Back to School Blues...I Mean, Buzz...

I'm not gonna lie.

I'm not ready.

I'm not getting that feeling that I am supposed to be getting at this time of year. I'm trying, but if I am completely honest, I am dreading the day after tomorrow when kids come back.

Maybe it's because I don't feel like I had much of a break this summer. Between shuttling kids around, teaching a class and the five workshops I attended, I just do not feel refreshed in any way.

Maybe it's because an old storage room was cleaned out and every one of my lab tables is covered with stuff someone thought I might want.

Maybe it's because I have sat through three full days of meetings. Forget for just a minute that those meetings are brutal based solely on the fact that we have to sit and listen to someone talk for seven hours a day. The bigger issue is the content that may or may not have been heard over the snoring in the back. New ELA standards. New math standards. New science standards. New social studies standards (hey, one doesn't affect me directly!). New evaluation system. Crisis training. Blood Borne Pathogen Training. MTSS training. ESI training. I am pretty sure there was more "training" in there somewhere, but for the life of me I can't remember what it is.

I am trying, but I can't seem to get excited about the upcoming school year.

Just Post Something Already

I have so many things running through my mind right now that I simply have no idea where to start. So I am making a list of all the things I really need to get out there and come back.

1. My grading. While I am absolutely loving the way my grading is set up, my kids are absolutely hating it. My grades are low (not that I care). A lot of kids really don't believe that I will not fudge a little and bring them up. The good news about this is that, in general, parents are very supportive once the whole idea is explained. This shift from percentages to not is a lot bigger than I would have expected, and PowerSchool doesn't help matters in that I can't get it to not report each target as a percent. Since there are only two points, it is either an A or F that shows up. This is, of course, what everyone zooms in on.

2. Chemistry Capstones. We are getting there. I came in with a pretty vague idea of what I wanted kids to do, and so as a result, I am getting some pretty vague attempts. I can't really be upset about this, but I really want this to go better. I am debating about the three. Maybe make it one, but make it more involved?

3. My third hour. My goodness, you would think they had never seen a variable before. I have spent the last three days reviewing how to "solve for x" and they still don't seem to have any recognition of algebra. Normally, I would think they are just messing around, but they seem to be legitimately lost.

4. QuarkNet. I am a bit nervous about this for a couple reasons. First and foremost, particle physics seems to overload my brain. And then there is the time it will take to do the activities. I am worried.

5. Online Physics. I have been hired by a nearby community college to develop an online physics class with a lab component. Why I thought I could do this is a little beyond me at this point. It has been ages since I have taught physics, so I am doing quite a bit of brushing up as I go along. I also have no idea how to set up an online class. This is the polar opposite of how I normally teach, so I am really struggling with how to make it more interactive. The lab component is what is really throwing me off. Do you know how hard it is to find a good lab that does not use some type of computer sensor? The students are required to buy a lab kit, but I am trying to keep the cost down. I think I am going to have to break down and have them purchase a motion detector. We are still working out the kinks on that one.

6. Along those same lines...what is a good program to record lectures to upload?

7. 180. My poor blog has been so neglected. My goal is to begin again on Monday, mostly because I have had a lot of people tell me they miss it :) Along these lines...I desperately miss the Global Physics Department....

Oh, and my husband decided to build a house, so my "spare time" has been eaten up by painting and deciding and packing and moving.

Whew. Well, those seem to be the big issues I am dealing with at the moment. I actually feel lighter now that I have it down in black and white. They are all things that need more reflection and I will definitely do that here in the next couple weeks. But, I am going to go home. Take a deep breath. Bake some cookies. And for goodness sake, get the Christmas tree put away.

Have a good weekend!

Teacher Tip #6

Never.

Ever.

Under any circumstances...

...sponsor more than one activity at the same time.

Academic Damage

I have to thank the Crazy Teacher Lady for this term. It's something I have been trying to pin down and couldn't seem to put into words. Even though I recognize it for what it is, I'm still trying to put words to it.

Katie is a student in my chemistry class this trimester. She is what most would consider a "good" student, which means that she knows the Rules to the Game and plays it very well. She gets good grades because she can read and can figure out what it is that makes the teacher happy.

She got an A in Chemistry.

And I am simply sick about it.

Katie is a Grade Junkie, make no mistake about it. She struggled early on to find the rhythm of my class, but once she figured out which buttons to press, she flew with it.

The problem was that I had to hold her hand the entire way. I had her in my seminar (30 minute study period) and about three days a week, she would sit down with me to review chemistry. She retook more quizzes than all the others put together and in so doing raised her grade.

Now, I am certainly not going to tell a student that she can't come in and study for my class, and I don't want to sound like I don't want my kids to work hard, but at the same time, it has never been about the learning for Katie.

I think what really hit home for me in this situation was the last quiz she took. She raised her hand eleven time on a three question quiz. Seriously.

"Did I set this up right?"

"Um, do you think you did?"

"Well, I just want to make sure."

Katie has retaken quiz after quiz. I have no idea how many hours she has put into adding points to her total, but she second guesses every single thing she writes down. Her second guessing doesn't stem from wanting to learn, it stems from not wanting to lose points.

What really bothers me is that I don't even think it's that she's not confident in her answers.

I don't think she knows the answers.

This trimester has built on itself. We started with naming and formulas. We used those formulas to balance equations. Those equations showed us mole relationships, that we used to find limiting reactant and percent yield. If you didn't know your naming, you were without a paddle.

Katie didn't know how to name compounds. She would study, pass the quiz and apparently reformat overnight. The next day she couldn't recognize a polyatomic.

Katie has an A in Chemistry, but I would bet my periodic table that if you asked her any question, right now, today, about the subject she wouldn't be able to answer it.

So I have failed Katie. By posting an A for her grade, I am allowing her to leave and give the impression to everyone who cares to look that she understands Chemistry when she truly doesn't.

And I have allowed her to continue on believing that she is getting an education, when I haven't kept my end of the bargain.

I Think I Scared Them

I really lit into my first hour today.

Lab notebooks were due on Thursday. Nine of my kids were going to be gone for an FFA judging contest. They were told on Monday to turn their notebooks in on Wednesday.

They were told again on Tuesday. I wrote it on the board so they wouldn't forget.

And on Wednesday, again, they were reminded.

Guess how many turned in their notebook?

One.

So this morning as I was handing out grade reports, there were a lot of complaints and claims that I never said they had to be turned in early.

Now, I rarely lose my temper, especially in class, but today*... well, I launched in to a pretty good tirade on responsibility and making an effort and how this is not MY learning, but theirs.

There was a pretty stunned silence. Then, "so can we turn our notebooks in now?"

No. No you can't.

But here is what you can do. You can make an appointment either before school or during parent conferences on Thursday and you can defend your notebook. It's going to be just like a whiteboard session. You will tell me about the lab. You will describe your results. You will interpret the relationships between the pressure, temperature, volume and number of particles of a gas.

Once you have convinced me that you didn't just copy your lab analysis from someone else, then you can turn in your notebook.

*What can I say, I helped my dad harvest all weekend and was up all night with a sick baby.

And We're Back

This last week was Spring Break. Great timing with the weather, too. Like most everyone else, this winter has been cold and depressing. Last week was spring. Well, except for Friday. We started out the day in t-shirts and ended it with four inches of snow on the ground. Bizarre.

I had a lot of things on my To Do list, and precious few got done. I also lost the list somewhere around Tuesday. I was planning on spending a day (or at least a half a day) in my room as a rat-killin' day; cleaning miscellaneous glassware, putting away stray lab equipment, re-organizing my curriculum notebooks, maybe even putting my substitute folder back together (I know, it's almost April).

Didn't happen. I did nothing school related over break. I almost forgot I even had a job. And boy, do I feel good. I feel refreshed. I even feel ready to go back to school. Maybe that's what breaks are for.