Summer Vacation

Today was the official last day of school. Grades were handed in, textbooks, classroom keys, and handbooks too. We had our last faculty meeting where they announced the "Veteran of the Year" (a veteran is someone -faculty/staff- at the school who has been there for more than 3 years) and also the "Rookie of the Year" (three years or less) and based off of feedback from colleagues I was selected as the Rookie of the Year - it was pretty great to get the unexpected recognition.

So now we're on summer vacation and all I have to do is goof around with my iPad because I got selected to be in a pilot program group that will be implementing iPads into their classrooms. I've already got a list of great apps and can't wait to keep finding new ones.


Oh yeah - and I get my own classroom next year. Boom!

Batman

A student put this at the end of her test, it's pretty self explanatory but she does this every test.

I also have another student who draws a scene from a different Disney movie on every test and I have to guess which movie it's from. In response, I usually draw another scene from another Disney movie and leave it up for him to guess. So far - we've both stumped each other once

this day in history (well, yesterday)

"Does anyone know what happened on this day (6/5) in 1968 in history?"
"OH! THE HOLOCAUST ENDED!"


Sadly, that was over twenty years before. Shockingly, this is the same person who thought Iwo Jima was the Moon



- Correct Answer: RFK assassination

The 1960s

For the past few weeks we've been covering the 1960s. Typically it's a really difficult unit to teach because so much happens in such a little amount of time none of it is really concentrated in the same area. So in order to make the most sense of the 1960s, I made a Prezi that takes you through a timeline. First through the Domestic Issues (Election of 1960, JFK assassination, March on Washington, Great Society, etc), then through Foreign Affairs (Berlin Wall, Vietnam War, Alliance for Progress, etc) and finally through the Counterculture (Hippies & Protesters). Each one of the sections goes through chronologically and builds on top of the previous section.
When I showed my students the notes for the first day they got ridiculously overwhelmed  - but I explained that these notes were taking us three weeks not just one day so it's not as daunting.
Here's what the first slide of the Prezi looks like -

85 slides right there, so obviously the students were a bit concerned.

But in any case, we've since finished all those notes and recently we talked about Monterey Pop, Woodstock, Altamont, as well as famous 60s bands and musicians. For homework my students had to create concert posters that would be appealing to the hippie crowd of the 1960s and here are a few of the good ones from this year:

College

At tennis, one the kids - a typically loud, cocky, doesn't listen to anyone but is a very talented kid - came up to me because he wanted to ask me a question. This kid and I barely spoke to each other at all during last year's season, and this year we have talked here and there but in no way would I see myself as someone he would approach with a question.

For the next half hour we had a full-on discussion on his college plans for next year and how picked one school, sent in his deposit, but now is having second thoughts. We talked about what he liked about his two top schools, what he hated about them, what he thinks, what I thought (but I made sure not to force my opinion on him - it was more important for him to figure this out, I was just going to help him get there), and so on.

At the end of it, he decided to switch schools, had the biggest smile on his face, and now knows that he can come to me if he has an issue.

Made me feel good as a coach

Plagiarism

Over the month of April - since we only had 11 days of actual school (Easter, vacation, professional days for teachers) my students had to either watch Remember the Titans or The Help. Then write a page and a half essay explaining how the movie portrays the Civil Rights Movement and which characters best represent desegregation, and which represent segregation. 


I assigned the essay April 3rd - it was due April 30th.


On May 1st, two students hand in their papers (already a day late) and after reading through one and then the first four words of the other, I realize they are the exact same. Within the first few words they both spell "movie" without the "i" even. I will say, the essays aren't the EXACT same, one student said "blacks and whites" and the other wrote "African-Americans and Caucasians."


In any case - brought that to the Vice Principal of Academics and they both got zeros for the assignment. Also, both students have already come to see me to apologize (not something they are told they have to do)

On a plane!

I class earlier this week we were talking about the JFK assassination and went through the entire ordeal. The next day we started talking about Robert F. Kennedy and a student asked if he got assassinated too. I explained that he did, but that we would talk about that later on.

“On a plane! He died on a plane right?”

“No, he died in a hotel kitchen.”

“Well which one was assassinated on a plane?”

I had to stop and think, but I realized he was talking about John F. Kennedy Jr.

“JFK Jr. died in a plane crash, he wasn’t assassinated – but that’s how he died”

“Wait? JFK Jr.? Wait, whose son was he? ……… Ooh, that was bad”

(same girl who thought Iwo Jima was the Moon landing)