Yeah, That'll Teach You A Lesson

Officially a NYC Teacher.

2008-09-26T13:09:00.000-07:00

While I have already kicked off my third year as a NYC public school teacher, it is today that I became officially recognized. In the mail today I received my teaching certificates for both middle school general education and for special education.

I thought they'd be bigger. The certificates are 3 and a 1/2 inches by roughly six inches, but they lend me the credibility I've been lacking as an educator. No longer am I simply a misguided Teaching Fellow with a transitional B certification, but an older and wiser soldier in the trenches.

Trial by fire, 30 months of grad school, copious testing...and these two slips of paper are mine.

I'm playing with the big boys now!

You know you're a role model when...

2008-09-23T13:43:00.000-07:00

Your students begin to dress like you. I came into school today to find that my student was wearing the same sweater as myself, in the same color. People thought we planned it, and we both got our chops busted a bit through the day.

But when you think of it... Imitation is the best form of flattery. And it sure beat the shirt the same-said student wore last week. That shirt sported the slogan "Who needs to work with an ass like this?"

A step in the right direction.

Empire State Partnerships: Art in Education

2008-07-17T08:06:00.001-07:00

Literally, I didn’t sleep at all last Sunday night. I was anxious, my mind spinning and uncertain about the upcoming Summer Seminar being conducted by the Empire State Partnership. 350 teaching artists and teachers from all over New York meeting together to focus on art and creativity in education, complete strangers. A week away from home, from familiarity or anyone I knew. No wonder I couldn’t sleep.
I arrived Monday morning on the 6:30 AM train, bleary-eyed and clenching the anxiety in my gut, I didn’t know where to go, and it was raining.

This mentality lifted with the rain early in the day, when I realized I was spending a week in an arts education summer camp. Everyone was warm and welcoming, there was no judgment, and the focus was on the students. All the arts were represented, from dance and drama, to music, visual arts and poetry. Here are a few highlights from my experience, and how they will color the upcoming year in my classroom.

-First, the campus is beautiful. Something about getting out of the city and back into nature scoured a bitter layer of myself away to reveal a more open version of myself. I stayed in a dorm room, a throwback to my undergrad days…and it was a welcome nostalgia. Even the shower shoes. The air was fresher, the spaces both wide open and green, and also forested and shady. My pleasure was to walk under the leaves, and peruse the arboretum. How could I be uptight when the air was fresh and lush? The environment had no little effect on me this week.

-The people were real, open, and warm. One Monday morning I was freaking out because I couldn’t find my dorm, and I only had 15 minutes until they stopped serving breakfast. And yet everyone I passed wished me a good morning, made eye-contact. Like Dorothy I felt like I wasn’t in Kansas anymore. I wasn’t in the New York land of hidden eye contact and subway silence. It unburdened me. I spent much of my meal times networking with teachers and artists from all over New York, I have a list of e-mails of people I know I can contact for support or a chat, not to mention new teachers I know in Brooklyn.

-There was an incredible keynote presentation by the activist artist Mel Chin. Art is political. Perhaps I’m a bit blind about art, seeing so much in New York…but I really feel like I got a rejuvenated grasp on what political art can mean to the world. I ask myself: how can I pass this idea of art with a message to my students? How can I facilitate their understanding, or open my students to art?

-I got to be an artist this week. I worked with “real” artists, but there was no hierarchy, my work was displayed seamlessly with their own during exhibition, and I didn’t feel self-conscious or judged for what I was or wasn’t. (I’ll post pictures of my art at a later date) In fact, I felt welcome to drum, dance, sing, act, create art with no pressure and no feelings that “I can’t do this because I’m not a “real” artist.” This I can definitely pass on to my students. Everyone , EVERYONE can participate in art, as long as the environment is welcoming and free.

-Tuesday night there were a set of student performers, student who performed hip hop, a meshed version of Richard the III that combined traditional Shakespeare with student written material, and dance from students in the National Dance Institute. This was the transitional moment, when I realized how desperately my students need to be exposed to more art for their own personal enrichment and self-confidence. After each performance, the students spoke about how powerful their art was, and I couldn’t stop thinking how MY children could get so much out of it, if given the chance. But how? No Child Left Behind legislature puts the emphasis on testing academics, how can I make time and allocate resources to give my students what I find to be just as important?

-Wednesday brought an answer, light at the end of the tunnel. And honestly, I feel slightly sheepish that I didn’t think about it before. Collaboration between resident teaching artists and classroom teachers and fulfill both the driving need to create as well as supplement student learning in multiple subject areas. It’s a crossover, a hybrid; art not just for art’s sake. Examples abounded, a model of a house built from only recycled materials to supplement ecology lesson plans. Drumming and percussion added to spoken word prose. Found material art based on history. Painting and dance tied in with math. If my students could dance in math class, they’d definitely have a different perception of arithmetic.

-My goal for next year: I am going to set aside time, either in school or out to collaborate closely with our resident artist in the RUSH Philanthropic Arts Foundation, and match the art with curriculum. I’m excited! My students, who are emotionally disturbed flock to art, love it. Many students struggle with academics, hate math, can’t stand English. The hatred stems from failure. After 10 years of struggling with a subject, the students are bitter. But they love art. The art can be the sugar for the medicinal subject matter. But not only can the art act as motivation, it’s a new way to see the same information.

If you are a teacher in New York State, I highly recommend you experience ESP for yourself. Your students will thank you.

My Goal for Next Year

2008-07-08T09:40:00.000-07:00

Upon closing the door on my second year of teaching, I have come to the following initial goal for teaching next year.

My goal will be to stretch to the outskirts of my class. My ED students are very transient, and I only had three students remain from September to June. In fact, my last student was admitted to me two weeks prior to final exams.

It was this year I noticed I was much warmer and patient with the few students I had yearlong, or for extended periods of time than the newest children. There was Usually a two week feel-out phase with these youngsters, and either I gathered them to the fold or they became all the more transient. My goal for the upcoming year is to break away from the comfort zone of familiar students, and focus a little more on welcoming newcomers. It's not like the transience is going to change, I need to adapt.

The Lives You Touch

2008-03-13T14:54:00.001-07:00

T came in midyear, while I was in mid-crisis and slowly finding my stride in my first year of teaching. It was obvious that T didn’t want to be in school, and when I spoke to him about it he made it clear that school attendance was to keep his probation officer at bay only, and actual school work was not on the menu. I wasn’t exactly looking for another mission, amongst the sinking ship that was my 9^th grade class, so I let it go and struck a deal that he’d stay half the day, and refrain from disrupting working students, and we’d get along fine. And we *did* get along well. He was a decent kid, respectful and rarely got into fights or verbal battles; but since he wasn’t part of my working class, I didn’t pay him much mind other than if he was there and if he was leaving working students alone. Sometimes T would complete an assignment on his own, and thus become a bleep on my teacher-radar, but mostly he just hung out in my room.

So imagine my surprise when today, a year later, T called me from the psychiatric center on his way to prison until 2009. The shock of the phone call didn’t come from my student being incarcerated (sadly, that doesn’t surprise me anymore) rather that I didn’t think my relationship with him warranted him reaching out. Nonetheless we chatted briefly about the “scuffle” that ended him in jail and his plans once he got out. He called to tell me he wrote me a letter, and to expect it soon. T wanted to know if he could be in my class when he got out if he promised to do work. I was touched, but confused. I wanted to ask him “Why me?” but my class was watching me expectantly, and I had to go back to my lesson.

It goes to show, that as a teacher, you may not always be aware of the lives you touch.

Quality Reviews

2008-03-05T15:40:00.001-08:00

My school's quality review is coming up soon, and I am dreading the day The Suits take over the school. Needless to say everything is in chaotic upheaval while everyone scurries to make this pig's ear into a silk purse.

If the NYC Department of Education spent as much effort and money on actually teaching students than it did making itself look good...We'd have much less of an education crisis.

Teaching With No Allies

2008-02-29T12:43:00.001-08:00

One of the difficulties with teaching teenagers, is that they have minds of their own. If a student doesn’t feel like completing assignments, there’s actually very little an educator can do to rectify the laziness-situation.

Case in point: I have a bright 16-year-old in my class who is fully capable of completing assignment, but comes in three days a week between 10 and 11 and is failing all his classes except gym. Previously I had phoned several times to speak to N’s family to give them a heads up, often with phones being disconnected or no one picking up the phone. Today I reached N’s sister who didn’t speak English, but with my poor Spanish she was able to give me his brother’s phone number.

The following conversation clued me in to why N was lazy in the classroom:

Ms. C: Hi there, I wanted to talk to you about my concerns for N.

Brother: What he do now?

Ms. C: Well, I’m concerned for N’s grades….he’s struggling to complete work, and often won’t make the attempt. Of the last 15 assignments N handed in 4.

Brother: Yeah, this has been a problem for a while.

Ms. C: Is there a way you can talk to N this weekend? If this keeps up, he’ll have trouble passing the marking period.

Brother: All I can do is make him go to school, if he doesn’t want to work, I can’t make him. Just fail him.

The conversation went for another minute or two, but I was schmoozing on autopilot while my brain floundered. Just fail him? What, as long as Child Services doesn’t cite you for neglect because the kid is technically attending school it doesn’t matter if he succeeds or not? It made perfect sense why the student didn’t give a damn if he did the work or not…because no one cared at home.

While I’m not going to give up I find this situation very challenging; if the kid doesn’t care, and the guardians don’t care…how can I approach N and increase his productivity?

Winter Break and Certification Exams

2008-02-20T07:35:00.000-08:00

Happy mid-winter break everybody! I made no plans for my week off of school, mostly I’ve been reading, sleeping, and playing videogames. My plan is to be fully energized for the last third of the school year. The only smirch on my plan is that I have both certification exams on Saturday. My ATS-W and CST in Special Ed are both Saturday, from 7:45AM until conceivable 5PM (though I hope I’m out before then!) It’s a bit pressure-building to know that my certification and my future as a teacher rests on a test-a-thon, however I’m pretty confident. Actually, I’m confident about the actual teacher test…and less confident about the CST on special education. I teach special ed, but I only have experience with emotionally disturbed students…leaving some question marks on other disabilities. I know book stuff about Autism and MR and others…but it’s only book stuff.

Much studying is in my future! To all other teaching fellows and new teachers taking their exams: Good luck!

Math Game That Teaches (me) Humility

2008-02-16T10:20:00.000-08:00

One of the first important lessons I learned as an educator of jaded, over stimulated teenagers is that games are the way to go. Competition becomes a social aspect of class work and assessment that truly engaged students in the age of video games and one-upmanship. In my class it’s everything from vocabulary bees to Global Studies Bingo and everything in between.

Last week I created a game to help students conceptualize the number line and get a mental picture of what makes numbers negative. Some may think that negative numbers are baby stuff for high school students, but the abstract idea coupled with shoddy math programs (Everyday Math, I’m talking about you!) has made 4th grade math hardly comprehensible. The game consisted of a number line that spanned the entire blackboard, from -20 all the way to +20, and the students would select number cards that would either have a negative or positive number (some would be equations that would have to be solved to get a positive or negative number.) The winner would be the first person to get to +20.

The only problem, and this is definitely an example on inexperience, was that I made an equal number of cards that moved a student forward and moved them backwards. Can you tell what happened? For an entire math period, students stewed in frustration as the hung towards the middle of the number line, mostly around zero. No one won, because all the negatives and positives canceled each other out! It didn’t end in riot or anything, and I quickly declared everyone a winner…but it certainly was one of my more rookie mistakes of the year. In a way, I needed that humbling moment to remind me that I am still learning.

Book Recomendation For Teachers:

2008-02-04T18:07:00.000-08:00

A Piece of Cake was an amazing read that I think all teachers in urban schools should definitely take a look at.

If you have students in foster home arrangements, you should read this book.

If you are suspicious of students being sexually or physically abused, you should read this book.

If you have students who experiments with drugs, you should read this book.

If you have students who engage in gang activity, you should read this book.

If you couldn't put down A Child Called It, you should definitely read this book.

A Piece of Cake is a memoir…a story that happened to a real person, Cupcake Brown…and this tale follows a young black girl from the death of her mother, to the abuse and rape in foster care, through the neglect of social services through the foster program…and observes a young woman making all the wrong choices: drug use, prostitution, and the joining of the Crip gang. While all illegal actions aren’t celebrated, they are explored with honesty…allowing readers inside the mind of an abused child reaching womanhood and seeing her gangster homies as a safe-place, and her drugs as an escape.

This book really made me think about my students, and could have been written about them. I have teenage students who are in and out of foster homes, sometimes on the streets. M, my 17 year old father of a 3 month old baby gets high almost every day. And if I get inside his head, I can see why. All the pressure of fatherhood and the growing sense that he’s headed for an IEP diploma, so why give a shit? Is evident.

And isn’t the truth that once we understand and can isolate what holds our students back, isn’t that when we can help them persevere?

Uber Inspiration

2008-02-01T14:16:00.001-08:00

It’s been a crazy, chaotic couple of months. The holidays wiped me out, and the time after Christmas break and before the start of the new semester put me in the lowest mood of the year. It was merely a funk where all the issues of being a teacher seemed to be chained to me and dragging me down. Overwhelmed is the right word, and I felt like I was losing an uphill battle. The momentum of moving toward Christmas broke and I was left in an educational freefall.

Thankfully, that was a temporary funk.

In more upbeat news I had a glorious victory with a favorite student of mine.

L is by far my favorite student of the last two years. She’s more learning disabled than emotionally disturbed and is wonderfully behaved. L is a beautiful 16-year-old with devastatingly low confidence and a give-up-quick attitude. I have been working since September to build her confidence, and I have seen much progress. In ELA my L takes more risks, answers questions in front of the class, and I can even get her to read aloud once in a while. Math is a whole different story. Let me tell you, when it comes to math, this girl will shut down.

When the majority of my students become stumped with their classwork they throw chairs, stomp out of the classroom or curse me out; L will merely put her head down and refuse to acknowledge the presence of math. At least, it used to be that way. Math class has a push-in during my lunch, but I found that working one-on-one with L during my lunch brought her great success with practicing math. She and I are fond of using bright-colored transparancey pens on the cream-colored desks in my classroom, and she has shown great progress:

September assessment of math skills: 2.7 grade level

January assessment of math skills: 4.5 grade level

Yes, I am mostly happy for L…she really has come a long way and she rarely shuts down when it’s time for math. But more so I am very pleased to bear witness to actual student progress, to be able to measure how far a student had come from.

Now, here’s the really good news. Last week L passed her math RCT. She and I studied after school everyday for two weeks, worked very, very hard…to the point of frustration. We knew she had to get 39 out of the 60 RCT questions right to pass, and L told me that last year she didn’t even answer the written portion of the exam, only the bubble-ins.

“L, pass or fail I will be proud if you do your best to answer every question.” That was my goal for her, to overcome her desire to give up. I was determined to make L determined…even saying that a wrong answer was ok because it meant she tried at least.

I wept when I heard the news, L got the exact number right (39) that she needed in order to pass. Amazing. I had a feeling she’d be close to passing, that I could tell her that she was really close, did really well and we could work towards her taking the RCT again in June… Simply stellar!

And the best thing? Now she has quantitative proof that she is able to achieve things she works hard for. L can see for herself how far hard work brought her, and that is an incredible feeling for a child. I can honestly say, with a full heart, that I have never been more proud of another person…or of myself.

Real World Curriculum, Epilogue

2007-11-13T16:45:00.000-08:00

So fast forward to this moring while I wait for my students to arrive.
The AP that i like the most came up to me and said:

"What are you trying to do to me, Ms. C? How can I approve you going to the Gap? Write up you're going to Rochefeller Center to learn the history of the tree, don't tell me you're going shopping."

So I wrote up some bogus, made-up field trip, and it was approved. And more importantly, I l learned two things during this interesting situation:

1. You can lie to your administrators in order to look good, as long as they know you are lying.

2. Administrators automatically assume the worst of teachers, like they plan their fieldtrips to go shopping.

Real World Curriculum

2007-11-12T12:46:00.001-08:00

I’ve been irritated lately at work, and my students haven’t been the cause.

Supposedly there have been cutbacks at my school, as of late…and my school has put the kibosh on fieldtrips. Let me remind you that last year the sky was the limit and I was always reimbursed for not only trip costs, but lunches for the students as well.

I took a couple deep breaths, and decided that I could still take my kids out on educational trips sans cash. My first creative idea spawned an entirely new unit of study I cooked up: job skills. This mixed hygiene health, economics, and ELA and the unit of study would include resume building, how to dress and act on a job interview, how to fill out a job application and mock interviews for the students. The culmination would be a trip into the real world and to an open interview day at Old Navy where students could fill out applications. The students and parents were behind me in this, and I felt it was really useful to teach real-world application for academic skills.

Apparently I was wrong as my fieldtrip proposal was rejected. The reason? “Curriculum doesn’t cover this” was what my assistant principal wrote on my proposal. This confused me, because I tell my kids everyday that we come to school in order to be ready for the real world. I guess the real world and gainful employment isn’t part of my school’s curriculum.

Good for a Laugh

2007-11-10T20:58:00.000-08:00

I don't know about other cities, but New York makes teachers have mandatory professional developments days on Election Day. A tried and true tradition that bores and annoyed thousands of educators each year in November. Our school's union rep stated our feelings very succinctly with this joke:

A venerable teacher passes away and meets St. Peter at the pearly gates of heaven. St. Peter leads the teacher through a poor looking neighborhood with small, run-down houses. “Is the is where teachers go when they die?” asked the teacher.

“No,” St. Peter said, “This is where lawyers go.” They continued walking and came to a community of middle class homes in mediocre repair.

“Is this where teachers go when they die?” the educator inquired again.

“No, this is for the doctors,” answered St. Peter. Finally, they arrived at a magnificent mansion within a beautiful grounds. The teacher looked around in amazement at his good fortune, but paused when he noticed that not a single person was to be seen. “Where are all the other teachers?” the instructor asked.

“Oh,” said St. Peter, “Today they’re in Hell. It’s aprofessional development day.”

Is it too late for Halloween?

2007-11-04T14:03:00.001-08:00

Maybe it’s a little late for Halloween…but here’s some pumpkin self-portraits my students created!

The cool thing is that if you go to the Union Square farmers market around closing time you can walk away with super-cheap pumpkins. Boyfriend bought me 10 good-sized pumpkins for $15….which is unheard of in the 5 boroughs. The bodega down the street was charging $5 for one similar-sized gourd.

Education is Tasty!

2007-10-22T13:17:00.000-07:00

Hey Folks. Just a quick note, since I’m running like crazy:

Teaching health or nutrition? Use smoothies! Last Friday I dragged my blender into the classroom and had students learn good nutrition and correct serving size by making their own smoothies! It was a total bitch to schlep in all the supplies, but the students enjoyed using measuring cups and the blender to make their own smoothies.

Ingredients:

Can of pineapple juice, Carton of OJ, Frozen strawberries, a bunch of bananas, can of diced pine apples.

A serving of fruit is a half cup, so students measured out half cup servings of fruit into their smoothies and added ice. You’d be surprised how many teens don’t know that 8 oz. of ice is a serving of water. Each smoothie ended up being approximately 10 oz, with at least two servings of fruit.

After the students left I was tending bar for beloved coworkers, making smoothies so I wouldn’t have to take ingredients home. Smoothies make friends! And no added sugar!

(C'mon!) Feel The Noise

2007-10-15T13:49:00.000-07:00

The second fieldtrip of the year went off without a hitch. For an added twist, we went to the movies on a Monday…not a Friday. Thos of you who read my blog last year remember my students and me showing up to a sold out theater…Monday worked out so much better.

As a class, we saw Feel The Noise…and my students loved it. And before you say there’s no academic merit in this kind of film remember that the best lessons are served with a dollop of sugar. The movie was actually pretty blah and generic, but taught a powerful lesson against gangs, and stood up for artists on the street. The values I’d want my students to display in my classroom were modeled by actors and made palatable for my Street-hardened students. (Not to mention the theme of “follow your dreams!” )

I'm still here!

2007-10-07T11:36:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lapse in writing—I’ve been crazy busy with my students. Fear not, though! My second year is shaping up to be really good. I have very high functioning students with high reading levels…and frankly they are running me ragged because all my assignments and lesson plans they simply burn through. That’s cool thought. If my students are willing to do the work, I’m ok with creating more.

Here’s a little something that really inspired me:

I’ve been working with a student who’s all geared up to enter the work force. He’s not a behavior issue, more of an attendance problem. But I’ve been getting him to come in by finding time to help him with his resume, posting on Monster.com, working on job applications and holding mock interviews. So the student and I have been working pretty hard over the last month, and last Thursday night I got a call on my cell. It was J, my student, calling me because the manager of Boston Market called him in for an interview. J wanted me to know, and he sounded so proud and excited! I was the first to know. And if j gets the job….I’ll be getting some discounted rotisserie chicken: My favorite!

The Meaning of a Name

2007-09-17T14:12:00.001-07:00

I like to think that one of the reasons that misbehavior, violence, and gang activity are so prevalent in the population I teach is due to a lack of meaning in my students’ lives.

When children grow up without learning to value themselves and positive things in their lives (Or without having positive things to value) it sometimes manifests in the devil-may-care attitude that many ED kids possess. If a student doesn’t value himself, then no amount of positive behavior management or negative consequences can make that kid buy into the school system.

My goal for the year is to help each student realize and recognize some of the meaning in their own life. I’m not looking for huge changes, but hopefully a decline in the most dangerous and risky behaviors that my students often display.

I started the “Meaning”ful goal in a very literal way this school year. For each student I adhered a name tag to their desk with the researched meaning of their name. I was surprised with how tickled many of my students were, they walked around the classroom reading their meanings and the meanings of their classmates. Most of the students thought it was cool, and one students asked me to look up his middle name as well.

What interested me, is that several different names had a similar meaning of leader, king or teacher…and all the meanings were positive.

It’s a small start, but at least it was a positive one!

The Golden Rule(s)

2007-09-11T13:13:00.001-07:00

I was recently asked by a reader about my rule policy. The Vegas Art Guy asked:

“Did you have lots of rules that you enforced or did you just have a few set in stone that were never to be broken?”

One of my biggest mistakes as a first year teacher was to copy the rules that another teacher had posted in their classroom, and merely hang them up in my room. The rules were the classic set; keep your hands to yourself, ask if you need to leave the classroom, no cursing…etc. I referred to the “class rules” a few times during the first few days of school…but didn’t review them nearly enough. And I suffered all year for it. When veteran teachers advise new teachers to really spend three weeks going over class procedure—they have the right idea! A month spent early in the year on giving students orientation and limits saves so much time in the end!

This year I started the students off with discussing the difference between rules and expectations, and we came up as a class with a set of classroom expectations. The first day we came up with general classroom expectations, the following day we came up with fair computer expectations and the next day we did the same for quiz/test expectations. We did it all, as a class and expressed both teacher and student’s issues with the limits. The only issue is the idea of rules is so ingrained in my mind, I keep slipping up and trying to call the expectations rules and have to be corrected.

The classroom rules we came up with were:

I will not be pressured by the bad behavior of others.
I will allow other the personal space to succeed.
I will respect myself and others.

It’s three umbrella expectations that all other rules fall under. We discussed as a class what respect is, what it sounds like, and looks like…and really gave a depth of though to what is expected in class from both staff and students. (I’m sure my paraprofessionals were thrilled when I mentioned that classroom rules were meant for both students and staff) And even though it’s still the honeymoon period I’ve noticed a huge difference between my student’s actions this year. It’s a smaller amount of rules, so I think they’re easier to manage…but I also have a separate form of rules for different procedures in the class. And the main three are set in stone.

Good news for 1st year teachers: 2nd year is better!

2007-09-10T14:40:00.000-07:00

Well, so far my second year of teaching doesn’t suck. In comparison to my first year, it’s heaven! I haven’t burst into tears at all! I feel busier, but also more confident in my abilities, and I’m definitely up to the challenges the new year brings. I have slightly older students (9th graders that have failed a few times and 10th graders who haven’t passed NY standardized testing) and they are highly functional with an average reading level of 7th grade! Compared with the 3rd grade reading levels from last year…I’m in academic heaven! However, the beginning of the year is always the busiest for me (I haven’t left my school before 4:30PM yet) so I’ll need to leave this entry short and give you a quick run down of how the second year is way better than the first year of teaching.

Why the 2nd Year of Teaching is Just Plain Better:

-I know where the copy-basket is.
-I know who I can bother to get copies really fast.
-Students can’t accuse you of being a first year teacher. (Somehow they can smell it on you, the first year)
-I hold actual conversations with other teachers…That’s right, they bothered to learn my name after I stuck around for a year. I feel like I’ve been initiated into a club after a full year of hazing.
-Already, I have dozens of lesson plans I can use for the kids without any extra work.
-Word has spread from my old students to my new students, and they have a pretty good idea about who I am, and what I am about.
-I know the names of the security guards.
-I’ve beaten the classroom rules and expectations into the grounds with my students.
-I have a better idea of what students I can push, and which ones I shouldn’t bother.
-I’m ok with giving the students break time, and for the most part they meet me half way and complete work.
-I know the power of using games for learning. Seriously, with a little ingenuity any lesson can be tied to a game, and once you have the kids playing…they buy into the lesson more.
-I’m friendly with the IT staff, and they are very helpful.
-I’m taking less crap from paraprofessionals and asserting myself more.
-I haven’t said anything undiplomatic to administration.
-There are other new teachers! I’m not the lowest man on the totem pole!
-I have positive relationships in place with students outside my classroom. When students in my class who don’t know me see that their peers respect me, I’ve found that it guides their perception of me in a positive way.
-Already I have at least 50% of the school supplies I’ll need for the year.
-I know the janitors’ names, and we’re on good terms.
-I’m more able to discern truth from lie 40% more often, and can usually tell when I’m being BSed.
-My voice doesn’t waver when I talk to parents on the phone.
-I haven’t had to call security yet for violence in my room.

Ten Rookie Mistakes of a First Year Teacher

2007-08-29T14:14:00.000-07:00

The fact of the matter is, if you’re a new teacher—you’re going to screw up. The Teaching Fellows program and new teacher induction will tell you there’s a “learning curve” for new teachers, and this is a very nice way of explaining the numerous gross errors you will perpetrate in your classroom before you straighten up and learn your way.
But if you’re any good you’ll learn and you’ll easily avoid the gaffes in April that you blundered into in October.

Here are the top ten slip-ups, faux pas, bungles, and flounders I caught myself executing during my first year as an educator. Some are special ed. specific, but many are missteps that any new teacher could stumble through.

1. I spent three days of going over procedures and rules instead of three weeks. This was my main oversight for the year, I spent way too little time on classroom expectations and paid for it all year with an increasingly unruly class. The problem was that I didn’t know how to broach my expectations for students and consequences in a spiraling fashion, I just went over it once, posted the rules and dove right into academics.

2. I was a rube and offered seemingly boundless extrinsic rewards (otherwise known as bribery) From day one I handed out Tootsie Rolls to students who filled in their blue identification cards correctly. By the end of the year, not only was I out tons of cash in which I bought bribes, but I found that my kids were now trained to only do work if a reward was involved. Even worse, I only gave treats out for good work or behavior; however my para just gave gum and candy out to whomever asked…so ultimately they treated her with more respect.

3. I crossed the line from friendly to informal. Repeat after me: you are not your student’s pal. I found myself being way too open with my students, initially sharing a lot of info about myself…and that ended up being a bad idea as students took my informality as a welcome for disrespect. This year I plan to exercise kindness and warmth without being an open book for my kids. Oh, and know this: students will try to look up your MySpace page…so make it private or risk them bringing up that way-too-personal photo of you.

4. I would make empty threats. In September I was making five phone calls a night, on Fridays I called the families of students who were really good. I thought I was a rock star because I called whether students were good or bad. By November it was over. But if you tell a kid you’re going to call, and don’t make good on your threat…it’s pretty much over for you; the student will know that they can get over on you with no sweat. Be consistent and follow up your threats! You’re only as good as your word.

5. I let my paraprofessionals run the show. I was 23, my paras were in their 30’s and 40’s…and I was shaking in my shoes when it came to asserting myself in the classroom. The result was that they didn’t do their job, left me with tons of extra work, and often left alone in my classroom. If you’re like me, you’re not too keen on confrontation, but realize that if your paraprofessionals mess up it’s still your ass/job on the line. Just like with the students, make your preferences and expectations known from the beginning.

6. I made two many calls to School Security each day. I was so freaked out by my student’s misbehavior that I was calling school safety nearly every day, and it got to the point where they wouldn’t answer. The realization that I was leaning on security too heavily came the day that the officer came into my room, saw the student laying over my desk casually tossing my belongings into the trash bin, and promptly walked out shaking her head. When you rely too much on administration and security for classroom management you give up your own power as a teacher and disciplinarian, not to mention you look like a wuss, not to mention you are viewed as an annoyance.

7. My classroom routines were established too late. It was December before I had all my routines posted and in place. By then it was hard to make students truly adhere to the rituals of the classroom. When they didn’t follow the routine, they didn’t do the work and they acted up considerably. By May they followed the routine pretty well…but all that wasted time haunts me. This year I will be all about the routine from the get go, and my classroom should work like a well oiled machine. (Ha!)

8. I engaged in arguments with students (and I let them see me sweat!) Little known fact: students test boundaries and want to see if you’ll take the bait. Each time they insult your shoes, tell you that you’re a bad teacher, or say their mom is going to slap you they are testing whether they can get under your skin. When you snap back at them, or get into a verbal battle…they win. And it’s fun for them. Seriously, many of my students can’t read and only are coming to school so they avoid truancy or their probation officer; if they can liven up their day by making the teacher scream and rip out her hair, all the better! Kids are so smart it’s scary, and they will act like an evil mirror reflecting your worst qualities; once they see what sort of comment or action provokes you, it’s all over. My example is my desk; all year I was vulnerable because the kids learned to pick the lock on my drawers and rifle through my belongs—this would drive me to shout and actually chase students around the room. To a student seeing a teacher actually run to a desk before a student got his hands inside must have been as entertaining as hell…Finally I had to face facts and just act like it was no big thing that the kids were stealing my post-it notes and making paper-clip necklaces. After I moved my valuables to my padlocked closet, of course. Once I didn’t care the students saw they couldn’t get a rise out of me and left my desk alone.

9. I retreated to my desk. Again with the desk! I often used my desk as a barrier between myself and students, and this negatively and unconsciously constructed a barrier between us. I’m not saying I sat at my desk all day, or never stood in front of the class while I instructed; but during down time it was my natural default to sit at my desk while I readied assignments or grade papers. This left me really isolated and created an air of inapproachability between me and my students. This year I’m moving my desk to the far corner of the room so I am forced to sit at the student table and be among my kids more.

10. I let people intrude upon my lunch break. New teachers: keep your lunch hour holy. This is the time for you to relax and unwind for 50 minutes before the screaming hordes of students return to class. Let’s be frank: I was a pushover for any administrator, counselor, or student who wanted to meet during my lunch…and often I didn’t face the afternoon as a refreshed and enthusiastic educator. If you have to leave the classroom or teacher lounge and get outside: do so. Don’t pick up your classroom phone, don’t commit to meetings, don’t let students “hang out” in your classroom. Maybe in a few years you can spread yourself thin and can teach well while tired, but for now I recommend taking some time for yourself because you’ll need all the energy you can muster.

Don’t despair, new teachers. The mistakes you’ll make will lead to a metamorphosis to an incredibly dynamic instructor. Hang on, don’t lose your excitement, and you’ll definitely survive the year.

Lazily Embarking on the Second Year

2007-08-21T11:38:00.000-07:00

Thinking back to a year ago I remember how tightly wound I was concerning my first year of teaching. I was reading oodles of teacher blogs, buying hundreds of dollars worth of supplies, and gearing up for the most harrowing and rewarding journey of my life. When I’ve met with new teachers without that first make-or-break year behind them I can’t help but notice how fresh and shiny they look. Was I ever so unmarked? Did the year change me so much?

I’ll level with you, I haven’t started supply shopping yet. I’ve been vacationing all over the U.S. and sleeping in, getting sun burn and seeing friends…I’ve been resting, and I can’t make myself feel that beginning-of-the-year panic. I thought I’d spent the whole summer devising ways to ease my second year of teaching, but no; I’ve been occupied.

On top of my summer grad work I took a six day course by the department of ed. Called Life Space Crisis Intervention; and aside from giving me a certification that looks neat on my resume it really helped me gain perspective on helping kids who lash out. Now, I’m not about to jump on the Ed-terminology bandwagon because the course really did throw a lot of needless buzz words out (like reality rub, red flag, or symptom estrangement) but the basic theory was that educators need to step back, keep their feelings in check and handle students in crisis (that means students who are freakin’ out) without getting drawn into their anger. It’s good stuff to know, and it got me out of the house.

I have one more vacation planned for the summer, a long weekend in my hometown…and my plan for the week if to find a suitable teacher-planner for the upcoming year. I feel that all other supplies can wait until I can inventory what I have left from last year.

Teachers, enjoy those last few days before you head back to school.

New Teachers, take a day to pamper yourself and get ready for the ride of your life.

Ms. C is Center Stage!

2007-08-20T13:53:00.000-07:00

It’s still summer, right?

So why was I standing on stage, by myself, in front of 300+ new teachers?

My mentor, assigned from the Department of Ed e-mailed me concerning the opportunity to speak on a panel of four, to the new teachers of 2007-2008, and share my experiences with teaching. And make $39 an hour doing it.

Yeah, me. The first problem was being told to “stay positive” so in answering questions I needed to edit my first year of a teacher. At first this really irked me, and I planned to lead in with the story of my concussion in October just for spite. I wish someone had told me about the pitfalls a new teacher can fall into regarding students, and also staff politicking. However, in the end I decided to be benign and not scare the new hires too much.

The second problem is that nothing related to the DOE goes right. The new teacher orientation was supposed to start promptly at 8…but due to technical trouble didn’t start until 9:15. The microphone didn’t work properly. And….the other three panel member didn’t show up.

So there I was, extolling the virtues of being on of New York’s brightest solo.

And I get to do it again for a later orientation.

The best part? After I gave my inspiring speech one of the would be Teaching Fellows who visited my class in the Spring came up to me, and I was really bowled over by how proud I felt of my part in others journey through teaching.

The First, Lazy Week of Summer

2007-07-04T12:38:00.000-07:00

Happy Forth of July…and a week since I gave up my classroom keys and once again became an education civilian. I’m sure you’re wondering what amazing teaching techniques I’ve been studying during this first week of reprieve…and sadly I must say none.

I’ve slept…a lot. My honey thinks I have mono, and not-so-secretly hates that I get to sleep in while he heads to work.

Transformers movie. Who doesn’t love it when giant robot cars fight? Plus I figure it’s something I talk to my students about next September.

I raided NYC library and horded up on guilty pleasure reading. For 10 months I’ve read manily education-based books for my grad classes…but with some time on my hands I can read for pleasure on top of my grad work. If I had to say what I missed most during my first year of teaching…it would be freedom to get lost in a book.

To get out of the house I grabbed an audiobook version of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and started walking ‘round Brooklyn.

Junk-food TV. All the best crap-TV shows come out during the summer, and I love not being too tired at the end of the day to enjoy their absurdity.

I’ve called/written/emailed those friends and family members I put on the backburner while my classroom was coming down around me. I needed to take that moment to reconnect.

I signed up for the Life Space Crisis Intervention professional development courses. It will impress my principal, and give me a neato certificate I can add to my resume. Not to mention I can learn some good classroom behavior tools.

Took some time to really appreciate my cat. He’s freakin’ awesome, and doesn’t mind when I call him “Teacher’s Pet.” What? Don’t judge me.

Played video games. Enjoyed those little fun things I used to do before panic attacks were a weekly occurrence.

I’ll start planning next year’s onslaught in a few weeks. It didn’t seem possible…but this summer seems so sweet and pure and precious. Thinking back on my childhood I remembered how much I loved Summer as a kid, but now it’s that same feeling as a teacher: Freedom and infinite possibilities.