Random thoughts

Okay, so school's starting soon. I went to two workshops this week. Yesterday's was with Ernie Stachowski, who is a soft-spoken, energetic older man (in fact, we dragged him out of semi-retirement) who mainly gives common-sense, easy-to-understand trainings on issues like lesson planning and classroom management. Yesterday's was primarily focused on creating objectives for each lesson, since students need to understand where they're going in order to get there. I had a training from him years ago and he illustrated this beautifully be taking a participant by the hand and walking him around several desks, the projector, up to the front of the room. Since the gentleman didn't know where he was going, there was a lot of stumbling and surprise stops. The second time, Ernie said "Okay, first we're going to go here, then around here, then left up there, and we're stopping at the front of the room. This time, of course, it went smoothly. See, it all seems very common sense (Duh, tell the kids what you're trying to teach them!), but even in college classes it often doesn't happen, and you leave thinking "What the hell was that all about?"

Today the training was in a program called "Step up to Writing." It seems like a good program -- it is basically the exact method I already use, but with transparencies, posters, and all the materials already made, plus a nice system of color-coding. I'll be interested to see how it goes. It's always difficult when administration says "Hey, I know you're already pressed for time with the program we're using now, but could you add a whole 'nother program on top of it?"

Some goals for this year:
Stay in more contact with the parents. I always intend to make phone calls to the good kids just to say hi and tell the parents how great they are, but then I never have time, because the more challenging kids seem to need the calls more desperately.

Keep the classroom looking tidy, and keep only the most current work on the walls (it's so easy to fall into the trap of getting some really great-looking work in September and keeping it up forever).

Get even more organized with grades -- over the last several years I have taken ot from a whole-life task (taking papers to the coffee shop every evening and weekend) to a mostly-at-school-during-prep task. What I'd like to do now is do an even better job of using the work I grade to give feedback and re-teach as necessary.

Dress more professionally. I never look like a scuzball, but the first couple years, I was pretty poor, and then I went from fat to not fat, and none of my clothes fit, but I couldn't afford to replace my whole wardrobe at once, so I wore ill-fitting clothes. Also, I am lazy, and whereas in the beginning of the year I press my clothes and wear jeans only on casual Friday, by mid-Fall I tend to leave the house un-ironed, with curly hair (it usually looks better if I take the time to blow-dry it straight), no make-up, and in jeans or other casual pants three days a week.

Other interesting school notes -- my cousin Allen will be attending my school this year. His mom can't pick him up until 3:30, so I think he might hang out with me in my room after school, which is cool.
I will be teaching drama, but it will be after-school, and not five days a week (the actual schedule is yet to be determined). It will also be for extra money, maybe a couple hundred a month, which will be nice. I also just got my transcripts turned in, so I'll be getting a little extra moolah for having an M.A. Yay me!

Other non-school notes -- I bought a new desk at Target and have transferred almost everything from my old desk to my new one. I still need to go through some stuff that looks suspiciously like junk. It's great, though, because it takes up a lot less room than my old desk, so I can turn my office into a guest room eventually!
I feel very greedy when I do this, but every once in a while I create a wish list, and it's usually a mix of stuff and projects. I'm sharing it this time.
I want:
to finish painting my bedroom.
to paint the office.
to clear space in my closet for a sweetie's wardrobe.
an ocean kayak.
several plants for the yard, including hydrangeas, gardenias, jasmine (more), some dwarf citrus trees, and a japanese maple.
to get rid of a couple old, dead, ugly trees.
more professional, well-fitting clothes.
to lose 20-25 pounds.
a new fireplace screen and a log holder.
a new queen size bed.
a new scanner/printer.
to get involved in community-supported agriculture again.
to read more new young adult literature (I already read quite a bit, but want to read more)
to replace my carpeting with laminate flooring.
to paint most of the rest of the house (the white paint has an odd pink tinge)
to make it to my favorite hot springs at least once every two months.
to travel more (my recent trip gave me the travel bug!).
to simplify -- my garage is FULL, and I could only name what's on about three shelves -- Xmas decor, camping stuff, and tools. What's all the other shit?
to build several large planter boxes on the side of my house and get soaker hoses so that next summer I can have an even more rockin' garden and grow more stuff.

I think that's it for now. I'm just a big wanter. I want stuff. It's materialistic, but having a nice house, especially, makes me feel secure. Oh well. Take care everybody!
K