Hello all!
I know I've been so busy lately and so I've not gotten a chance to tell you what has been going on but this is finally the blog post which I promised all of you I would write regaling you of the many tales of Miss Kornbleuth in the frozen land of Edmonton.
So the month before Chanukah was quite crazy with its many activities and happenings. I was trying very hard to get my college work together as well as stay on top of regular school work and all the many school functions that were happening.
I courageously battled parent teacher conferences and with tremendous power of will completed all report cards for the first marking period. Parent teacher conferences were a big Nachas to me [and the principal] because in comparison to the beginning of the year when there were many outcries about homework and skill level and being too hard on the kids and etc.... there were no complaints anymore and all the parents expressed how happy their child was and how happy they were with their progress. I was surprised by this and told one parent how i'm so glad this is so because when I first came I was very nervous about living up to their previous teacher whom all the girls adored and brought up things she taught them all the time. The mother actually laughed and said that she thinks her daughter is actually happier this year. Hearing that made me very proud of the all the hard work I'm putting into everything and more confident to continue.
As much of a Nachas as Conferences were..... report cards were NOT. I hate report cards once and for all! They are annoying and unfair and misleading and just- just- UNFAIR! lol..... its really annoying to want to grade a kid based on their effort, their sportsmanship, and how far they've come- only to have to give them a letter grade which mostly reflects their assessments in relation to the progress of the class as a whole. Phooey
We were also having on average 2 teacher/principal meetings a week to make sure everything went smoothly with both of the above and just teaching in general. We even had a professional development [PD] day where the kids didn't have school but the teachers did :} For once I think all kids would agree its better to be the student. It was basically really funny, the same as the teachers meetings I had in the beginning of the year. All the lady and man teachers of kodesh and general studies sat around colorful tableclothed tables in a semicircle and listened to speakers, took notes, and was asked to participate our thoughts and input. They asked us all to share with the group one thing that we think we've grown in [in regards to teaching] this year and one thing that impresses us about menorah academy this year that we can share. It was really awkward to come up with something on the spot but also to say it in front of 45 adults between the ages of 30 and 60 who are mostly married with children and grandchildren my age... and I feel like the age of the high school girls in the school... I don't remember exactly what I said just that it was funny and everyone laughed... it was something along the lines of how I can't pinpoint any specific area of growth because this is my first year on the other side of the desk although I definitely still feel like a student because I have to learn everything I teach before the students do. :) So we had speeches, sharing, and a professional breakfast and lunch- lol. And then we had a workshop where we experienced a class as the students, given by the principal- to allow us to feel what it feels like to be the student when the teacher does XYZ. I had a couple of thoughts coming out of it, 3 of them I shared with the group and one I didn't. 1 is that when the teacher gives a time limit to complete an activity- there is so much pressure that you almost can't do it at all. 2 is that stories in the middle of the lesson keep the focus sometimes because without it you tune out. 3 is that a lesson that is broken up into different types of activities is better. The last one which I didn't share is that this is the first time in my life when I was in a class with "boys" and just saying, there is a heck of a lot of pressure that I'm glad I didn't have in any of my classrooms growing up. Even though the 'boys' in question were rabbi's and my 'friends' husbands and co-workers and i'm generally comfortable communicating with all of them professionally but to answer questions in a classroom is a whole different story. It was so scary to think of getting an answer wrong! lol... other than that we learned how to use a smart board which i'm not sure if I consider something I will benefit from in my life but I guess it was nice to learn something new.
On top of all that there were 2 new programs introduced to the school which center around educating children in their character traits- the younger kids program being more of an anti-bullying campaign and the older program is teaching and directing the kids in the finer arts of communication, tact, and speaking in a refined and positive way. I get to do both since I teach 2nd and 5th grade. Unfortunately it took quite a bit of figuring out how to start the program and all the rules and how to teach it.... etc. Over Chanukah I finally had some time to begin implementing it and its really cute.
I also finished up my brachos rishonos and acharonos on foods program with 2nd grade and made a brachos bee for a few classes and also a brachos party at the end. I didn't realize how dangerous it is to have any kind of competitive competition in a 2nd grade classroom with boys until I did it.... I've never in my life seen so many desks toppled over, hard objects being thrown across the room, and fist fights in a classroom- as when the boys get out. I was glad when it was over and looked forward to a much calmer brachos party where I can just give out food and direct groups to say brachos and amens.... i might have wished too soon because in all the excitement one little girl got knocked over and hit her head on a metal desk leg in the room and got a quarter sized goose-egg on her forehead for which I needed to fill out an accident report and call the parents.
And that just about brings me to Chanukah which I will write about in great detail in the next post.
Until next post!
Shayne :)
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