Inmates running the asylum

I think that I fooled myself when I accepted this teaching job. Suburban schools are nice places with supportive parents, progressive administrators, and kids who seek the knowledge necessary to succeed in life. NOT! We had a gang bang type beat down in the boy's bathroom across the hall from my room. ButI digress~

In my introduction to Hawthorne today, I told my American Lit class that he was a close friend of Franklin Pierce, who was (come on you know this) ______?

Blank stares, crickets...

That guy that wrote Moby Dick?

Was he in the woods? (Thoreau/Emerson...not sure which one he was attempting to channel)

Come on Mrs. M!!

Okay, I realize that knowing Franklin Pierce was the 14th president may not make any of my students wealthy. However, most of them are taking US History. I'm sure that they've been introduced to Pierce already.

My goodness people!!

On a good note though, we're almost finished watching Moby Dick and both of my American Lit classes are enjoying the process of "reading the film." That certainly makes my heart smile. What more can you ask for? As a lover of literature, I'll take what I can get.

Are you kidding me?

Umm, yeah. While you're writing lessons, calling parents, keeping hormonal teenagers from groping each other, tracking little DJ's 8 million absences, and handling bus duty, do you think that you can put something on the bulletin boards outside of your classroom?

Excuse me?

Bulletin boards have preference over all of the above as well as my a/c being out since the start of the school year?

Okay, well thanks. I wish that I had known that earlier.

I'll get right on that.

I'm back...

though I never really left. I felt like I needed a break to get myself organized and on track. I've started journaling on scraps of paper and that's not good (I wouldn't want anyone to find those random vents:)).

School is going well. I'm still not in love with my 9th graders but I do at least like them now. I caught half of them cheating and now they are all having "come to Jesus" moments. They can't hold water now. Perhaps they're looking for extra credit points for honesty? I don't know.

We've started our common assessments and they are not going well. Why you ask? Well, we don't really teach the same thing. We have common planning. No one utters a word for 30 minutes and then we all crawl back into our rooms and do our own thing. I did make the effort to send out a mass e-mail requesting an overview of what everyone is teaching for the next unit. I figure that we can get one really good common quiz or something. It seemed to work. Only one teacher ignored my request.

My American Lit class fell in love with The Crucible. Either that or they just liked saying "hell" "whore" and "in the proper place where my beast are bedded". They are hilarious, that bunch.

Okay, I'm posting every night now. Love it or hate it.

Ramblings...

I have to create three versions of my vocab test for Monday. I have one class with so many modifications that I'm hoping three will be enough. I'll start off with three, go back and review the modifications and add an additional version if I need to.

The kids are enjoying The Crucible. I'm a little shocked and dismayed by some of the people who want to read. As a result, we're plowing right through it (at the dismay of the American Lit team leader.)

"Oh, I just take my time and get deep in the storyline."

And I don't?

Explain to me how any American Lit teacher can justify not teaching Twain or any Realism and then we can discuss pacing okay? Okay.

I still don't love my freshmen. I called parents the other day and I've seen two of them change their behavior. Of course, they aren't the loudest or most talkative ones but hey, progress is progress.

This is my last post of the day

I promise. Please excuse the errors that I have typed in my posting frenzy. I'm rambling and don't feel like going back to edit.

What can I do?

One of my students is missing. Well, she's probably home by now but her father came to school on Friday after checking online and noticing that she had been absent from her first three classes. She's a beautiful girl. Bright and social. Evidently she's been in trouble before and her father is dealing with the court system. It's not pretty. I felt so sad for him. I mean, it's nothing that we could do really. He had so much pain in his eyes. I think what hurts the most is that he seemed so much like me, like us. Middle class father concerned about his daughter. That could have been Number Cruncher sitting in that room. What happened?

I think I like it here

Alright, I'm staying. The school is cool and the kids are fine. The firewall is insane though! I have four department meetings each week but at least they're during school. You can't beat that.

My American Lit classes are starting off okay. We've already covered some Native American Lit and presented myths. I was a little bummed because none of them put any real effort into it. No one went above and beyond the directions even though I explicitly stated that they should. Because of that and some other things, I've decided that they will do at least two more presentations throughout the semester. We're covering Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God and the boys can not stand to sit with each other. Obviously too much testosterone bothers them. They begged me to move back to 2007 on Monday (we're currently in 1741.) I'm still not sure yet. We may remain that way until we're done with Puritan Lit.

My ninth graders have become the bain of my existence. It's really ridiculous how immature they are. Friday was their last day. I'm calling parents starting Monday. It's nothing disrespectful but I have them after lunch and they are just wired. Talk talk talk talk talk talk talk. Of course it's just the girls. But now it's to the point where they are bothering other students and I'm not having it.

Okay, I've done enough complaining. I feel so much better. Thanks for listening:))