It's like a retail job...but not...

On my quest for a career, I have filled out EVERY online application I can find (which isn't many to begin with). These positions range from part time preschool teachers to full time sixth grade teachers. I hadn't gotten any calls back until last week.

I was called to interview for a preschool lead teacher position. I bring my portfolio, print out my resume on pretty paper, make sure I'm a little early for the interview just to have my hopes crushed and then stomped on... There was a form to fill out with the regular interview info (name, prior experiences, references etc.). When it came to that little box where it says "How much do you expect to make?" I put a good figure, because they always try to pay you less anyway. The director took it and started laughing. She said, and I quote, "HaHa! I make waaay less than that. Like waaaay!" Following this, I was regailed with her life story and it turns out that she has a BA and works two jobs because she can't find a job that pays more than $12 hr. Geeze. I make more than that subbing!

I am going to have to start asking how much these places pay before actually going on an interview from now on!!

xxOOxx

Website Review: Toon Doo

http://www.toondoo.com/

Okie, this is a website with endless possibilities for the creative teacher. On this site, you can make your own cartoons. Yup! Your very own personalized cartoons :D WooHoo!!

Can you see the possibilities?! Can you? I sure can! You can make cartoon strips to illustrate new vocabulary words, science concepts, or geography like the one shown above. They can be used to show relationships between characters in a novel or play. Students can make their own as part of a report or review lesson. You could also use them as part of a PowerPoint or even on a smart board! Geeze, so many possibilities! Let me know if you use them, I'd like to see what you come up with.

xxOOxx

HUGGGSS!!!!

Hugs, Hugs, and MORE HUGS!!!! Oh ,how I love Love LOVE hugs! This is easily one of the best perks about working with the young ones. Not one day goes by that I don't get a gentle squeeze from out of the blue. There is something so genuine and honest about these hugs. They come from the simple desire to show someone love. Unlike adults, who sometimes hug out of respect, simple greeting, or some other ulterior motive, children seem to have this uncomplicated compulsion for hugging. I have noticed that there are a few different types of hugs that I recieve throughout the day

1. The "Oh My Goodness, I Haven't Seen You In Almost Ten Minutes" Hug: This hug is quick and usually has a small velocity due to the running start. It is usually followed by a breif upward glance and a warm smile. It makes me remember that they really do like me :)
2. The "Sneak Attack" Hug: This hug is usually unexpected and comes from either the back or sides. I don't know what triggers this hug, but I don't really care either. There is nothing more lovely than realizing that you have a kindergartener (or two) sqqueezing the life out of your legs for no apparent reason.
3. The "I'm Hurt" Hug: This hug is usually paired with tears due to a fall or hurt feelings. It usually follows a nice pep talk and maybe an ice pack (in extremely life threatning situations). I like this hug because it makes me feel like I have magical healing powers.
4. The "I Miss My Mommy/Daddy But You'll Do For Now" Hug: This is the saddest hug because sometimes it comes with tears and it always contains the strongest emotions behind it. Unlike the "I'm Hurt" hug, this one isn't fixed as easily. Many children never need this hug, but when they do, it's the most important one of all!
5. The "I Love You Miss D." Hug: This one is obviously detected. The child will walk up to you, look you in the eyes, and say "I love you Miss D." and give you the biggest hug ever! These always make me smile because of the unabashed declaration of love.

There are more, but these are my favorites.

xxOOxx

Culture Shock

As most of you know, I am currently an employee of a solidly middle-class suburban private Catholic school. The class size in kinder was less than 15. The students are not 100% Caucasian but I don't think there are more than 10 students in the whole school that English is not their first language. It is my first real long-term job and the entire campus has welcomed me with open arms. I am flabbergasted everyday by the amount of knowledge in these young minds. Seriously. Today, I over heard two preschoolers (about 4 years old) discussing a bible story and one little boy pointed to a group of people in the illustration and correctly identified them as Philistines. Really?! Geeze, it's amazing. Most of the kindergartners can read first-grade level books and write simple stories. The assigned math book seemed too easy for them so we practiced mental addition and even some subtraction daily.

As some of you might also know, I recently began tutoring after school for a company that has a government contract with LAUSD in compliance with the No Child Left Behind Act. Three days a week, I do one-on-one tutoring with a kindergartner in a low-income district. Her mother speaks very little English and she is in a classroom with more than 25 other 5 year-olds. She is very smart but has a language disadvantage that we're working on adamantly.

It is culture shock in the truest sense of the word as I go from interacting with my classroom to the one student. She cannot read. She can barely write. She cannot express herself in coherent sentences. It is actually mildly frightening. For Dr. Seuss Day I read Yurtle the Turtle to the class and they thought it was the most hilarious book ever. I read the first two pages while tutoring today and she was so lost that I decided that maybe we should get through Green Eggs and Ham first. I enjoy the change of pace that a 1:1 provides and she tries so hard during our sessions, I know she'll learn very fast. Its weird to think that I might be making a bigger difference in this one little girl's life than in all the kinder class combined. Still, the culture shock is extreme.

xxOOxx

World Poetry Day

In honor of world poetry day, here's a suuper funny poem I found :) Enjoy!

Lovely Teacher
by Linda Knaus
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(sing to the tune of “Clementine”)

Lovely teacher, lovely teacher—
eyes of periwinkle blue.
You are such a pretty creature,
and I’m so in love with you.

How I long for your attention,
so I’m acting like a fool.
Put me down for some detention,
just don’t send me home from school.

Oh, I’m filled with pain and sorrow,
for my teacher is so cute,
but she won’t be here tomorrow,
’cause she’s just a substitute.

Did you sing it in your head? haha... I KNEW it!!

xxOOxx

Just Do It

People are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered,
LOVE THEM ANYWAY
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives,
DO GOOD ANYWAY
If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies,
SUCCEED ANYWAY
The good you do will be forgotten tomorrow,
DO GOOD ANYWAY
What you spent years building may be destroyed overnight,
BUILD ANYWAY
People really need help but may attack you if you help them,
HELP PEOPLE ANYWAY
Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth,
GIVE THE WORLD THE BEST YOU’VE GOT ANYWAY.

author unkown

I was having a discussion with a few brilliant minds today and I was once again overwhelmed with teaching as a profession. I asked them a simple but unanswerable question: How do you immerse yourself in teaching without it taking over your life and burning yourself out after a couple years? I don't know the answer. Neither did they. They were NO help actually. However, I don't know if anyone can answer it. Teaching is a profession that can consume you body and soul. It takes over your life and before you know it you're looking up play-dough recipies at 1 am because you might want to use it next week. It never ends, but thats the fun of it!

Teaching is a wonderful profession because it can take you anywhere you want to go! The effort you put in is tantamount to the rewards you'll recieve in return. That's what draws me in. Teaching children about the lifecycle of a beetle is fine.. well, kind of boring. If you bring in some little worm looking things and have the students discover the cycle on their own, it's not so boring.

I found this poem online today and it really speaks to me. It gently encourages me to be a good person/teacher no matter what gets in the way. Sometimes we feel like nothing we do will ever matter in the long run, but it does.

So, even when you feel like you don't matter and it's taking over your life...TEACH ANYWAY

xxOOxx

Book Review: Everything on a Waffle

Everything on a Waffle
by Polly Horvath

I believe that you should NEVER assign something to your students that you haven't and/or wouldn't read yourself. Therefore, I have begun to indulge in fun elementary level books for my future reference (much more fun than Dostoevsky for sure!)

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I picked up Everything on a Waffle yesterday and just finished the 150pg. novel about ten minutes ago. It is a Newbery Honor Book and I would say it is good for the end of third grade/ beginning of fourth grade. Heck, who am I kidding, it would do as a read aloud in any grade actually!

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The story is written in the first person and is very engaging from the very first page! It's about a little girl whose parents are lost at sea. She goes through a very rough time trying to get the little town to stop telling her that they're dead, because she knows deep down that they're not. She tells of her misadventures in the little town and how she lost two digits in the process. The book is littered with recipes that sound delicious and little anecdotes on life. Definitely worth a place in your classroom library at the very least!

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xxOOxx

Who are You? Better Yet...Who are Your Friends???

This is my support team. This is who I go to when all else fails. This is my base and my inspiration.

I got a lot of things out of my credentialing program, but these five girls are by far the best! I believe that making connections and learning from your peers is one of the goals of any good program and we got this tenfold! I look up to these girls and respect them deeply. Each one of them has priceless experiences and a wealth of knowledge that they are ALWAYS willing to share with me. They are all older than me and inspire me daily to be a better teacher and person.

Sometimes it is hard when you're the new teacher in a school and other teachers are bitter and/or jaded. They try to give you "advice" like ...don't work too hard... or just give them worksheets. One teacher once told me, "You don't get paid enough to do all that you're trying to do." Can you believe that!? Me neither. But what's scariest is when you catch yourself following that "advice" and only doing the minimum- which will inevitably happen if you surround yourself with people like that.

I choose to surround myself with people who WANT to better the world. When I feel like I'm slipping over to the dark side, I hang out with my girls. They remind me of the type of teacher I want to be. They encourage me to be exceptional- not mediocre. I don't even know if they realize all this, but nevertheless I continue to soak up their radiance like a sponge! They all are working so so so hard to become better teachers and are working their tushies off in their Master's programs. So, this is for:

• Carol, who is always happy and is constantly trying to better herself.
• Gladys, who gives practical advice and breaks it down for everyone to understand.
• Amanda, who believes in every child and remembers EVERY strategy we have studied.
• Nicole, who has an endless supply of stories and examples to help with any problem.
• Sujata, who tells it like it is and leads by example.
• and all of the other students and professors who have touched my life and made me better than I was. THANK YOU!

Again, I could probably write a novel on our experiences together...but I'll spare you the goopy details. I just want you to think about who is in your life. Who inspires you? Are you surrounding yourself with positive colleagues who will push you on, not hold you back? Think about it.

xxOOxx

Philosophy of Education- Get one!

Every teacher.. uhh, scratch that... every GOOD teacher has a philosophy behind their madness. We must understand how and why we, as a individuals, teach children. Some people believe in B.F. Skinner's Behavioral theories while their colleagues utilize Chomsky's cognitivism. It doesn't matter who's right... just that you have your own theory. Therefore, you shouldn't steal mine! I worked hard on it and well.... IT'S MINE! Besides, I know you'll be able to come up with your own better one because you're not me and you have wonderful ideas in that little skull of yours. That being said, here's my Philosophy of Education:

I believe each child is unique…
Every child should be treated as an individual. Children require a secure, caring, and stimulating atmosphere in which they will be able to grow and mature intellectually, physically, emotionally, and socially. In order to provide this type of nurturing environment, I believe teachers should be attentive and responsive to their students. By knowing the strengths and weaknesses of students on an individual basis, the curriculum may be tailored to meet the needs of the classroom as a whole. This is possible by utilizing the many learning techniques such as visual, audio and kinesthetic methods. Using an individualized plan will help the students achieve more from the classroom experience and will help prevent students from becoming unmotivated.

I believe learning is supposed to be fun…
What is the point of learning something if it has no relevance to real-life and is not entertaining? No adult has the motivation to learn something that they can not apply in their own lives. Therefore, I see no reason for a child’s motivation to be any different. I believe that if children are taught that learning is fun, they will become life long learners. That is my goal in teaching: to create life long learners. By including hands-on activities and real-life examples, bland materials in textbooks become relevant and exciting. Providing students access to hands-on activities that reinforce the lesson creates an opportunity for discovery and the growth of knowledge to take place. My hope is that my students will enjoy the process of learning as much as I enjoy teaching.

I believe teachers are to guide and inform…
When teachers enter the classroom, they are expected to impart knowledge upon the students. Much of this knowledge comes from textbooks, workbooks and certain other materials that are required materials in the classroom. However, I believe that that is not the only material that the teacher is responsible for teaching. It is great if the student memorizes the preamble to the Constitution, but what if she forgets who wrote it or when? It is the job of the teacher to provide her students with the skills and resources that are required from the world outside the classroom. This includes research, study, social, critical thinking, and survival skills. It is important that students are able to find and research reliable facts and data on their own. This may be accomplished in many ways such as by utilizing resources like a dictionary, a thesaurus, an encyclopedia, or a computer.

I believe teachers never stop learning…
There is a fine line between teacher and student because the teacher never ceases being a student herself. The love of teaching goes hand-in-hand with the love of learning. A life-long teacher is a life-long student. In order to consider ones self truly educated, no amount of learning can ever be enough. It is stated best by an ancient Chinese proverb: “The more you know, the less you understand.” A teacher learns from colleagues, parents, and especially the students. Students can provide teachers with information from the cultures they come from. They provide instant feedback about a topic or idea, consequently opening our minds to new points of view every day. Students are wonderful in reminding me to stop and smell the roses, kick a soccer ball, or laugh until my belly aches. I will never cease to learn from the many children I encounter.

xxOOxx

Our Children First..JUST KIDDING!!

"The test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children."

-Deitrich Bonhoeffer

I don't know who Deitrich Bonhoeffer is but his statement rings true in my mind. I am currently contemplating just how much we TRULY value our children today. While I could probably write a dissertation on this subject, for this purpose I'll reflect solely in regards to education...

According to Delaine Easton, the Superintendent of Schools in CA, we are one of the bottom states when it comes to per pupil spending- compare our $6,500 to New York's $11,000...geeze, that's almost double! In 2004, one district in the San Fransisco area has already had to cut $28 MILLION! This resulted in NO sports programs, closed libraries, and over 200 teachers being fired! This was all over 5 years ago! Nothings gotten better and it seems as if we are slowly spinning down an ever-flushing toilet.

If we can judge morality by how we treat children, how do our current circumstances reflect upon our society? It seems as if education is one of the first things that is cut and the last to be reinstated. The dreaded budget cuts have become a shadow that is ever-looming over our children's education. Do we really not care about the quality of our children's education? Do we just ship them off to school because it's mandated? Do we even care what they do there? I do. I know you do. I'm not so sure if our society/polititians do. I'm upset because if we don't take care of our children now, they won't take care of our future and our morality is most definately doomed according to Mr. Bonhoeffer.

Site Review: Teaching Heart

www.TeachingHeart.net

I think this was one of the first teaching websites that I found. It is LOTS of fun and has a little bit of everything...seriously. But perhaps best of all is that it is still being updated :) I HATE finding cool websites that are like five years old and they never change. Right now, my favorite part is a whole section for new teachers (www.teachingheart.net/newteacher.html). Here you will find:

• Resume Help
• Interview Help
• Bulletin Boards
• Classroom Management Tips
• Student Teaching Tips and MORE!

Well, the website is mostly for K-3rd grade but she has a lot of fun lessons for special days such as St. Patrick's Day, the 100th Day, the 1st Day, the Last day, Open House and stuff like that. It also has:

• children's literature reviews
• Center Ideas
• Motivational Techniques
• Reader's Theatre Scripts
• (and my favorite)...pictures of actual different classrooms! coolness!

[make sure to scroll all the way down the page to see all the link options, they are at the bottom of the homepage!]

Like any other site, they're trying to make money so they are constantly trying to sell these "teacher time saver CD-Roms" the CD's are filled with printables... but are a bit over priced for me! I mean, $30-ish dollars for a CD filled with free worksheets that I could probably find online anyway? I'll pass. However, the rest of the site is definitely worth checking out!!

xx00xx

Contemplations on the Chupacabra

A funny dialogue*:

Me: Alex, Why have you been in the bathroom for so long? It's been 10 minutes!

5 year old Alex: Umm...

Me: Were you plying in the bathroom?

Alex: NO!

Me: Then...what?

Alex:Well, I was in the bathroom and I started thinking about the Chupacabra.

Me: (Stunned silence).

Alex: Then, I was thinking about it so much and I forgot about this class... Sorry Miss D, but sometimes I do that. Sometimes I think too much and I forget about this class...sorry...

Me:Uhh, okay then. Go finish your math.

I mean, what do you say to a five year old who is contemplating the existence of the Chupacabra?!?

*names have been changed...just in case.

xxOOxx

Subbing, a Blessing in Disguise

I guess by definition, I am currently a 'career substitute teacher.' Although I am frustrated by the lack of actual teaching jobs at the moment, let me just say that I DO love substituting! Subbing is great, in fact, I'll even bullet point the list as to why:

1. I get to visit new classrooms weekly and see how they are set up and how well the setups work.
2. I get to steal other teacher's ideas and tricks, such as how they organize their libraries and their little class routines and organization strategies. One teacher hung all of her posters (she had a lot) from hangers and had a rolling rack to keep them organized... better than in a dusty box in my opinion!
3. I get to meet cool new kids and see them freak out when I call them by name after the first hour. I like to go around and try to see how many names I can memorize by the end of the day and they always are thrown off when I call their name from across the classroom!
4. Visiting so many different schools gives me a good frame of reference for when I actually am able to choose the school I work at. Also, I'll be able to bring more ideas to my new school of choice- or the Charter school that I'm going to open haha.
5. I get to put many of my attention-getters and sponge activities into use daily! Not to mention that I get to play games with the kids and it's considered okay because I'm "just a sub."

There are so many reasons I enjoy subbing and I know one day it'll pay off. I pick up so many things that I KNOW I would like to incorporate into my classroom and some things that I now know I would stay away from. Either way, I think subbing is a good use of my time for now.

xxOOxx

Applications, Cover Letters, and Resumes OH MY!!

In the past month I have filled out more applications than I can even count. No, not for teaching jobs but for menial things like substituting, tutoring, and summer positions. Although these jobs will undoubtedly provide me with great experiences, it's just not what I went to school for... I think I have only found two full-time in the classroom teaching jobs to apply for. The catch is that I have ZERO years of teaching experience and there are sooo many teachers with tons of experience that are applying for these same jobs. Poo. I know.

Although, in the process of looking for a career-type job, I have found some other fun jobs to apply for. One of these being a science summer camp which I just finished phone-interviewing for. SUUUPER FUN! I think spending the summer with crazy kids doing exciting science experiments will be fabulous, don't you?! Although I think phone interviews are awkward, this one sounded promising- I hope I sold myself well enough! I should find out in a couple weeks.

Anyway, the job hunt continues as I am constantly and consistently checking up on openings online. Everyday I check three sites:

• edjoin.com: The official website for job availabilities in LAUSD and many many other districts.
• craigslist.com: yeah, cliche but there are many openings posted everyday- go figure! You can also find many part-time and tutoring jobs here.
• la-archdiocese.org: Where the LA Archdiocese posts any openings. I haven't found much there yet, but I'm still hoping!

When I am feeling a bit more hopeful, I'll check a few dozen specific district websites that don't post on edjoin.com such as Burbank Unified, Simi Valley Unified, Pasadena Unified, and Glendale Unified- to name a few. I've also tried Monster.com and careerbuilder.com but there's not much there. If anyone has more ideas, leave a comment and let me know!

Despite all the trials, I know that my classroom is out there somewhere! Certain unnamed sources tell me that more openings are sure to arise after March as that is when teachers report their returning status. Wish me luck and happy hunting!

xxOOxx

Love Notes

I love Love LOVE invented spelling. I believe that there's nothing more amazing than watching a student trying to make sense of our crazy English language. I mean c'mon there are soooo many sound combinations (ae, oi, th...), special rules (silent e, when two vowels go walking...), and just plain sounds to keep straight! It intrigues me how children think through words and spell the sounds that they hear- just like I've taught them! Sometimes I don't even realize that there is a particular sound in a word until they spell it for me!

*This is a letter I got from Annabelle. She said, "Miss D., I wrote you sentences because I know you like to read sentences." I love it!

I haven't been teaching very long at all, especially when you count up the hours I've spend in any given classroom, yet I have a large box FULL of drawings and little love notes. I consider these a perk of the job! The students take so much time to write them and are so so so proud when they hand them to you. Their little faces light up when you tape one to the board and give them a big smile.

*Here's one that I got on Friday from Xavier. I taught the class how to make symmetrical hearts on Valentine's Day and he took it to another level! I particularly like the drawings ;)

xxOOxx

Reason #35 Why Teaching is Worth It

Friday was my last day of a long-term sub job in kindergarten. I've been with these kiddos since January and they have all left a mark in my heart. It always amazes me how quickly we make connections between students and teachers. This isn't the first time I've had to part with great kids and it certainly won't be the last...

Anyway, I went out to get them on Friday morning and every one of them had a flower and a hand made card for me :D It was such a lovely surprise and I had a beautiful bouquet to bring home filled with daisies, lilies, carnations, daffodils (my favorite), roses, and even a bird of paradise. It was definitely the prettiest bouquet I've EVER gotten! Here's a picture of some of them...

A Disgruntled Teacher

I have studied.
I have worked.
I have taken contless units.
I have taken rediculous classes.
I have jumped through hoops.
I have jumped backwards through those same hoops.
Then, I FINALLY got my credentials and to my dismay realized that there was not even a glimmer of hope for a career anytime soon.

So... I've started this blog to vent and to share some of my funny/frustrating/entertaining experiences in job hunting and substitute teaching. Hopefully one day(soon) I'll be able to blog about my first year teaching :)

Enjoy!

xxOOxx