Got through my 1st day
 

Wasn't as hard as I worried it'd be! Will do 1st experiment Thursday. (Today was to establish who was in the lab/lay down groundrules for the class).

My classes (as a student) start tommorrow.

Yesterday I was able to name a quirk about a co worker that is driving me nuts. It is such a simple thing to name this quirk and I think my ability to respond to it appropriately will save us both quite a bit of misunderstanding.

The thing she does is try to get help with her workload (which I am happy to consider doing and we've talked about it) by not asking but telling. She says, "I was just thinking you would...." or "It only makes sense if you do...." and "I just can't do this and since you are there too..." And since she is very literal if I say "okay... let's talk about that" or "that might work" she considers the matter settled.

Now I know to set a time to think and come back to it explicitly. Or even better I can say something that highlights her asking. I am not sure how to do that. I just know that a couple of us are starting to get irritated and we are keeping positive this year.

BK that is an ambitious and fabulous plan. I hope you make it so you and the kids play everyday.

Work on my end is busy and good. Most of all it is the complicated communication loops that are slowing me down. Way down.

I was doing well on at work this week. Until Friday. :| I know is it too much to ask to have 4 days in a row go well? looks like it. The vice principal who is working hard on "clearly defining" this year jacked a few of us around Friday. If she had just had a conversation with myself and the others she would have found we all had it covered. But flying off the handle is her MO and now the rest of us suffer.

My co worker (and favorite person there) is pretty sure that when she goes out on maternity leave in December she isn't coming back.

I think the clincher for me was the chair scratching the floor issue. A student has an adapted chair that goes everywhere for stability and positioning. When moved it scratches the wax. The solution of felt pads was too simple and now it must be moved with a wagon. Which the staff person must now juggle pulling the chair in the wagon and a mostly stable but wandering child.

See the hierarchy of concern... shiny floors then children

Was pleasantly surprised by the 1st batch of lab reports. These guyas are pretty good already.

How does the parent feel about the extra attention being drawn to her/his child? Most of my parents would FREAK.

God, IA's have the worst fucking jobs sometimes.

Yes, other parents would freak. Not this kiddo's. And yes IA's do have it difficult at times. One of the great things about where I work is some freakishly talented IA's. The kids are very blessed and as a teacher I am sooo grateful.

Making this work...not easy - but I never give up on anything that truly means something to me!
:D

Happy Tuesday!

Let us fortify our minds against the tyranny of the dumb ass administrator.

Sorry I needed to let go of my positive balloon for a second, put down the bubbles and just say it like it is....

They are nuts! Flat out crazy. I am doing my job, just as described in the handbook and then being told not to do that. cause really it won't be a problem if I don't. Ummm... unless it is a problem and like last year that didn't work for me or the kids and umm... I am not going to go against the handbook.

BECAUSE the handbook is the sanest thing around this place. :seeingstars:

Back to letting go and spreading joy.

TGIF!
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What a week!
Had to have the SRO (Campus Cop) come to my room twice this week to remove students....ugh!
Met with my Principal again about ongoing situation...plain and simple -Sixty to one is not working nor conducive to teaching and learning! On a lighter note - 7th and 8th students played this week! Sixth grade is a bout two weeks out from starting on their instruments... :D

Yaw. It is so.

This week a student was put into my program who has no chance of benefiting from it. It's just another opportunity for him to fail. It's just that there is no place else for him. I said to the administrator something like, You all aren't under the illusion that this is going to work, are you? And she said no. At least she was honest.

Their position is rational in a way. There IS no place else to put him. Still, it's fucked up.

Guidelines for Gay and Lesbian Symptoms
 

We just LOVE dumbarse homophobia from the Ministry of Education do we not?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...n_1881863.html

a couple of highlights ...

Just this week, Azril Mohd Amin, the vice president of the Muslim Lawyers Association of Malaysia said that LGBT rights should be "excluded from a human rights declaration currently being drafted by Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)," LGBT website Gay Star News reports.

...

"Malaysian and those who are against LGBT rights are thereby protecting the human race from the secular fallacy, perpetrated by the United Nations, that human beings may do as they please, within their so-called "sovereign borders" (as laid down by the European powers)," he wrote, according to Gay Star News.

The symptoms listed for women look like women being community based and isn't outward affection toward men bad anyway when they are children?

However asinine the symptoms listed are the bigger issue is the impact on how children are treated at home, school and in their families.

Yes, and it's really common in Asia to spend time with other women, including sleeping together in the same room. It's culturally appropriate behaviour for goodness sake!

Last year there was a camp for "sissy" boys to toughen them up and make them less likely to become gay. :(

Just checking in here - I teach at the local community college. All of you who are K-12 teachers (assistants, paras, etc) have a MUCH more difficult job and I have boundless respect for all that you do with so little support!

Today was a long day. A welcome close to the first 5 day week of the year. Celebrated by getting a pedicure. My gratefulness was reflected in the tip. Saw my daughters principal getting her nails done too! That was fun!

At work I totally freaking NAILED the 2nd grade math support schedule. With 3 tiers of support for the students and the least amount of support of all the grade levels. I don't usually pull together all the elements that simply and it was a work of art. The teachers rejoiced. And let me tell you the 2nd grade team is whacked man! Lighting their fire is very hard.

Hot damn!! Good for you and for them!!!

Very busy day. Reaped some benefits of hard work the last few weeks, but also felt on the edge already re energy. :( It's the arthritis. Sigh.

Anyway, the student who was, IMO, misplaced in my program already got dropped from it. The admin found an excuse. I think she heard me or just has some good sense. I know it sounds cold blooded, but it wasn't going to help the kid. He'd just fail. Now it's back on the parent and the Program Specialist to find him a real placement if one exists.

Sad really, but I am relieved.

OH, and I found out one of my students is genuinely hungry. Sigh. I can help, but damn. WTF? Why does this happen in America, and why did it take me this long to see the signs? He practically had to tell me.

I was able to get a lot done this weekend - but never ending.... Going to be an interesting week
- Pep Rally today, Doctors appt. Thursday for back, Fundraising assembly Friday...
-To all heading to LR - be safe have an awesome time - I hope I can be a virgin next year!
-It's Monday - Lets get it moving and grooving!

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I did no school work this weekend. Oh well. More to catch up on. I feel I *need* the two days to recuperate from the week before. Even if I don't do work stuff, it's still in my head so I don't even know how much of a break I am giving myself by NOT doing it. :blink:

In other news: Our accumulated sick days were wiped to zero. I had quite a bit stored up. Others had even more. I guess people should have used them when they really needed a break or were sick (seriously, some take hardly any) and when they HAD them. Nice, eh? :|

So I am in such a mood about work.... I have a student that I work with. This student inappropriately touched another student. I reacted strongly in going to the vice principal to explain what happened and getting things in place so it doesn't happen again (umm... been trying to set up systems to avoid this exact problem only to be turned down a couple of times). I was told "we don't do punitive consequences at this school". WTF? really I think (with out being graphic here) may a missed recess is in order. AT LEAST.

Sheesh.... Don't get me started on the other inconsistencies of this day. I am happily sick tomorrow.

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Applies to my last two classes....I warned them to not put anyone weak in there today :/

Thank you BK.... I was pretty upset. That another kid had this inappropriate experience. I made sure that admin called the victims family. That the teacher had a plan for the class community (she did and she rocks). We met as a team (without the vice principal) made a plan. It is tight on supervision (as much as they will let me) and actually got some things put in the kids plan the vice principal never lets us formalize.

FINALLY my local Board of Education primary school English person is going to do something about one of my teachers not coming to the party ... I guess Ministry of Education + key performance indicators did the trick. Plus, my zone manager said he'd visit the school next week. Never mind that I bought this issue up a month or so ago. :blink:

I spoke to one of my teachers yesterday, she hadn't heard of the latest craziness from the government/MOE about how to identify if a child is gay/lesbian (obviously transgender doesn't exist) - the telltale signs are fondness of tight, v-necked teeshirts and handbags = gay and fondness for female company = lesbian. Neverfuckingmind that girls/women spending time with each other is culturally appropriate for most of Asia! ARSEHATS!!!! But, at least this teacher (Muslim) rolled her eyes and said "aren't there more important things to worry about" and "they want girls to be spending all their time with boys is it?" She's a pretty cool teacher actually and have spent some time out of school with her.

And onwards ... today is Friday, classes won't start on time because of morning prayers in the "standard" public schools - never mind children and staff who aren't Muslim.

Chancie... I do hope you find it in you to take a break if you need it. Maybe a humorous story will come your way! I'll try to share some of mine.

So.... I outed the narcoleptic acting student as a big ole faker. Sudden sleeping when asked to work or told not now to doing something he wants. He is now getting the ride of his life. Love it. Best part... He is doing it and doing it wonderfully.

I look forward to Friday.

I had a good day too. I worked one on one with a student -- for two hours. We did Algebra -- I got confused and we both figured it out. We did U.S. History, and we worked on a collage. He has insisted that he is not creative, but he associated two ideas -- the idea of a coming apocalypse (his idea for the collage) and the idea of a clock (time is running out). And then he used a motif of clocks on the collage. Simple stuff, but he didn't think he had it in him. Math is his strong suit. I had to read the history to him, but he got the concepts immediately. Anyway, it was fun.

It's good to see some of the kids doing more each week -- and hating it less too. School has been a miserable experience for most of my students. All it has meant is feeling stupid and getting in trouble.