What a “relaxed day” looks like

Here’s a look at a good day at school.

7:30 Arrive at school, get a few things finished up.  A set of grades in the gradebook, the day’s agenda updated, and the tenth grade journal website updated

7:45 Head out for hallway duty, talk to the teacher down the hall (my duty is outside her room)

8:00 Go back to my room, start class

Spend the next 48 minutes walking the class through a survey about what they might want out of a college.  It’s 20 questions long and only requires filling in the bubbles.  Seriously.

Then spend the next 30 minutes fighting my class to do their vocab list.  Lose my cool.  Inform them that anyone who hasn’t finished their vocab sheet will be in lunch detention finishing it or will receive a big fat zero. 

The room goes silent awhile.

9:14 Finish first period, move on to second.  Speech is always easier.  I grade papers, field questions and give suggestions for upcoming infomercials.  Run to the bathroom, talk to the kids about their schedules.

I’m pretty excited to see the infomercials, they are always really fun speeches.  The kids usually do a great job and they usually have me cracking up.

10:33 The end of second period…on to third.  We peer review essays together, and I realize this is definitely the way to go about getting a good peer review.  Console the student who got so stressed about the paper he was reviewing that he started crying.  Nearly cry myself.  Finally have my students recognize that their essays aren’t great.  And that they make all sorts of errors that need to be corrected. 

Students work on final drafts…pass back quizzes, announce the retest for it coming up Thursday. 

11:52 Time for fourth period..It’s the same as first.  They just move a little faster and I don’t have to lose my cool.

12:30 Lunch time.  Enjoy my potato soup.  Think what a genius idea making a whole pot of soup for lunch was.  Go to the bathroom, two stalls are out of toilet paper.  No paper towels.  Race upstairs with dripping hands.  Dry them on the paper towels in K’s room.

1--the second half of fourth period.  Answer questions, wander the room.  Scold, redirect, rinse and repeat.

Finally, at 1:41 comes my prep period.  I updated my lesson plans through the first part of October, checked my materials (thankfully, I’m coming into units that other teachers are giving me the materials for).  I read two short stories for the tenth grade classes.  I read “The Monkey’s Paw” and “Soft Rains Will Come” so I’m good through the end of the week on short stories. 

At the end of the day, I came home.  Ollie Dog and I have hung out.  Andy and I watched the new Star Trek movie.  And Ollie and I are watching Veronica Mars.