Teacher Appreciation Week - Professor Williamson

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! And in honor of that, let’s give something back to those awesome teachers that we’ve all had. In an era of increasing negativity towards this profession, let’s take the time to honor those teachers who have influenced us – past or present, instructors or colleagues, whoever! Post something on your blog, then link to it above. Then….go visit! Spread the love!



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During my first two years of college, I changed my major twice – from interior design to undeclared and then to education – and after I decided on secondary education, I had to decide what area to focus on. I have always loved to read, so I thought about English for a long time, but then during my sophomore year, as part of my core classes, I took a basic American History class. Some of my friends had taken this class the year before, and absolutely hated it, so I was somewhat less than enthusiastic about this class.

The first day of the class, I walked in, found a seat, and waited for the old geezer to arrive. And that’s when one of the best-looking guys I have ever met in real life walked in. He wasn’t old, he wasn’t dead inside, and he was utterly, completely relaxed. Of course, he was also married. But that didn’t change the fact that he was a fantastic professor. I was lucky enough to go to a relatively small school, so even in my core classes, all but one of my classes was small – usually no more than 25 students or so. Having those small classes meant that Professor Williamson could and did encourage discussions all the time. Generally, a basic level history class means lecture – a LOT of lecture – and while we did that too, we also had some fantastic discussions.

We also did some things that weren’t part of a traditional college level class. For example, it was for and assignment in this class that I interviewed my grandfather, a Korean War vet, and my family gained some unforgettable and hilarious stories written in my grandpa’s blocky printing. That class became one of my favorite college classes, and Mr. Williamson became my favorite college professor – but not because he was cute. Professor W loved history. Despite some pretty disheartening personal problems (his wife gave birth to a son with Down’s syndrome during that semester), he never missed class and never gave less than 100%, but at the same time, was one of the most laid-back, relaxed professors I had in 5 years of teaching.

After that semester, Professor W moved to Wisconsin or some random place where his in-laws lived so his wife could have help with the special needs baby, but that feeling of classroom “safety” is one of the strongest memories I have of Professor W. He was utterly and completely relaxed in front of his classes. Having a teacher that laid-back encourages freedom of speech in their classroom, and while I am nowhere near that relaxed (bit of a control freak, actually), I do try to remember that feeling of safety. The feeling we had in that classroom, that no matter what opinion you had (and of course, as college students, we had plenty), you could say it without fear of put-downs or mockery. And every day in my classroom, I want my kids to have that same feeling.

After that semester, I knew that history was what I wanted to teach. I wanted to teach something I loved and after that semester, I knew that I loved history. I have never looked back and never regretted my area of study (well, except on job interviews where I get asked what I coach) and one of the biggest reasons I focused on history was because of this one basic class.

So thanks, Professor W, for that one semester. It totally changed my life. You were a fantastic professor and I have never forgotten that class.

Teacher Appreciation Week - Sarah Stacy

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! And in honor of that, let’s give something back to those awesome teachers that we’ve all had. In an era of increasing negativity towards this profession, let’s take the time to honor those teachers who have influenced us – past or present, instructors or colleagues, whoever! Post something on your blog, then link to it below this post. Just for kicks and giggles, use your teacher’s name as your link! Then….go visit! Spread the love!


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I was lucky in so many ways with my college education and the job hunt that came at the end of that education. I ended up getting a job at a large (5A) public school in a suburb of Dallas, Texas. This particular district had a week-long new teacher program that was held partially at the district, but mostly on the grounds of your home school. And one of the first things that happened as a new teacher was that you were matched up with a mentor teacher. My mentor teacher was Ms. Stacy. Sarah was a tall blond with a quick smile a down-to-earth personality, and a slightly twisted sense of humor that I was instantly drawn to. She was only a few years older than I, and we had a lot in common.

Sarah was my rock during that first year of teaching. On the days when I questioned whether or not I had wasted the previous five years of school and on the days when I cried, Sarah was there to figuratively hold my hand and get me through….and that crying thing? Yeah, that happened a lot. I'm kind of high-maintenance.

She gave me ideas, taught me about the school culture, taught me how to use (and unjam) the copier, gave me a place to eat lunch, someone to bounce ideas off of, and a shoulder to lean on. She told me how to find (and keep) a good desk chair, steered me away from the negative nellies in our department, and gave me her cell phone number. Sarah is one of the most open and friendly people I have ever met, and for the two years she was at the school with me, she was one of the most consistently hard-working teachers I have ever worked with.

Sarah taught world history and an AP world history class for the first time that year, got engaged, married, and pregnant during those first two years, took care of me and 150 high-maintenance sophomores, and still maintained her poise and grace every single day. The district I am in now does not have a particularly good mentor program and I can’t imagine how difficult it must be for those teachers without someone like Sarah there to keep them from gouging their own eyes out and running screaming from the building.

Sarah and I have stayed friends, despite the fact that she was only at my school for two years, and while I have told her before how awesome I think she is, it never hurts to hear it more than once. She has just recently returned to teaching after a break to start a family, and is doing something totally different (elementary school computers), but I am sure she is knocking it out of the park once again.

So here’s to Sarah….the model mentor!

Teacher Appreciation Week - Beth Hamaty

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! And in honor of that, let’s give something back to those awesome teachers that we’ve all had. In an era of increasing negativity towards this profession, let’s take the time to honor those teachers who have influenced us – past or present, instructors or colleagues, whoever! Post something on your blog, then link to it below this post. Just for kicks and giggles, use your teacher’s name as your link! Then....go visit! Spread the love!

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Ms. Hamaty taught sophomore world history, and I learned pretty much everything I know from her. I was in a decent teaching program at my university, but like most teaching programs at any university in the world, education classes were taught by professors who hadn’t ever been in a public elementary or secondary school, or at best, hadn’t been in a non-college classroom for at least twenty years. One thing my university did well however, was to make sure you got plenty of classroom observations in. Starting two years before I graduated, I spent at least part of every semester in a classroom, multiple times a week. At first, I just did observations. Then some practice lessons, then long-term observations (in the same classroom for several hours a week), and finally, full-time student teaching for a semester in two different placements.

I was lucky enough to be matched with Ms. Hamaty on one of those early rounds, and after that point I asked to be matched with her whenever we had observations to do. I wasn’t an expert, but I recognized one when I saw one. Abilene High was a fairly large school with a pretty mixed population, although it definitely leaned towards the lower end of the income ladder. Looking back, it was a pretty average mid public school for a city of that size, but for me, it was a total immersing shock to my system. I went to a small town public school for the first three years, and a small private Christian school until I graduated, then a mid-sized Christian university after that, so I had never really gone to school with kids who were ethnically different than I, or who came from homes that weren’t stable, or whose parents didn’t always have money to put food on the table. All of a sudden, there I was, surrounded by all of these new people who weren’t like me, and it was surprisingly invigorating. From pretty much the first day I walked into that school, I knew that I had made the right decision about becoming a teacher and that this was the Thing I Wanted To Do.

Ms. Hamaty made that happen. She told me all the things they don’t tell you in teacher education classes. It was from her that I learned when to confront a student head on, and how to avert a problem with humor or teasing. She taught me how to tell stories and how to captivate a class of teenagers with a lecture and notes. She taught me that knowing a kid’s background is important, because sometimes when a kid is sleeping in class, it is because he has to work the swing shift to support his family. She taught me how to control a classroom with a look – the look of death, I like to call it – and taught me how to seize the teachable moments.

I worked with Ms. Hamaty off and on for over a year and her expertise made my first year of teaching possible. What is more, as I have been teaching, I now understand just how difficult it is to have a student teacher in your classroom and yet she was patient with me, answering all of my questions, and allowing me to teach her kids, in her classroom, my way. I wouldn’t be here without her. So thanks, Ms. Hamaty, you are still the teacher I look up to more than any other and I can never thank you enough for what you gave me.

The State of Being Almost Ready

Today was the first day of staff development for my district. I am lucky in that when I was in Texas, there was at least a week, sometimes more, of staff development days and they always dragged on in the worst way, following the same bleak pattern:

• We have low test scores
• Work harder, drones
• Why don't these kids listen to you?
• You have (unpaid) hall duty every day
• Even though your passing rate was 97%, it wasn't good enough..make it better
• Blah Blah Blah

The scene here is a bit different, although some elements remain the same. First of all, in my district there are only 1.5 days of staff development before school starts, and they are more useful and helpful than any I ever got in Texas. Also, for the first time, I heard a superintendent of a school district state the following:

"No Child Left Behind is not a good law; it has a lot of problems, and is unrealistic."

On the flip side, she followed it by saying that while that is true, it is a law nonetheless, and therefore we have to go along with it. I wanted to leap out of my seat and say that statements like that are what made things like the Holocaust and Jim Crow possible...but that seemed a bit extreme, so I went back to reading my 600 page biography of Mao Tse-tung.

This is the same superintendent who issued the infamous "Happy Spring" email, and the same woman who received HUNDREDS of irate phone calls and emails after a snow miscalculation (to which she referred briefly today). But all in all, today wasn't as bad as I was expecting. There was only one reference to her vacation in Borneo, and she let us out half an hour earlier than expected.

The other part of the day was at our home schools, where among other things, we had to read a chapter from a book by teaching guru Robert Marzano. I'll just put this out there....I don't enjoy teacher books. I really don't enjoy teacher books at the end of a day of staff development at the end of 9 weeks in which I allowed my brain to vegetate. I read that chapter and felt dumber than I have in my life. I still have no idea what that man was talking about.

Does anyone want to come cook dinner for me? I don't feel bright enough to handle sharp instruments and hot pans.

Christmas in Review

Due to the horrible weather, my parents and I decided at the last minute that rather than try and fight the icy freeway through Portland, they would use Dad's 4 wheel drive pickup to come up here. They came up Christmas morning and mom brought lots of groceries and made Christmas dinner (yum!). They also gave me a printer!! I will finally be able to print business cards! In addition, it is a photo printer and works great! We went up to Pacific Science Center on Friday (very fun) and went up to Queen Anne on Saturday. I had a great time! They also took me out for my birthday which is coming up on Tuesday.

very cool clock at PSC.giant, oversized working guitar...that's dad inside.flowers inside the butterfly house.butterflies are pretty.....There are SO SO SO many reasons I don't live in Texas anymore....number one is at the top of this list....and number two is why I don't live in Alaska. =)There was a wall mural made of tiles where people made a tile that told something that they liked about the PSC. I am really hoping this was supposed to say "I LIKE the bugs..." but who knows. It is more funny this way. Happy Birthday to me....

Good Rain

Sometimes, rain depresses me, but other times, it makes me even more productive. When I lived in Texas, rain made me want to clean house. I wish it had that effect on me here...=) But I have been busily working on random things this weekend, and took a moment to take some pics off the balcony. It's raining, but there's no wind, so the rain is falling straight down and looks kind of cool. Of course, I can't actually capture it on the camera, but still....outside looks cool, and it is great temperature-wise. I am NOT missing temperatures over 90. Ha ha Texans! Suckas!!!!

Emma worked really hard today too.

Thunderboomers

Yesterday was hot, hot hot! C and I finally got to bed after watching Michael Phelps win his 8th gold medal of the 2008 Olympics, and then at 4 am, the thunder started. It was a thunderstorm that was actually pretty comparable to a Texas thunderstorm, with very loud cracks of thunder, almost constant lightning, pouring rain, and a 30 degree temperature drop within a couple of minutes. C and I woke up, of course, and while we enjoyed the cooling temperatures, with a huge and very close lightning strike.....the electricity went out. I dug out the flashlight (which surprisingly had batteries and worked) and found some candles, and we waited out the storm. It finally started to die down around 4:30 or so and we tried to go back to bed, but since the electricity was out, the fans had turned off and there was no air moving in the apartment, especially my room, so it was kind of rough. In addition, the lightning had shorted out the fire alarm in the apartment under mine and I could hear it beeping. We finally got to sleep, but the electricity was still off when we got up, so we got ready by candlelight this morning and my hair was doing some real funky things all day. =)

After church we ate lunch, then drove downtown and spent 30 minutes looking for a parking space (ARGH) before finally making it down to Pike Place. It was crowded, but we did see fish throwing and some great flowers. It was also warm and kept getting warmer, so we decided to come home after a couple of hours and chill.

C with her giant burrito at Chipotle's.

Pike Place has so many colors....sometimes it's easy to overload, especially when it is completely crowded with people.

C only got lost once today...that's what she gets for texting and walking at the same time. =)

I introduced C to Tully's, a better version of Starbucks. She approved.

Alleys are fun.

And for your listening enjoyment, some original Starbucks entertainment...complete with wandering and ill-dressed tourists blundering through.

Woo Hoo!

I made it! I am finished with my first year of teaching in Washington! I am mostly happy with it all. There are definitely things I would have done differently and things I wish I had been better at, but if you don't feel that way at the end of the year, you shouldn't be teaching. I have made some great friends and learned more this year than I did in 5 years in Texas (which is not to cast aspersions on Texas, but simply pointing out how amazing this particular faculty is and how much I've grown this past year).

Things I've learned:
a. how to be a better collaborator
b. how to integrate curriculum from other subject areas better
c. how to read and use educational curriculum more effectively
d. how to keep an open mind and listen to others better

Things I would like to do better next year:
a. parent communication (this will ALWAYS top my list)
b. reorganize and focus the world history curriculum
c. student communication regarding grades and absences
d. give more hands-on work to students

All in all though, I am more relaxed and happy at the end of this year than I think I ever was in Texas. I'm excited for all the opportunities that are coming my way this summer, and I am definitely back on track for improving myself and becoming a more effective teacher.

Leaves of Green, Sky of Blue

As I sit here on my balcony, listening to the woman next door helping her disabled brother into the car, and watching the man who lives above me walk his tiny girly white dog, I am reminded once again, for the hundredth time since leaving Dallas, how much I love living here. I am lonely sometimes (although that is not as frequent as it once was), and frustrated often (hello, I teach high school), but I am so lucky to live here. I am sitting eye level with the balcony railing, and in this position, without moving my head, I can see at least 30 trees, all with green leaves waving in the sun, and let me tell you, Crayola's alleged "leaf green" cannot even begin to compare with the colors of these trees with the sun bouncing off them. Those leaves, against the absolutely clear blue sky, bluer than I've seen in years, is just gorgeous. I know, because I keep it on my Yahoo page as a reminder, that the current temperature in Dallas today is a raging 96 degrees, and since there is a chance of thunderstorms, I am sure the humidity is in the upper 80% to 90% range. It is 70 degrees here, with low humidity and a very gentle breeze. Also, because it is Dallas, there will be a heavy, smudgy, dusty smog hovering over the city, making it hard to breathe and resulting in days where it is literally poisonous for anyone with minor health problems to be outside. No one here even knows what "red" or "orange" days are, and while I am sure that Seattle produces pollution (after all, traffic here rivals Boston on a bad day), the wind and rain keep everything clean, resulting in a city with one of the lowest air pollution levels in the entire US. (Have I mentioned no allergies this year for the first time in 10 years???). Days like today help make this whole adventure worthwhile. Moral of the story? God knows what he's doing. Sometimes it is incredibly difficult to trust him, but apparently that was my lesson last summer and this past year, and what have I learned? That it is totally, absolutely, undeniably worth it.

Sometimes you're good at your job

Every now and then I have a day where everything goes right and I feel like I am actually a successful teacher who has effectively communicated a complex idea to her students, who have actually understood, retained, and most importantly, USED the information! Today was one of those days. Last year in my old district, we were required to do these things called triplets, which is basically a DBQ (Document Based Question), but shorter. I never could get it to work in my old district, but I thought I would give it another shot today. Not only was it successful, but the kids did the second one without help and did the other part of their assignment without me having to give them directions. I was so proud of them!!!!! I love the good days!!!!!

Pollen Flies

I have been so excited this spring because I haven't had allergies for the first time in ten years, but I thought it might be because the weather has been so cold. But today I noticed that there is pollen like dust laying all over the balcony, which means I am just allergic to Texas!! Woo hoo!!

Word Walls

One of the things I disliked the most and rebelled against the most in Texas was the word wall we were supposed to have up in our rooms. These were lists of random social studies terms, such as "nullification" and "1776" that were thrown up on the wall willy-nilly and were supposed to somehow magically increase the kids social studies skills. We were never told really how to use them, it was just that they were supposed to cure all our problems. I HATED them and did everything I could to keep from using them. I only put them up when I was being observed and all other times they sat in my desk drawer. Well, in the book study we are doing at school, they talked about word walls, and guess what - we were doing them wrong at my old school. I know, I know, shocking, but true. Word walls are supposed to be words that are commonly used in your classroom, not random vocabulary words from one unit, and one of the suggestions was to use words that are commonly misspelled. So, I think I will have a word wall next year, of words that are often misspelled in the stuff the kids hand in, like "a lot," "they're/their/there," to/two/too," and so on. So here's to word walls - correctly used!!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes.....

This is always the time of year when I have big ideas about what I am going to do better next year, or even next week. (It is also the time of year when I need a mental health day, but there is no way to squeeze one in this week or next.) So, on my top ten list of things that I want to do better next year: 1. (the perennial presence) better contact with parents~ 2. more streamlined and focused unit plans~ 3. better use of prep time~ 4. better way of communicating due dates to students~ 5. stay on top of kids grades better~ 6. plan ahead better/take stuff to print shop earlier~ 7. get student website of some kind set up~ 8. use more art in my lessons~ 9. find enough alternate sources that I don't have to use the textbook anymore~ 10. figure out a way to make my classroom more hands-on without eliminating the need for more traditional learning. If I can accomplish two of the things on this list I will be happy, but I will try for all ten. It is weird, most people feel that the new year starts in January and they make all kinds of New Year's resolutions. I usually feel that way in August and September, but I usually start planning for this feeling in April and May. =) In other news, I just had to rescue Sophie from the balcony where she was attempting to fling herself off the edge in pursuit of a rabbit in the garden. I never had this problem in Texas.

Principals

We were told in a meeting after school today that we have a new principal. If you count the principal who was on sabbatical this year (whom I've never met), that makes 5 principals in 7 years of teaching. There are rumors that the two vice principals currently at my school will also be leaving (one of them because he interviewed for the principal job and didn't get it). If they do leave, that would mean I would have worked with 16 different vice-principals in 7 years of teaching. If you toss in the 5 different superintendants I've worked for, it makes quite a mix! All the things I have heard about this principal are positive, but all the things I heard about Mr. G at my old school were positive until he started working there, and now everything is negative. So, we'll see.

It's Freaking April here!!

I was not expecting the weather to be as warm here as it was in Texas, but seriously. It is 45 degrees here and is supposed to snow this weekend. Really?? Oh well, I'm sure I will think longingly of this complaint this summer. Which reminds me, this past weekend we had a beautiful gorgeous 80 degree day randomly on Saturday. So on Monday, I asked my kids if that was normal summer weather for Seattle and they said no, it gets really really hot here. So I asked how hot, and they said, "sometimes it gets all the way up to 90 degrees!"