Lessons to a School Teacher from Her Students

1. If you are not having fun, what are you doing?
2. Everything goes better with a good laugh.
3. Everyone deserves an I'm sorry or I understand.
4. If I give you a second chance, you will give me one too.
5. Laugh at mistakes and then set goals to do better.
6. Praise accomplishment, no matter how small.
7. Help me to understand because what I understand, I appreciate.
8. A thank you goes a long way.
9. If I care about you, you can tell.

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The OCR and Me

We are under review with The Office of Civil Rights and they chose one high school in our area to visit, and guess what high school they visited? Mine. And guess who they interviewed? Me, and few other key people at our school.

The interview was grueling. I sat all alone across from a lady from OCR and I had to sign official government papers saying my name was on file with the government and anything I said could and would be used against me and my school district if necessary. The interview lasted an entire hour and there were actually several questions I didn't have the answer to.

I was prepared to answer questions about ESL, ELL, BICS, CALPS, DELD, IEP, 504, IDLP, ect., but I didn't know all of the questions realted to ELLs with IEPs. I practiced what I preached and used all of my best how-to-gracefully-answer-questions-you-have-no-idea-the-answer-to skills I teach my students.

We will not know for a few more weeks whether we passed government review, but I did receive this feedback from our district specialist / liason with OCR: "She specifically said that you did a good job. She can tell that you have a good personality."

Well good. My personality has now been edorsed by a scary government lady. Thank you U.S.A.

Profundity

1. Favorite student question of the week: If you put a book in the oven and turn it up to 451 degrees will it spontaneously combust?

2. Favorite class discussion quote of the week: "We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while. How long is it since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real?" (52)

In our attempt to be entertained and worry-free are we ignoring the important, and our ability to influence change?

The Great Wall of China

(because you would rather see a post about this - than about toilets)

The mountains along the Chinese - Mongolian border.

While we were in Beijing we took a little day trip out to one leg of the Great Wall of China. As you know the wall extends around the perimiter of China - the emporers hoping a wall would keep out the Mongolians, the Huns, and every other invading group of peoples. The wall really was very awe-inspiring and the countryside was beautiful.

This is one of my favorite shots of the wall from about 10 guard posts from the ground.


The funny thing about this sign warning those with "brain fever" not to climb - is it is about 1/2 way up! Too late!

This is a view of the Mongolia - China border and the Great Wall guarding it.

We climbed up to the end of the "arm" that was a look-out extension - 13 guard posts long.

A little detail - viewed from the wall.

The Toilet Tour of China

Background: when China made a bid for the Olympics the International Olympic Committee said, yes, if you fix up your toilet situaiton. They added a few Western-style toilets here and there and gave the toilets a rating system, one-to-four stars.

The more the stars, the better the toilet, supposedly. Although, you are hard-pressed to find toilet paper in any of the bathrooms.
This is a four-star toilet, so you can imagine they go down from here!

This is a one-star on the Great Wall of China, let's just say--gross.

This one I would give a two to, but the outside was pretty!

The ancient toilet in the Forbidden City, Bejing. The toilet for emperors!

The bathrooms in the hotels were funny too - they all had see through walls that luckily, we found a switch to lower a curtian over. They also don't throw away their toilet paper - they leave the paper in open waste baskets next to the toilets, so they stink! You can smell a toilet from a mile away.

Pay-Off

Life certainly doesn’t turn out as you expect it to. I certainly didn’t expect to be where I am now, no husband, no children; a BA, BS, and English Second Language and journalism endorsements, not to mention somewhere between a third and a half of a master’s degree. Yes, I am still working on it and will finish it sometime in the next decade!

I’ve taught high school for five years, and am now beginning to take on extra responsibilities. I am working on a 10th grade English collaboration team, am being trained in the new 2011 Core Curriculum Standards for Language Arts in Utah, and am training other teachers in a series of workshops. Did I mention I am also trying to finish my master’s degree? I certainly had other plans for my life!

Life is busy and sometimes discouraging; if I’m not helping an ESL student learn what a phrase means in English, I’m trying to get a high school newspaper printed, an honors student to love the symbolism in Edgar Allan Poe, or trying not to ring a 10th grader’s neck for telling me the fifth time this week, “I have a life Ms. E, that is why I didn’t read To Kill a Mockingbird! I have a life.”

But every once in a while as with anything you are doing, in any profession or in parenthood (so they say), you have a redeeming moment that makes it feel worth it. This week a senior girl in one of my classes, who consequently is a dwarf (not that that has anything to do with this story) told me when people ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, or what is her plan for the future are she tells them:

“I tell them I want to be you. Whenever anybody, the counselors or anybody, ask me what I want to be, I say I want to be Miss E.”

I must be doing something right, I’m not sure what exactly because I’m not the model for Mormon womanhood, but I must be doing something--. She wants to be me, and suprisingly, I didn't pay her to say it.

Permission to Feel Good About Yourself

If you didn't hear this talk this morning in conference, listen to it! I believe it gives permission for all women of the church to feel good about themselves whether single, married, working, or not working. I love that he said:

LDS Women are Incredible

"The women of the Church are not incredible because they have managed to avoid difficulties in life. They are incredible because of the way they face the trials of life. Despite the challenges and tests life has to offer from marriage or lack of marriage, children's choices, poor health, lack of opportunities and many other problems, they remain remarkably strong and immovable and true to the faith."

I love that he said we should not judge women who work outside of the home, and let the women at home know, they should not feel like they are not making an important contribution to the world because they are "just" at home.

St. Patrick's Days Bizarreities

1. Boy in first period informs me I look like a Christmas tree today because I'm wearing a green shirt and have red hair. (Not a girl leprechaun or anything - a Christmas tree).

2. Extra credit on term final for anyone wearing green today! You wouldn't believe the number of students uninhibited enough to shout out to the class and their teacher what color of under-roos they are wearing. And no, please don't show me. Oops, won't do that again.

3. Lunch lady confuses me for a student, and in quite a demanding manner informs me that she cannot let me pass by her in the lunch line without taking a serving of yicky, over-cooked green beans. It's the law. You will eat a square meal!

4. So a student asks me why we celebrate St. Patrick's Day in the United States anyway, I make some off-handed comment about how it is an excuse for some people to drink - it's like the 2nd highest day of beer consumption in the U.S. or something like that. So this same student goes to his next class--seminary. And informs the entire class that I said St. Patrick's Day is for drinking alcohol and in fact a the 2nd most popular day for beer consumption. Thank you student for making your entire seminary class think I drink. How did I find out about this you ask? Of course someone in that seminary class had me for their next class and announced to my whole 3rd period class.......I had to stop and take a moment and inform all my other classes today that I have never, not once, had even one little sip of alcohol.

Ah, a day in the life.

My First Digital Camera

You probably think I am kidding, but I'm not. I've never owned a digital camera. It's 2011 and I teach journalism for heaven's sake, and have travelled all over the world and don't own a digital camera. Granted I have cameras at my disposal to use, and I do, but I've never owned my own. Until now. I am going to break down and buy my first digital camera.

I set a pretty tough personal goal for myself a few months ago and recently accomplished it! The rewards of goal-accomplishment were enough, so I havn't rewarded myself with the camera I said I would if I conquered, but in setting new goals I realized something. If I don't actually reward myself the way I say I am going to, what will motivate me to accomplish my next goal? So now I am setting out to buy a digital camera, and I need your adivce. What do you have? What do you like? What brand, large or small do you think is the right fit?

My Little Journalists

Stressful as it can be, I really do enjoy working with these crazy high school kids! This is *most* of my journalism class at the annual Deseret News Journalism Conference held at UVU. A day that is fun for the students, but stressful for me as I chaperone a couple of suburbans full of teenagers and then stress some more as awards are announced for various competition categories such as best layout, best news article, best column ect.

This year we took home three awards - we have done better, but that's really not too bad for a conference with 21 schools participating and over 400 competition entries. I just get anxious for my students to be recognized for their hard work and budding-talent. Aside from boys playing Risk on a laptop during a break-out session, and girls that were just there to check out cute boys from other schools, all-in-all the conference was a successful experience for us.

How to end up without a date on Valentine's Day

1. Meet someone. Go out on lots of dates with said boy.
2. Go out with other boys who are asking you out who are not said boy.
3. Let boys who have not stepped up in the past anticipate stepping up with you.
4. Become very confused as to whether you are actually dating said boy.
5. Become very very confused as to whom you like and why.
6. Turn down the man who actually asked you out for Valentine's Day because it is not said boy and you feel kind of guilty about a Valentine's Day date with someone else.
7. Said boy does not ask you out for Valentine's Day because he is not sure what is going on either.
8. Stay home and grade papers on Valentine's Day. Who needs it anyway, right?
9. Feel slightly disgruntled that you are home grading research papers on Valentine's Day. Wonder why you are going out so often with boys but have no boyfriend, and are, as stated above, home grading papers on Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day never seemed important at all before; wonder why you are worried about not having a date for it now.
10. Get over it.

I'm Going to China

So I just signed up to go to China over spring break with a program for educators subsidized by the Chinese government/education system. So...I will be travelling with a bunch of boring teachers like myself.... jk....but it will be a really interesting and very cost efficient trip. My roommate Keri is going with me as well. What I'm most excited about, is that other than touring Chinese schools (jk), I will among other things, be able to walk on the Great Wall of China, see the Terra Cotta Soilders, and tour the Forbidden City.

Good Friends & Birthdays!

I am a year older, but still blessed with amazing and supportive friends. This year my birthday was really really wonderful. It was a weekend full of celebrations! I think birthdays are really just a great reason to get people together.

Friday night we went to Macaroni Grill, my favorite resturant in Provo with a bunch of my guy and girlfriends and then saw the movie Tangled, cute movie.

My best single girlfriends had cake and icecream for me Sunday night and gave me an emergency dating kit with toothpaste, lipstick, a movie, scented lotion, and a red, fuzzy blanket! :)Someone is going to get special treatment from me. Haha


Heidi and Heather and Cami and I got together and ate at Tucanos on Saturday. I love that we are all still good friends - always a pleasure! Thanks girls for being a few of my favorite married friends!

Thank you to all of my friends and family for being so wonderful whether I was able to celebrate with you or not!

Dear Mr. Tire-Man

Thank you for having pity on me when I came into your tire store bawling my eyes out, mascara dripping down my face, frantically making calls to the men in my life who were not answering their phones. Thank you for the brand new wheel and the brand new tire for free; you saved me $300. I promise I wasn't crying on purpose to get your attention or your services. Oh, and thank you for the bottled water as well.

I am a little creeped out however that you called me afterwards to chat. I don't know if it's okay that you got my cell phone number off the computer and called me. Then again, you could just be a nice man (so says my father).

Yeah right, I don't think so.

When the Lord told Zachariah his wife "stricken with years" was going to have a baby, essentially he told the Lord, yeah right, I don't think so. The Lord promptly shut him up for a while until he believed it.

How many times do I do the same thing? Someone commented in Sunday School today about how Zachariah was a very faithful man, a priest for many years in the temple, and he and his wife had been praying for a child for years and were never blessed with one. So what did he do when he was told he would receive this blessing? He murmured and didn't believe it. This same person went on to comment - do we sometimes murmur at the blessings we receive from the Lord and consider them just another mundane thing or even a trial? Of course the conversation steered toward receiving blessings, but not in the way we anticipated.

I remember praying to know what to do with my life, going to the temple, fasting, waiting patiently, and when the Lord finally told me to go back to school and be a teacher I said, yeah right, I don't think so. Eventually I listened, it took me another entire year, but it has been one of the greatest blessings in my life. I remember feeling the exact same way I received the inspiration to go back to school while working to get my master's degree, again, yeah right, I don't think so.

Today's lesson was a good reminder the Lord knows best. People talked about how we all have times when life is not at all what we expected it to be. And that is not just for those of us who have prayed to be able to get married and haven't, or like Zachariah and Elizabeth, prayed for a child and weren't able to. We all face unexpected lives, but are we sometimes frowning at our blessings?

I had to have a little laugh to myself, maybe when I eventually find my husband, a blessing I have long been waiting for, it will be in a way totally unexpected, to someone totally unexpected. Will I be ready to receive it, or say, yeah right, I don't think so.

Quality Family Time @ Christmas

I've realized as I have gotten older that time spent with family doesn't come around quite as often as you would love it to - so you have to make the most of those treasured moments when you are together!

We spent Christmas out at my sister's house in Indiana (everyone except Reece&Caitlin) this year and had a wonderful time. With a bunch of little kids you can't get out and do too much, but it felt wonderful to have a down-home Christmas just spent with the family watching movies, playing games, sleeping in, wearing pajamas all day, and making holiday treats. I love my family! Merry Christmas! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season with your families as well.

Merry Christmas to Me

Just when you have a bad day or two, it's time to think happy thoughts, no matter where they come from, even Italy! :) A friend of mine spent Thanksgiving in Rome, and met up with our friends B & D again, and look what I got for an early Christmas present! A cute photo Hello from the city of love, from a good-looking Italian man, who misses me. (The one on the right!)

The Missions of San Antonio

I spent Thanksgiving weekend in San Antonio with Mom&Dad and Reece&Caitlin. Aside from touring the Alamo, which was really really cool, (one of my childhood heros was Davy Crockett), we toured the Spanish missions. There are five missions in San Antonio and each is very different and very beautiful. They were originally walled cities more or less that the Spanish missionaries set up to convert the Indians of Mexico/Texas. We toured the missions close to sunset so the lighting was ethereal and gorgeous.