Since I do a Tell-All feature every Tuesday for my other blog, I figured that the best way to get rid of all the teaching-related stuff on my chest would be to follow in like manner over here on this blog. So here goes:
First, with some funny:
*For the last literature unit, we read a book (Freak the Mighty) that dealt with a lot of bullying. As one of their unit assignments, I had them create a "bullying log" for the book, in which they had to summarize the bullying incident, summarize how the main characters handled it, and then state whether or not they would have handled it in the same way and why. One bullying incident in the book is when the two main characters are stuck in a scary part of town in the apartment of these two rough strangers. Both of the main characters are trying in vain to get out of there as soon as possible, but the people won't let them go. When responding to whether or not she would respond in the same way or not, one girl wrote, "Yes, because I alway lie to someone that I have to go home." This girl is one of my English language learners, and I just love her. Her comment made me laugh out loud--a girl after my own heart, indeed.
*Today, several of my students were wondering why I had a bandage on my hand. When I told them it was because I lost a fight with a broken dish, I had the hardest time not laughing out loud at the looks on their faces as they tried to figure that one out.
*During my 3rd hour today, I kept having to remind myself of this cute quote that I pinned yesterday to my Pinterest: "Always be kinder than you feel." What I really wanted to do was scream and yell and pull my hair out and kick the kids out onto the soccer field, but instead I just breathed nice and deep as I cleared off the board and waited anxiously for the dismissal bell to ring already. Thankfully, my loudest hour (3rd) is followed by my quietest and most on-task hour (4th), so it was a much-needed break after that.
*I have less than 3 weeks of student teaching left, and still no job prospects. According to the grapevine, two teachers at the high school might not be hired back next year, so maybe I'll have a possible job opening there, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much.
*I started my last unit with these kids yesterday, and I'm pretty excited about it--we're learning about expository writing, but I'm going to make it more exciting and relevant by having the kids create mini-magazines with their peers about the things they're interested in. You know you've struck onto a good idea when not a single student groans after hearing what the new assignment is going to be. (Or maybe they're all too doped-up on Peeps to get my drift, but we'll go with the former).
*When I asked the kids to name their top 3 interests so I can start putting them into their mini-magazine groups, I received the following responses:
-Justin Bieber
-Talking about Justin Bieber
-Waiting til summer
-brushing teeth
-?
-doing my hair
-Dance moms (no idea what she's talking about)
-shuffling (not quite sure what he's referring to?)
-tanning
And then, the #1 most frequently-written response:
-Facebook.
To each his own, I guess.
*Lately some of the harsher realities of teaching have come on, strong and sharp--like hearing about all the problems some of these kids are facing outside of school and knowing that there's little I can do about it. One particular student is especially on my mind: he's one of my brightest and most well-liked, but he's missing weeks of school due to the depression brought on by a very rough home life. I wish I could take him home to live with us (since neither one of his own parents wanted to take him after their recent divorce), but there seems to be so little that I can do. It is because of cases like this that living by the mantra above is so important--I need to be as kind as I can because you really never know what some people are up against.
*So that I won't end on such a sad note, I'll share a funny story that our vice principal shared at the last training meeting. Apparently one of the students had been caught sticking his hand up the vending machine and wrangling out a quarter, which he then used to purchase something else out of the machine. The vice principal told him that he needed to determine himself how he was going to make restitution for his wrongful actions. The student decided to outline his plan in a short letter to the vice-principal, which roughly went as follows:
Dear Mr. [Vice-Principal],
I am very sorry for sticking my hand up the vending machine and shaking it until I got a quarter out. I know that this was a wrong thing to do. The way I'm going to make it better is: First, finish writing this note. Second, bring this note to you and apologize to your face. Third, give you another quarter to make up for the one I took. And last [and this is the winner]: I'm going to be as good as I can, for as long as I can.
Words to live by, indeed.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Monday, March 19, 2012
In Which I Become My Own Substitute
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I remember this one time in 9th grade when I went from having long,highlighted, blonde-ish hair with about 3" worth of brown roots to a rich, chocolate-y bob, which seemed to put the entire junior high into a coma of change-induced shock. I mean, people in my homeroom class somehow knew about the drastic change minutes before I even arrived there thanks to the buzz of the hallways, and I felt like a movie star, or at the very least a relatively well-known politician.
I have since had the lifelong goal of making 100+ people do a double take (again) over a new haircut.
Well, look no further, life dream--you have been fulfilled, yet again.
If you ever want to get more attention than you ever have in your life over a hairstyle change, go to a middle school.
Of course, be prepared for the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the brutal, honest, straight-from-the-13-year-old's-mouth truth.
Last Saturday I made the decision to go from a plain-Jane, shoulder-length, basic brown hairstyle to, as one woman at church put it, a "more dramatic look." Really, all I did was have my hairstylist cut off half an inch of split ends, chop in some bangs, and dye the whole thing about 3 shades darker than it was before.
You would think I'd grown an eleventh toenail, or sprouted a baby, the way the kids reacted.
Twenty minutes into first period, I heard one of my students say to another: "Go ask the sub."
You mean ME?
(Of course, once they heard my voice clanking after them and telling them to sit down and be quiet already, they knew immediately that they were sorely mistaken).
A quick summary of the day:
1. I now have several students who are convinced I look just like Katy Perry
2. Several boys came in, pointed at my hair (or theirs), and said, "You look different today. What is it?"
3. Many students stopped in their tracks on their way into the classroom and just stared at me with their mouths open, as if I were a dark-haired alien from the non-planet of Pluto.
4. And then, my absolute favorite, from a boy in my first hour: "Oh NO! You went black! Why would you do that? You looked better before."
What a great day :)
Friday, March 16, 2012
Rookie Mistake
Wednesday this week came in with all of its mid-week force and punched me right in the gut with a no-tardy party during second period and a particularly bad blend of lack-of-spring-breakness. During my second hour, all the students who hadn't been tardy once last trimester got to skip out on their classes for that hour and go see a ventriloquist perform up in the front auditorium. Meanwhile, I was stuck with all the children who'd been left behind, and they all came into class with a definite agenda.
"Mrs. Meidell, since no one is going to be here anyway, can we just play games the whole time?"
"No. Sit down and do your work."
"But Mrs. Meidell, we NEVER do anything fun in here. And besides, if we read Freak the Mighty today, then all the other people who aren't here will get behind."
"That's too bad for them. They'll have to make it up."
*pout, pout*
*lots of off-topic talking*
"Hey guys, QUIET."
*more talking*
And that's how the period started. Later on, amidst many grumbles and mumblings, we started to read the next chapter in Freak (side note--up to this point, I never had a single complaint when we pulled out the books to read. In fact, I was pretty sure they all were really liking it. Maybe that was my first rookie mistake.)
At the end of each chapter, I pause for a few minutes to discuss with the students what has just happened and to talk about some of the important ideas the narrator brings up. In this particular instance, the narrator's best friend had just made a statement to the effect of, "Pain is just a state of mind. You can think your way out of anything--even pain." After referring the students back to the line, I asked them to raise their hands if they agreed with it, and then had them raise their hands if they disagreed with it.
NOT A SINGLE STUDENT AGREED WITH IT.
Seeing as this was unprecedented (all the previous classes had been split 50/50), I was taken aback. I decided to hear them out, so I invited them to share with me their reasoning for why they disagreed.
"Mrs. Meidell, Ms. So-and-So [the health teacher] told us that it's NORMAL to feel sad once in awhile. She says we can't be happy all the time."
"Yes, I agree with her. But that's not quite what this quote is trying to say. Freak is talking about pain here, not sadness."
"But Mrs. Meidell, we HAVE to feel pain sometimes. Ms. So-and-So said so."
"Okay. I understand that. All Freak is saying here is that our minds are capable of some pretty great things, like numbing us from physical pain sometimes."
"But that's just impossible. Our brains are wired so that we feel everything. And besides, Ms. So-and-So said..."
Well. Apparently that health teacher taught a very convincing lesson. Still trying to save the floundering discussion, I decided to share the reasons why I personally agree with the statement. I tried using the example of a headache: "You know when you think that you might be getting a headache, and the more you think about it, the worse your headache gets?"
"Well duh, Mrs. Meidell. You're THINKING. Of COURSE that's going to make your head hurt."
"Okay, I'll use a different example. Have you ever felt like you're getting a sore throat, and the second that you really started thinking about it, it just seems to get worse and worse?"
"I thought you were talking about pain that's GOING AWAY, not getting WORSE."
Okay, at this point I'm starting to get noticeably frustrated. And that's when my brain jumps to the first connection it can make:
"Fair enough. Well here's an example that you might not know a lot about, but there's this thing called hypnobirthing. It's where a pregnant mom can hypnotize herself while she's in labor so that she doesn't feel the pain of childbirth so much."
And that, my friends, is when (pardon my language) it all went to hell in a handbasket.
I will never, ever live down that discussion. Now, for the rest of their lives, these kids are going to remember me as the teacher who taught them about hypnobirthing in the 7th grade.
[Random Side Note: after mentioning that a couple of my sisters have tried hypnobirthing, one of the boys in the class frankly informed me that my sisters really hadn't hypnotized themselves--that, in fact, the doctor had given them a big shot without them noticing.]
Some days you just can't win.
"Mrs. Meidell, since no one is going to be here anyway, can we just play games the whole time?"
"No. Sit down and do your work."
"But Mrs. Meidell, we NEVER do anything fun in here. And besides, if we read Freak the Mighty today, then all the other people who aren't here will get behind."
"That's too bad for them. They'll have to make it up."
*pout, pout*
*lots of off-topic talking*
"Hey guys, QUIET."
*more talking*
And that's how the period started. Later on, amidst many grumbles and mumblings, we started to read the next chapter in Freak (side note--up to this point, I never had a single complaint when we pulled out the books to read. In fact, I was pretty sure they all were really liking it. Maybe that was my first rookie mistake.)
At the end of each chapter, I pause for a few minutes to discuss with the students what has just happened and to talk about some of the important ideas the narrator brings up. In this particular instance, the narrator's best friend had just made a statement to the effect of, "Pain is just a state of mind. You can think your way out of anything--even pain." After referring the students back to the line, I asked them to raise their hands if they agreed with it, and then had them raise their hands if they disagreed with it.
NOT A SINGLE STUDENT AGREED WITH IT.
Seeing as this was unprecedented (all the previous classes had been split 50/50), I was taken aback. I decided to hear them out, so I invited them to share with me their reasoning for why they disagreed.
"Mrs. Meidell, Ms. So-and-So [the health teacher] told us that it's NORMAL to feel sad once in awhile. She says we can't be happy all the time."
"Yes, I agree with her. But that's not quite what this quote is trying to say. Freak is talking about pain here, not sadness."
"But Mrs. Meidell, we HAVE to feel pain sometimes. Ms. So-and-So said so."
"Okay. I understand that. All Freak is saying here is that our minds are capable of some pretty great things, like numbing us from physical pain sometimes."
"But that's just impossible. Our brains are wired so that we feel everything. And besides, Ms. So-and-So said..."
Well. Apparently that health teacher taught a very convincing lesson. Still trying to save the floundering discussion, I decided to share the reasons why I personally agree with the statement. I tried using the example of a headache: "You know when you think that you might be getting a headache, and the more you think about it, the worse your headache gets?"
"Well duh, Mrs. Meidell. You're THINKING. Of COURSE that's going to make your head hurt."
"Okay, I'll use a different example. Have you ever felt like you're getting a sore throat, and the second that you really started thinking about it, it just seems to get worse and worse?"
"I thought you were talking about pain that's GOING AWAY, not getting WORSE."
Okay, at this point I'm starting to get noticeably frustrated. And that's when my brain jumps to the first connection it can make:
"Fair enough. Well here's an example that you might not know a lot about, but there's this thing called hypnobirthing. It's where a pregnant mom can hypnotize herself while she's in labor so that she doesn't feel the pain of childbirth so much."
And that, my friends, is when (pardon my language) it all went to hell in a handbasket.
I will never, ever live down that discussion. Now, for the rest of their lives, these kids are going to remember me as the teacher who taught them about hypnobirthing in the 7th grade.
[Random Side Note: after mentioning that a couple of my sisters have tried hypnobirthing, one of the boys in the class frankly informed me that my sisters really hadn't hypnotized themselves--that, in fact, the doctor had given them a big shot without them noticing.]
Some days you just can't win.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Bullying
Since bullying was a large part of my own life growing up (getting bullied, that is, not bullying other people), I decided to incorporate it into the literature unit we just started today. I wanted the kids to know some strategies they can use for when they get bullied, and I also wanted them to know that they aren't alone.
I had the students do a quick writing assignment to get their brain juices flowing and to make it a little easier for them to open up and talk about a subject that is often very difficult to talk about at this age.
I had the students answer the following questions:
1 - Describe a time when you were bullied or made fun of and how you felt
2 - Why do you think that some people bully other people?
3 - What do you think are some good ways of handling bullying or prejudice towards you or towards someone else?
Although some of my students didn't quite take the assignment seriously, I have found most of the answers to be very telling. There have been less than five students who said that they'd never been bullied (which means that the other 105 or so have). And although some of the bullying stories break your heart, I think the most interesting answers are probably the ones that have to deal with how to solve the problem.
The vast majority of students at this age (12-13 years old) said that the best thing to do was to go tell a trusted adult, like an understanding teacher or a parent.
Many said the best way to deal with it was just by ignoring the problem, or by asking them to stop.
A dozen or so of the students suggesting fighting back with physical or verbal aggression, either by yourself or with a group of friends.
But I'll admit, it was the answers like the ones below that almost brought tears to my eyes:
"Try and look at their side of the story. Maybe they've been bullied and feel like they need to do it. Try and talk to them and become friends with your bully."
[The next one was written after the student shared several examples of when he himself had been bullied]: "Just ask him what is wrong and ask him if he wants to join in the activity."
"Tell the person being bullied to not give up if others are bullying her. I like to tell her to not give up and be strong."
"I would take the person who is getting bullied away and hang out with them."
"Be nice to them and don't bully them back. Be nice to new kids or people you just met."
"Sometimes it is really hard but you can do it. Tell a teacher or principal that you trust and that can handle the situation. Trying to be nice to them is good too. Maybe they just want a friend and no one will be their friend."
"Try to find out if they have a bad life at home, try and maybe become their friend and be nice to them so they won't be mean."
"A way to stop bullying is to include everyone in what you are doing. An example would be if you are going to play soccer in the schoolyard at lunch, let everyone play."
I was also astounded at how many of the kids wrote that some people bully others because they're having a hard time at home or in their life and that you should look at things from their perspective. Even though my students aren't quite children anymore, I often think to myself, "From the mouths of babes..."
The world will be all right as long as there are still kids like these in our schools.
And just because I have to share, this is what one kid wrote in response to that question:
"Ask your mom if you can beat the bully up."
At least he's requesting permission, right?
I had the students do a quick writing assignment to get their brain juices flowing and to make it a little easier for them to open up and talk about a subject that is often very difficult to talk about at this age.
I had the students answer the following questions:
1 - Describe a time when you were bullied or made fun of and how you felt
2 - Why do you think that some people bully other people?
3 - What do you think are some good ways of handling bullying or prejudice towards you or towards someone else?
Although some of my students didn't quite take the assignment seriously, I have found most of the answers to be very telling. There have been less than five students who said that they'd never been bullied (which means that the other 105 or so have). And although some of the bullying stories break your heart, I think the most interesting answers are probably the ones that have to deal with how to solve the problem.
The vast majority of students at this age (12-13 years old) said that the best thing to do was to go tell a trusted adult, like an understanding teacher or a parent.
Many said the best way to deal with it was just by ignoring the problem, or by asking them to stop.
A dozen or so of the students suggesting fighting back with physical or verbal aggression, either by yourself or with a group of friends.
But I'll admit, it was the answers like the ones below that almost brought tears to my eyes:
"Try and look at their side of the story. Maybe they've been bullied and feel like they need to do it. Try and talk to them and become friends with your bully."
[The next one was written after the student shared several examples of when he himself had been bullied]: "Just ask him what is wrong and ask him if he wants to join in the activity."
"Tell the person being bullied to not give up if others are bullying her. I like to tell her to not give up and be strong."
"I would take the person who is getting bullied away and hang out with them."
"Be nice to them and don't bully them back. Be nice to new kids or people you just met."
"Sometimes it is really hard but you can do it. Tell a teacher or principal that you trust and that can handle the situation. Trying to be nice to them is good too. Maybe they just want a friend and no one will be their friend."
"Try to find out if they have a bad life at home, try and maybe become their friend and be nice to them so they won't be mean."
"A way to stop bullying is to include everyone in what you are doing. An example would be if you are going to play soccer in the schoolyard at lunch, let everyone play."
I was also astounded at how many of the kids wrote that some people bully others because they're having a hard time at home or in their life and that you should look at things from their perspective. Even though my students aren't quite children anymore, I often think to myself, "From the mouths of babes..."
The world will be all right as long as there are still kids like these in our schools.
And just because I have to share, this is what one kid wrote in response to that question:
"Ask your mom if you can beat the bully up."
At least he's requesting permission, right?
Monday, February 27, 2012
Lines I Wish I Would Have Written
As more and more of my students' first attempts at poetry are coming in, I have come across some pretty incredible lines.
So here goes the list of lines I wish I would have written myself:
"They will make a new number
To describe how I feel about you."
"The big question is
Why we're stuck taming a wild
River."
"I was fed by drought"
"I sold a road" (I just feel like you could do so much with that line)
"You're my housewife fixing our twisted time" (This line just won't get out of my head)
And what would one of these posts be without a few funny lines thrown in just for fun?
"You fluffy rainbow that fills your soul...
Hello rainbow you're cute
And disrespectful"
(This is what happens when I tell them to start combining random words together to form a poem)
"Fashion designers
Make a lot of money
Just for making
Clothes."
(I don't know why I think this one's so funny, but I do)
And what's a post without someone mentioning Justin Bieber? [Since I can't go more than one class period without his name being brought up]:
"It's sad that every day a man loses his manhood
Because they got a British tan.
See that limo? That's Justin Bieber
Coming to sing Baby...
Now he can sing his sparkled music
Again."
So here goes the list of lines I wish I would have written myself:
"They will make a new number
To describe how I feel about you."
"The big question is
Why we're stuck taming a wild
River."
"I was fed by drought"
"I sold a road" (I just feel like you could do so much with that line)
"You're my housewife fixing our twisted time" (This line just won't get out of my head)
And what would one of these posts be without a few funny lines thrown in just for fun?
"You fluffy rainbow that fills your soul...
Hello rainbow you're cute
And disrespectful"
(This is what happens when I tell them to start combining random words together to form a poem)
"Fashion designers
Make a lot of money
Just for making
Clothes."
(I don't know why I think this one's so funny, but I do)
And what's a post without someone mentioning Justin Bieber? [Since I can't go more than one class period without his name being brought up]:
"It's sad that every day a man loses his manhood
Because they got a British tan.
See that limo? That's Justin Bieber
Coming to sing Baby...
Now he can sing his sparkled music
Again."
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Teen Angst
As part of our poetry unit, I've been asking the students to make a "found poem," which is where you pull random words and phrases from various books and magazines and then rearrange them to create a poem (like magnetic poetry).
Some of the poems are surprisingly profound, even though I don't think the students necessarily intended them to be that way.
And some are just funny.
Like this:
I love you
I love you
I do
But I just don't like
Those very old shoes.
I bought you some new ones
You threw them away
I don't know if I want you to be my boyfriend.
Just...
Take me to Justin Bieber's concert
And we'll be okay.
If you don't do what I tell you
We really are gonna become
Frenemies.
Love you.
Sometimes I just die. Bless their hearts.
Some of the poems are surprisingly profound, even though I don't think the students necessarily intended them to be that way.
And some are just funny.
Like this:
I love you
I love you
I do
But I just don't like
Those very old shoes.
I bought you some new ones
You threw them away
I don't know if I want you to be my boyfriend.
Just...
Take me to Justin Bieber's concert
And we'll be okay.
If you don't do what I tell you
We really are gonna become
Frenemies.
Love you.
Sometimes I just die. Bless their hearts.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Memorable Student Lines
My four classes just all finished up writing the final drafts of their personal narratives. Here are some of my favorite lines from their stories:
"My dad is kind of short, so that's where I think his anger comes from."
"[The ice cream] felt like a frozen tangy snowman was dancing on my tongue."
"In Mexico there are a lot of short people like my dad." (And that's the last line of the story).
"If I was the mountain I would be a nice smelling green thingy." (I still have no idea what he's talking about at this point in the story, but I still laugh every time I think of it)
[Explaining about this superstitious ritual he does in basketball to try and have better luck]:
"It does not give you 12% luck. It maybe gives you--12% luck to make it in, just 12% to miss it." (I'd best talk to his math teacher...)
"I look down and the snow is as white as a nerd's face."
"The drive was as long and boring as a SpongeBob movie."
[After I told a student he needed to add a character description]:
"My aunt looks like she has hair, mouth, ears, eyes."
"Height-wise, Parker is a garden gnome."
Man, I love these kids. I wish I could include a line from every story, because trust me, they all have good lines. Teaching 7th graders is way too much fun!
"My dad is kind of short, so that's where I think his anger comes from."
"[The ice cream] felt like a frozen tangy snowman was dancing on my tongue."
"In Mexico there are a lot of short people like my dad." (And that's the last line of the story).
"If I was the mountain I would be a nice smelling green thingy." (I still have no idea what he's talking about at this point in the story, but I still laugh every time I think of it)
[Explaining about this superstitious ritual he does in basketball to try and have better luck]:
"It does not give you 12% luck. It maybe gives you--12% luck to make it in, just 12% to miss it." (I'd best talk to his math teacher...)
"I look down and the snow is as white as a nerd's face."
"The drive was as long and boring as a SpongeBob movie."
[After I told a student he needed to add a character description]:
"My aunt looks like she has hair, mouth, ears, eyes."
"Height-wise, Parker is a garden gnome."
Man, I love these kids. I wish I could include a line from every story, because trust me, they all have good lines. Teaching 7th graders is way too much fun!
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