around the world contributing funds to help such organizations meet the needs of the poorest country in the West.

I administered a written reflection final for my students for their Cooperative Ed work grade this semester. It was not my original plan, but I think it was a better measure of what students have learned and connected from the classroom to their jobs than a worksite visit would have done. Most students did A's and B's on the reflection exam. I had 2 students who refused to even do the exam, knowing they were going to get an F in the class anyway because they hadn't had a job.

The Cooperative Ed classroom final was decent. The average for both of my classes as well as my Law final exam was a low C. I was hoping students would have done better. They all had the chance to write vocab or other terms on a 1/2 sheet of paper to use on the exam. I gave them a few days to work on those sheets. It is amazing to me that many of them forgot those sheets at home the day of the exams. There seems to be such a little connection to school=future success. I think, based on the reflections I received, that understanding is slowly seeping in. But, boy, there is a long way to go.

I had everything graded by Wednesday. I had my 1st week of documents and lessons completed yesterday. Today there was a staff meeting in the morning and I made some copies and graded a make-up exam. I was really bored and not motivated enough to get 2 weeks ahead. I thank God I am not a procrastinator. Several Math and Business teachers went to lunch together today and just recapped our final results and various other topics. It was a good way to cap off the week.

Through all of this I realize that had I not had the time to develop lesson plans at work this week, I would have struggled to get things done at home. I am so drawn to the images being sent back to us from Haiti. I want to be there. Helping. I want to go there and just help clear streets. Create some form of organization so that supplies can start being distributed.

This country has been devastated by historical events so that there is little chance to escape poverty. Yet, I recall the way New York emerged from the block of the city that was devastated. The way Chicago emerged from the Great Fire of 1871. What has happened in Haiti is so much greater than either of these events. The earthquake damaged an even greater area of land than either tragedy in a country whose infrastructure is no where near the superiority Chicago's was even in the 1870's.

Yet I wonder that with the help of people from Israel, Jordan, Belgium, the U.N. and the U.S. all working side by side as they have for the last 3 days, I can't help but think that this is a chance for Haiti to rebuild. Bigger. Better. And with a better foundation than it has ever had. It is a time for a new government to step up. One that demonstrates leadership and compassion for the people in their country. With hundreds of different aid organizations and thousands of people, they will have a chance to stand stronger than before. To rebuild buildings stronger and more stable should this same tragedy repeat in the next 50 years.

Even in the wake of the tsunami that hit earlier this decade, organization was in place. A government was able to mobilize. There is none of that in Haiti. In Sri Lanka and Indonesia the dead were photographed and tagged for others to identify at a later time. In Haiti, people are being collected off streets and placed in mass graves. There are no photos. No questions being asked if anyone knows who the people were. Lives of people who will never be accounted for or recorded. As a genealogist this is heartbreaking.

I can only hope and pray that some change comes to this small nation. I am thankful that people are still being found alive. That many of the images coming back to us are of people praising God or calling out to God. Faith is strong. I am grateful for people who are there helping and using their bare hands to dig. And I will join thousands of people around the globe praying for this region of the world. I hope it convinces more of us to move and live outside of our comfort zone, thankful for every thing and every minute we have.

It's a 3-day weekend. Let's hope lights are shining brighter when I next write.
KB