Ricochet

Wishing I was here

2012-01-30T15:47:00.000-08:00

And that you could all come along!!

Someone will choose - who?

2012-01-29T09:10:00.000-08:00

In 1976, as a high school newspaper reporter, Robert Maranto asked retiring Baltimore County schools Superintendent Joshua Wheeler why students weren’t required to pass a proficiency test to graduate. ”The purpose of public education is not to educate students,” Wheeler answered. “The purpose of public education is to provide an education for those few who want it.”

Joanne Jacobs quotes Robert Maranto, asking the question "who should choose your child's education?"

But my classroom still is not as bad as this LA classroom, which as a friend of mine would say, is an AT LEAST if I ever heard one.

Normal

2012-01-29T09:07:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I pretend to be normal but it gets boring so I go back to being me.

My students are not close to grasping this

2012-01-28T13:24:00.000-08:00

I realize this is for college, a place my students will be in a couple of years.

They are not grasping that learning the material is essential.

insanity

2012-01-28T12:51:00.000-08:00

You say I'm insane. That's ok with me but I prefer the term mentally hilarious.

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. (Albert Einstein)

Lessons of ineffective administrators #1

2012-01-28T05:30:00.000-08:00

(concept stolen from The Math Crumudgeon, who is more than welcome to come steal my administratos in retaliation)

Hey, Les!

You tell us in meetings that we are to get the kids out of the hall, into class on time and in their seats eager to learn.

So I wrote Little Johnny up for excessive tardies (after I called his parents), disrupting other classes of mine by walking in (when he was supposed to be elsewhere, which I also verified), and having his cell phone out all the time. I mentioned that Little Johnny was disrupting other students' learning. I did five (count them. Five) write ups.

I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for finally calling him into your office to talk to him. Yes, sending an 18 year old to ISS to contemplate the error of his ways would damage his psyche, so I understand the need to talk with him.

I want you to know how much I appreciated his coming into another of my classes to apologize to me. With a smirk. Yes, I can tell that problems has gone away.

Six Word Saturday

2012-01-28T03:38:00.000-08:00

Sometimes brain is smarter than mouth

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The brakes were put in in time.

'Nuff said.

It turns out . . .

2012-01-26T19:28:00.001-08:00

Blog party!

2012-01-23T16:27:00.000-08:00

Kristen Bowers is having a Blog Party for middle school and high school teachers. You log in with your subject and you can find others who teach what you teach.

This is such a cool idea!!!

Wow I was nominated!!

2012-01-22T19:03:00.000-08:00

Now, did you know that Gmail sorts mail so some is apparently not important to gmail and falls at the bottom of the screen? I found this email too late - and several from ChiTown Girl and Nagical Mystical Teacher who must have wondered why I didn't respond.

The Power of a Teacher

2012-01-22T11:52:00.000-08:00

I read about this article in the AJC and then read the whole thing.

If I can do this with one student, I would count myself fulfilled.

Liberals don't seem to get it - hope you read this.

2012-01-22T09:19:00.000-08:00

I am not a liberal.

I am not a conservative or a moderate or a fundamentalist or a tea partier.

I am probably closest to a libertarian but they irritate me too.

I want the Federal government out of my life. By that I mean I want much more limited government that we see these days. I want the Federal government out of schools. I want a lot of the bureaucracy disbanded. I want control for much of this returned to the states.

Will that solve all of the problems? No. We have as many corrupt politicians under the Gold Dome in Atlanta as you see in Chicago. But if we had local control it would be easier to reach them.

And, this being the South, we probably know their mama or some other kin that we could reach.

Please do not assume I am a 100% behind the person I vote for. I haven't been 100% behind anyone my entire life. I look for the one who agrees with me on the big picture (or the biggest piece of the big picture) and hope and pray for the best.

I find it odd that it is my liberal friends - who I dearly love except when they want to talk about politics - who seem most unwilling to let me have my own opinions which do not agree with theirs so they get insulting and call names.

I would stoop to their level except 1) we will not change each others' minds and 2) I would lose a friend.

I don't assume you like 100% of your candidate. Please grant me the same.

This is so much better than what we are being offered

2012-01-21T08:09:00.000-08:00

Six Word Saturday

2012-01-20T17:33:00.000-08:00

Change ALWAYS takes time to implement.

Threats do not work as incentives.

The economy is closing escape routes.

Can't change job? Must change attitude.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

And those four sentences sum up my life.

What would YOU do?

2012-01-19T15:24:00.000-08:00

I have a feeling I already know my opinion and can't think of much people could say to change my mind (just a little disclaimer) but I would like to know what you would do in this situation.

We are a title 1 school with 70% on free or reduced lunch.

The state set up very restricted path to accelerated math courses in 2005. Basically, if you are not on the path by 8th grade, it is virtually impossible to take calculus in high school. The only way is to take a class over the summer - that with the economy, means $200-$500.

Remember the 70% free and reduced?

So - kids not realizing this, don't get on the path in time. (or I should say their parents don't realize it).

If you had a kid who was really bright and dedicated and not on the right path but willing to do ANYTHING on his own but but able to afford a summer class, would you encourage him to try for calculus? Or would you point out that without a traditional (as in seat in a classroom) class in trig it is not possible?

SOPA again

2012-01-18T02:09:00.000-08:00

The internet is going dark

2012-01-17T17:59:00.000-08:00

As Ms. Chili says the Internet is starting to go dark in protest of SOPA and PIPA.

Those who walk into your life

2012-01-17T17:56:00.000-08:00

You can't control who walks into your life but you can control which window you throw them out of.

Algebra 2 for all - no

2012-01-16T04:44:00.000-08:00

And now for a thenews. Palo Alto math teachers oppose requiring Algebra II to graduate.

No one can argue that Palo Alto, home of Stanford, is opposed to education. But the math department of Palo Alto High School says

Don't prepare all students for University of California entrance, the math faculty argues, because not all students can master quadratic equations and logarithmic functions.

Duh.

Here in Georgia we have taken away the relevant math that would help those who are NOT going to college and replaced it with topics that they have trouble assimilating so the they have trouble graduating from high school.

What are the youth coming to?

2012-01-15T12:52:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was a chaperone on a school trip to the Fox Theater. The expectations were explicit and repeated often - both the expectations of the school, the chaperones and the Fox. So
• The kids jumped up to leave as soon as the performance was over
• They talked to each other, texted, and laughed (inappropriately) during the performance
• They cursed – both on the bus (“That’s a f***ing big car”) and during the play
• When we got back on the bus, we had to repeatedly tell one couple that groping each other was not something anyone else wanted to see.

Oh, yeah, I want to chaperone again.

Did I mention waiting for parents to pick them up?

So, today, I took advantage of the High Museum's pay what you feel like day and took my family to the Picasso to Warhohl exhibit. Without context, Warhohl apparently loses something. I had to explain to the kids I thought I had raised with depth what an A&H green stamp was and that, yes, Campbell's used to sell Pepper Po and Scotch Broth soup. (It still does in Canada according to Amazon).

Who'd a thunk?

Haven't been posting

2012-01-15T09:07:00.001-08:00

Well, I have, but it is mostly gag posts.

I want to post meaningful things like Stu at Live Long and Prosper and Tom at Stop Trying to Inspire me and Mamacita and so many others. Read my blog roll. Some have quit posting but they are still on my roll because I hope they come back. Some, like me, have stopped posting about school and are posting more about themselves.

Are we all suffering from the same problems? I think so.

In my case, the Hulk, who was an awful manager and I fear and awful man, has been replaced by a good man who seems to be overwhelmed. (And his sidekick who appears to be truly evil) I know we all are overwhelmed. We get so many directives on how we are to change that there is no way to accomplish all of them or make them stick to your habits.

It takes time to make a habit, good or bad. If you add things once a week I can't make it mine - and then the administration is pissed at me. Hey, PO - that's my new blog. Pissed at Me. I can just list who I have annoyed this week and why.

I am a good teacher. I am not a star - I have repeatedly told you I am a mule - but I care. I incorporate change and reflection in my teaching to improve it. I share what I have (and usually get nothing back). I nag, chastise, shame and inspire my students.

I am not inspired by someone coming to me and telling me what a disappointment I am - someone who doesn't know that the teacher they are holding up as the Star had exactly the same pass rate on a test as I did and I had the kids for less class time.

I am not inspired by your threatening my job or by your telling a parent you can't support me or by your ignoring me.

The amount of paperwork and professional development this year is ridiculous. Rather than focusing on changing one or two things, they are focused on changing everything. They want the school culture changed. Clue to admin: when you repeatedly back the students over the teachers, the teachers have no power. Then exactly how do you think we can enforce this week's arbitrary rule?

What do I want to write about?

How to effectively improve a school (I will let you know when I see it).

How to effectively incorporate Common Core into the classroom.

How to increase student buy in.

How to increase student retention (of material and of graduation)

How to inspire teachers to reach new heights.

What do I write about: Let penguins unpack your baggage.

Baggage

2012-01-14T16:51:00.000-08:00

You can't reach for anything new if your hands are full of yesterday's junk. - Louisa Smith

Six Word Saturday

2012-01-14T03:21:00.000-08:00

Hi ho, Hi ho. It's off to work I go.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

OK it is more than 6 words but I am so tired of dealing with constraints that I am rebelling.

Mood swings

2012-01-13T19:00:00.001-08:00

My husband, being unhappy with my mood swings, bought me a mood ring the other day so he could monitor my moods.

We have discovered that when I am in a good mood, it turns green.

When I'm in a bad mood, it leaves a big red mark on his forehead.

Maybe next time he'll buy me a diamond.

Baggage

2012-01-12T16:38:00.001-08:00

Everyone you meet comes with baggage. Find someone who loves you enough to help you unpack.

349 days

2012-01-10T17:46:00.001-08:00

You can't fix stupid 2

2012-01-09T16:49:00.001-08:00

Hi, my name is Joe

2012-01-08T08:36:00.000-08:00

In an earlier post I talked about a friend who is having a rough year. He brought a sheet of paper with him to the gathering. The teachers in his school were being asked to set 2 goals that they would reach by June.

On the sheet were listed the topics that had been covered in professional development this year that the teachers could choose from.

• Activating Strategies (with multiple strategies underneath this topic)
• Analyzing student data and implementing the data
• Classroom Management
• Collaborative Planning
• Cooperative Co-Teaching
• DOK/Rigor
• Instructional Framework
• Instructional Strategies (with multiple strategies underneath this topic)
• Literacy Across the Curriculum
• Math Workshop Model
• Openings
• Posted student work with commentary
• Student led closings
• Word Wall
• Writing Across the Curriculum

In 90 days they have discussed 15 different things to implement in their teaching styles. That is one every 4 days, except you know they weren't spaced out that much. In all likelihood, they were introduced a half a dozen at a time.

Oh, and teachers, we are taking your planning periods, giving you more preps, more students and please change whatever plans you started with.

Yes, Virginia, we have No Child Left Behind run amok.

I understand why he has started to stutter.

Hi, my name is Joe!
I've got a wife,five kids, and
I work in a button factory.
One day, My boss said to me:
"Hey, Joe! "Are you busy?"
I said, "No."
He said, "push this button with your left hand."

Hi, my name is Joe!
I've got a wife,five kids, and
I work in a button factory.
One day, My boss said to me:
"Hey, Joe! "Are you busy?"
I said, "No."
He said, "push this broom with your right hand."

Hi, my name is Joe!
I've got a wife,five kids, and
I work in a button factory.
One day, My boss said to me:
"Hey, Joe! "Are you busy?"
I said, "No."
He said, "ring this bell with your left foot."

Hi, my name is Joe!
I've got a wife,five kids, and
I work in a button factory.
One day, My boss said to me:
"Hey, Joe! "Are you busy?"
I said, "YESSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!"

Willing to learn?

2012-01-08T05:13:00.000-08:00

And how do I make them see this?

and more

2012-01-07T19:11:00.001-08:00

from imgur.com

sigh

2012-01-07T16:12:00.001-08:00

From ericjacobsen.org

Six Word Saturday

2012-01-07T04:59:00.000-08:00

You will reap what you sow.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

I had dinner with several good friends at other schools this week, one of whom is having a more stressful year than I am (which I did not think was possible).

He has a newly minted EdS brand new AP who taught the required 3 years and now knows so much more than everyone else. Oh, did I mention the new AP (we will call him SP for Shiny Penny) taught English so has all sorts of ideas for teaching science and math - none of which are worth spit.

Anyhow, SP spent the first 4 months of this year pissing everyone off by showing HE was in charge and the teachers are PEONS (or is that PEE-Ons?). You know the type: kid acts up, parent wants teacher's head so demands a meeting with the AP and the teacher. SP hands the parent the teacher's head on a platter - and then wonders why that teacher has discipline issues in the classroom - since kid is still in the same classroom.

Apparently some wiser head has told SP that pissing off your staff is not the way to get them to work with you, so SP is now trying to make nice. Guess what - from what I hear, you stab enough people in the back enough times, there are no second chances.

When I was having issues with the HULK, I knew there were people who liked him because they would say nice things about him. They knew I didn't like him and why, but I knew they liked him - and why.

NO ONE is saying anything pleasant about SP.

They are being circumspect - no one is bashing him either (except to really good friends) because he is connected to a Board member. But SP has created enemies.

Friends come and go. Enemies accumulate.

I do not think SP will ever dig his way out of this hole. Be interesting to see how this plays out. If the teachers can tread water long enough, that is.

2012-01-05T02:48:00.001-08:00

A prayer for 2012

2012-01-04T17:14:00.001-08:00

Back to school

2012-01-03T02:25:00.000-08:00

Man, how did he KNOW that school starts today?

Happy New Year's Day

2012-01-01T05:58:00.000-08:00

Hope this year is better than last with positive growth and pleasant people. I want to use my time better (which is up to me) and not let the uglies drag me down. (wow that is up to me also)

Happy New Years!

2011-12-31T09:23:00.000-08:00

Happy New Years!

Hmmm

2011-12-31T08:28:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year!!

2011-12-31T07:28:00.001-08:00

(Stolen from Theresa Milstein)

This year I need to
@ finish attending school
@ decide what I want to do next year (same thing? same place?)
@ clear out more clutter than I did last year
@ get more organized at work (which will help with the clutter)

Think that is enough to start with.

Six Word Saturday

2011-12-31T04:02:00.000-08:00

Time to plan for next week.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

Yup - I have put it off long enough.

SOPA battle is warming up.

2011-12-29T18:06:00.000-08:00

I wrote here about SOPA.

You will start seeing a lot more articles, like this one about Godaddy in the coming weeks.

Like many legislation plans - there is more than it appears and I do not believe Congress is looking at the big picture.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-29T06:27:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and less PC in 2012.

December 2012

2011-12-28T16:30:00.000-08:00

I may have to ave a running countdown to next December.

People

2011-12-27T06:29:00.000-08:00

When people walk away from you, let them go. Your destiny is never tied to anyone who leaves you, and it doesn't mean they are bad people. It just means that their part in your story is over.

I fall to pieces

2011-12-27T05:14:00.001-08:00

SOPA

2011-12-25T14:07:00.001-08:00

Have you been following the SOPA legislation currently before Congress?

From PC World.

Also this week, conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation, normally a strong supporter of copyright enforcement, voiced opposition to SOPA. The think tank has "serious and legitimate concerns" about SOPA's impact on Web security and freedom of speech, wrote James Gattuso, senior research follow in regulatory policy at Heritage.

SOPA, in allowing court orders to block the resolution of IP addresses by servers in the U.S., could entice Web users to "use less secure servers elsewhere to continue accessing blocked sites," he added.

SOPA still has strong support in Congress and among companies in several U.S. industries. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, one of the driving forces behind the bill, has said that more than 400 organizations have voiced support.

The bill would allow the U.S. Department of Justice and copyright holders to seek court orders blocking payment processors and online advertising networks from doing business with foreign sites accused of infringing copyright.

DOJ-requested court orders could also bar search engines from linking to the allegedly infringing sites. The court orders could require domain name registrars to stop resolving queries that direct traffic to those sites, and require Internet service providers to block subscriber access to sites accused of infringing.

So - how would SOPA affect you? And the way you blog?

Best of Dixie

2011-12-25T09:36:00.001-08:00

Paraphrasing Jeff Foxworthy: People listen to the accent of Southern Rednecks and love to make fun of them. But let your car break down - and a redneck is your best buddy. He'll take a coathanger, a roll of duct tape and a Mountain Dew can and he'll get your car running to the next exit. It may not go any further, but it will get to the next exit.

"You can't judge a Southerner's intelligence by the way he dresses - or his accent."

Six Word Saturday

2011-12-24T04:48:00.000-08:00

There's a reason for the season!

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

Merry Christmas!! Wishing you and yours a restful and renewing Holiday season and a 2012 that was better than 2011!!

And another one gets knocked up

2011-12-23T07:16:00.000-08:00

Just learned that another one of my students, who is on the 5 year path through high school due to attendance issues, is pregnant. By her boyfriend, a boy I taught last year who has dropped out.

An old friend used to say that there were few accidental pregnancies - that most are a deliberate choice on the part of the girl. I thought he was a cynic. I don't know so much anymore.

I see the ones making this choice. I know that whatever their capabilities are in school, they decided before I ever met them that they were not going to do the work necessary to reach what they could. And that nothing I tried was going to change that.

I would have been humiliated to be pregnant at 16 but I had plans that didn't include children (or really a steady boyfriend) at that point. These girls are beyond proud. It is as if this is the culminating point of high school.

Since they are not investing in their own education - I grieve for their children.

Another teacher arranged for a student to come in to take a test when other students weren't around so "she wouldn't be embarrassed." Embarrassed? This is the kid who discussed every aspect of her pregnancy (stretch marks, Braxton Hicks - everything) with the kids sitting around her - male and female. I hope her boyfriend (who is in college for his second year) wants the same things she does. And I wonder if she lifts her attention from her naval long enough to see that they may be headed to different futures.

It is a matter of changing the culture - and I don't know how to.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-21T15:43:00.000-08:00

Dougherty teachers caught cheating as well.

2011-12-20T15:40:00.000-08:00

Our state superintendent issued the following message. I bolded a statement that most administrations should pay more attention to than I think they will.

December 20, 2011 – State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge released the following statement regarding the Dougherty County School System Cheating Investigation that was released today.

"Today's report on cheating by some educators in the Dougherty County School System is another sad case of adults putting personal interests above those of their students. I am especially disappointed in education leaders who would threaten teachers' jobs if students did not perform well on the CRCT. While this behavior is inexcusable, it does highlight the need to look at a different, more thorough accountability system such as Georgia's new College and Career Ready Performance Index, which we have already submitted in the form of a waiver to the U.S. Dept. of Education seeking relief from the narrowly defined designation of success found in No Child Left Behind. Relying on a single test to determine a student's and a school's academic success is plagued with problems."

"The Georgia Department of Education will work closely with the Dougherty County School System to provide support for students who were negatively impacted by the actions of adults. We will also look into whether or not any schools and educators undeservedly received financial reward for these artificial CRCT results."

"As was the case with the Atlanta Public Schools investigation findings, the vast majority of the educators in Dougherty County and throughout the state are ethically sound and work diligently with the best interests of their students in mind. I'm committed to working with our districts to ensure our students are not robbed of a quality and meaningful education."

Support people who hinder instead

2011-12-18T16:03:00.000-08:00

We have a support teacher - I cannot identify Vera more than that without identifying myself.

She is there to support identified students and is supposed to work with teachers.

She is incompetent in her job (my observation) so, rather than working with the teachers that she is supposed to - she lies, she misrepresents, she makes broad statements ("other teachers are able to do this") but when you ask how (so that you can do your job) she never answers - because (I repeat) she lies.

Bottom line - she interrupts classes full of students and then when she doesn't get 100% of the teachers' attention, we are uncooperative.

It might be a survivable situation if there was any support from the administration.

It is the beginning of my break and January is already looking crappy.

**update** Small towns are truly wonderful. Seems I have a good friend who not only knows Vera, but also knows where all the bodies are buried. Damn I wish I'd known that - but this is better.... And, yes, there is karma.

Six Word Saturday

2011-12-17T01:23:00.000-08:00

Feeling overwhelmed but looking for calm.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

I am not feeling the Christmas spirit.

I am feeling like I will never catch up - and realizing that I am not using my time as wisely as I could.

Time to set a timer and chip away at the to-dos 15 minutes at a time.

Edited 5 minutes later: read this and this and I am feeling more Christmasy.

Question for high school teachers: how long does it take to read a page out loud?

2011-12-10T10:01:00.001-08:00

How long does it take a high school student to read and comprehend a page of material - like a newspaper or something else written on a middle school or so level?

How long does it take to read this out loud?

Just trying to wrap my mind around this.

Six Word Saturday

2011-12-10T04:19:00.000-08:00

Not burned out but getting toasty.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

We cannot afford (as a district) to have math books, but we can afford calculators.

We cannot afford workbooks for the kids (so the teachers get to copy work for them every single day) but we can afford to buy literature books for the math department to teach reading in addition to the too-much-and-not-integrated-standards that the kids cannot find a cohesive whole to.

Oy vey!

Lifetime Learners

2011-12-08T02:36:00.001-08:00

Procrastination

2011-12-05T02:34:00.000-08:00

Pride goeth before the fall

2011-12-04T06:55:00.000-08:00

Les Nessman, one of our APs, is adept at taking a problem and fanning it into a catastrophe, When presented with a problem from a parent or a student (and we know the students never lie) Les is quick to tell the parent/student that the teacher was wrong (before ever talking to the teacher)or to tell the teacher, in front of the parent "I cannot support you when you do that."

Thanks.

I hated working for the Hulk because I hate being yelled at.

I hate working with Les Nessman more.

I made the mistake last week of being proud of something I had done to benefit the students. I robbed Les of the opportunity to claim credit for it. (Yes, that was deliberate on my part - although I did claim in wide eyed innocence that I was just so excited that it had worked).

Trust me, pay back was a bitch.

100 more days of working with him. And I have a huge bank of personal days. I feel an extended and recurring case of the vapors coming on.

I think it is time to move on because I cannot wait for LN to be found out. He is either after the principal's job (and is trying to make him look incompetent) or he is the principal's minion whose task is to encourage people to leave. I think I am an asset (I have spoken before of being a mule here and here and the importance of have a team with some divas and some mules) but that is probably my pride speaking.

asthma sufferers - please read.

2011-12-04T06:29:00.000-08:00

I was reading columns because I am avoiding working on a paper that is looking more and more like an exercise in futility for which I am spending a lot of money and time (but that is another story for another time).

There is something of interest buried in the middle of this article that I do not remember reading before.

“On December 31, 2011, the FDA ban on the sale of Primatene® Mist containing CFCs (Chlorofluorocarbons) as a propellant will become effective"

This means if you have asthma, you cannot pick up a non prescription inhaler as of Dec. 31.

The replacement for this has not been approved by the FDA.

So, if you have asthma, you will need to have a prescription inhaler or go to the emergency room.

I do not have asthma, but that seems big to me.

Our New Administration

2011-12-04T05:10:00.000-08:00

(And the fact that you can not see the entire cartoon does not diminish the message)

(The entire cartoon is awesome)

Six Word Saturday

2011-12-03T05:25:00.000-08:00

Sometimes the pigeon, sometimes the statue.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

This week, I am the statue.

The AP is either following the principal's directives and "encouraging" people to make other career choices or the AP is trying to undermine the principal by making said principal look completely incompetent.

In any case, I am tired of being cannon fodder. Or the statue being crapped on.

Will you lose your job if we fail?

2011-12-01T22:32:00.000-08:00

I had a student ask me that today.

Apparently a teacher told her class that we are held accountable for our failure rate. While it is true, I don't see why giving the students the idea that if they fail we will lose our jobs is a good thing.

Some students are willing to fail if they think it would cost you, not realizing what it costs them.

When I was a student, I was responsible for my education and I thrived.

I cannot see how it will work for me to be responsible for what my students learnwhen I have so little control over it.

Algebra 2 for all

2011-11-27T07:41:00.000-08:00

Curmudgeon has a great post decrying the current bent for requiring Algebra 2 for everyone. Apparently some California teachers have petitioned the state saying

(requirement. We believe a plan requiring every student to pass Algebra II in order to graduate without a waiver, while well-intentioned, will either stop a significant number of students from graduating or, alternatively, force us to dramatically lower standards in our courses as too many other schools have done)

Georgia has been requiring this for years - with the first graduates of this program scheduled to graduate this year.

As I have written earlier, the closer we get to graduation, the more they are bending. First it was for special ed students (that they only needed to get 2 years of math and then 2 years of math support). Then they added everyone else - saying you can't get to college with only 2 years of math.

We have no clue - but I do know math is getting more and more difficult to teach.

It isn't no book and no resource - though that is part of it. The curriculum does not flow and doesn't build. You start something one year and don't see it again for 2 years. I find myself caught between an administration that doesn't want the kids to fail and the students realizing that I am the one who gets in trouble if they do not do well.

The state says if I make it relevant and interesting enough they will learn. The administration gives me four preps and keeps taking away my planning period and fights any suggestion which would provide students with materials.

Oh, yeah, teaching math is wonderful.

Letting go

2011-11-26T20:00:00.000-08:00

Ran across an interesting saying that I cannot reproduce here - because it doesn't all show.

When people walk away from you, let them go. Your destiny is never tied to anyone who leaves you, and it doesn't mean they are bad people - it just means their part in your story is over.

(You can find it here.)

Letting go is one of the hardest things for me. I think I cling to things and people I no longer want because they are familiar.

Six Word Saturday

2011-11-26T04:29:00.001-08:00

Well rested, but not caught up.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

Foldables and GPS resources

2011-11-25T13:21:00.000-08:00

Found these foldables.

Also found math 2 and math 3 books posted on line.

If anyone finds something like this for common core - that would be awesome.

Love Story

2011-11-24T03:45:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Rebuilding

2011-11-23T02:54:00.001-08:00

We have been working on our house since early summer. It has taken a long time because, as we removed siding we uncovered rot, which we fixed. My house is stronger, better insulated, and I am poorer than last summer.

The neighbors have been watching and one decided to do some work. I was glad because their porch is falling off the house. But what they are doing is putting boards over the rot and painting.

A month later, their house looks pristine. New paint, new side rails. and if you don't look too closely you won't see that the porch is still falling off the house. And the new soffits hide the rotten wood really well.

My house inches along.

I plan to stay here, so it is worth the time to do it well.

So - would you take a seat?

2011-11-21T06:39:00.001-08:00

And what does this say about us?

everything has some use

2011-11-20T08:21:00.000-08:00

Just to prove that everything has SOME purpose - here is a use for pesky gumballs.

Should offer some hope for some of my students.

Fashion

2011-11-20T07:57:00.000-08:00

I have several kids this year who use cereal boxes as bookbags. Never had this before - and they all seem to be boys.

What I am reading: Breaking the Code update

2011-11-20T05:29:00.001-08:00

I read an article this morning which fit in well with the book I am reading.

The article talked about how Zuckerberg and Lessin used to discuss how one's story could be told by one's conversations - and this led, of course, to Timeline on Facebook.

The book is Breaking the Code: A Father's Secret, a Daughter's Journey, and the Question That Changed Everything by Karen Fisher-Alaniz.

Basically, her very private father handed her the letters he had written his parents during WW2 and they spent the next year or so using the letters to finally get him to talk about the war.

My father made my mother burn all of the letters he wrote her when they moved to assisted living. Mother says there wasn't anything mushy or revealing in the letters, but he really wanted assurance that we (the next generations) wouldn't read them.

I wonder how he would react to the book.

(It is a very smooth read and I recommend it. It has information on the importance of writing, a mystery, suspense, family, war - pretty much everything.)

UPDATE: I just read in the AJC where a man in Georgia purchased WW2 letters on eBay, met the man who wrote them, and is writing a book about the B29ers who bombed Japan.

cookies - the best part of the holidays

2011-11-19T14:49:00.001-08:00

Several friends are having cookie parties - where you bring 5 dozen of a cookie and take home 1 dozen each of 5 kinds of cookies. Here are some recipes for different things turned into cookies - like tiramisu and strawberry shortcake.

Six Word Saturday

2011-11-16T19:02:00.000-08:00

Focus on groups, not the individual.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.

I teach high school math. I am supposed to do group projects, keep all 35 students in the class working on the project with no slackers, and yet assess the individual. Daily. In all classes. In 50 minutes.

When did their learning become my responsibility?

Old times

2011-11-16T18:49:00.000-08:00

I went to a meeting today and ran into a teacher I didn't remember. Before I taught, I served as her supply teacher for a month (supply teacher being a long term sub who is certified). She asked if I had been her supply teacher and I said no, then she mentioned her school - and I said yes, if it was conics.

She remembered me because I had her students sign a card for her.

Such a small thing - I guess it was important. I just wanted her to feel better.

Foldables

2011-11-15T18:02:00.000-08:00

Here are some foldables available on line.

Algebra 1

Algebra 2

Geometry

Teaching math with foldables

Happy Tuesday

2011-11-13T15:26:00.001-08:00

Occupy

2011-11-13T11:15:00.000-08:00

Future of Cheating

2011-11-13T06:41:00.001-08:00

A group of us were discussing where we would like to see education go and, of course, the Internet and technology came up. I think it can be grand - but I am seeing too many students act like water and take the easiest possible course, even when it gets them nothing.

We were doing logic puzzles in a class and my third class was solving it so much faster than the first two, so I figured they had talked in the hall. No - they were googling the puzzle and the answer. This required no thought on their part and increased their understanding not at all.

Someone mentioned the following story. It is about 5th hand so I am sure it has been "telephoned" and morphed from the original. If anyone knows the original story, please let me know.

A college IT professor gave an intense assignment to his class. He told them they could use the information they could find on the internet but only to modify their own code. They could not just cut-and-paste and use it directly. And the code had to be able to be run successfully. And then he very deliberately put code on the Web that appeared to satisfy the assignment specs.

Some students turned in just the code from the Web. When the professor ran their code, it generated a report "I cheated. I am a bad boy." They got a zero.

Some students had tested the code, found what it did, modified that portion = and there was another way he caught them, and they received a diminished grade.

And others just did the work.

The cheaters complained to the university president that the professor had tricked them. The professor responded that if you do not know what code does, you should not be submitting it. That the university had an obligation to turn out quality craftsmen, and you were not quality if all you did was hack other people's work.

I did find something related about an NYU professor but I don't believe that was the original story.

How do you keep them from cheating?

How do you inspire students to take pride in their own work?

I had to sign honor codes in every college I ever attended (which gives you an idea about my antiquity) and cannot see students caring about their word.

Six Word Saturday

2011-11-12T03:38:00.001-08:00

Everything has a price. What's yours?

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Thank you

2011-11-11T02:41:00.000-08:00

Doug Savage's tribute to his grandfather, 2010.

Doug Savage's tribute to his great-grandmother's younger brother.

Mind blowing

2011-11-10T19:08:00.001-08:00

Is teaching becoming more stressful?

2011-11-10T16:46:00.000-08:00

Yep, pretty much.

We have several out this week with high blood pressure or chest pains.

Last week they announced another useless thing for us to do as part of our evaluation - and it will take hours to provide proof that we have done these things.

Do you think there is a relationship between the two events?

A Tale of 2 Remodels

2011-11-10T02:23:00.000-08:00

Two neighbors are getting their homes remodeled.

The first project has been going on all year. It is an older home and when siding or decks are removed, there is rot underneath. The builder has told the homeowners and the bad areas have been fixed. This has added time and money but the house is in better shape than it ever has been. And the homeowners feel they are getting their mopney's worth.

The other neighbor just started work. The first builder noticed that the second crew is putting new siding over rotten boards. But he figured it was because they didn't speak English. So when the foreman showed up, he went over to ask if the foreman knew the work was subpar.

The foreman explained the crew was subcontracted to a big box store hardware store (which I really should out here, because I am very disappointed)and if they bring up problems which would involve more work, they would be replaced.

Sounds like a school system.

Let's go for show - the siding - and forget the foundation underneath.

Happy Wednesday

2011-11-09T02:47:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday

2011-11-07T02:35:00.000-08:00

Have a fruitful day!!

And POOF you're gone

2011-11-06T18:16:00.001-08:00

Forgiveness

Anyone can hold a grudge, but it takes a person with character to forgive. When you forgive, you release yourself from a painful burden. Forgiveness doesn't mean what happened was OK, and it doesn't mean that person should still be welcome in your life. It just means you have made peace with the pain, and are ready to let it go.

www.HappinessInYourLife.com

In my world . .

2011-11-06T10:22:00.000-08:00

Warren County and Hancock County makes CNN

2011-11-06T09:50:00.000-08:00

This isn't the same story that was told earlier, but I still have the same question: Why has there not been an arrest of the football player who hit the coach?

Top 10 Signs for Kindergarten work for High School as well

2011-11-06T05:42:00.000-08:00

Please read my Common Core post as well.

From John Pearson at Learn Me Good, who took it from Matthew at Look At My Happy Rainbow who took it from Heidi Butkus at Heidisongs Resource

The Top Ten Signs You Work in Public School

1. The best person that can be found to teach K/1 teachers how to teach any subject is someone who has only taught high school.
2. If you were to add up the hours it takes to teach all of the required lessons in all of the teachers manuals in all of the subjects, they would total more than 22 hours of direct instruction per day.
3. Your current reading program is very similar to one that you have used before, way back two generations ago when the curricular pendulum swung the other direction. (I guess the advantage is that if you don’t like what you currently have, wait around for a couple of years and another curriculum or theory du jour will be in vogue to take its place!)
4. The curriculum that was chosen for you to use in Kindergarten was based on how well it works in some other grade level.
5. There is a teacher at your school that regularly calls in sick more days than she actually teaches, and somehow manages to hang on to her job.
6. You have had an LCD projector mounted on your ceiling for two years, but there is no money for a screen so you cannot use it. Or vice versa.
7. Three years after you have been given a new math program, they find the money to train you on how to use it.
8. Your legislature is thinking of increasing your hours but not your pay.
9. You know what your kids need to learn, but you don’t have time to do it because of all of the required programs.
10. The best way to make sure your kids learn (and therefore keep your job) is to close your door and do what you know works for your students!

How common will Common Core be?

2011-11-06T05:33:00.000-08:00

OK, 45 states have now signed on for Common Core. Only Texas, Alaska, Virginia, Minnesota and Nebraska have not adopted CC.

Georgia is unleashing Georgia Common Core next year. And I see Montana has its version. I have a feeling that we will have 45 different common core versions.

Is that really common?

What is your state going to do?

Set your clocks back!

2011-11-05T19:47:00.000-07:00

Warren County and Hancock County

2011-11-05T08:23:00.000-07:00

I have written before about the Warren County-Hancock County football game where the Hancock players beat up the Warren County Coach on October 14.

There are still no arrests.

There has been a Hancock County BOE meeting, where they banned cameras, which is against the law in Georgia. It will remain to be seen if the culprit was the Baptist Church who hosted the meeting or the County.

Now the story is that both teams were swinging helmets.

Six Word Saturday times 3

2011-11-05T03:16:00.000-07:00

A good leader smooths the way.

A leader doesn't complicate the chaos.

Government as boss? Duck and cover.

For more Six Word Saturday participants, click here.
Enough said.

Bright Eyes

2011-11-04T17:47:00.000-07:00

by Mike 'The Wombles' Batt.

Is it a kind of dream,
Floating out on the tide,
Following the river of death downstream?
Oh, is it a dream?

There's a fog along the horizon,
A strange glow in the sky,
And nobody seems to know where you go,
And what does it mean?
Oh, is it a dream?

Bright eyes,
Burning like fire.
Bright eyes,
How can you close and fail?
How can the light that burned so brightly
Suddenly burn so pale?
Bright eyes.

Is it a kind of shadow,
Reaching into the night,
Wandering over the hills unseen,
Or is it a dream?

There's a high wind in the trees,
A cold sound in the air,
And nobody ever knows when you go,
And where do you start,
Oh, into the dark.

Bright eyes,
burning like fire.
Bright eyes,
how can you close and fail?
How can the light that burned so brightly
Suddenly burn so pale?
Bright eyes.

Bright eyes,
burning like fire.
Bright eyes,
how can you close and fail?
How can the light that burned so brightly
Suddenly burn so pale?
Bright eyes

The Queen of Chutzpah

2011-11-04T15:06:00.000-07:00

I live next door to the Queen. I will not bore you with the entire boring story, but we used to be friends several centuries ago. Then she put in a pool, asked another friend to tell me that Queen was worried I would invite myself over (why, I never had)and that was the end.

So, we are doing a little work in the yard and putting in some cool things. She showed up at my door and said I should have a part and invite her. I think I should call that other friend with a request that Queen not invited herself over.

Or just ignore her as I have for a very long time.

Meetings: because they cannot think of another way to waste our time.

2011-11-02T16:14:00.000-07:00

Early release. All afternoon in meetings. To make up for the one we had after school yesterday. Oh, gag me.

Let's learn four new things you want me to incorporate into the class before Thanksgiving.

Lame

2011-11-01T17:16:00.000-07:00

Les Nessman refuses to pronounce my name correctly. He so totally over-pronounces it that it has to be a deliberate slight.

Just grow up, Les.

Had a meeting after school - six times he called on me - and mispronounced it everytime.

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T14:42:00.000-07:00

The past is not where you live

2011-10-30T15:06:00.001-07:00

Ricochet

Wishing I was here

Someone will choose - who?

Normal

My students are not close to grasping this

insanity

Lessons of ineffective administrators #1

Six Word Saturday

It turns out . . .

Blog party!

Wow I was nominated!!

The Power of a Teacher

Liberals don't seem to get it - hope you read this.

This is so much better than what we are being offered

Six Word Saturday

What would YOU do?

SOPA again

The internet is going dark

Those who walk into your life

Algebra 2 for all - no

What are the youth coming to?

Haven't been posting

Baggage

Six Word Saturday

Mood swings

Baggage

349 days

You can't fix stupid 2

Hi, my name is Joe

Willing to learn?

and more

** sigh **

Six Word Saturday

A prayer for 2012

Back to school

Happy New Year's Day

Happy New Years!

Hmmm

Happy New Year!!

Six Word Saturday

SOPA battle is warming up.

Merry Christmas

December 2012

People

I fall to pieces

SOPA

Best of Dixie

Six Word Saturday

And another one gets knocked up

Merry Christmas

Dougherty teachers caught cheating as well.

Support people who hinder instead

Six Word Saturday

Question for high school teachers: how long does it take to read a page out loud?

Six Word Saturday

Lifetime Learners

Procrastination

Pride goeth before the fall

asthma sufferers - please read.

Our New Administration

Six Word Saturday

Will you lose your job if we fail?

Algebra 2 for all

Letting go

Six Word Saturday

Foldables and GPS resources

Love Story

Rebuilding

So - would you take a seat?

everything has some use

Fashion

What I am reading: Breaking the Code **update **

cookies - the best part of the holidays

Six Word Saturday

Old times

Foldables

Happy Tuesday

Occupy

Future of Cheating

Six Word Saturday

sigh

What I am reading: Breaking the Code update