maestrapat

Temporary Lull in the insanity :-)

2007-05-12T15:30:40Z

I am almost finished with my school's Literary Journal and I am SOOOOO happy. I think for a high school book it looks pretty good. Then I can get caught up on different assignments to grade...

I am really involved in my church's Sunday school program and been working at getting a part-time coordinator position added to the budget, so it's not just an all-volunteer force trying to make it happen, like it is now. In this church as in America, we have a serious issue with how we look at are children...We SAY that we value our children, but are we willing to put our checkbook and hours on our booked agendas behind giving kids what they really need? I think that as a nation, we are not, far too often.

In the class of juniors that I teachmy junior class, we are reading and discussing a writing by bell hooks (a very intelligent feminist writer) from her book, All About Love, called "Justice: Childhood Love Lessons." The author argues that abuse negates love, that children need alternatives to coercive discipline, alternatives that people can learn how to do effectively. I totally buy that, and try to apply such principles to my kids, trying to be more of a proactive parent and less a reactive one.

Today as part of my "temporary lull" my family is going to probably purchase a minivan (with a family of five, our sedan is getting cramped) and probably going out to a movie and dinner. We need some family fun togetherness time. We put a lot into that church meeting last night, advocating we prioritize kids in the church, and now we're doing that for our own kiddos. Woo hoo!

No Child Left (with a) Behind (after testing)

2007-04-30T18:49:10Z

Here I sit in my classroom again, and I am just about to slap state tests in front of my students. While I think it is important to know what they know, there is far too much pressure put on the students and teachers to make everyone jump through the same hurdles that I don't think give a broad enough picture of school success or failure. By the year 2014, ALL students (including ESL and special ed students) are supposed to be able to score proficient on all tests, or schools with have huge penalties and punishments that are not going to be inflicted on public or charter schools. For example, we will have to pay for bussing any students who wish to schools that "Pass" these hurdles, or pay for tutoring for them at places such as Sylvan (which also do not have any requirements). This law is flawed, and I hope our nation will inspect it carefully and see this.

On the other hand, I had a blast at the LA Times Festival of Books, buying far too much.

Howdy

2007-04-16T21:09:20Z

I am sitting here in my high school classroom, staring at piles and piles of essays to grade and homework to enter. I need to get motivation and just get going, but right now the biggest draw for me is the thought of a good nap--the kind with a bit of hot chocolate before, a warm blanket, and that's it.

At my UU church this past Sunday, the minister talked about envy, one of the seven deadly sins, as being one of the most insidious of the sins, as it leads us unwittingly towards some of the other sins. If we keep looking at what others have and judging ourselves as deficient, we'll miss what we have right here and now. I need to take this to heart. Today I went over with my juniors a poem that dovetails eerily with these ideas: the poem "Richard Cory" by Eward Arlington Robinson. It is about a man who seems to have it all--money, charisma, graces, respect--who goes home one calm summer night and kills himself. One of my students thought that maybe it was a lie, the story of his death. Maybe someone else who was jealous killed him. I argued that I didn't see that as a possible reading, as I think that was the point. Here was a guy who looked from the outside as if he was "all that", but obviously found his life empty in some huge way that maybe no one else could see.

On another note, my five year old has been having stomach pains, and so far, we haven't been able to get any answers as to why. I hope the lab will get back to us. Getting a pristine poop sample for them--that was a novel experience...
Pat