Knack for Injury... I mean Teaching

 So, today I drummed on desks to get my students' attention. I drum hard when I do this, so as to be heard above the noise I'm trying to quiet. Somehow, today this resulted in a thumb injury. I even got an ice pack from the office. I'm really not sure how that happened, as the initial pain, which was instant, was on the side of my thumb, not anywhere near where my hands were making contact with the desk. Also, I've done this hundreds of times this school year... what made this time result in a full finger ache that had me ordering a thumb brace from Amazon to be delivered to school tomorrow?

Also today, my "good" knee started hurting. I fell on ice the first Friday of December 2022 and have been nursing a knee injury ever since. It is getting better, but by wearing a knee brace every day at school and using a cane or walking stick whenever I'm on stairs. However, today, the back of my other knee began hurting. By the time I got home, my "good" knee was wracked with stabbing pain in both the front and back with every step. I feel old. I may teach from a rolling chair tomorrow.

When I told my husband he said, "You have a knack for getting injured." Yes, I know.

But in other news, I had three interactions this week that were incredibly affirming. The first one started out with a student in my elective creative writing class creating a brand-new character and story outline only to turn in a final story that was a retelling of a recent popular movie. The student did a great job with the retelling, but I sent it back for resubmission since the assignment was to write a story based on the new character and story outline. Based on several recent factors in this student's life, I was asked via email over the weekend if the new story needed to be written or if assessment could be based on the character creation and outline. I agreed, saying "I don't want my creative writing class to be the reason xxxx learns to dislike writing." 

But the parent responded that a check on the student's progress found them chuckling over the new story and thoroughly enjoying completing the assignment. Teaching win!

I have been tutoring a fifth-grade student in writing for just over a month now. Today we worked for longer than our previous sessions, as a paper on one of the 13 colonies is due on Monday. Not only did this so-called reluctant writer work for a solid hour writing (with voice typing) and researching, the (long) checklist I wrote of things to accomplish in class or over the weekend before the paper is due was met with veiled enthusiasm. One of the best kind of teaching wins!

I also met this student's parent for the first time today, as we returned to the extended day program later than has been typical. The parent reported that this student came home from school one day recently excited that he had written MORE than was expected in class that day. I credit my "formula" for writing a proper paragraph that I perfected over the 11 years I taught fifth grade. Teaching win!

Finally, I literally had a parent stop me in the hallway this afternoon to thank me for watching out for her child. This is literally the best teaching win I could ask for.

I'm still in pain from my myriad of dumb injuries... but I can truly say it has been a phenomenal week. And it's only Tuesday. Does that mean I can take the rest of the week off to nurse my injuries?

Mid-Year Musings

 So this calendar year has been a nutty mix of health issues (mine, my parents, and my in-laws) and schedule full of disruptions. One of the disruptions was an amazingly fun assembly with our local Reptile Man. Eighth graders were initially upset that they were missing P.E. for the assembly, but while they were interacting with the animals, I heard, "This is awesome!" "I love this!" and other such exclamations.

Even though we've made it to the halfway point of the school year, I'm making in-roads into better relationship with my students. This year's group is a tough crowd, with an underdeveloped sense of respect and keen minds who like to debate and argue everything from school policies to assignment instructions. Little and not so little wearing behaviors happen throughout every day: 

• I put out a new set of pencils near the sharpener, and within one class period several are broken all over the floor.
• Students helped themselves to my prize candy stash often enough I stopped buying it this year.
• Instruction is marked by students talking over teachers in every class.
• Many feel like they do not need to follow basic classroom etiquette, like sitting in assigned seats or working with their assigned groups.
• They call each other names and make snide comments that they claim are jokes.
• Several students have no ability to code-switch and stop swearing or saying inappropriate things in front of teachers (calling each other "on the spectrum" or using the n-word for example).

But during the past six weeks, my eighth graders have been overheard saying things like, "Mrs. Conrow only gets mad at us when our class is being annoying." And, "You can tell Mrs. Conrow really cares about us."

Since January we have been working through our U.S. history unit titled "Fighting for Independence," where they learn about Thomas Paine, Common Sense, and the Declaration of Independence. 

As they study the Declaration, I have them write their own complaint letters, modeled after the Declaration. It's one of my favorite assignments. Most of the letters focus on school policies like our cell phone and uniform policies or complain about homework. There's a healthy sprinkling of sibling and family dynamics too. For example, one student this year wants to be allowed to eat after 8:30pm. This year, this validating gem was part of a handful of letters complaining about peers:

Also, if real problems in the school community exist, they often come to light so the school can begin addressing them. This year, we learned to watch a specific lunch table:

There is a reason I love this job. But I also know it's incredibly challenging. That's not going to change, so evidence that I'm making a difference is always welcome.

Middle School in December

 In my school setting December dawns with the first change in grading periods. On a trimester system in a school that begins after Labor Day, the first Friday in December is the last day of the first term, making the first full week in December report card week. It also means the first two weeks of the new term are the last two weeks before a two-week break. That plus the schedule interruptions due to the time of year means content tied to a specific unit takes a back seat in December.

This year's first report card cycle was brutal. I'm 24 years into my teaching career, and every year before this, as I got into writing comments, I felt less and less overwhelmed by the process. This year was the opposite. Our new learning management system has a bit of information overload built in. I had seven fields per student per class to fill in, resulting in 838 comments to write, proof-read, and edit. The reports end up being about 30 pages long, so there's a solid chance families skimmed rather than actually read all of words I spent over ten hours composing.

On top of the report cards, high school application teacher evaluation forms were due to the front office on the same day report cards were locked. The middle school team entered the new grading term exhausted and cranky.

Planning for lessons needed to be simple in the midst of all of the above. So, I had my eighth graders chose a Revolutionary War figure (as we were between our "The Road to the Revolution" and "Fighting for Independence" units) and I tasked them with deciding whether Santa would place their chosen person on the "naughty" list or the "nice" list and to back up their claim with evidence researched from trustworthy sources. 

Then, for fun, I had them tell me what unique gift Santa might bring their historical figure. My favorite was the student who wanted to bring Benedict Arnold a time machine so he could go back and change his actions, since he expressed regret for his actions on his death bed.

After presenting their findings, students were tasked with using their research to create a meme to add to our United States history meme wall. There were many gems among them. Here are few.

The seventh graders were in transition between a unit I call "Civilizations Around the World" where we touch on empires in the Americas, Asia, and Africa and a look at the European Rennaissance. Since there was less continuity, I had them each do preliminary research on the Christmas/Advent traditions and customs of four different countries (not only can I get away with that at a Catholic school, it's encouraged) and choose one. They found a holiday recipe they thought sounded tasty and illustrated a scene showcasing at least three different holiday traditions from their chosen countries. Those who were able brought in their chosen dish to share with the class.

It was a low-key way for me to get in a Christmas celebration for them, and many of them tried new foods. Two unexpected hits were a Filipino shrimp wrap and a mash up of foods brought in from Greece and France turned into a sandwich. The kids tried new foods and conversed with their friends during our last class before the break.

In addition to all of the above, my room parents put together a Jeopardy Christmas trivia game for my students, 

we built gingerbread houses in our advisories, 

and ended the last half day before break with our annual school wide activities. The day begins with staff caroling to the students and families at drop off as they drank hot chocolate and munched on cookies. From there, we all head to the auditorium where we have our final Advent prayer service for the year before heading to our classrooms for attendance. I handed out my gift for my class, crocheted jellyfish with a poem about jellyfish and a couple of Hershey's kisses. The jellyfish became instant fidget toys (twirled around), sensory toys, (fingers shoved through the stiches), water bottle decorations, and even hats.

 

Then we separated into our school families, each with a couple of kids per grade level for one last practice before the big caroling competition. The day ends, with a grand indoor snowball fight by grade band. The middle schoolers watch and cheer on all the younger kids before getting their turn to pelt each other for fifteen minutes. 

I commented to my coworkers during the snowball fights that our students, especially those who grew up at our school and never attended anywhere else, have no idea how lucky they are. What other school comes together as one community for the entire day before Christmas break to celebrate, compete, show school spirit, and have so much fun?

Middle School Matrix

 How is it already December on Friday? While I was home sick for Thanksgiving, alone with my multitude of pets, I had a thought that began, "In October..." and I genuinely thought for a moment that October of THIS year hadn't happened yet. I don't know if that explains my lack of posting this fall or not, but this fall has been a time warp of sorts. It's gone on for years and years, but also it just started.

It's report card week. The first third of the school year ends on Friday. I've spent time over the past two or three weeks doing what I can to get my students to turn in their work or complete work they submitted incomplete, even blank in some cases. I've sent a myriad of emails with the message that I really want their report cards to show their abilities. I have end of unit projects due on Friday in most of my classes, that should be included on the first trimester report cards, which means I'll have to spend this weekend working on my report cards.  Maybe I'll be able to plan better for the end of the second trimester.

October was packed with blog worthy events, but somehow I never found the time to sit and reflect on them. We took a field trip to the Gates Foundation Discovery Center. We participated in the middle school color games, with pep rally-like activities that pitted the three grade levels against one another.  Students participated in a north African trade simulation. On Halloween the staff dressed up as Care Bears and my favorite student costume was "Lilliana Jones." The primary years Spanish teacher put up the annual Dia de los Muertos altar and we honored our deceased loved ones.

Suddenly it's the end of November.  The past couple of weeks have been a blur. Our middle school spends one day each trimester devoted to service. My advisory went to a local assisted living facility and spent a few hours raking in the morning before spending the afternoon creating Christmas gifts and Mother's Day gifts for the residents. A local author, Carl Dueker (who used to teach in my classroom) came in and gave a writing lesson to our middle schoolers. He had them write a story in small groups. Even the most reticent of my students was highly engaged.

My school has fall conference week the week of Thanksgiving. I had three conferences on Wednesday morning and had intended to meet a friend for lunch afterwards. Instead, I came home and slept. I proceeded to sleep through Thanksgiving, while the rest of my household traveled out of state to celebrate Thanksgiving and a baptism with my in-laws. I woke up on Friday with a fever. I woke up on Saturday feeling okay, but by the evening my stomach was a wreck. I slept through Sunday. And then school started again... with report card week. 

And did I mention that it's also the week the middle school teachers get together and discuss high school applications? Maybe it's time to plan a winter getaway.

A Very Happy Friday

 My first real week of classes (after last week's overnight retreat) included standardized testing and my students had extra choir practice in advance of the first all school mass of the year. Suffice it to say that as of yet, we have not had our normal schedule. Even so, in many ways it was a typical first week - I was exhausted each night, my throat hurt as a result of using my voice much more than usual, and we ended it with a well-attended staff happy hour at a local restaurant.

Some of my favorite lessons of the school year come right at the beginning. I was able to run my version of Dave Burgess' crash survivor lesson in the auditorium with both seventh-grade classes at the same time. Although there was a technical hiccup once they were broken into groups to begin discussing who should be rescued and who should remain on the island, I was able to begin by asking the students to sit in two rows of two on the floor. They became part of a simulated crash which was likely instrumental to their ability to sustain their attention through the technical glitch and ensuing transition back to the classroom. 

At first it was difficult for some of them to believe that there was not a right or wrong answer, just solid reasoning and less solid reasoning. But once they understood, passionate discussion ensued. It was fantastic. Most small groups decided that the survivor list contained many pairs of people with the same basic role. For example, they thought the priest and comedian were interchangeable on the island: both able to maintain the mental health of those left behind. But while everyone agreed that getting the priest to his destination in order to donate a kidney to his niece was of time sensitive importance, several saw the comedian's lack of experience "roughing it" would amount to dead weight on the island, becoming a problem for those left behind. They saw the priest as better able to cope with all of the challenges involved, his niece's urgent health crisis included. It was fascinating to listen to the debate, which could have gone on much longer than time allowed. I hope they can bring this same level of critical thinking to all the tasks and assignments they encounter this year.

The middle of the week brought a couple of compliments from former parents that really stuck with me. One came across me in the hallway, and rather than a typical greeting, she said, "You have glorious hair!" It would have made my week, except today I responded to a request from another former parent for a letter by asking who to address it to and where to send it. The response I received began, "Have I told you lately how much I love you?! Honestly, your heart is one of my favorites." I hope there are many more moments like these throughout the year, but even if that does not materialize, these two moments will easily sustain me for some time to come.

This afternoon my principal came in during the last few moments of the day to take the eighth graders to the upper field to be the first students to view and walk on the brand-new turf. Turf that has been much anticipated for many years. The principal was grinning from ear to ear. It was awesome.

It is going to be a fantastic year!

And That's a Wrap on the First Week!

The start of the school year is always a rush of activities and deadlines that bring an abrupt end to summer break. The position I've had since last year has the extra crazy of planning an overnight field trip for the second and third days of school. I am now a huge advocate of overnight field trips. Admittedly, I spent some time sobbing at how overwhelmed I was the night before I took my first class of fifth graders away for three nights at the end of October. But nearly 20 years later, even the added load of arranging all the paperwork before the start of the school year (when families are still often out or town - or the country - and not motivated to respond in a timely fashion to emails from the school), I'm solidly on board.

The "meet and greet" on Tuesday was great. I teach eighth grade in a PreK through 8th grade building. But every family showed up, and nearly every parent took the time to spend a few to several minutes chatting with me. I discovered one family spends their free time much as mine does - playing tabletop games together. Another parent does marketing for a game that my 18-year-old spent all summer playing and offered to send merch. Most of the few who have not signed their student up for the spring trip to Washington DC discussed it with me and plan to sign up before the discounted rate expires within the next week.

Students and their families alike took in the new decor. Some were interested to find out who their congressional representative is, somewhat embarrassed to admit they didn't know. I tried to put their minds at ease. It's my mission to ensure my students become informed voters because I know there are many who don't engage with politics in this day and age.

Many laughed out loud at the history meme wall I started this summer.

And still others were surprised to discover that Clarence Thomas is still a Supreme Court Justice.

I gave my homeroom students, remember that they're eighth graders, welcome bags this year. I put rubber duckies that came with gold chains, sunglasses, and cowboy hats in the bags. Someone put their duck on a communal table. Others added their cowboy hats, and one girl took it upon herself to glue the hats together to provide more stability. The boy who may or may not have donated the duck christened him the class mascot: Johnatan Quackington III. There are lots of signs that indicate it's going to be a fantastic school year.

However, this year's group got off to a rough start on the annual first week retreat. Gum was a huge issue last year, with students chewing it constantly, rolling their eyes, and even popping a new piece in immediately, when asked to spit it out. It was found stuck to the bottom of brand-new student desks and chairs, the blacktop on the playground, and in planters near the back entrance to the school. So, on the first full day of school I made a point to tell every participant in this year's retreat to leave their gum at home. I said the same in an email to their parents. The bus driver who drove us from school to the retreat said gum was not allowed on his bus. It was the ONLY rule he gave them. At least five kids were caught chewing gum on the way to the camp.

During dinner on the first night, one table of a cabin of boys got food everywhere except their plates. Underneath the table was a solid smear of pasta sauce and frosting. Someone turned over a salad plate, with a pool of dressing still on it, in order to have a clean surface for the very moist cake that was dessert. Crumbs from said cake and the dinner rolls sprinkled the length of surface of the table. The principal, who attends this retreat meant to build leadership, teamwork, and community, was NOT happy. I was happy to let him handle the "talk" with the kids in both situations.

However, I can report that these kids showed visible growth over the two days. Not only was gum not an issue on the bus ride home, but they were kind, caring, and generous toward one another during every activity and meal. Two students in my group took it upon themselves to help others into their harnesses for the high elevation activities in order to ensure that as many kids as wanted to had time to attempt each challenge. Others who were so afraid of heights that they did not attend last spring's retreat at High Trek Adventures attempted challenges this week or put on harnesses and seriously considered attempting something incredibly far out of their comfort zones. They were thoughtful and reflective during the evening activities and became more comfortable responding to the deeper questions asked during these more serious times.

Two former fifth graders of mine attended the retreat as cabin chaperones. It was great to see them and reminisce about the time they were little boys (both were small for their age at ten). It was affirming to hear how they remembered my class and see how they interacted with my current students. Best of all, they were able to pick up the slack I left as I'm still dealing with my knee injury. I accepted rides in an off-road golf cart to get to the high elevation sites while they hiked there with my small group. 

One of my former students did 7 pushups on the catwalk.

I am exhausted and my husband had to go onsite at in a client's office to help with some important IT fix just as I was settling in after my post-retreat cleansing hot shower. So I had a "girl dinner" - cheese melted in refried beans, tortilla chips, and a margarita. An early bedtime sounds lovely. But I can't wait for Monday. It's going to be a fantastic year.

First Day Eve 2023

 As one of the last teachers in the nation to return to school, tomorrow is the official first day of school for my students. But it's really just three hours in the morning set aside for families to come into the building and drop off supplies. Since the first full week of school - beginning September 11 - includes several schedule interruptions (like an all-school mass and standardized testing) and I will be gone with the eighth graders at an overnight retreat this Thursday and Friday, it's going to be a choppy start to the year. It's the same as last year, but I had forgotten since this is only my second year with this start up schedule.

I spent most of this holiday weekend about five hours from home at my nephew's wedding. He was the first of his generation in my family to marry. He's the third oldest, but the first three were born in quick succession in the spring and summer of 2000 and the fall of 2001. It was a beautiful wedding in a beautiful corner of the world. My husband and I enjoyed the sunset the night before the big day and a rainbow the morning of the wedding.

The highlight of the reception was when my nephew sang "Your Man" by Josh Turner to his new bride. I had no idea his voice could go so low.

Click here to watch my nephew singing.

We came home on Sunday. Not only were the wedding festivities at an end (though we did inadvertently end up in the same hotel as the bride and groom), but I have to work this week, with an overnight retreat on Thursday and Friday. According to the news, we missed some nasty traffic by coming home before the end of the long weekend.

Thankfully, my first week of school doesn't involve much planning. I have the first day, tomorrow, to greet students and their families as they drop off supplies. Wednesday is the first full day of school, and we will run our normal schedule, though obviously there will not be any core content taught. Thursday my students and I will leave prior to the start of the normal school day for our overnight fall leadership and community building retreat.

However, I had literally just finished my lesson plans through the first full week of school* (this Wednesday and next week) when I received notification of a new email. The fall standardized testing schedule was sent out - and we go in order from oldest to youngest. While I know I will use the plans I made, I can't be sure when. The middle school will need to meet tomorrow, after the "meet and greet" supply drop off morning, to discuss the testing and all school mass schedule for the first full week of school.

Given that I spent two of the three in-service meeting days at home with a migraine AND that last year was my first year as a middle school teacher in my current building, I realize it's fine that I forgot about how crazy the start of the school year is. Well, I DID remember how crazy the start to the school year is, but I had forgotten the specifics of what makes it so crazy.

Regardless, it's going to be a great year. I just need to adjust my expectations. Maybe I'll remember how and why my expectations need to be adjusted before the night before the first day of school next year?

*I would like to add that my first several lessons for both seventh and eighth graders are designed to get kids excited for my classes (thanks, Dave Burgess aka the pirate of Teach Like a Pirate fame) and to think like historians (thanks, Standford History Education Group) and are SO MUCH FUN that I'm disappointed we won't get to them all as quickly as I had imagined.