In about 2 weeks, I will be starting an online class called Mondo Beyondo. I will be dreaming big for 5 weeks. I'm excited and very curious. As a capricorn and a 1 (enneagram), dreaming is not easy. Hopefully this class will open up some deep reflection and inspiration! Who knows what the future will hold? I just need to allow myself to be able to vision it, to dream big and see what happens!
Yesterday, I decided that I would modify the P90X into a P30X workout program. New goal: get moving for at least 30 minutes a day. Today I was successful in getting up and doing the Cardio video first thing. Unfortunately, I pretty much bummed around the rest of the day. Still on vacation from school, so I can't do too much in one day. At least I accomplished one positive thing!
Three days ago, Grant and I celebrated Christmas by taking our dear friends to the airport at 4:45am, then came home, ate bagels with cream cheese and lox, went back to bed and watched a movie. We slept for a while, lazily got up, called the parents, and then headed over to my best friend's boyfriend's house for Christmas dinner. The day after Christmas was even better, just hanging out with Grant the entire day, playing games, watching movies, eating yummy leftovers, and enjoying our time together.
About two weeks ago, I finished the last class in my Masters of Instructional Leadership program at National University. Now I wait until I can get an official transcript that says I earned my degree so that I can take it to the HR department and get my bump on the salary schedule. Hopefully it will go into effect this year. Super bummer if I have they make me wait until next school year!
About 3 weeks ago, during a house meeting, we set up a new blog. There are not very many posts on it yet. Hopefully that will change in the new year.
About 1.5 months ago I got an email from the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards to let me know that the scores would be posted the morning of November 20, the day that we would start Thanksgiving break. I would finally know whether I had achieved boards or not. The morning came, and I checked online in between my 2nd and 3rd period classes. Yea! What a relief! I passed! I am now a National Board Certified Teacher! Now what? I would ponder this for the next month (and I am still pondering this question into the new year).
About 6 months ago, we started to earnestly look for a new house to live in. Had to have at least 3 bedrooms. If only 3 bedrooms, then it had to have two common areas that we could use for a living room and for a work space. Storage would be great. A garage would be awesome. In a good neighborhood (for my sake - I didn't want to live in the same neighborhood that I taught in). We looked at Craigslist daily (even hourly). We made phone calls to set up viewings. We drafted applications. We learned a lot about each other's financial backgrounds. We drove around. We met potential landlords. We fell in love with several houses. Then Grant and I left it all to chance (well, not chance, just deep trust of Evans and Emily, our future housemates) by starting our trip on the John Muir Trail.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
We Learn the Most from the Challenging Situations
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!).
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!).
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Worlds Collide = God's Message for Work in My Life?
About two and a half years ago: Grant and I had dinner with our friend Ryan and dreamed about what it would be like to live in community. What would it be like to raise your kids with another family? To have one large nursery at first... then maybe a huge boys room and a huge girls room? (not quite like The Duggar's)
About one year ago: I was teaching a yoga class at Oakland Yoga Studio every Wednesday afternoon from 4:30-5:30pm. Grant could never come because he had a schedule conflict (school or work or something). My best friend, Marisa, was my loyal student. We spent some good quality time together. No one else seem to realize that I was teaching a class there. Hmm. The owner of the studio gave me an incredible rate. I gave myself 3 months to try it out. August, September, October... then I came to realize that the schedule was too hard to maintain. I could not run from staff meetings on Wednesday afternoons to yoga teacher mode.
About 6 months ago: I did something really crazy... I sent in my portfolio for certification with the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. This is the cream of the crop in teaching credentials. Most teacher strive to meet the minimum requirements it takes to get into the classroom legally. The national boards are for teachers who want to take their commitment to continue to grow as a professional to a new level. Only after 5 years in the classroom could I have even dreamed that something like this process would have been possible. But wow. I am certainly a better teacher for having done this... and did I mention how hard those students were last year? I'll know in December whether I passed...
Today: I attended a seminar about how I will work with an interdisciplinary team of 9th grade teachers to diagnose our students' learning needs based on inquiry of their current learning conditions and trying out new and different strategies. We do this alot anyways, but now we're talking about it as a team. We'll be tracking the progress of a select group of focus student to help us focus our work as teachers. The conversation about priviledge and oppression, and about the class and racial dynamics that take place in the classroom strangely correlate with the intercultural work that we are engaging in as a church congregation over at FCCO. Hmm. My worlds collide again.
About one year ago: I was teaching a yoga class at Oakland Yoga Studio every Wednesday afternoon from 4:30-5:30pm. Grant could never come because he had a schedule conflict (school or work or something). My best friend, Marisa, was my loyal student. We spent some good quality time together. No one else seem to realize that I was teaching a class there. Hmm. The owner of the studio gave me an incredible rate. I gave myself 3 months to try it out. August, September, October... then I came to realize that the schedule was too hard to maintain. I could not run from staff meetings on Wednesday afternoons to yoga teacher mode.
About 6 months ago: I did something really crazy... I sent in my portfolio for certification with the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. This is the cream of the crop in teaching credentials. Most teacher strive to meet the minimum requirements it takes to get into the classroom legally. The national boards are for teachers who want to take their commitment to continue to grow as a professional to a new level. Only after 5 years in the classroom could I have even dreamed that something like this process would have been possible. But wow. I am certainly a better teacher for having done this... and did I mention how hard those students were last year? I'll know in December whether I passed...
Today: I attended a seminar about how I will work with an interdisciplinary team of 9th grade teachers to diagnose our students' learning needs based on inquiry of their current learning conditions and trying out new and different strategies. We do this alot anyways, but now we're talking about it as a team. We'll be tracking the progress of a select group of focus student to help us focus our work as teachers. The conversation about priviledge and oppression, and about the class and racial dynamics that take place in the classroom strangely correlate with the intercultural work that we are engaging in as a church congregation over at FCCO. Hmm. My worlds collide again.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
A New Format
About one year ago: As an experienced math teacher, I was highly encouraged to teach the most challenging class at my school -- 9th Grade Algebra 1. I taught all freshmen, all day. They (meaning the students) really did make it challenging. One of my hardest years was 2008-2009. Another reason why this blog went un-updated for so long.
About 10 months ago: Grant met Evans, a student at San Francisco Theological Union, another person who was interested in living in community.
About 1 month ago: I moved all of 6 blocks away from our apartment. I am soooo thankful that we're still in the same (approximately) neighborhood.
Today: Spent the day at a PD getting excited about how to make my classroom more exciting.. (for me and the students). We practiced some Kagen strategies (to get kids working in groups and talking about their learning). I got some (embarrassingly so) public recognition for the work that I did last year with my freshman (moving students out of Far Below Basic and Below Basic into Basic and Proficient categories for the state standardized testing. Tomorrow, I head back into the classroom to hang out with kids, teach a little math, and celebrate the retirement of a beloved secretary. (you know, it really is the secretaries that run the school, right?)
About 10 months ago: Grant met Evans, a student at San Francisco Theological Union, another person who was interested in living in community.
About 1 month ago: I moved all of 6 blocks away from our apartment. I am soooo thankful that we're still in the same (approximately) neighborhood.
Today: Spent the day at a PD getting excited about how to make my classroom more exciting.. (for me and the students). We practiced some Kagen strategies (to get kids working in groups and talking about their learning). I got some (embarrassingly so) public recognition for the work that I did last year with my freshman (moving students out of Far Below Basic and Below Basic into Basic and Proficient categories for the state standardized testing. Tomorrow, I head back into the classroom to hang out with kids, teach a little math, and celebrate the retirement of a beloved secretary. (you know, it really is the secretaries that run the school, right?)
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Happy 09!
Fitting that today is 09-09-09 and the last day I wrote was 08-08-08. What a crazy and interesting and challenging year, month, and day it has been! I wish I had included you all in it. I'm about to change all that... a new goal for myself... to write at least one post per week. With my part-time-self, I should be able to find the time to do at least that. To increase your anticipation of posts to come, I will leave you with THIS LINK, and let you wonder what is going on.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
2nd Class Reflection
I had my second yoga class earlier this evening at Oakland Yoga Studio. It was surprising how nervous I got before class. I have taught more than 30 classes to my high school students over the last school year. But something is just a little different with adults. (I think I've said this before somewhere). Anyways, I had 3 students today... 1 returning and 2 new students. I knew all of my students before they were in class. They either came from church or from my advanced studies program.
Here is a story and two pictures to describe more about how I feel... right now and about teaching in general...
So, I had a plan - cut the nectarine in half, eat half for breakfast and half for lunch. I used a sharp knife and started to cut down the middle of the fruit. I hit the pit and continued to turn the entire nectarine around until the slit went all the way through, except for the pit. Then I grabbed one half of the nectarine in each palm and tried twisting the two halves apart. This did not work.
Next, I decided to try cutting the fruit into quarters. I cut another slit all the way through, turned over the fruit. Started twisting again. This did not loosen any fruit off the pit.
My third attempt included putting the knife blade against the pit, like a wedge, and then wiggling the knife back and forth. This did work! First I got one quarter off... then another quarter off... and then look!
Not quite what you expected, huh. Well, I didn't expect it either! But that is the way with teaching. You have a plan. You implement the plan. You modify it spur of the moment. And if you're lucky, you are successful in doing what you set out to do.
You just have to be open to the possibility that being successful, might not look like what you thought it should have when you first started planning your lesson. And you have to be open to changing the plan as you go and knowing that sometimes there needs to be wiggle room for your students to bring in their own interpretation of the lesson.
I was successful with cutting the fruit. I ate half a fruit at breakfast and half at lunch. The fruit just had a different idea of what half and half should look like. I was successful in teaching my second class. It really did go well. But my sequence was too long and I had to modify and shorten to fit the most important poses and instructions into my hour long class.
Hope to see you all next Wednesday!
Here is a story and two pictures to describe more about how I feel... right now and about teaching in general...
So, I had a plan - cut the nectarine in half, eat half for breakfast and half for lunch. I used a sharp knife and started to cut down the middle of the fruit. I hit the pit and continued to turn the entire nectarine around until the slit went all the way through, except for the pit. Then I grabbed one half of the nectarine in each palm and tried twisting the two halves apart. This did not work.
Next, I decided to try cutting the fruit into quarters. I cut another slit all the way through, turned over the fruit. Started twisting again. This did not loosen any fruit off the pit.
My third attempt included putting the knife blade against the pit, like a wedge, and then wiggling the knife back and forth. This did work! First I got one quarter off... then another quarter off... and then look!
Not quite what you expected, huh. Well, I didn't expect it either! But that is the way with teaching. You have a plan. You implement the plan. You modify it spur of the moment. And if you're lucky, you are successful in doing what you set out to do.You just have to be open to the possibility that being successful, might not look like what you thought it should have when you first started planning your lesson. And you have to be open to changing the plan as you go and knowing that sometimes there needs to be wiggle room for your students to bring in their own interpretation of the lesson.
I was successful with cutting the fruit. I ate half a fruit at breakfast and half at lunch. The fruit just had a different idea of what half and half should look like. I was successful in teaching my second class. It really did go well. But my sequence was too long and I had to modify and shorten to fit the most important poses and instructions into my hour long class.
Hope to see you all next Wednesday!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Grounded and Courage
The first of (hopefully) many yoga classes that I will teach was a fine class. I had four lovely students join me for an hour of hamstring lengthening, hip opening, and chest expansion. Yeah! And I know that there were other people out there who will be coming in the next few sessions, so it looks like we're good to go for August.
Following advice from my lovely husband, I journaled my internal experiences as I practiced my teaching sequence yesterday morning so that I would have words to express the feelings to my students. As I was going through this process, two words came to mind: Grounded and Courage.
It seemed simple enough to me. Courage, yes, I was starting a new class. Must have courage. At 4:18pm when no one had shown up yet and I started to worry and wonder about what I would do for an hour with no students. I didn't run away. I didn't hide in the bathroom. I had enough courage to even show up to the studio, unlock the front gate, and prepare myself for whoever would arrive. Being grounded (or grounding) was some of the work we did in class preparing for some challenging balancing poses. But how else do these words work together?
One thought: The student must focus on grounding the standing leg before entering poses like Tree Pose. The top leg is more interesting but the bottom leg (the leg actually keeping you up) is more important... rooting down as you lift up through the torso and arms. This strength in being rooted to the earth enables the student to have courage to lift up one leg and stand on the other... to risk imbalance for a moment.
Is this true?
Here are my still unanswered questions:
Is it easier to have courage (to risk change, to step out into an unknown, to challenge oneself) when one is grounded (when one knows who they are)?
Does being grounded inhibit courage?
Is there some resistance to change that happens because you are grounded/rooted?
Is it easier to have courage when you are not grounded in anything at all? (having nothing to lose? or don't know the difference) Or is that just being reckless?
Perhaps it is true for me. I need comfort, dependability, stability, small steps, very controlled risk, very planned spontaneity. That is the comfort that Yoga gives me (or at least the kind of yoga that I have been practicing). I can see the goal ahead and I know that the steps to get there might be very small as my body learns to move in new ways. But from that strong foundation I will be able to challenge myself to do things I never thought I would have done before starting my practice... like headstands and handstands and ... teaching yoga!
Following advice from my lovely husband, I journaled my internal experiences as I practiced my teaching sequence yesterday morning so that I would have words to express the feelings to my students. As I was going through this process, two words came to mind: Grounded and Courage.
It seemed simple enough to me. Courage, yes, I was starting a new class. Must have courage. At 4:18pm when no one had shown up yet and I started to worry and wonder about what I would do for an hour with no students. I didn't run away. I didn't hide in the bathroom. I had enough courage to even show up to the studio, unlock the front gate, and prepare myself for whoever would arrive. Being grounded (or grounding) was some of the work we did in class preparing for some challenging balancing poses. But how else do these words work together?
One thought: The student must focus on grounding the standing leg before entering poses like Tree Pose. The top leg is more interesting but the bottom leg (the leg actually keeping you up) is more important... rooting down as you lift up through the torso and arms. This strength in being rooted to the earth enables the student to have courage to lift up one leg and stand on the other... to risk imbalance for a moment.
Is this true?
Here are my still unanswered questions:
Is it easier to have courage (to risk change, to step out into an unknown, to challenge oneself) when one is grounded (when one knows who they are)?
Does being grounded inhibit courage?
Is there some resistance to change that happens because you are grounded/rooted?
Is it easier to have courage when you are not grounded in anything at all? (having nothing to lose? or don't know the difference) Or is that just being reckless?
Perhaps it is true for me. I need comfort, dependability, stability, small steps, very controlled risk, very planned spontaneity. That is the comfort that Yoga gives me (or at least the kind of yoga that I have been practicing). I can see the goal ahead and I know that the steps to get there might be very small as my body learns to move in new ways. But from that strong foundation I will be able to challenge myself to do things I never thought I would have done before starting my practice... like headstands and handstands and ... teaching yoga!
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Let Your Life Speak
Do you know what these are?
Before Grant left for work today, he set these on a book that I am reading. Perhaps as a hint that he wants me to do something with them sometime today.
If someone asked you to do something with these things, would you know what to do? Incidentally, the book is called, "Let Your Life Speak - Listening for the Voice of Vocation," and so far I have not been inspired. I've been listening and I have heard neither the answer to what to do with these little rolls that say "exposed" on them or what to do with my life vocationally (I wish that was vacationally) to let it speak out.
Another HINT... Grant and I went for a walk last night around the neighborhood on the way to our tea date. Nearing the top of a hill he stopped walking and pulled this thing out...
Muttering something like... I have 3 more to go... just three, then we can go have tea.
Well, I also have three more to go too. 3 more hours to just hang out and bite my nails and worry and wonder and get excited for my first adult yoga class. Could this be my life speaking?
Before Grant left for work today, he set these on a book that I am reading. Perhaps as a hint that he wants me to do something with them sometime today.If someone asked you to do something with these things, would you know what to do? Incidentally, the book is called, "Let Your Life Speak - Listening for the Voice of Vocation," and so far I have not been inspired. I've been listening and I have heard neither the answer to what to do with these little rolls that say "exposed" on them or what to do with my life vocationally (I wish that was vacationally) to let it speak out.
Another HINT... Grant and I went for a walk last night around the neighborhood on the way to our tea date. Nearing the top of a hill he stopped walking and pulled this thing out...
Muttering something like... I have 3 more to go... just three, then we can go have tea.Well, I also have three more to go too. 3 more hours to just hang out and bite my nails and worry and wonder and get excited for my first adult yoga class. Could this be my life speaking?
Monday, July 28, 2008
Grant's Sermon -- Listen Online
Delivering another moving sermon, fresh with insight from his chaplancy internship, Grant Kinney did an excellent job of leading worship and holding our church together on Sunday when both our senior pastor and music minister were gone.
Please listen to Grant online at the First Congregational Church of Oakland Website!
Please listen to Grant online at the First Congregational Church of Oakland Website!
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