Where Has the Time Gone? Another School Year is About to Begin!

Tuesday - August 18, 2009

It's unbelievable! This is the third year I have not experienced the the anxiety I always felt about the beginning of a new school year! Anxiety you might ask with having the number of years behind my belt (34.5 years when I retired)? Yes, teachers do experience some anxiety - what will the schedule be like; what will the class numbers be; what will the kids be like; will I be working for a new principal; and the list can go on and on and on. I just realized that my teacher friends will be heading officially back to work this Friday to begin the new school year!

Most teachers are well prepared to teach their given subject(s). Many go through extra training in the summer as well as taking college courses. Many believe once a teacher gets their degree - that's it. No, we never completely stop our education. A new program is started up and we would need to be trained to implement the program in our classrooms. Many of these sessions we have to attend is funded from our pockets, while some are paid by the county (or state). There were many summers when Bill and I were involved in some kind of training at least three times during the summer. This was always above and beyond what we were required to do. Many times it was to see if we could find something new that would make our job a little easier in reaching the kids of today!

One session that sticks out in my mind was the week long training we took at George Washington High School in Charleston. It started at 8:00 in the morning and lasted until 5:00. It was an intensive training for introducing AP in the middle school! (Advanced Placement classes which were to be more challenging!) They wanted Social Studies and Language Arts teachers involved - soooooo guess who the principal picked first!!!!!! Our room was paid for, as was our meals - as long as we ate there in the cafeteria - which wasn't bad. We also were paid a stipend to attend. This week long session was grueling with us having homework each evening!!! In the end, we both felt we had learned some techniques to use with our more capable students to challenge them to strive to do more! There were times when I felt I was back in my high school English class!!!!!!

Bill and I learned to use Rubrics and higher level questions more with the classes. Even those classes where things were a little more challenging for them to learn were exposed to these types of questions. In the long run, that week was actually very helpful!!!

Another trip during the summer took us to Atlanta. My very first plane ride - ohhhh and the first plane was a small one that took us to Pittsburgh!!!! We were in Atlanta several days and enjoyed the sights as much as some of the sessions!!!!!! We always tried to squeeze in as many sessions as we could, thinking we might hear something new and useful. Oddly, we only came away with just one great idea - how to get the kids to write a five paragraph essay using the "Power Writing" technique. We implemented this program with our own little twist that fall, and it was a success. Our kids were actually starting to write relatively great essays without complaining too much.

To all those who may not know many teachers, try to remember they have been working extra hours during the summer or the school year to be the best they can in teaching the students in their classrooms. It really aggravates when "one" teacher does something wrong and "all" teachers are placed in that same category. (This is true with all professions.) Bill and I worked really hard at being the best we could and be prepared each day in our classrooms. Since retiring, I have heard from many students who have said they now know we did a good job, and we thank them for those comments!

We want to tell all our buddies in teaching (especially our team members) we pray they have a great school year, with great classes, and a lot of success!!!!! Friday is now closer than it was yesterday!!!! Love you guys!!!!