A week in the life of a traveling dance teacher (single mom, dog mom, real person), what's the worst that could happen? Right Heather?
5:30 Alarm, up and ready to leave by 7:00 to arrive at school in Gboro by 7:35. On the way I learn that Thatcher has been distracted in class and not getting his work done. We have a pretty serious discussion about classroom expectations. We clean out his book bag so that there are no Pokémon cards or extra books to lend out then manage.
8:25 Arrive at my school (it's impossible to make it by 8:10 from Greensboro to Pfafftown when he can't get out of the car until 7:35)
8:55 1st Period Dance 1B (sophomores) Pretty good class. It's a better version of the ballet I taught yesterday. Because it's better we finish early and everyone is breathing hard and sweaty so I let them sit for 5 minutes and we talk about their concert dances. They love their themes and songs! Whew! I release them at 10:15 to go to the locker room. Molly comes in and asks for my advice. We pro and con the idea of having a hard line on students being able to miss rehearsals for the honor society dance. Much like parents dealing with an adolescent needing new boundaries, we struggle to balance the students' desire to do everything possible with the lesson of time management and the fact that we are hiring an outside choreographer and don't want to make things more complicated for her. We decide to find a small compromise where students who miss can be understudies but only get a spot if someone drops out. Seems fair!
10:30 2nd Period Dance 1A (freshmen)
I meet them at the locker room. This class brings me a little bit of anxiety. They have not meshed as a class or with me yet. I have to keep a sharp eye out for certain things that have caused trouble in the past. They are also behind because I missed last week due to Thatcher having the flu and I've been incrementally getting them back on track. The last 16 students show their solos, I group them into duets, then speed them through so that they can show at the end. It's obvious that we sped because many of their projects are sloppy but I know they will work on it in the final part and they have two classes to complete. I forgive myself for being absent. As they leave, several come check with me about the technique and two say "Thanks!" as they leave... this is a big deal to me!
12:00 Lunch/Travel/Planning
I know I have grades to work on so I quickly drink my shake while talking to my BFF. We are trying to decide about using our NY&Co city cash that expires today. I don't want to spend money and there's nothing exciting so I quit looking online. We move to her room so I can work on my grades. I realize it's almost 1:30 so I check to make sure I have everything packed for the other school. I live out of this bag since I rarely teach in the same space two classes in a row. This is my 6th year as a traveling teacher and I am tired of acting like it's not a big deal. It is. I think it's wrong that I'm still doing this. And I love the kids. I love my coworkers but I hate teaching at two schools.
1:55 Arrive at other school in time to use the restroom and talk to the teachers at lunch for 5 minutes.
2:10 4th Period Dance 1B (9-12 grade together)
Before I even get in the door I'm met by another teacher who is there to inform me that the administrators are on the way because someone may have been drinking in the bathroom. She is taken away to talk while I try to get my class settled to start ballet. They are a mixture of happy and sad about this. It takes 10 minutes to get them settled to assign spots. I am frutrated. The softball team is leaving early so the girls on the team are trying to make their exit earlier and earlier. The nastier they get, the more I want to keep them late. I won't, but I make a note to contact their coach. Nothing goes particularly well. While some students are moderately amused by ballet, most are whining. I know this is normal and it will get better as they get used to my combinations but I'm tired and am struggling to keep smiling. Finally someone yells out a cuss word so I write a referral. I can feel tears welling up but I know not to cry so I continue on. They learn a very tough variation from Swan Lake and finally a cheer at the end when they get it! It's all I can do to wait for the bell to ring.
3:41 Rush to car, rush to Greensboro, listen to book club book on audacity because I don't have the energy to read when I sit still right now. The Rise of the Rocket Girls is ok but not keeping my attention today. Get Thatcher. He does his homework while we drive back to Winston for
5:00 Gymnastics
I drop him off and run to HT to get groceries. On the way back another colleague calls to discuss various reflective things related to class, musicals, etc. I appreciate having such thoughtful and passionate colleagues. The call reminds me that it's my job to make this ballet thing work so I will do better on Thursday and not give up.
5:55 Rush out of gymnastics to let poor Noodle out at home. Talk to my cousin about upcoming Disney trip. She has thought way more than me about this trip and I feel guilty.
6:30 "cook" dinner and worry that I'm a terrible mom for serving veggie dogs and leftover macaroni for dinner. And I'm a terrible teacher for being so easy to get to today. And sometimes it's hard at the end of Tuesday because it's just me and my responsibilities.
Tonight I need Glennon's words, "You are the one you've been waiting for." And a little bit of the Tao, "When my cup is full, I stop pouring." With a dash of Annie, "The sun will come out tomorrow" and the cold hands that just grabbed me and asked me to come upstairs and snuggle and watch a show. Goodnight.
No comments:
Post a Comment