As I was reading the introduction to Jim Burke's The English Teacher's Companion, I felt compelled to sit down and write about my year. Not to put down specifics, but to breathe life into all of my successes, failures, disappointments, and triumphs.
I started out the year with hope and trepidation. I was going into a district that I was unfamiliar with, working with a brand of students that I had no experience with. I tried to remember and tell myself, "They're still children, no matter what." My expectations were high, my classroom rules firmly set.
As time went on, I was let down repeatedly by administration and colleagues. My naive optimism began to feel tainted, and blurred around the edges. I began to withdraw, inundated with the expectations of the administration, drowning in the lack of expectations of the students. I struggled daily with a never-ending need for more time to be added to my day, coupled with mounting requirements and paperwork. When did teaching become more about pushing papers and having meetings?
I was forced to administer tests that I knew that my students could not pass (not for lack of trying, simply because the skills had not been taught yet). I was forced to speed up instruction, at the sake of my students' understanding. I felt like the hammer that was repeatedly coming down on my students' confidence. I was coaxed into relaxing my norms, expecting and accepting LESS. I now understand what a great disservice this has done for many of my students.
In those moments, I drew strength from those students who came to me. While I waged a quiet war with the students who wanted nothing to do with academia, there were children who stepped into the light, and asked for my help and compassion. And it was theirs. They pulled me through, brought me back from the brink time and time again.
Some small triumphs: A lesson taught impeccably as my supervisor observed; a professional development workshop run, where I was able to share practices with my colleagues that won me their respect; relationships formed with students who felt as though the rest of the world had given up on them, bringing them to school despite their desire to flee; a proposal for a new book being admitted into the curriculum, in order to build a bridge for my stumbling students between reading and life; friendships developed with my mentor and team mates; professional development workshops attended and suggestions tirelessly implemented.
As I look back on this year as it draws to a close, a strange sense of calm spreads over me. I made it. In September, I told myself, "Just make it to December." In December, I said, "You can do this, just make it to Spring Break." Now I know, I can make it until June, and will have completed my first year of teaching in one of the most difficult schools to be in. It gets easier, right?
I look forward to summer vacation, and tying up loose ends. I look forward to relaxing, and reflecting, and setting new goals for next year. I welcome upcoming challenges, and cannot wait for the day that I get to go back to doing what I fell in love with: TEACHING. I am an artist, I am a writer, I am a reader, I am a friend, I am a wife, I am a poet, I am a volunteer, but, most of all, I am a teacher. This has been one of the most difficult years of my professional life, but I know now that I am a stronger and more confident educator because of that, and because of all of my trials and tribulations, I have more to share with my students. And that's what is most important in the end.
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
The Book Whisperer: Self-Reflection
What were your reading experiences as a child?
I began reading at a young age. My mother read A Christmas Carol to me every day, and it quickly became a favorite of mine. I used to sit and read the book out loud, and my mother was unsure if I was actually reading the book, or had memorized every word on every page as she read it to me. Either way, my love of reading was clear.
In elementary school, my favorite day was Scholastic Book Club day. I would excitedly pour over the books in the little magazine, and circle all of the titles that I wanted. I always had the largest stack of books on the day that the books were delivered. I would lay in bed and read on a Saturday for 12 hours straight, not even breaking for food.
Were these positive or negative experiences for you?
These experiences were extremely positive for me. I anxiously returned to my book every day to escape the sadness of life. My parents were going through a divorce, and my mother was working like a fiend to keep our heads above water. Her greatest gift to me to help me get through those dark days was the gift of books, as I escaped into the lives of others and turned to the friends I made in books for answers to some of my questions in life.
Do you see yourself as a reader now?
I absolutely see myself as a reader now! I rarely leave the house without something to read in hand. If I forget a book or my Nook at home, I have the Nook application installed on my iPhone, which I can easily access and pick up where I left off. I always have 3-4 books going at a time, and my friends often turn to me for advice on books to read. I dedicate myself to books, even suffering through a book to the end if I don't like it, so that I can give an honest opinion to the people I care about. This past Saturday night, in a bar over drinks, I took my friend's Eat, Pray, Love book and tore through it, underlining parts that she MUST read and x'ing out parts that she can skip, summarizing major points during the longest part of the book for me: India. Having suffered through this part of the book, I found that I could afford my friend invaluable insight into the book, as she is not an AVID reader, and struggles to hang on through a book if she gets bored with it. However, being that I feel as though it's a MUST READ overall, I wanted to giver her every opportunity to stick with it.
How do you share your reading experiences with your students?
I often give students advice on books to read. I pull from my own library and experiences, and I tell them how I have always approached reading -- as an escape. I require that they read 2 books a marking period that they choose, and they must dedicate themselves to reading at least 1/3 of the book, to give the story a chance. If, after 1/3 of the book, they still can't stand it, I allow them to abandon it and move on. Even though this is not how I approach reading, I would never want to discourage them by making them suffer through a book that they don't like. I know that this could make or break an emerging reader, so I never force them to do something, even though I do this myself.
With which group of readers in your classroom do you most identify -- the underground readers, the developing readers, or the dormant readers?
I am definitely an underground reader. I have memories of reading ahead in class in high school during read-aloud activities, and getting in trouble for not paying attention when I was not in the same place as everyone else. I also used to bring my own novels to class with me in college, and bury myself in the back of the classroom with my novel hidden in my notebook.
Who have been your role models for reading?
My mother instilled in me a love of reading at an early age, even though she has NEVER been an avid reader. My grandmother and I share many of the same reading habits (reading every night in bed, not being able to sleep until we finish a good book, carrying a book with us everywhere, spending hours in libraries) and we often pass books back and forth and have discussions about authors who we love. When I was in high school, I latched on to a passionate English teacher, and we would sit and talk about poetry for hours after school, as I wrote poem after poem and she edited them for me. She later became my student teaching mentor, and has remained a lifelong friend to me, and we pass back and forth novel recommendations and give each other books as gifts.
List the last five books you have read.
1. The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch
2. The Book Whisperer - Donalyn Miller
3. Sister - Rosamund Lupton
4. Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
5. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
How long did it take for you to read these books?
2 months total
Which books were read for a job or for a school-related purpose?
The Book Whisperer I'm reading as professional development, but find myself reading it more for pleasure. Great Expectations I read with my 8th graders as their final novel of the year.
Which books were read for pleasure?
Every time I pick up a book, I find pleasure in it, one way or another. So this doesn't seem like a fair question!
I began reading at a young age. My mother read A Christmas Carol to me every day, and it quickly became a favorite of mine. I used to sit and read the book out loud, and my mother was unsure if I was actually reading the book, or had memorized every word on every page as she read it to me. Either way, my love of reading was clear.
In elementary school, my favorite day was Scholastic Book Club day. I would excitedly pour over the books in the little magazine, and circle all of the titles that I wanted. I always had the largest stack of books on the day that the books were delivered. I would lay in bed and read on a Saturday for 12 hours straight, not even breaking for food.
Were these positive or negative experiences for you?
These experiences were extremely positive for me. I anxiously returned to my book every day to escape the sadness of life. My parents were going through a divorce, and my mother was working like a fiend to keep our heads above water. Her greatest gift to me to help me get through those dark days was the gift of books, as I escaped into the lives of others and turned to the friends I made in books for answers to some of my questions in life.
Do you see yourself as a reader now?
I absolutely see myself as a reader now! I rarely leave the house without something to read in hand. If I forget a book or my Nook at home, I have the Nook application installed on my iPhone, which I can easily access and pick up where I left off. I always have 3-4 books going at a time, and my friends often turn to me for advice on books to read. I dedicate myself to books, even suffering through a book to the end if I don't like it, so that I can give an honest opinion to the people I care about. This past Saturday night, in a bar over drinks, I took my friend's Eat, Pray, Love book and tore through it, underlining parts that she MUST read and x'ing out parts that she can skip, summarizing major points during the longest part of the book for me: India. Having suffered through this part of the book, I found that I could afford my friend invaluable insight into the book, as she is not an AVID reader, and struggles to hang on through a book if she gets bored with it. However, being that I feel as though it's a MUST READ overall, I wanted to giver her every opportunity to stick with it.
How do you share your reading experiences with your students?
I often give students advice on books to read. I pull from my own library and experiences, and I tell them how I have always approached reading -- as an escape. I require that they read 2 books a marking period that they choose, and they must dedicate themselves to reading at least 1/3 of the book, to give the story a chance. If, after 1/3 of the book, they still can't stand it, I allow them to abandon it and move on. Even though this is not how I approach reading, I would never want to discourage them by making them suffer through a book that they don't like. I know that this could make or break an emerging reader, so I never force them to do something, even though I do this myself.
With which group of readers in your classroom do you most identify -- the underground readers, the developing readers, or the dormant readers?
I am definitely an underground reader. I have memories of reading ahead in class in high school during read-aloud activities, and getting in trouble for not paying attention when I was not in the same place as everyone else. I also used to bring my own novels to class with me in college, and bury myself in the back of the classroom with my novel hidden in my notebook.
Who have been your role models for reading?
My mother instilled in me a love of reading at an early age, even though she has NEVER been an avid reader. My grandmother and I share many of the same reading habits (reading every night in bed, not being able to sleep until we finish a good book, carrying a book with us everywhere, spending hours in libraries) and we often pass books back and forth and have discussions about authors who we love. When I was in high school, I latched on to a passionate English teacher, and we would sit and talk about poetry for hours after school, as I wrote poem after poem and she edited them for me. She later became my student teaching mentor, and has remained a lifelong friend to me, and we pass back and forth novel recommendations and give each other books as gifts.
List the last five books you have read.
1. The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch
2. The Book Whisperer - Donalyn Miller
3. Sister - Rosamund Lupton
4. Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert
5. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
How long did it take for you to read these books?
2 months total
Which books were read for a job or for a school-related purpose?
The Book Whisperer I'm reading as professional development, but find myself reading it more for pleasure. Great Expectations I read with my 8th graders as their final novel of the year.
Which books were read for pleasure?
Every time I pick up a book, I find pleasure in it, one way or another. So this doesn't seem like a fair question!
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| As you can see, I started at a VERY young age! |
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| I would read to anyone who would listen... |
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| Reading while wearing my "thinking cap". |
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| I was ALWAYS excited about a new book! |
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| As I said, to ANYONE who would listen... |
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| My family members tirelessly entertained my love of reading... |
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Bear
My best friend from childhood was married to the man of her dreams on Saturday, and I was honored to be her Matron of Honor. I received many compliments on my speech, so I wanted to share it with everyone, since it was not a traditional speech. I hope that you enjoy it, as well!
Once upon a time, 20 years ago, two little girls
crossed paths. One was an extroverted
pessimist, the other – a patient, doe-eyed optimist with a flair for fashion
and beauty and a keen eye for details. The
two became fast friends, and over the years, the girls shared many adventures,
always with a common goal – to find true and everlasting love.
While the pessimist groaned and grunted about the
amount of toads she had to kiss with no end in sight, the optimist simply moved
on, always saying, “He’s out there, friend.
Just keep your chin up and your lips soft!!” The pessimist snorted, while the optimist
smiled knowingly and reapplied her lip gloss.
Many years passed, and as these two little girls
grew into successful, independent women, the same song played and they danced
the same dance around each other, until, one day, a Prince road into town in a
shiny Mercedes Benz. With one look at
the Prince’s silver hair and sparkling, blue eyes, and after hearing his
stories of the Big Apple to the Big Easy and other of his OWN adventures, the
optimist knew that her days of kissing toads were over. She texted her friend, and asked to meet for
Cosmos (with a splash of Malibu, of course!).
The pessimist, finally believing in love herself, gladly accepted the
invitation. As they slid into their
seats, the pessimist noticed a twinkling in her dear friend’s eye. Something had changed.
From that day on, the optimist and her Prince were
inseparable. The two embarked on a
romance that spanned thousands of miles and took them on all new adventures,
forging a new and exciting friendship while whispering about their life goals
together. When the Prince got down on
one knee on a warm end-of-summer night under the stars before the ocean and
presented the optimist with a ring that twinkled like her big, brown eyes, the
pessimist felt sure in her heart that her beloved friend had found what they
had always searched for – what her best friend had always promised her was out
there – true and everlasting love.
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| Cheryl & I having a good laugh |
Congratulations, Cheryl & Ted!
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| Wedding Day |
Friday, July 8, 2011
Things I've Learned
Upon my return from an amazing honeymoon in Riviera Maya, Mexico, I was informed by the district that had offered me employment that the line item for my position had been eliminated from the budget, leaving no where for me to go. Imagine my shock and despair, considering I had planned my entire life around the assumption that I have a job this coming September. I guess this is just another horror story coming from educators in New Jersey, and all over America. So it's back to the job search grind for me...
I had an amazingly rewarding six months (after my initial trepidation) as an 8th grade English teacher, and formed bonds with some of my students that cannot be measured on any standardized testing scale. I learned to never, ever judge a book by it's cover, and that earning the trust of one student makes every morning that I wake up at 6:00 and trudge to school through rain and snow while it's still dark out worth my while. I learned that sometimes the lessons that my students learn outside of the classroom are more important than the grammar that I'm trying to shove into their brains during a 45 minute period 5 days a week. I also learned that listening to their lessons will help me learn more about myself as an educator (and as an individual) than anything that I learned in my college classes ever did. I learned that some kids, no matter how tough they seem, need me more than I know, and that I will ALWAYS need them more than they will ever know! I learned that the people that I work alongside of understand what I'm going through better than my friends do, but that my friends offer me an unending, unprejudiced, and priceless venting board. I learned when to keep my mouth shut, and when to scream it from the rooftops. I learned that I know more about life than I really thought that I did. I learned that I know less about Language Arts than I really thought that I did. I experienced what it meant to truly have "teachable moments" and I also got to experience the feeling of success that comes along with that fabled "moment of enlightenment" when the light bulb goes off in a student's head. You know, you can actually SEE that light bulb?
Most of all, I learned that I am absolutely, one hundred percent, without a doubt, in the right profession, and that I will go down fighting to be in this profession. In an interview, an administrator asked me what my hobbies were. My answer was "Until recently, wedding planning. More recently, I've discovered that my hobbies are reading and writing, perfecting my craft (teaching), and my kids." And I meant every word of that.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
I GOT A JOB!
It has been quite a while since I was able to sit down and write about what my life has been. In November, I was made aware of a maternity leave position in a school that my friend is a teacher at, and I submitted an application. I still had 1.5 months left of insanity (aka Student Teaching), but I thought, 'This will be a great chance to get some interviewing experience!' I slapped together my resume, gathered my portfolio, and ran out the door to my interview.
One week later, I was offered a job. I'm a real, live teacher! I finished my student teaching, thanked all of the right people, and off I went, out into the world. Time to rename my blog: Actual Educator.
I began teaching 8th grade English on January 3, 2011. Being that I taught 11th and 12th grade during my student teaching experience, teaching 13 year olds proved to be challenge right out of the gates. "Chatty" doesn't even begin to describe what I was up against. I said "Be quiet!" more than I taught content. My first week, I had a delayed opening and a lock-down drill. I then had to break the news to my chatty 8th graders that they had to write an 8-10 minute speech. Then we had quarterly exams. One day, when my afternoon collaborator was absent, a 7th grader's crush on me came to light when he wrote about how I have "multiple personalities" and then read it out loud in class. It's been a never-ending barrage of road blocks, hurdles, and learning experiences. But I guess that's the name of the game!
I'm looking forward to the weeks ahead. I'll be getting married in 5 weeks, and will be working on my thesis for my Master's degree. My fiance' is embarking on a semester-full of teaching classes, catching up to where I am now. These next 5 months should be fun and trying. If this is the hardest time of my life, I say BRING IT ON!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
It's Been a While...
"Many student teachers come to me after their first month in a school and say 'Student teaching is like real work!'" This was how my apprenticeship teaching seminar instructor began our first session of the semester. I couldn't help but think to myself, 'Who are these people and why would they think otherwise???' My first week of student teaching was filled with proficiencies, PLCs and faculty meetings (oh, my!), but it was my first glimpse into the life that I have chosen -- The profession that I am embarking upon.
For the past year, I have been working independently on my student website. I presented it to all of my 11th grade academic language arts students on my first full day of instruction with them. "That's a fresh site!" I heard one of them quip. I thought, 'I've got this in the bag!' That night, I presented my website to the parents at Back to School night, encouraging them to access the website to see what their children are working on, or what they may be missing. I saw many parents smiling and nodding as I took them through a virtual tour of homework assignments, hand outs, extra credit and classroom pictures. I work very hard to post the homework before the dismissal bell rings at the end of each day. It was my hope that the students would be accessing the site daily to see what they may have missed or to make sure that they aren't missing anything at all.
I asked that the students begin their first assignment with me by accessing my site and submitting homework to me via email so that they could familiarize themselves with the site. This was met with much resistance, as I found myself chasing them down to send in their emails. Next, I asked them to access the site to vote anonymously in a competition for the best collage that they made in class, with both of my 11th grade classes competing against each other. Out of 53 students, 29 voted on time.
The reason that I am so upset about this is that there is much emphasis on technology in the classroom, either from college professors, administrators, politicians, parents, students, etc., and I am a huge proponent of this movement. My high school principal, Mr. Sheninger, spends a lot of time tweeting and Facebooking and blogging about the integration of technology in the classroom (see Mr. Sheninger's blog for more on this topic). I have been working my tail off to effectively immerse my students in technology, from showing YouTube clips in the classroom, to assigning Googling as homework, to playing slide shows, PowerPoint presentations and updating my own website for their interfacing pleasure.
This weekend, I will be attending the Tri-State Education Technology Conference to try to brush up on how to get the students involved with personally using technology EFFECTIVELY and to obtain new and exciting ideas on how to get more technological in my English classroom. I'm excited to listen to the speakers and get some hands-on experience with incorporating blogs and Twitter into my lessons -- again, EFFECTIVELY. My fiance (a first semester master's program pre-service teacher), my high school friend (a middle-school science teacher), my college friend (also an apprentice teacher) and many other of my peers who I have recruited for this event are all coming along to keep me company in my educational technology journey.
Where will you be this Saturday from 8:00 - 4:30?
This is part of the Tri-State Education Technology Conference (TSETC) Blogger Café Contest sponsored by edSocialMedia. TSETC is brought to you by Schoology.
This is part of the Tri-State Education Technology Conference (TSETC) Blogger Café Contest sponsored by edSocialMedia. TSETC is brought to you by Schoology.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
In Two Short Weeks...
In two short weeks, I will be turning a page, finishing a chapter of my life, ready to begin a new chapter. I've been preparing and studying, researching, transferring, teaching, learning. It has been an exhausting chain of events, and I am so ready for vacation!
I am having mixed emotions as I approach what will be the biggest decision in my life. Making the decision to spend the rest of my life with my fiance feels like a breeze in comparison. "Career Changer" -- that is what people like me are called in school. It kind of makes me feel like a super hero! One part mysterious, one part dedicated, one part gifted and one part out of my mind. The Mighty Career-Changing Jessy! Is there a cape for that? The fact that I have decided at the age of 30 to change my career, after everything that I have gone through breaking into my current career, is not something to be taken lightly. Serious-face, please.
That being said, I feel as though I am in a prime position to embark on a career in education. As the job market stiffens once again, and the Governor tightens the boot-straps on spending in the industry, I know that I bring to the table a unique set of skills and goals that many of the other teachers in this over-saturated profession bring. I have a legal background, I am extremely detail-oriented, and I am familiar with what it is like to manage a heavy paperload. I feel as though I am one step ahead of the game. In addition to these traits, I am a content specialist, and I bring a true and honest love of my content area with me to teaching. I have been told that my love of literacy is infectious, and that will hopefully translate as I begin to interview for jobs (if there are any left when I begin my search). In a world where the economy is in the toilet, many people are sticking to what they are doing because they feel lucky to have a job. And here I am, thumbing my nose at my current profession, diving into a profession that is currently unstable and in flux. Cue violins!
My one hope is that there will be a place for me in this profession. I am standing by patiently and nervously watching as tenured teachers become disenchanted, as the greenhorns are tossed to the wayside, and as pre-service teachers move in different directions. My hope is that my tenacity and drive will keep me going, even when the situations are bleek. I hope that my love of teaching will set me apart from those who joined the profession for "afternoons and summers off, and the kick-butt health benefits and pension". I am beginning to realize that there is no such thing as summers off, and I see that a pension may not be there for me by the time I step foot in my first classroom, but that's just fine with me. As long as there are always students, I will always want to be a teacher. And that is what is pushing me through.
Onward, and UPWARD!
I am having mixed emotions as I approach what will be the biggest decision in my life. Making the decision to spend the rest of my life with my fiance feels like a breeze in comparison. "Career Changer" -- that is what people like me are called in school. It kind of makes me feel like a super hero! One part mysterious, one part dedicated, one part gifted and one part out of my mind. The Mighty Career-Changing Jessy! Is there a cape for that? The fact that I have decided at the age of 30 to change my career, after everything that I have gone through breaking into my current career, is not something to be taken lightly. Serious-face, please.
That being said, I feel as though I am in a prime position to embark on a career in education. As the job market stiffens once again, and the Governor tightens the boot-straps on spending in the industry, I know that I bring to the table a unique set of skills and goals that many of the other teachers in this over-saturated profession bring. I have a legal background, I am extremely detail-oriented, and I am familiar with what it is like to manage a heavy paperload. I feel as though I am one step ahead of the game. In addition to these traits, I am a content specialist, and I bring a true and honest love of my content area with me to teaching. I have been told that my love of literacy is infectious, and that will hopefully translate as I begin to interview for jobs (if there are any left when I begin my search). In a world where the economy is in the toilet, many people are sticking to what they are doing because they feel lucky to have a job. And here I am, thumbing my nose at my current profession, diving into a profession that is currently unstable and in flux. Cue violins!
My one hope is that there will be a place for me in this profession. I am standing by patiently and nervously watching as tenured teachers become disenchanted, as the greenhorns are tossed to the wayside, and as pre-service teachers move in different directions. My hope is that my tenacity and drive will keep me going, even when the situations are bleek. I hope that my love of teaching will set me apart from those who joined the profession for "afternoons and summers off, and the kick-butt health benefits and pension". I am beginning to realize that there is no such thing as summers off, and I see that a pension may not be there for me by the time I step foot in my first classroom, but that's just fine with me. As long as there are always students, I will always want to be a teacher. And that is what is pushing me through.
Onward, and UPWARD!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Because We Are Living in a Technology World...
...and I am a technology girl!
Continuing on this path that is leading me towards my dream career of being a high school English teacher, I have begun dabbling in the world of technology. It is baffling to me that more teachers do not utilize the World Wide Web in their classroom travels! Below is a list of my current technological endeavors:
Twitter - On my Twitter page, I observe, explore and comment on various educational applications, news articles, blogs and webisodes. I also try to post inspirational educational quotes, reminding my community (and myself!) why we do what we do. Going forward, I hope to be able to utilize my Twitter page to tweet about current events and classroom projects with my students.
Edmodo Digital Drop Box - With this handy free website, I will post assignments and ask students to turn in their work digitally for my review. My favorite amenity with this website is that it has an iPhone application, which I have already downloaded and accessed. This means that I can be in constant contact with my group, and can review homework or post assignments from anywhere!
English With Miss Hammerstein - This is a work-in-progress. I have been diligently compiling information and attempting to find relevant websites in order to utilize this as a working tool in the fall with my cooperating teacher. I would like to test it out in the fall during student teaching, and hopefully fine-tune the site to go live as soon as I get my own classroom!
Goodreads with Miss Hammerstein - Here I track and discuss some of my favorite books. This site also has a free iPhone application, which I log into daily to track my progress on books that I am reading. I love the application because I can bring my phone into the library with me, search for the books on my "To Read" list, and order the books or take them out of the library right then and there!
My hopes are very high for the Fall, and I'm really looking forward to using these popular websites in my classrooms. I can only hope to continue to grow, learn and develop as a teacher, and with technology on my side, I know that the sky is the limit!
Continuing on this path that is leading me towards my dream career of being a high school English teacher, I have begun dabbling in the world of technology. It is baffling to me that more teachers do not utilize the World Wide Web in their classroom travels! Below is a list of my current technological endeavors:
Twitter - On my Twitter page, I observe, explore and comment on various educational applications, news articles, blogs and webisodes. I also try to post inspirational educational quotes, reminding my community (and myself!) why we do what we do. Going forward, I hope to be able to utilize my Twitter page to tweet about current events and classroom projects with my students.
Edmodo Digital Drop Box - With this handy free website, I will post assignments and ask students to turn in their work digitally for my review. My favorite amenity with this website is that it has an iPhone application, which I have already downloaded and accessed. This means that I can be in constant contact with my group, and can review homework or post assignments from anywhere!
English With Miss Hammerstein - This is a work-in-progress. I have been diligently compiling information and attempting to find relevant websites in order to utilize this as a working tool in the fall with my cooperating teacher. I would like to test it out in the fall during student teaching, and hopefully fine-tune the site to go live as soon as I get my own classroom!
Goodreads with Miss Hammerstein - Here I track and discuss some of my favorite books. This site also has a free iPhone application, which I log into daily to track my progress on books that I am reading. I love the application because I can bring my phone into the library with me, search for the books on my "To Read" list, and order the books or take them out of the library right then and there!
My hopes are very high for the Fall, and I'm really looking forward to using these popular websites in my classrooms. I can only hope to continue to grow, learn and develop as a teacher, and with technology on my side, I know that the sky is the limit!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Lost
There is something about a well-written piece of art that has the ability to take me away. It heightens my senses and takes me to another place. As I sat outside in the park by my office building at lunch today, I found myself lost in "A Streetcar Named Desire". The characters were so vivid and full of life. I could picture Marlon Brandon chasing after Kim Hunter on a stage in NYC and I could smell Blanche DuBois's perfume. I stood up and looked around me, and I could see the differences in my surroundings: The stark contrast of the office building cutting into the street against the soft greens of the park that I was sitting in; the hustle and bustle of office workers against the leisurely soccer players, kicking around the black and white orb in the field. I could taste all of the ways that I do not belong in this environment, thick with smog and car horns. It made my heart ache to begin my journey back to my flourescent in-between.
For years now, I have fumbled around through this corporate world, feeling in my heart of hearts that it was not what I was meant for. It has become more and more pronounced over the past 2 years, as it becomes more obvious that I am replaceable to everyone in this world, and there are 10 others just like me who can replace me for less money and more work. I have become a drone, a shell of my former self. Someone feeds me words and instructions, and I am expected to do nothing but spit out whatever I am fed. I am but a puppet on a set of someone's strings -- I no longer even have a voice. And the flourescent lighting has zapped me of all emotion but one: regret. I have become an empty vessel, as my former self shrinks away, screaming to be let out, muffled by the "tap tap tapping" of my keyboard keys.
Things are about to change, and the more I experience new forms of written art, the more inspired I become. I feel my prior self clawing her way back, through the mucky waters, back up to the breath of fresh air that I once was. I am entering a world where people need me, and I need them. A world where art is life and words have meaning. How wonderful to let myself go in a world where I am appreciated, and NECESSARY. The late nights, the struggles, the pay cuts -- these sacrifices are all worth it, if only to feel whole again.
For years now, I have fumbled around through this corporate world, feeling in my heart of hearts that it was not what I was meant for. It has become more and more pronounced over the past 2 years, as it becomes more obvious that I am replaceable to everyone in this world, and there are 10 others just like me who can replace me for less money and more work. I have become a drone, a shell of my former self. Someone feeds me words and instructions, and I am expected to do nothing but spit out whatever I am fed. I am but a puppet on a set of someone's strings -- I no longer even have a voice. And the flourescent lighting has zapped me of all emotion but one: regret. I have become an empty vessel, as my former self shrinks away, screaming to be let out, muffled by the "tap tap tapping" of my keyboard keys.
Things are about to change, and the more I experience new forms of written art, the more inspired I become. I feel my prior self clawing her way back, through the mucky waters, back up to the breath of fresh air that I once was. I am entering a world where people need me, and I need them. A world where art is life and words have meaning. How wonderful to let myself go in a world where I am appreciated, and NECESSARY. The late nights, the struggles, the pay cuts -- these sacrifices are all worth it, if only to feel whole again.
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