The F Word

No. Not that one. I’m talking about “fun.” I have a student in my year 8 class who claims that the only way she could listen better is if the class was fun. On an exit slip I gave at the start of the unit on character she asked why we weren’t doing anything fun. At the end of the unit I handed out a self-evaluation sheet for them to fill out. Under “In what ways could your work have improved,” she wrote, “If it was fun and if i actully listened more…” She claims that English (she spells it with a lower case “e”) is the only class where they don’t have any fun and don’t get rewarded. Of course, she makes sure to add that this is only when I have been teaching.

Now if you’re thinking I’m feeling insecure and am about to cave to the ways of fun- don’t. I can hear Carol Jago calling to me all the way from the states. Fun and learning are not synonymous. She’s the only student who has made this claim (either because she’s the only one bold enough or the only one who feels this way). On other exit slips and self-evaluations students were very honest about the quality of their own work and proved to me that hey are understanding the material. But just because she is outnumbered in her thinking doesn’t mean I don’t address the issue. She’s not paying attention in class. Not in individual work, group work, class work. Her work is late and her assignments have been low scoring. Her friends do very well, even when they are distracting each other.

So what do I do? I don’t want her left in the dust. She doesn’t seem to take the assessments seriously so I can’t be sure if she understands the material. I don’t want to keep trucking forward with her dragging along, “playing school.” I realize that her plea for fun is a way for her to get out of doing work and remove herself from dealing with personal responsibility. But still-she has to learn something. Help me cohort!

Wow- a lot has happened since I last posted. I won't bore you with all of the boring details but I will try to catch you up.
I panned for gold-didn't find anything.
Hiked in Tarra Bulga- avoided being a tick host (unlike my other housemates).
Made Mexican food- realized I need it every day.
Fed a kangaroo- blew my mind.
Had a Huntsmen in the house- survived but severely traumatized.

Looking ahead: Friday brings the school swimming carnival! The school houses (yes they have houses) compete against each other in sports carnivals. I signed up to be the announcer (it seemed like a fitting role) and I get to announce the races and the house points. I can't wait. The school is probably going to regret giving me a microphone but they did seem to think that everyone would listen to me. All due to my "mad as" accent. Sunday morning I'm going on my first sailing experience. I'm very excited not only to sail but also to catch up with another Miamian!

Teaching has been really great. Staff meetings, team meetings, and PLT meetings are a little exhausting but they only happen a couple times a week and it's good experience for the real world. My school really tries to cultivate a positive atmosphere between the teachers and I think they do a good job of it. My students are good kids. There have been a lot of issues with late work and it's getting really frustrating. I told my 8th graders that unless they have talked to me beforehand, late work is going to be a warning (this is part of their school wide behavior management plan). So hopefully curbs some of that. I'm really working on getting the students to silently read their texts and respond to DRA's. The 8th graders are doing really well but the 9th graders are putting up every barrier possible. I am getting the chance to work one on one with a student to improve his reading fluency and comprehension. In the next couple of weeks I will be taking over the 9th graders and 12th graders so in the end I will be teaching 8th, 9th, and 12th grades while observing 11th grade. It's a lot to think about but once I get this PLC out of the way I think it should be doable.

The students pretty much assume that everyone in the states lives in giant mansions and throws massive parties because their parents are out of town all the time. Thank you Hollywood. I have disappointed them as I am lacking any crazy mansion part stories.

Here's some slang to add to your vocabulary :)
Adding "as" to a phrase: Like the previously used "mad as." I have also heard "cool as." Apparently adding the "as" intensifies the mad, cool, funny or whatever sentiment is being used. Most likely used in a positive situation.
sooking: Crying or being a wimp. When I asked the students about this one I thought, "Why not just say crying then?" Oh well.
whinging: Pronounced like the street Harry Potter grows up on, it's used in place of whining.
How you going?: Instead of "How are you?" or "Hows your day?" I never know which answer they are looking for so I reply with a vague "I'm fine" with a smile.

They haven't appreciated my Harry Potter references quite like I had hoped. But I'm working on converting them.

'Ta!

There's A First Time for Everything

It’s been a busy couple of days! I have had my first days at school, my first days teaching, my first experience body surfing, and (thankfully minimal) my first Australian sunburn.

School is so exciting. It sounds like a vague adjective but it’s hard to put into words. The kids are great fun, but still have their moments-like most teens their age. Surprisingly, I’m really keen on my year 8’s. I never thought I would mesh well with the junior high age but these guys are fun and goofy but are hard workers when it came to class time. We are starting Holes and I think it’s going to be fun. I love the book, and an extra bonus, I have already read it and have experience with it. In my other classes I’m playing catch-up. The year 12’s are reading The Quiet American, a book about the Vietnam War, which was made into a movie starring Brendan Fraser. My teacher gave me the DVD for the weekend and said, “Watch the movie so you know what’s going on. That’s what I did.” So there’s a small look into the curriculum. The teachers are very lovely, and I like mine a lot. She has a lot of energy, the kids seem to really like her, and she has been very proactive about getting me in the classroom and also providing me with constructive feedback. Things are different here and it’s a big adjustment switching from 7 short periods to 4 long ones, and having to move classrooms each time. Moving classrooms makes it really difficult to display any kind of student work, hang any posters up about specific subjects, or even really create a consistent management plan (since the rooms could change depending on the day). Overall, Yarram is a good fit for me and I’m looking for to the diverse challenge.

Unrelated. Australia is beautiful. I spent the day at the beach yesterday and it was astounding. Crystal blue waters with amazing clarity, and white sandy (squeaky) beaches, surrounded by an incredible forest landscape. Seriously. Unbelievable. It’s hard to think that some people actually to get grow up in a place like this. On a not so glamorous note-the spider kill count is high. I kill at least one everyday but thankfully there’s some handy kill spray around the house so I can keep a safe difference. Still keeping an eye out for the dreaded huntsmen. Pray that I avoid it!! Being here has also made me grateful for some very silly things. Like Internet. Raina and I are splitting a mobile broadband Internet server that came loaded with 5 GB. We’ve gone through that in a week. Thankfully, it can be recharged and more data put on it. Unfortunately, it’s expensive and even though we will be buying 10 GB with a huge expiry date, I know that it will be gone in just a couple of weeks. Wanting to stay connected does not come cheap. Actually, most things in Australia don’t come cheap, but so far it has all been worth it.

To continue your Australian education, here’s some more slang:

            Bevo- beverage, drink. Kate said “beverage” is too formal and here most things get shortened with an “o” added to the end

            Trolley- shopping cart

            Galah- a beautiful bird BUT when you are called a galah it’s another way of saying you aren’t very bright

            Chockers- I have made up my own spelling for this one. It sounds like chalk-ahs, meaning busy or full. For example, “The beach was chockers with people”

            Tea- Not exactly slang but they use this to refer to dinner. But they also have tea. So sometimes a person might be referring to the drink or they might be referring to the meal, the guess is yours.

I’m sure the more I talk to the kids, the more words I will learn. More to come after my first full week of school! I will leave you with the kangaroo’s. 

Cheers!