Unorganized and unprepared
Haha, I sound like those Mary Janice Davidson books, the ones with Betsy, Queen of the Vampires. Completely unintentional, I assure you.
Anyway, two weeks into the school year in the new building, and things are kind of settling down. I have my AP Gov't on the A/B schedule, Honors Econ/Current Issues, and a regular (with a co-teacher) Econ/CI. I have to say, I think I have really good kids this semester (and now that I say that they're all going to turn into raving lunatics). Not that I ever have "bad" kids, but there are some that are more...challenging (discipline-wise) or trying (personality conflicts) than others. None of those issues so far this year. My classes are packed to the max (32 in the econ, 24 in the AP), so there's not much room in the room, which I swear is smaller than last year.
I'm feeling more than the usual beginning of the year disorganization. Maybe it's the new building and new systems, maybe I haven't figured out an organizational routine that works in my new room, or maybe its the different planning period from the one I've had for the past few years. Whatever the cause, I've been working like a fiend. I stay there most nights til 7 or 8, then drag myself home and do more work while laying in bed. I've spent so much time away, PC bit me one night when I went to lay down! She's getting lonely during the day when I'm at work. She's glaring at me right now because I have my laptop on my lap rather than her.
I also feel much more cut off from everyone else in the department than I'm used to. I'm the last social studies person on the hall, and we're really split among two halls. If I could dig through the back wall in my room I would be able to get to the other department members. There's a math person next to me (but his door is 2 classroom lengths away), and the empty art room is across the hall. Jeremy's door is right next to mine, so I talk to him, but we pretty much don't get to see anyone else in our department. Jeremy and I have a theory that it is because there is a set of fire doors between us and the other social studies people on the hall. We can't prove it, but it might be so.
Anyway, Jeremy and I did have a meeting on Friday with a woman from CloseUp, because we're trying to get a trip together to Washington DC over Spring Break, primarily for our AP kids. But who knows, we'll have to see if we can get enough kids to go.
I realize this post doesn't really say anything substantial, but sometimes I just need to write for the sake of writing.
Anyway, two weeks into the school year in the new building, and things are kind of settling down. I have my AP Gov't on the A/B schedule, Honors Econ/Current Issues, and a regular (with a co-teacher) Econ/CI. I have to say, I think I have really good kids this semester (and now that I say that they're all going to turn into raving lunatics). Not that I ever have "bad" kids, but there are some that are more...challenging (discipline-wise) or trying (personality conflicts) than others. None of those issues so far this year. My classes are packed to the max (32 in the econ, 24 in the AP), so there's not much room in the room, which I swear is smaller than last year.
I'm feeling more than the usual beginning of the year disorganization. Maybe it's the new building and new systems, maybe I haven't figured out an organizational routine that works in my new room, or maybe its the different planning period from the one I've had for the past few years. Whatever the cause, I've been working like a fiend. I stay there most nights til 7 or 8, then drag myself home and do more work while laying in bed. I've spent so much time away, PC bit me one night when I went to lay down! She's getting lonely during the day when I'm at work. She's glaring at me right now because I have my laptop on my lap rather than her.
I also feel much more cut off from everyone else in the department than I'm used to. I'm the last social studies person on the hall, and we're really split among two halls. If I could dig through the back wall in my room I would be able to get to the other department members. There's a math person next to me (but his door is 2 classroom lengths away), and the empty art room is across the hall. Jeremy's door is right next to mine, so I talk to him, but we pretty much don't get to see anyone else in our department. Jeremy and I have a theory that it is because there is a set of fire doors between us and the other social studies people on the hall. We can't prove it, but it might be so.
Anyway, Jeremy and I did have a meeting on Friday with a woman from CloseUp, because we're trying to get a trip together to Washington DC over Spring Break, primarily for our AP kids. But who knows, we'll have to see if we can get enough kids to go.
I realize this post doesn't really say anything substantial, but sometimes I just need to write for the sake of writing.