A Week in the Life of a Teacher: Day 4 (Wednesday): Early Release Day -or- Fast and Furious
8:15-8:50 Before School
It is an absolutely gorgeous morning. The sun is shining and my classroom has such a peaceful, lovely feel. I put my lunch in the fridge in the workroom and walk out to a former student who has come to say hi. Her presence brightens my day. I look down the hall and see an AP student who has come for tutoring. We meet in my room and bond over a discussion of how overwhelmed we both feel. It's happy/sad.
It is an absolutely gorgeous morning. The sun is shining and my classroom has such a peaceful, lovely feel. I put my lunch in the fridge in the workroom and walk out to a former student who has come to say hi. Her presence brightens my day. I look down the hall and see an AP student who has come for tutoring. We meet in my room and bond over a discussion of how overwhelmed we both feel. It's happy/sad.
8:55-9:55 English I standard/esl (27 students freshman)
Short classes today due to an early release for teacher professional development in the afternoon. Five students come in late because of a late bus. All classes are one hour long. My students are great. They finish reading the final chapter of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian in pairs. I love it when they read aloud together. They get really focused and sometimes they even stop and discuss or clarify a part of the chapter without being asked. They work together to find examples of visual, tactile, auditory, olfactory, and gustatory imagery within the text and figure out the effect of the imagery on the story. Three boys get off task at three different points, but they TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEMSELVES! We are talking about 14 and 15 year old boys with maturity on the negative side of the maturity scale...It was perhaps the biggest triumph of the semester thus far! This class is such a joyful way to start the day.
Short classes today due to an early release for teacher professional development in the afternoon. Five students come in late because of a late bus. All classes are one hour long. My students are great. They finish reading the final chapter of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian in pairs. I love it when they read aloud together. They get really focused and sometimes they even stop and discuss or clarify a part of the chapter without being asked. They work together to find examples of visual, tactile, auditory, olfactory, and gustatory imagery within the text and figure out the effect of the imagery on the story. Three boys get off task at three different points, but they TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEMSELVES! We are talking about 14 and 15 year old boys with maturity on the negative side of the maturity scale...It was perhaps the biggest triumph of the semester thus far! This class is such a joyful way to start the day.
10:00-11:00 2nd period Honors Shakespeare (9 students: juniors and seniors)
Two students present on two different artistic representations of Othello and Desdemona (which we recently finished reading). This leads to a discussion of the symbols in Christian Iconography and how one of the contemporary artists borrowed some of these symbols to create his work. They are thoughtful and deliberate in their discussion of the paintings and representations of Othello, and, as usual, I am blown away by their insight. We read aloud and discuss Act III, scene i-ii of Twelfth Night and have a funny discussion about how weird the middle part of the play is and how bold Shakespeare must have felt writing it at the end of his career. The class finishes with them working on a project where they are choosing their own setting and time period for the play. They are drawing costumes for the characters and designing the set for a few scenes.
Two students present on two different artistic representations of Othello and Desdemona (which we recently finished reading). This leads to a discussion of the symbols in Christian Iconography and how one of the contemporary artists borrowed some of these symbols to create his work. They are thoughtful and deliberate in their discussion of the paintings and representations of Othello, and, as usual, I am blown away by their insight. We read aloud and discuss Act III, scene i-ii of Twelfth Night and have a funny discussion about how weird the middle part of the play is and how bold Shakespeare must have felt writing it at the end of his career. The class finishes with them working on a project where they are choosing their own setting and time period for the play. They are drawing costumes for the characters and designing the set for a few scenes.
11:00-12:35 3rd Period/Planning
At the end of 2nd period I rush downstairs (one floor) to the main office to have a meeting with the principal and one of the assistant principals about ways to improve communication. As the School Improvement Team co-chair, I was asked to create a communications committee to identify problems and find solutions. A first year teacher and a second year teacher on the committee come with me. They like our ideas and have lots of questions. It feels very productive and I leave feeling like there are going to be some positive changes. The meeting was supposed to last 30 minutes, but we meet for an hour and twenty minutes. I miss my lunch duty because of the meeting. I rush back to the workroom and get things together for 4th period in the last ten minutes before class starts.
At the end of 2nd period I rush downstairs (one floor) to the main office to have a meeting with the principal and one of the assistant principals about ways to improve communication. As the School Improvement Team co-chair, I was asked to create a communications committee to identify problems and find solutions. A first year teacher and a second year teacher on the committee come with me. They like our ideas and have lots of questions. It feels very productive and I leave feeling like there are going to be some positive changes. The meeting was supposed to last 30 minutes, but we meet for an hour and twenty minutes. I miss my lunch duty because of the meeting. I rush back to the workroom and get things together for 4th period in the last ten minutes before class starts.
12:35-1:35 4th Period: AP Lit (30 students, seniors)
They draw the answers to analytical questions about Jane Eyre on whiteboards and present their answers to the class. They purposefully get me off track by asking me about where I went to college and how I met Mr. Wiley, so we talk for a bit. It is so good to be human with them and for them sometimes, and I feel like anytime they want to get to know me as a person and not just an authority figure, I jump at the chance. It's been a great day.
They draw the answers to analytical questions about Jane Eyre on whiteboards and present their answers to the class. They purposefully get me off track by asking me about where I went to college and how I met Mr. Wiley, so we talk for a bit. It is so good to be human with them and for them sometimes, and I feel like anytime they want to get to know me as a person and not just an authority figure, I jump at the chance. It's been a great day.
1:40-4:00 Early Release Staff Development
The entire staff meets in the library. One of the teachers has gotten Olive Garden to donate lunch for our staff. It is delicious. We have about a 20 minutes meeting that is scripted by the district about our core values, then the staff splits up and rotates through three of six different professional developments led by the English teachers on implementing literacy practices across the content areas. I present on Teacher Directed Reading. We make movements for literary devices like I do with my first period, and make inferences about one of my favorite poems: "Autumn Begins in Martin's Ferry, Ohio." Many of the coaches came to the third session, and their insightfulness on this poem about football gave me chills. It was amazing. I felt so excited and inspired by them to continue teaching this poem. We're done at four and the sky is about to open up in a monsoon. I am exhausted after teaching what was essentially six classes in one day, but I have so much joy from connecting with my students and colleagues.
The entire staff meets in the library. One of the teachers has gotten Olive Garden to donate lunch for our staff. It is delicious. We have about a 20 minutes meeting that is scripted by the district about our core values, then the staff splits up and rotates through three of six different professional developments led by the English teachers on implementing literacy practices across the content areas. I present on Teacher Directed Reading. We make movements for literary devices like I do with my first period, and make inferences about one of my favorite poems: "Autumn Begins in Martin's Ferry, Ohio." Many of the coaches came to the third session, and their insightfulness on this poem about football gave me chills. It was amazing. I felt so excited and inspired by them to continue teaching this poem. We're done at four and the sky is about to open up in a monsoon. I am exhausted after teaching what was essentially six classes in one day, but I have so much joy from connecting with my students and colleagues.
Two of my first period students read aloud to each other:
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