Fall is Here

It's been a while since I put my thoughts to paper as far as education goes.  I have a lot on my mind lately, so here's a bulleted list of thoughts to share.

• I love fall.  The weather is great, the students are eager, and I have energy.  
• However, I feel that my energy is dwindling.  It could be because the amount of sleep I am getting varies inversely with the time I spend working on school work.  
• I have done a lot of work with students and reflective assessment, and WOW, it's awesome.  My students are responding well to the reflective assessments we have used thus far and I'm anxious to continue to try new things in my classroom.  I love to help students find ways to reflect on their own learning, no matter the content.  I hope that they can learn ways to track their personal progress and be able to identify when they need to ask for help.  
• My College in the Schools course is rockin'.  I have been helping students focus on technical writing skills.  I have morphed from a math teacher to an English teacher.  Although I have always known it, I am realizing more and more that I am much more than a math teacher.  If I can help students learn something that is worthwhile to their lives, whether it be math, communication skills, or compassion, I have done my job.  
• Being on a non-overloaded schedule is amazing.  I feel I have a little more time to put into my lesson planning.  
• Mentoring a new teacher is an awesome experience.  Especially when that new teacher is a former student you have seen transform over the past 8 years.  Awesome.  
• I have a robotics team this year.  I know nothing about robotics, but I do know a few things about working together as a team, and that's what I have been helping them do.  They are going to rock it at the robot competition. I could not be more proud of them and their efforts to produce the best robot they are capable of producing.  They are awesome and provide me with yet another reason to show up to school every day.  
• Having a Kindergartener in the school system puts a new perspective on being a teacher.  I have changed my philosophy a lot over the past 10 years, but this year makes me think even more.  One thing I want to work on more is parent communication.  Even in high school, parents want to hear how things are going both good and bad.  I have tried to be right on top of communicating.  I need to continue to put that as a priority.  Parents want to know how their child is progressing and how they can help.  I need to share more with them. Perhaps I will put together an email list to let parents know what is happening in Algebra classes.  
• My favorite class to teach is my CIS course.  I love to have conversations with the students about their futures. Often it makes me think perhaps I should have gone into academic counseling.  Love talking personality tests, interest inventories, college choices, major selections, career goals.  Love it all.  

Fall is in full swing, as is school.  It's always a challenge, and always exciting.  Homecoming week is coming up and that's always a fun way to spend a week showing school spirit and enjoying the festivities.  Hopefully as I continue my work with my reflective practices, I will update more on my philosophies and my class progress.  

Research, Research, Research

This summer's theme has been "Research."  

I am starting my 10th year of teaching this fall and am currently in this middle of my Master's program.  This is why it's a researching kind of summer.  I think of myself as a life-long learner and I'm always reading articles and searching out ideas, but this summer has been even more so.  I think that researching is a great thing.  Teachers should always do reading.  Teachers should always want to improve.  I am always wanting to get better, but I have to say that this summer I am feeling very inadequate as a teacher.  I think I have done too much reading and found too many new ideas and things I want to try, and I know that I can't do them all....but I want to.  I keep having to step back and remind myself that I have come a long way in 10 years and still have many more years to improve my teaching.  I always want to keep improving.  But yes, I am feeling overwhelmed by all that I want to do, should do, wish I could do.  

I am looking forward to this school year, because I am energized and have ideas.  I just need to make sure I keep things simple.  Improve where I can, and make sure I implement well and knock the socks off my math students.  

Back to researching...

***EDIT:  And moments after I hit publish I come across this article.  How timely.  I am not alone.  

Summer Fun

I have been counting today as my first official day of summer and oh what a glorious day it has been.

My day started off the best possible way it could have when I received an email from a student:

So im stuck in a hotel and bored and wondering what I can do with internet thats not online games compatible, and I figured hey Maybe I can code something fun in python. 

I was wondering if you could send me the graphics library and instructions on how to install that, and possibly my calculator and game project? Any time you get a chance over the summer is fine, I'd really appreciate it.

happy summer!

And he signed it 'future code monkey.'

If that isn't invigorating, add to that, the time stamp on the email was 12:23 am and two more emails followed this one with further findings of Python goodies that he plans to explore this summer, the last email coming at 12:53.

That 'future code monkey' made my day.  This particular code monkey (which I am totally stealing that phrase and will forever call my programming students code monkeys) just took his first programming course during 4th quarter with me.  It was 2nd block, my favorite class of the overloaded day and I am so thrilled that I have brought at least one more little code monkey into the world of code.

Last summer I had a student emailing me all summer long about his programming that I got him started on and now I have another for this summer.  I love it.  And that is exactly how I responded to him.  I am so thrilled that I have helped a couple students find a new interest, something they have never done before, but deep down were programmed to do...pun intended.

Emails like that inspire me to do what I do.  I am excited to continue to improve upon my programming course in hopes that more code monkeys will be discovered and inspired to spend their summers playing with code.

Now my goal for the summer is to continue to work on the awesomeness that is my intro to coding class, but also start creating curriculum and fun for my advanced coding course.  I also plan to work on improving my algebra 2 course so that it can be as inspiring and exciting for students as the programming course is...so much so that they want to study more algebra 2 over the summer when they are bored.

Between this fun and potty training my youngest daughter, I'm not sure how much more exciting my summer can get!

(That sounded sarcastic, but it's really not meant to be...both are very exciting endeavors.)

Roller Coaster to Water Slide

This year has been a roller coaster of emotions for me.  I don't really love roller coasters much.  I ride them when people convince me of it, but I don't really love it until the very end.  When you go over that last little hill and see the 'finish line' I am finally brave enough to throw my hands in the air and say, "That was fun, no big deal."

I am going over that last little hill right now with the school year.  Getting ready to throw my hands up in the air and say "That was fun, let's do it again."  ....after a long summer please.

I am feeling much better since my last post.  I feel like I am making progress again, on the road to being a decent teacher.  I have so many great hopes, visions and ideas for next year I'm bursting at the seams to talk about them and get started researching and planning and putting together.  The newness of a new year is so exciting to me.  It's not scary and anxiety ridden like standing in line for the roller coaster is for me.  That's how this year started for me and I should have known going into it, it was going to be a full blown roller coaster ride.  I was given an overload, I didn't want to do it really, but I did because I knew it was needed and I was a good person for the job. On top of that I had a couple new courses that I was teaching which always add to the workload.  Despite the warnings I received from some colleagues, I hoped on that roller coaster and I held on tight for the first 18 weeks.  I survived, I knew I would and I have got some fun stories to share.  I appreciate being on land again, standing on my own two feet, having a prep, not being pulled in different directions every second.    

Next year, I feel it's going to be a water park tube slide.  I love tube slides.  Climbing the stairs with anticipation of hopping in that tube.  Once you get the tube in the water there are a few awkward maneuvers everyone has to make to get into that tube, but once you are in and settled, oh let the fun begin!

This summer is climbing those stairs.  It's a big slide, so there are lots of stairs to climb, but when you are climbing stairs to something so fun and exciting, you don't even notice your quads are burning.  I have lots on my summer to do list for planning next year, but I am so excited about it, it's not even going to seem like work.

The first day of school is always a little awkward to me, I am never good at the first day of school.  I don't want to come across as some jerk who doesn't like kids and I don't want to come across as some girl who wants to be their best friend.  I struggle every year with the awkwardness of meeting my students on the first day.  Not sure if they notice, but I always feel it.  They aren't comfortable yet, so they don't laugh at my awesome well-timed jokes and I don't know their names yet, so it's just a room full of strangers and I don't really like meeting new people.  Odd profession to choose for someone who doesn't like meeting new people....it's not really that I don't like meeting new people, it's more that I'm shy and am very uncomfortable meeting new people.  I'm a giant so I'm always very self-consious about the way I come across to people.

Anyway,  that part is like the climbing into the tube before the fun begins.  Once I can get past that first day, hop in the tube, it's smooth sailing and fun from there!

I'm feeling good again about my teaching career.  I'm not a complete failure as a teacher as I was feeling the last couple of weeks.  The light is at the end of the tunnel and I'm saying it wasn't a bad ride.  I'm pumped to do it again next year, so let's get off this roller coaster and head to the water park!

Count Down to Reboot

10 more days.

I love school, but this year, I am counting down.  It's painful to be in countdown mode.  It's not as fun, it's frustrating to know you still have more days.  It's disappointing to know you are counting down.  I hope that it doesn't show to my students as much as it feels as though it does.

This year has been a busy year.  Overload for a semester is painful.  No prep hours for the past 17 weeks.  Lots of at home work, extra early before and extra late after school work.  I'm just plain tired.

I am so ready for summer for a number of reasons.  I need a bit of a boost, so I'm going to write myself a list of things that summer will allow me to spend time on:

1.  My girls.  I am a teacher at a school, yes, but more importantly to me, I am a teacher at home to my two beautiful girls, ages 5 and almost 2.  We will get to spend all of June and July together, no daycare, no schedule, just fun.
2.  Gearing up for next year.  I have so many awesome ideas that I just need time to get them going:
new modeling projects for my college modeling class, new reflective assessments for my algebra classes, new course material to create for my basic modeling class, new course material for my advanced programming course, sprucing up the intro to programming curriculum.  Oh, I am so ready to have time to dedicate to these projects that are currently random post-it notes all over my desk and iPad.
3.  Grad school research.  That doesn't sound fun to everyone, I'm sure, but I am passionate about my research topic and what a great excuse to sit in the sun with my articles and laptop and get my learn on. Reading recent research and finding new ideas rejuvenates me.  I'm ready to be rejuvenated.
4.  New teachers.  We have a new teacher joining our department this year and I am so pumped to work with her and learn from her.  She's going to be full of energy and ideas and I cannot wait to feed off of that awesomeness.
5.  Regrouping.  I am ready to regroup.  I feel like a pretty lame teacher right now.  I know I can and will do better next year.  The cards are stacked against me right now, the biggest being time.  I just don't have the time I need to create and do the things I really want in my classroom right now.  It's so frustrating and I hate feeling mediocre (at best).  I have never felt so icky about my teaching as I do right now.  I feel like I am just in survival mode.  I am a 9th year teacher, survival mode should be a thing of the past.  But new classes and too many of them at once has put me here.  It's been a great challenge.  I have learned that I am excellent at time management and much more efficient than ever thought possible, but the time to create and be creative just aren't there.  I thrive off of trying new things, setting up great lessons, etc.  I am so pumped for summer to be able to regroup, remind myself what kind of a teacher I really am and gear up for next year.  Year 10.  It's going to be awesome.

Ahh, I feel better.  It surprises me every time I sit down to write a blog how much better I feel when it's done.  As a math teacher, I never realized how reflective I am.

Summer...here I come, be ready.

10 days of school left...watch out, I'm going to show you what's up.  10 days.  I can do this.

New Teachers

I follow and love this blog by Dan Meyer and particularly the post I linked here.  He talks about speaking to the new teachers entering the world of math education and how awesome it is to be counted among such great people, and I can totally relate.  I am entering a new phase in my teaching career.  Next year will be my 10th year of teaching and wow, what a run it has been.  I can't believe I'm hitting double digits; I still feel like a rookie and in many ways I still am.  I currently teach in a great math department of 4 and I am the rookie-est.  The others are into their teaching careers 15 or more years, two are looking ahead only a few years and they can see retirement.  I am the rookie.

However, next year, I will no longer be the rookie.  We are adding a 5th math teacher to our department which is so exciting that we have the numbers and interest in our student body that we need more math teachers.  We recently went through the hiring process to find the best person for the job, and we found her.  Yes, her.  First off, how great that another woman will be joining our department, I've started a trend!  Second, and this is where I explain the "new phase of my teaching career,"  this new teacher is a former student.  I had her in 8th grade during my first year of teaching.

I have now been teaching long enough to have my former students as my peers.  Next thing you know I'll be having former students' children....and the guys I work with tell me that will make me feel really old.

So, the connection to Dan's blog...

It's such an exciting time for me, to think that one of my former students, who I found to be a hard worker, intelligent, caring individual, also chose to be a math teacher.  I'm counted in the same category as her and a few others of my former students (who were all awesome, by the way) that are becoming teachers.  I'm thrilled to be among such great people.  I'm thrilled to know that there are more great people entering the world of education.  They have made the decision to teach and make a huge impact on the world.

I'm also anxious to start our work together as a department of 5.  There will be so much learning taking place, it will be unreal!  Learning from us "non-rookies" yes, but the learning that will take place by the 4 of us, learning from our new teacher who is fresh from college and full of energy and excitement for her new career.  I am very much looking forward to this new experience and phase in my teaching career.

Here's to a great start to the next ten years of teaching!

Delinquent

I have been a bit delinquent lately, like some of my students, about keeping up with my blog.  I have so many thought, ideas, and frustrations floating around in my head, but I have so many things going on at school and at home, I barely have a moment to sit down and reflect right now.  

So here are some thoughts, in no particular order, that just need to get out of my head.  Writing gets them out of my head so I can move on...

1.  I am not signing up to do an overloaded schedule ever again.  Ok, I say that today, but last week I agreed to do an overload next year, but it is opposite an underloaded quarter, so I feel like that is different.  Last quarter was an overload and so is this one and this teacher just needs a prep hour to sit down and think for a few minutes.  I want to be a great educator, but right now, I feel like I am spread way to thin to be great.  I am doing my job and I'm doing the best I can under the circumstances, but I am far from doing what my best would be if I weren't spread so thin.  

2.  I love computer programming and I think it's the best way to teach students to love logic, computers, and a little bit of math on the side.  It's the most applicable class that I have ever taught and I love that it is an opportunity to teach students a skill in the most hands on way possible and they dive in and are amazed at what they learn.  The 9 week course is a whirlwind and at the end they are able to look back and actually see some awesome progress.  This is the bright spot in my overloaded day.  

3.  Grad school.  I am loving the challenge that it is bringing me.  It's been timed very well and I have reached a point in my career and life where I need to reflect and analyze carefully and grad school has filled that need for me nicely.  Yes, it's a lot of work.  Yes, it's one more thing in my busy schedule.  But, I have found an outlet for my educational needs as a teacher.  I am diggin' it.  

4.  I am not a high schooler anymore, but when I was, I was just as immature, annoying, and clueless as the ones that I teach every day.  Now, I should say, not all of them fit into all or any of these categories, but there are some that I see each day that sometimes fit all three.  They are my great challenges.  I love my students, every single one of them.  I want to see them all succeed, but man oh man, can they be annoying sometimes.  I have found myself thinking back on my own high school days and remembering being similar on some occasions; it's helped to remind me that someday they too will outgrow this stage in their life.  They need experience and guidance (from me and others) to help them through this tricky time in life.  

5.  I love it outside.  That has nothing to do with math, but if anyone else has been here for the winter, they know.  This winter was brutal and it feels so good to finally be outside.  And just like my students, that makes me want to be in the classroom less and outside more....which can make for some tricky days finding motivation both for myself and for my students.  Spring is here.  

6.  Today I received one of the best complements from a student....we were discussing some of my 'nerds.'  I can call them nerds, because they say it's OK and because I am one of them, and I was referred to as "Queen of the Nerds" because I take the math and computer students to contests and do such nerdy things.  But that wasn't even the best part....this student said, "She's queen of the nerds, but it's cool because she does it with style."  Meant a lot to me because I try my hardest to make math and computer programming look fun, cool, exciting and to have a student notice that it just might be cool was great.  Now, this was coming from one of my said 'nerds' but I am still going to count it.  

7.  I am full of great pride right now because I took a team last week to a programming competition, our first one ever at my school, and we came home with the first place plaque.  It was awesome.  I have taught these students since they were in 7th grade math, and I have always known they were gifted in math and computer and to guide them through this programming journey (which they did all on their own, I was just there to remind them to stay on track) has been awesome.  To have them capture first place at our first programming competition was icing on the cake.  I was bursting with pride and still am today.  I am thrilled that their hard work was recognized.  I am also thrilled that they are only juniors and I get to spend another year with them learning and growing. 

8.  I am blessed to have the job I have.  It felt good to get all of that out of my head.  And I know that it started out negative, but wow, it helped to see the blessings and all the great things that are part of my every day life.  My head feels calmer now and my heart is happy.  Even though this is my math blog, sometimes it's going to have to act as my reflection blog.  What a great exercise for me; I feel strong again and ready to take on the rest of this week.  Ahhhh....10 pounds lighter.