Ten Minutes Ready Go

Class starts in ten. Have been needing to catch up the blog on TEACHING!!! So, bullet points: snick snack snorum.

- Student just came in to ask for help soliciting submissions for the student lit magazine. Eight minutes left.

- Teaching at a private Christian school is a little odd. Is a lot odd. Yesterday, the day started off with chapel-- three sermons, and hymns sung to organ music. No kidding-- they used the "old school ORGAN" setting on the keyboard.

- My sophomores LOVE me. We have a blast.

- I'm still winning over my seniors. They require a whole different approach-- they've been together since Kindergarten, and I'm the new one. Who says I have a right to speak into their lives? Have been working on building relationships and having meaningful conversations with them-- also, spending too much time grading their papers so that I can write thoughtful comments. Think it's paying off... It feels different every day.

- Have had to deal with plagiarism already. Good Christian kids still make dumb kid mistakes, apparently.

- One boy took a ten minute bathroom break. After class: "Ryan, can I talk to you for a second?"
"Sure."
"How are you feeling?"
(Long suspicious pause from Ryan.)
"Like, health wise. How are you feeling?"
"Um... yeah... I guess I've been feeling a little under the weather...?"
"Just because I cannot fathom why a bathroom break would take you so long, unless you were experiencing serious intestinal issues."
The light dawned on him. "OOH, yeah! Oh-- yeah-- you know, Chipotle does that to me." His friends laughed.
"Well steer clear of Chipotle before my class then."

- The kids don't know if I'm Miss, Ms., or Mrs., and call me all three. I'm fine with that-- I'd rather they don't know one way or the other.

- My graffiti board-- a blank piece of posterboard that I covered with paper and hung on the wall for kids to write on-- is already full. Among the quoted: Pink Floyd, Southpark, and Michael Scott. Love itr!

- It's going WELL. I love my little AP class (10 kids), I feel big things going on with the Seniors, and obviously, I'm having a ton of fun with my 10th graders.

There's the bell! One more big update though-- I moved! Life no longer occurs daily at Grandpa's house. I'm going to miss him, but I was really feeling ready for more independence. Living now with Carly and Deidra- WONDERFUL friends!-- at a house just a couple blocks away, and I've transformed my little room into the coziest, sweetest little nest! Left Gramps little love notes to find all over the house-- a reminder that I'm not far away, and that I'll see him SOON.

More later. Class now.