About a year ago, I started freaking out with the whole prospect of video taping my class for the National Board Certification. Was I crazy? Why did I pick my worst teaching year to complete this project? My most challenging kids to put on camera? Turns out that challenging students had the most interesting things to write about as I analyzed my video tapes. What could I have done better? What will I do differently next time? How did my knowledge of students affect my in the moment decisions? So many decisions, so many possibilities. What is important? The National Board process combined with challenging kids really threw me for a loop producing my second most formative year as a teacher (besides student teaching and the first year of solo teaching!). Last year, I matured more as an educator... I'm not just treading water anymore, trying to survive in the water's whim. I've built my own raft (based on content area knowledge, pedagogy, and knowledge of students) and now I am navigating the waters to where I know the river needs to go.
About 9 months ago, we had our first dinner with Evans and Emily, two folks who lived in San Anselmo at SFTS. I had never met them before and here they were walking into my apartment for dinner. We made pizza for them, they brought a salad. We had wonderful polite conversation, sipped our wine, and started to get to know each other. Evans was in the middle of his 2nd year in seminary. Emily was training to be a massage therapist. They were interesting, nice folk. Many similar beliefs and life desires. One of the best things was Emily was from Michigan, about 35 minutes from where I grew up!
About 2.5 months ago, we got our first housing rejection email. "You sound like great people, any landlord would be lucky to have you." "Too many people in the space." "This house is too old for a group, so we rented it to a small family" (as if kids running around are better than careful adults!). It was a big blow to our excitement. Back to craigslist for more houses!
Today was a good day at school. I had the students sort out 2-step equation puzzles, then we took notes on the proper steps and justifications. (properties of equality and inverses). I forgot to bring my phone numbers home... lucky for the students who I told I was going to call home on! (too much talking is the sin of the teenager, especially when they're not allowed to use their cell phones!).
No comments:
Post a Comment