Yaaaay! It's payday!
So we're in Journalism I and I have a bunch of students who have waited until the very last possible moment to contact their advertisers. Big surprise there. And they're like "but Ms. Clix, they weren't open yesterday!" Well who's had this assignment for a month?
AURGH! So. Frustrating.
And students who have waited until the very last possible moment to do their photo shoots. Seriously. WTF. I'm frustrated and tired.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Good Habits - September 28
Only two more days until payday - I think we'll make it! WOOT!
So today is definitely going to be interesting. I only got fiveish hours of sleep last night; I was ready for bed around nine but I wasn't sleepy, so I wound up puttering around for another couple of hours... putting things away, doing a little laundry, downloading photos I thought I'd show one of my teacher-friends. Worked on the costume some more. That sort of thing.
And then I was wiiiide awake at oh-dark-thirty this morning. Got up just after five. And I've got students staying after today to make up work, and I've got dance tonight so ... I might be able to take a nap if we go RIGHT home after the students finish their work and I go right to bed, but not much. Fortunately class is 6:30-7:30 tonight - I think - so it's not like I'll be out late.
It is SO easy for me to get distracted. Facebook, tooth-brushing, vitamins, grading, breakfast... just a bunch of things say "hey, don't forget about me!" And the thing is, they're things that I will forget if I'm not careful. Well, except Facebook. I don't know if you can 'forget' that since it's not really something you need to do.
Wish I could say that about grading. :P
I'm nervous about my JRL 1s. Sooo many of them have NOT turned in their photo shoots. They're to have three of them turned in by - oh! - TOMORROW. GRRR. I just know I'm going to get a bunch of photos of classes doing zilch. Like working out of the book or something. Which I guess isn't too too bad for the first time we've done this as an assignment... I dunno. Next month one of the criteria for completion is definitely going to be "activity other than reading, notes, or bookwork."
Need to do some more planning on my next unit - got a week or two left on 1984, but I don't want to get down to the wire. But that'll go over on Epic Adventures... plus I already met my word count. Yey!
So today is definitely going to be interesting. I only got fiveish hours of sleep last night; I was ready for bed around nine but I wasn't sleepy, so I wound up puttering around for another couple of hours... putting things away, doing a little laundry, downloading photos I thought I'd show one of my teacher-friends. Worked on the costume some more. That sort of thing.
And then I was wiiiide awake at oh-dark-thirty this morning. Got up just after five. And I've got students staying after today to make up work, and I've got dance tonight so ... I might be able to take a nap if we go RIGHT home after the students finish their work and I go right to bed, but not much. Fortunately class is 6:30-7:30 tonight - I think - so it's not like I'll be out late.
It is SO easy for me to get distracted. Facebook, tooth-brushing, vitamins, grading, breakfast... just a bunch of things say "hey, don't forget about me!" And the thing is, they're things that I will forget if I'm not careful. Well, except Facebook. I don't know if you can 'forget' that since it's not really something you need to do.
Wish I could say that about grading. :P
I'm nervous about my JRL 1s. Sooo many of them have NOT turned in their photo shoots. They're to have three of them turned in by - oh! - TOMORROW. GRRR. I just know I'm going to get a bunch of photos of classes doing zilch. Like working out of the book or something. Which I guess isn't too too bad for the first time we've done this as an assignment... I dunno. Next month one of the criteria for completion is definitely going to be "activity other than reading, notes, or bookwork."
Need to do some more planning on my next unit - got a week or two left on 1984, but I don't want to get down to the wire. But that'll go over on Epic Adventures... plus I already met my word count. Yey!
Monday, September 27, 2010
Good Habits - September 27
So - yeah.
I really don't like writing these things. There's just SO MUCH going on at school that I can't just write and I'm only writing because I've told myself that I ought to and that it's good for me and I don't WANT TO WRITE DAMMIT.
But I can't go for my walk yet because I'm still charging my mp3 player. Oo, that reminds me - I need to charge my phone. Part of me says, Clix, go get the phone NOW and put it on the charger, or you'll forget. But then that interrupts my writing time. Now does that matter? Because I haven't set myself a time-goal anyway; mine's word count. Does it matter if I get to my word count all in one go or here and there? Or not? And now that I've included this little thought-process on here, maybe I'll remember to put my phone on the charger after all. I'm going to try to remember. We'll see how that goes.
And... I'm done. Of course, I haven't met my word count yet. But I don't have much else that I want to write about. I'd rather check facebook. Or gather up my library books and stack them up on the top shelf of my desk where I said I'd keep them. Of course, that space is now taken up with get-well and thinking-of-you cards. Hm.
I got a necklace today from one of my students! So thoughtful. Oo, I need to remember to take my hospital 'bracelet' off. I feel silly when I forget about it until I'm in bed and it's uncomfortable but I don't want to get up and... bleh. Anyway the necklace is a cute little breast cancer ... button ... thing on a black ribbon. It's quite darling!! I'm so delighted by it. ^.^
Also today I started putting the grommets on my Rapunzel costume. It is SOOOO nerve-wracking, let me tell you. I could feel my pulse speeding up. And I started sweating. I went to the home ec classroom and sat with the sewing teacher and hyperventilated the whole way through. I think she found it quite entertaining. ;) I'm really excited! I think the costume is going to look awesome.
And hopefully by now I've met my word count!
WOOT! I did. ^.^
I really don't like writing these things. There's just SO MUCH going on at school that I can't just write and I'm only writing because I've told myself that I ought to and that it's good for me and I don't WANT TO WRITE DAMMIT.
But I can't go for my walk yet because I'm still charging my mp3 player. Oo, that reminds me - I need to charge my phone. Part of me says, Clix, go get the phone NOW and put it on the charger, or you'll forget. But then that interrupts my writing time. Now does that matter? Because I haven't set myself a time-goal anyway; mine's word count. Does it matter if I get to my word count all in one go or here and there? Or not? And now that I've included this little thought-process on here, maybe I'll remember to put my phone on the charger after all. I'm going to try to remember. We'll see how that goes.
And... I'm done. Of course, I haven't met my word count yet. But I don't have much else that I want to write about. I'd rather check facebook. Or gather up my library books and stack them up on the top shelf of my desk where I said I'd keep them. Of course, that space is now taken up with get-well and thinking-of-you cards. Hm.
I got a necklace today from one of my students! So thoughtful. Oo, I need to remember to take my hospital 'bracelet' off. I feel silly when I forget about it until I'm in bed and it's uncomfortable but I don't want to get up and... bleh. Anyway the necklace is a cute little breast cancer ... button ... thing on a black ribbon. It's quite darling!! I'm so delighted by it. ^.^
Also today I started putting the grommets on my Rapunzel costume. It is SOOOO nerve-wracking, let me tell you. I could feel my pulse speeding up. And I started sweating. I went to the home ec classroom and sat with the sewing teacher and hyperventilated the whole way through. I think she found it quite entertaining. ;) I'm really excited! I think the costume is going to look awesome.
And hopefully by now I've met my word count!
WOOT! I did. ^.^
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Good Habits - September 25
I'm sick of poo.
Seriously. One of the things I never knew about chemo is how much my life would become about poo. Let me tell you, it is apparently hell on the digestive system. I knew I would be nauseous, but the poo? They don't tell you about the poo.
I need something stronger than Tums. I've been chomping these things down like they're frickin' M&Ms. Well, maybe not quite in those numbers. How about like Starbursts? I mean, I'm not putting a handful in my mouth at the same time and chowing down...
Then again, I really don't eat M&Ms. So maybe that's inaccurate for other reasons.
But yeah, I was up every hour or two last night to grab some more Tums and head to the potty. *sigh* Very annoying when you're so damn tired and you're also disturbing someone ELSE's sleep. Blih.
But now I'm awake, at least for a little bit. And I'm going to update Goodreads.
Seriously. One of the things I never knew about chemo is how much my life would become about poo. Let me tell you, it is apparently hell on the digestive system. I knew I would be nauseous, but the poo? They don't tell you about the poo.
I need something stronger than Tums. I've been chomping these things down like they're frickin' M&Ms. Well, maybe not quite in those numbers. How about like Starbursts? I mean, I'm not putting a handful in my mouth at the same time and chowing down...
Then again, I really don't eat M&Ms. So maybe that's inaccurate for other reasons.
But yeah, I was up every hour or two last night to grab some more Tums and head to the potty. *sigh* Very annoying when you're so damn tired and you're also disturbing someone ELSE's sleep. Blih.
But now I'm awake, at least for a little bit. And I'm going to update Goodreads.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Good Habits - September 24
Hoo boy, I'm tired. I don't know if I even slept at all last night. Journalism just started and the prompt is "What is the most important thing you have learned from school in the last four years? Why?"
I told them that the most important thing I had learned was that work is much more pleasant when you like the people you're working with.
I've got to get the supplement printed out and get some help proofing that. I had someone offer to help and it just needs a new set of eyes. Ditto for the newspaper. I also need to call the printer and make sure we can send it Monday and get it back by Wednesday.
The Journalism students are doing bookwork. I'm SO tired.
English II is nice and quiet. They're all playing catch-up. I think after lunch I'm going to offer them a chance to get some extra credit by writing DonorsChoose thank you letters.
I feel like I'm cheating. By the time I get students settled and working on THEIR freewrites, and I take attendance and review the lesson plan, I only have a few minutes to write. So it's just kind of a jumbled bit of nothing that goes here.
Oh well. I guess kind-of-nothing is better than ACTUAL nothing, eh?
I told them that the most important thing I had learned was that work is much more pleasant when you like the people you're working with.
I've got to get the supplement printed out and get some help proofing that. I had someone offer to help and it just needs a new set of eyes. Ditto for the newspaper. I also need to call the printer and make sure we can send it Monday and get it back by Wednesday.
The Journalism students are doing bookwork. I'm SO tired.
English II is nice and quiet. They're all playing catch-up. I think after lunch I'm going to offer them a chance to get some extra credit by writing DonorsChoose thank you letters.
I feel like I'm cheating. By the time I get students settled and working on THEIR freewrites, and I take attendance and review the lesson plan, I only have a few minutes to write. So it's just kind of a jumbled bit of nothing that goes here.
Oh well. I guess kind-of-nothing is better than ACTUAL nothing, eh?
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Good Habits - September 22
Back at school today. Yesterday was ... interesting. Stayed home and in bed most of the day. Kept my phone handy because I asked my Journalism Gremlins to report in.
So of course today is catchup-day. I've got a meeting during planning but we don't have enough people here for the activity we were supposed to do together. It really irritates me because it's due tomorrow, and the person who requested that we meet today isn't here! AURGH!
I have a meeting after school today and I don't think I'm going to make it. I'm ready to go home and take a nap. WHEW.
It's incredibly frustrating to hear from several colleagues in my department that they just want to play along with our current professional development. Kind of like, keep your head down and do what you've always done and hopefully you won't get reamed out for it. And I'm thinking... what about becoming a better teacher? Why NOT actually work together, like they've given us time for, instead of just doing what we've always done? Why NOT review work together rather than slogging through it alone?
Hearing my fellow teachers complain that they don't understand what our PD coordinator wants is discouraging. It wasn't that hard - (1) use data from previous years to determine which of our students may need extra help, and (2) present a student work sample to the group and then listen as the group discusses the work sample.
Not. Frikkin. Tough.
But, God, they whine worse than the teenagers! "When are we supposed to have time to dooo this?" and "I don't know why they think they know so much; I'm just gonna do what I've always done."
And I'm scared. We're working on 1984 and I have several who aren't reading at home, but won't read in class, either. I keep hearing "It's too hard!" and "It's so boring!" And I'm not entirely sure what to do. :( I wonder about giving them some questions and going online to SparkNotes together, so they at least have some idea of what's going on... but then I don't want them just using that as a substitute for the novel. I'm really just feeling lost. :(
So of course today is catchup-day. I've got a meeting during planning but we don't have enough people here for the activity we were supposed to do together. It really irritates me because it's due tomorrow, and the person who requested that we meet today isn't here! AURGH!
I have a meeting after school today and I don't think I'm going to make it. I'm ready to go home and take a nap. WHEW.
It's incredibly frustrating to hear from several colleagues in my department that they just want to play along with our current professional development. Kind of like, keep your head down and do what you've always done and hopefully you won't get reamed out for it. And I'm thinking... what about becoming a better teacher? Why NOT actually work together, like they've given us time for, instead of just doing what we've always done? Why NOT review work together rather than slogging through it alone?
Hearing my fellow teachers complain that they don't understand what our PD coordinator wants is discouraging. It wasn't that hard - (1) use data from previous years to determine which of our students may need extra help, and (2) present a student work sample to the group and then listen as the group discusses the work sample.
Not. Frikkin. Tough.
But, God, they whine worse than the teenagers! "When are we supposed to have time to dooo this?" and "I don't know why they think they know so much; I'm just gonna do what I've always done."
And I'm scared. We're working on 1984 and I have several who aren't reading at home, but won't read in class, either. I keep hearing "It's too hard!" and "It's so boring!" And I'm not entirely sure what to do. :( I wonder about giving them some questions and going online to SparkNotes together, so they at least have some idea of what's going on... but then I don't want them just using that as a substitute for the novel. I'm really just feeling lost. :(
Monday, September 20, 2010
Good Habits - September 20
Hopefully this day won't kill me.
So I'd scheduled fall sports photos for after school today. Two of the three coaches contacted me this morning and said "oops." *sigh* So, gotta reschedule those. Seniors are not showing up for their appointment times. Trying to track them down.
I just... I'm tired, and frustrated, and ANGRY. No. Maybe not angry. I think "resentful" is more accurate. When seniors just come into the middle of class and say "I didn't sign up for retakes." And I'm not just frustrated with them. I scheduled all the seniors I didn't have listed, and then last week I sent out an email to all teachers saying "if you have ANY of these students, please remind them of their scheduled times."
Sometimes I wonder why I bother. *sigh*
So I'd scheduled fall sports photos for after school today. Two of the three coaches contacted me this morning and said "oops." *sigh* So, gotta reschedule those. Seniors are not showing up for their appointment times. Trying to track them down.
I just... I'm tired, and frustrated, and ANGRY. No. Maybe not angry. I think "resentful" is more accurate. When seniors just come into the middle of class and say "I didn't sign up for retakes." And I'm not just frustrated with them. I scheduled all the seniors I didn't have listed, and then last week I sent out an email to all teachers saying "if you have ANY of these students, please remind them of their scheduled times."
Sometimes I wonder why I bother. *sigh*
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