Week 8 of teaching was b-u-s-y!!
I can’t even really remember everything we did!
On Monday, I returned the essays I had proofread to my 11th and 12th graders. Their final drafts were to be due on Thursday. In the interim, we read Letter to John Adams, a piece of personal correspondence from Abigail to her future-president-husband, John. We also read an excerpt from David McCullough’s biography, John Adams, which gave details of the relationship between John and his wife.
It was fascinating to read about this very famous couple. They were incredibly intelligent and well-suited for each other. They were also very affectionate and loved one another dearly. And yet, they bantered back and forth in the same way that you might hear any other couple in current times.
I enjoyed the discussions that these readings provided.
My 6th graders finished reading and analyzing “The Dog of Pompeii.” We are currently working on writing a short research report about volcanoes. We are writing our paragraphs in class so we can work on topic sentences, details, and concluding sentences. We are using the four-square model. I still have much to learn about the “how-to’s” of teaching, but my students are extremely patient and understanding.
My 10th graders read the story “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine.” They surprised me by actually enjoying the story. I had figured they would be bored out of their minds, but because the main characters hailed from Pakistan, they could identify with them (having family members from this part of the world too). This class was fortunate to only have to come to me four times this week.
Why?
Because it seems as if every week has contained some sort of special event, and this week was no exception.
On Wednesday, we had Term Lunch. Term Lunch is held once every nine weeks when students have the opportunity to order lunch from the restaurant chosen by the principal. The first term lunch was being catered by a local deli…one of my favorite places to eat, in fact.
During Term Lunch, one class period is canceled (this time, it was 6th period, with is my 10th grade class), so that lunch can be extended to two hours. The kids love it. I wondered what I would do with myself for two entire hours, but surprisingly, the time FLEW by! Before I knew it, the bell had rung, and it was time for the last two class periods of the day.
Of course, not only do interesting things happen that are out of my control, but sometimes things happen precisely BECAUSE it’s me running the class.
Take, for instance, my experiment with peanut butter…
Uh oh, I can hear you saying. This does not bode well.
Let me just say that you cannot always believe what you read on the internet.
See, my new whiteboard has some deep, dark stains. Although I KNOW that Bar Keeper’s Friend will get out the markings, I was feeling too lazy to work that hard.
So, I googled.
I wanted an easy solution.
I read that you can use acetone to remove expo writing. I also read about using alcohol.
And then I read about the peanut butter.
Well, being the couponer that I am, I have several jars of the stuff in my pantry, so I decided to go with this tactic.
I also took my acetone, which I tried first. No cigar. I didn’t try too hard because I did not want my classroom to smell like a nail salon.
Next, I pulled out the peanut butter. Using a spatula I found in the school’s kitchen, I applied the stuff to a large area of my board…
I used a scrubbing sponge from the kitchen to rub it in…
And then I stepped back to take a look…
I was eager to see if my stains were gone.
They weren’t.
All I had was a board full of smeared peanut butter.
To make matters worse, one of my 6th graders was privy to the entire thing. He was making up up a spelling test and witnessed the entire experiment.
So, I had to clean up the mess…easier said than done. Thank goodness for Windex Multipurpose. It cleans everything (except deep Expo stains).
What was even funnier was when another one of my 6th grade students walked in, just after I finished cleaning up, and said, “Hmmm…why does it smell like peanut butter in here?”
heehee
Now, the other interesting thing that happened this week was after my 9th graders took a very long and somewhat difficult vocabulary unit test. They were responsible for knowing the definitions and parts of speech for the 60 words we had gone over the previous three weeks.
Before you start thinking how horrible of a teacher I am, please consider that my students have vocabulary tests every week (with the exception of the 11th and 12th graders, who get tested every two weeks). Every vocabulary test covers 20 words. This week’s test was comprehensive. It is my goal to get my students to absorb the new words into their everyday lives. I do not want them to simply memorize them but start using them in their oral and written language. They will encounter these words in a variety of mediums.
But, I did have mercy on them by making the test multiple choice and true/false. I did not tell them this ahead of time but surprised them the day of the test.
In addition, I allowed them to earn bonus points by writing the antonyms for the last 20 true/false words.
My 9th graders had played Vocabulary Pictionary the day before as a way to review the words, so I had high hopes.
I administered the exam on Thursday. Thursday evening, while grading their papers, I was pleased to discover that the lowest grade on the test was an 86. All of the other students had made an A!!
Oh my goodness!!
The next day, I surprised them with a special treat.
During my planning, I had driven to Krispy Kreme, where I picked up a box of 12 donuts…enough for each student to have two.
I hid them in my file cabinet until it was their class time, and I instructed them to close their eyes.
When they opened them, I presented the donuts to them. I explained that the box of donuts was a reward for working so hard.
They sat in their desks, jaws dropped.
I went on to explain that I knew that their class has a bad reputation at school, but in my eyes, they were wonderful. I appreciated the efforts they had made that week…both in vocabulary as well as in reading. Every student had participated in classroom discussions. They had been interested in the story.
I wanted them to understand that they are special, so I told them that I had never done this for a class before.
Ever.
They were the first.
They sat shock-still.
Until I told them they could get up and get their donuts.
They did “educational” stuff while eating donuts, but they smiled while they were doing it.
This topped off an interesting week…one that encompassed highs and a low (which I won’t speak of).
During the course of the week, I had caught two students with cell phones, enacted consequences which I did not want to inflict but had to, and in the end, I came home seriously exhausted but pleased.
While chomping on the donuts I had left over (two students didn’t eat their second ones), I mused over the week…
I feel behind the 8-ball because I still have so much to learn.
I am completely overwhelmed.
I am trying not to take criticism too personally.
Perhaps I am all of the above because, ultimately, I care so much.
As I got ready to read my students’ journals and do other “teacherly” things on…yes…even the weekend (supposed “time off”), I continue to thank my Heavenly Father for placing me with these students.
They make me smile. They make me laugh.
They even make me do such crazy things as putting peanut butter on my board (hey, it’s all about keeping my room as eye-friendly as possible) and buying boxes of donuts.
It was another terrific week!
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