Teaching High School

Strange but True

We got out of school yesterday at 11am due to a water main break in a county north of us since that is from where the schools water supply comes and we'd have to boil it in order to drink it. I thought it rather odd that we were sent home, I mean, how difficult is it to not drink the water. But I guess since we wouldnt for certain be able to control that, we had to let them go home to drink the water there, which of course, was also affected. [insert eye roll]

Regardless, I was so happy. When I got home, it was good to be giggling and laughing instead of in pain and crying like on Wednesday. I took a few naps and still fell asleep a little after midnight and got up today just after noon. I have been wiped out apparently. Despite the fact that it is teaching ten fewer minutes than summer school, and thirty-five minutes fewer than teaching at the junior high each day, all the newness is so overpowering. And now I dont have to plan for Tuesday either, since I only taught two class before 11 yesterday and one of them is German II which I only have one class of and the other class, Sophomore English, probably didnt take home their homework due to the excitement of leaving early. But I should plan for the rest of next week so I dont have to worry about that either.

The Pain

When I woke up to the early sound of my alarm clock, my head was in dire pain. "Oh great," I thought, "just what I need on the second day of school, a migraine." Thankfully, I didn't have naseau. So it stayed with me all day, despite the Aleve I took. Being busy helped. But once I got home, it all fell apart. I found the prescription for Imitrex and took it to the pharmacy. He pulled the box right off the shelf and told me it would take at least 45 minutes. Why can't they just give it then? Seems strange to me. So it finally went away enough so that I could enjoy dinner. I went to bed a little later than I meant to, but I slept right away. So now I am ready to go... and ready for the four day weekend starting tomorrow.

The First Day

Teacher work day at the high school. So many unexpected things. To wit:
*A faculty meeting that lasted two hours (my junior high first day meetings were max an hour). Thankfully we didn’t have an English department meeting, although I did have a Foreign Language meeting.
*Learning about hall duty. This is new to me as we don’t have hall duty in the junior high. Apparently I have a table and chair in the hall (go figure) and check to be sure that students have passes when in the hall. If their pass is for the bathroom, I am to have them sign in and out as a record of them having been in the restroom. I am also to check at the beginning of the hour to see that there is no graffiti on the stalls or walls. If I smell smoke, I am to, as I read it, lock them in.
*I do not have a cart to wheel my materials to my four different classrooms for the my five total classes. (My two German classes are both in the same room.) I also do not have a desk to use in the regular sense of desk, but I do have counter space which is supposedly my work room desk. I do not have a wardrobe for my things (jacket when needed, purse, other personal items). I do not have a locking file cabinet. I do not have a bookshelf for my accumulated mass of novels for young adults. I do not have a permanent teacher computer to use as I traverse (with my non-existent cart, of course) from class to class. I am to use the computer already in each room, meaning that the other teacher will need to have logged off (or I likely will need to do so) and I must remember to log off. I also do not then have a permanent email program and must use the Internet portal access if I want to do so during class.

So tomorrow I expect students. I have about thirty students in each Sophomore English. In German II, I have twenty-seven, and in German I, I have sixteen. Not too bad for numbers, although, contractually, I am only to have twenty-seven in each English class. I will be giving them an information sheet which will give me addresses and phone numbers without me having to look them up if I need to reach a kid or her/his parent. I will also be asking them to fill out a writing and reading inventory in English so as to know their attitudes about English. I do not yet have a syllabus (didn’t know I was expected to give one, actually) and am glad I can. I also found out I am not required to give an exam like the other Sophomore English teachers are giving, my exam can be all my own. This goes against what was (and is) being professed at the junior high. “All teachers in all disciplines across the curriculum and district wide are giving common exams in each building.” Apparently not. I am glad I am not. I can teach any way I wish and test to reflect that. I may like this high school gig after all. (Except for the 7:20am start… for which I now need to go so I can get to bed.)