Various Aspects of the First Days--Ramblings, to Put it Another Way
The first days of school have come and gone, and I'm still alive, rejuvenated in spirit though weary in body. I think the last time I got up this early was in mid June, the last time I was teaching! I've been close to exhausted by 4 o clock in the afternoon. That's sad.
The first day was all about introducing myself, giving a little autobiographical spiel, then telling those classes that needed to hear it how hard the course was going to be. I suppose this sounds like cruel and unusual punishment to some of you mercy-minded people, but it is really important to establish a tone of academic rigor and high expectations at the beginning of the year, so students know what they're getting into. And in case it makes you feel better, in addition to telling them horror stories about students that failed my class and are repeating it, I also told them that none of these students did much work. Moreover, if you do all of your homework, it is very easy to do well. Which is very true, in case any of you thought I am a terrible meany. I bend over backwards to ensure that students who put in significant effort to do well do. I also provide plenty of extra credit opportunities to help students who stumble on some things pull themselves up.
I could tell within the first five minutes of one class that they were going to be a rambunctious lot. I had to tell some of them to be quiet the first day, even in the first few minutes! That's unusual. Usually students are subdued enough the first day at least to listen up and hear what they're supposed to. Not some of these students. Fortunately, the next day the word of the day from my calendar was obstreperous, and being the kind of teacher who doesn't mind adjusting the day's plans on the fly, if necessary, I introduced the word to this rambunctious class, then used it in a sentence: "Obstreporous students do not do well in this class." We'll see if any of them got the message. It seemed to settle some of them down temporarily.
I also decided kind of last minute that teaching students how to make inferences would be a good thing to start the year with. After giving them a student interests and background survey to complete the first night, I wrote several inferences on the board, mostly about myself, and had the class evaluate each one.
Incidentally, I learned through this process that very few teenagers are interested in 24. This confirms a suspicion I had earlier that for whatever reason the show may attract the 20 somethings and up demographic instead of the teenagers. Out of 120 or so teenagers surveyed, probably five said they had interest in it. There was more interest in Lost, and even more interest in American Idol. As far as favorite movies they saw this last summer, I hadn't heard of most of them. And forget about it when it comes to knowing a thing about their favorite bands/music groups. I guess there are some things that even I won't get into in order to be able to relate better to these kids. It's one thing to go to their sports games or plays, but trying to learn anything about Kkdowdopkeifkxda?! Forget it.
This is the first year that I have younger siblings of students I have had in the past. I strongly suspected one girl was the younger sister of a girl I student-taught, based some on her looks but also on her smile. Weird. I asked her if she was her sister, and got confirmation. Then there are several siblings of students I taught two years ago. And there's a daughter of a professor I know from my undergrad. Also weird. A veteran teacher in the department told me at least I wasn't teaching the children of former students, as she had done several times. Very true. And she said she had heard that you know it's time to retire when you get grandchildren of former students in your class! That hasn't happened to her yet, and I can hardly fathom the day that might happen to me...
In my classes we have also played an icebreaker game so each student and I know something about everyone else. And I have reamed everyone out about the evils of plagiarism and cheating, and given them an exercise to help them learn about different kinds of plagiarism, since sometimes it can be accidental if you are not well-informed about what it includes. You have to emphasize that it includes not giving credit for IDEAS, as well as words of another. The fact that if you paraphrase and don't cite it is still plagiarism is something some high schoolers struggle with. But not my students anymore! (Said with some degree of anxiety, as I did this same exercise last year and STILL had students massively plagiarize, in some cases possibly accidentally!)
Today I sprang a "fun" (I put it in quotes because even though I am convinced that it is fun and interesting, I'm not sure I can convince all of my students to agree!) exercise on two of my five classes. The other three will get it on Monday. I showed them a video clip that focused on a person, and had them take notes on all details in the clip that might shed light on the character or background of that person. They are assigned to write a biography about him, making inferences based on what they see. Since the video is not all revealing, it makes for an interesting challenge to hash out a biography, but roughly replicates what it is like for the historian working with limited evidence from the past to try and create a narrative that makes sense. In other words, my students are becoming historians within the first week of class! I hope this challenge will excite them about history and enable them to continue to make inferences about things throughout the term, while at the same time limiting themselves to the evidence at hand.
My most advanced class is quite small, currently 14 in number, but I've heard that some of them are going to drop it when they have the chance (the window opens up next week). I've been worrying a little that I'm going to lose good students who if they stuck with it could take the AP exam and do well on it. It's interesting how obsessed I'm getting to be with seeing students of mine do well by passing the AP exam. I announced with confidence on the first day that they were all going to pass it when they take it in May. This may sound like a bold promise, but if I do my job, and they work hard (which I added as a condition to them passing it), I think it is doable. But I have my work cut out for me to bring them all up to speed with all of the demands of the AP course, which are significant. Some of these kids need a confidence boost desperately. Most of them are sophomores, and though they are really hard workers, I think most of them are not in the top 5 percent of their class. Maybe the top 15 percent. That means a little more of a challenge to get them where they need to be. If I can do it, however, it will be a small vindication to me, make me feel good, and provide justification for my teaching this course in a serious manner to all of the smartest sophomores next year. Currently, for some reason, there are basically no AP class options for sophomores. I guess some people think they're too young to handle the work, but I know from my experience interacting with smart high school kids from other parts of the country that there are a number of schools that have such options. So if we can get it into my school, all the better. And even though I have only had them for a few days, there is something great to be said about highly-motivated students!
I was very pleased to learn that one of the two seniors in the course, who had thought she was going to drop my class, told me after the second day that she had decided to stick with it. I guess I gave plenty of tricks the first two days to make her want to stay! Little does she know how I am going to stop being enthusiastic about the material as soon as the drop period for classes is over, leaving all of my students bored stiff by my monotone voice, which will be confined to monosyllabic grunts such as "work" and "quiet," forsooth!
My schedule has changed from what it has been the last two years with regard to my prep period. It used to be that I taught the first period, then had the next as a prep. No more. Now I teach two classes, have homeroom, a study hall (I got a study as a duty again, something that was not a given but for which I am very thankful, as it allows me to get some work done!), another class, lunch, then two more classes. Then I end the day with my prep mod. It makes for a long morning, but it's very nice to be done for the day by 1:44. Then I can get paperwork done, copies made, or whatever at the end of the day. In theory I might even be ready to go home by the time we're allowed to, instead of always having stuff to do that keeps me late. But in reality, because of the drama group I run, I will frequently be at school until 4:30 or 5.
And that, folks, ends my ramblings on the first week of school.
The first day was all about introducing myself, giving a little autobiographical spiel, then telling those classes that needed to hear it how hard the course was going to be. I suppose this sounds like cruel and unusual punishment to some of you mercy-minded people, but it is really important to establish a tone of academic rigor and high expectations at the beginning of the year, so students know what they're getting into. And in case it makes you feel better, in addition to telling them horror stories about students that failed my class and are repeating it, I also told them that none of these students did much work. Moreover, if you do all of your homework, it is very easy to do well. Which is very true, in case any of you thought I am a terrible meany. I bend over backwards to ensure that students who put in significant effort to do well do. I also provide plenty of extra credit opportunities to help students who stumble on some things pull themselves up.
I could tell within the first five minutes of one class that they were going to be a rambunctious lot. I had to tell some of them to be quiet the first day, even in the first few minutes! That's unusual. Usually students are subdued enough the first day at least to listen up and hear what they're supposed to. Not some of these students. Fortunately, the next day the word of the day from my calendar was obstreperous, and being the kind of teacher who doesn't mind adjusting the day's plans on the fly, if necessary, I introduced the word to this rambunctious class, then used it in a sentence: "Obstreporous students do not do well in this class." We'll see if any of them got the message. It seemed to settle some of them down temporarily.
I also decided kind of last minute that teaching students how to make inferences would be a good thing to start the year with. After giving them a student interests and background survey to complete the first night, I wrote several inferences on the board, mostly about myself, and had the class evaluate each one.
Incidentally, I learned through this process that very few teenagers are interested in 24. This confirms a suspicion I had earlier that for whatever reason the show may attract the 20 somethings and up demographic instead of the teenagers. Out of 120 or so teenagers surveyed, probably five said they had interest in it. There was more interest in Lost, and even more interest in American Idol. As far as favorite movies they saw this last summer, I hadn't heard of most of them. And forget about it when it comes to knowing a thing about their favorite bands/music groups. I guess there are some things that even I won't get into in order to be able to relate better to these kids. It's one thing to go to their sports games or plays, but trying to learn anything about Kkdowdopkeifkxda?! Forget it.
This is the first year that I have younger siblings of students I have had in the past. I strongly suspected one girl was the younger sister of a girl I student-taught, based some on her looks but also on her smile. Weird. I asked her if she was her sister, and got confirmation. Then there are several siblings of students I taught two years ago. And there's a daughter of a professor I know from my undergrad. Also weird. A veteran teacher in the department told me at least I wasn't teaching the children of former students, as she had done several times. Very true. And she said she had heard that you know it's time to retire when you get grandchildren of former students in your class! That hasn't happened to her yet, and I can hardly fathom the day that might happen to me...
In my classes we have also played an icebreaker game so each student and I know something about everyone else. And I have reamed everyone out about the evils of plagiarism and cheating, and given them an exercise to help them learn about different kinds of plagiarism, since sometimes it can be accidental if you are not well-informed about what it includes. You have to emphasize that it includes not giving credit for IDEAS, as well as words of another. The fact that if you paraphrase and don't cite it is still plagiarism is something some high schoolers struggle with. But not my students anymore! (Said with some degree of anxiety, as I did this same exercise last year and STILL had students massively plagiarize, in some cases possibly accidentally!)
Today I sprang a "fun" (I put it in quotes because even though I am convinced that it is fun and interesting, I'm not sure I can convince all of my students to agree!) exercise on two of my five classes. The other three will get it on Monday. I showed them a video clip that focused on a person, and had them take notes on all details in the clip that might shed light on the character or background of that person. They are assigned to write a biography about him, making inferences based on what they see. Since the video is not all revealing, it makes for an interesting challenge to hash out a biography, but roughly replicates what it is like for the historian working with limited evidence from the past to try and create a narrative that makes sense. In other words, my students are becoming historians within the first week of class! I hope this challenge will excite them about history and enable them to continue to make inferences about things throughout the term, while at the same time limiting themselves to the evidence at hand.
My most advanced class is quite small, currently 14 in number, but I've heard that some of them are going to drop it when they have the chance (the window opens up next week). I've been worrying a little that I'm going to lose good students who if they stuck with it could take the AP exam and do well on it. It's interesting how obsessed I'm getting to be with seeing students of mine do well by passing the AP exam. I announced with confidence on the first day that they were all going to pass it when they take it in May. This may sound like a bold promise, but if I do my job, and they work hard (which I added as a condition to them passing it), I think it is doable. But I have my work cut out for me to bring them all up to speed with all of the demands of the AP course, which are significant. Some of these kids need a confidence boost desperately. Most of them are sophomores, and though they are really hard workers, I think most of them are not in the top 5 percent of their class. Maybe the top 15 percent. That means a little more of a challenge to get them where they need to be. If I can do it, however, it will be a small vindication to me, make me feel good, and provide justification for my teaching this course in a serious manner to all of the smartest sophomores next year. Currently, for some reason, there are basically no AP class options for sophomores. I guess some people think they're too young to handle the work, but I know from my experience interacting with smart high school kids from other parts of the country that there are a number of schools that have such options. So if we can get it into my school, all the better. And even though I have only had them for a few days, there is something great to be said about highly-motivated students!
I was very pleased to learn that one of the two seniors in the course, who had thought she was going to drop my class, told me after the second day that she had decided to stick with it. I guess I gave plenty of tricks the first two days to make her want to stay! Little does she know how I am going to stop being enthusiastic about the material as soon as the drop period for classes is over, leaving all of my students bored stiff by my monotone voice, which will be confined to monosyllabic grunts such as "work" and "quiet," forsooth!
My schedule has changed from what it has been the last two years with regard to my prep period. It used to be that I taught the first period, then had the next as a prep. No more. Now I teach two classes, have homeroom, a study hall (I got a study as a duty again, something that was not a given but for which I am very thankful, as it allows me to get some work done!), another class, lunch, then two more classes. Then I end the day with my prep mod. It makes for a long morning, but it's very nice to be done for the day by 1:44. Then I can get paperwork done, copies made, or whatever at the end of the day. In theory I might even be ready to go home by the time we're allowed to, instead of always having stuff to do that keeps me late. But in reality, because of the drama group I run, I will frequently be at school until 4:30 or 5.
And that, folks, ends my ramblings on the first week of school.
posted by redsoxwinthisyear at 9:15 PM
2 Comments:
Glad to hear how things are going! It sounds like you got off to a good start (if a bit tired - I know the feeling!). Keep up the good work!
And yay for advanced classes and motivated students!
Ooog.
I'm curious to know who the prof is- the one with the daughter- from undergrad?? Do I know this person?
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