Believe it or not, my job doesn’t consist of a bunch of students standing on our desks and yawping barbarically all the time–like I wish it did (and if you don’t get the reference, repent immediately by renting Dead Poets Society). My job doesn’t consist of every student waiving their Hermione Hands all around until I call them so they can express some longwinded thought. Believe it or not, my classroom is not all love notes all the time.
12-12-12: Feeling Blessed this Birthday
Posted onI feel so blessed this birthday. Honestly one of the best.
Recently I watched a television show (Save Emily Owens MD!) that poked a little bit of fun at “birthday people.” They mentioned that having a birthday was not an accomplishment, so why celebrate?
To which I respond, because I like to! I like birthdays. I like your birthday and my birthday. Do I feel a little embarrassed that I not so tactfully hinted to my students that my birthday was coming up? Probably less embarrassed than I should, because my students were unbelievably kind to me on my birthday… and I won’t lie, that felt wonderful.
To My Students at Christmas time, Because there are at least twelve of you creepy kids who have (confessed that you) googled my name, found my blog, my twitter, my instagram, and my facebook, and at least six of you who are probably reading this now. Weirdos.
Posted onTo my students at Christmastime: What do I want you to know most? About English? About High School? About Life?
When Elly Strikes
Posted onWhen I got married, I got a new cellphone plan, and with it a new number. I did the customary thing: transferred my contacts, sent out a mass text with my new number, and I think I even posted some sort of Facebook announcement about it as well. As with all cellular changes, there were a few stragglers that didn’t get the memo.
Your Whining Makes Me Whiney
Posted onA couple of years ago, my New Years resolution was to quit whining altogether. I knew my mom was proud of me because she told all her co-workers about it, which is what she always does when she is proud.
Unfortunately, I made the resolution in January and January is cold, so my resolve not to whine lasted as long as it took me to defrost my first frosty windshield.
My Juniors Think I Am a Nazi.
Posted on… And I don’t just mean they think I am mean or unfair.
It started with a student who thought it was cool to draw Swastikas on my desks. High schoolers are weird.
The first time it cropped up, it was a tiny little Swastika. I was faced with the dilemma: Make a big deal out of it and risk goading the Nazi in my class to continue, or just let it slide and hope the perpetrator will get bored after their graffiti failed to incite. Apparently, “letting it slide” only ensured that the Swastikas got bigger and more noticeable. Teacher Fail.
The Problem with Flashbacks.
Posted onConfession: I watch Revenge.
Penrod’s Army
Posted onThis was me on my first day of teaching High School. Spare the jokes please. I know I look like I should be a high school student myself.
Since School Started…
Posted onI’ve been an unreliable journaler in 2012. Here’s some photo documentation of my life which consists mostly of Englishy things and my hedgehog. Jeremy and I need to take more pictures, but I think we both agree that our hedgehog is cuter than both of us, so she gets the most screen time.
Screen Fast, Thoreau Style
Posted onIn an effort to get my students in the spirit of Transcendentalism and to “Simplify, simplify, simplify!” I have asked my students to create their own personal “Walden” of sorts.