My Story (Part 1)

Can you tell a story? Do you have a story to tell? I remember on one of the LOOOOOOOONNNNNGGGG trips from SC to my grandparents' home in Louisiana, I was telling my mom and brother about a movie I had seen...my mom interrupted my story and said "Robin, you're such a good story teller." That was all it took...I have "enhanced" every part of my life since that day with stories. I love to tell them...just ask my students. Sometimes they are very short and silly, and sometimes they are longer and more meaningful, just as the one I'm about to tell you. I won't keep you hanging any longer. Here's my story:

I was raised in a Christian home. I've known God since as long as I can remember. I remember that I publicly asked Jesus into my heart when I was six, but I knew LONG before then that He was the author of the way I wanted to live my life. No...I didn't use those words, because I was only six, but I knew Him and that I loved Him and He loved (loves) me and I wanted to live for Him. There were times throughout my life that I didn't do all the things God would have me do, and I didn't act the way God would have me act, but I ALWAYS knew God loved (loves) me and I have always come back to Him.

When people ask me (usually only at church and not very often) about my salvation I say something like "I don't really have an amazing, transforming story of my salvation because I've been a follower of Christ as long as I can remember." I know that in itself is a pretty fabulous story, but it doesn't make for a very intriguing story of salvation...if you are a Believer and have heard any amazing salvation stories, you know what I mean.

So, for most of my life...really until 2005, that was my story. God chose me before I was born, God provided an amazing family who are Believers who raised me to Believe. But in 2005, God did something in my life that was AMAZING to me and showed me, in real life, how much He loves me and how important I am to Him!

My father is a music professor...from a long line of musicians/teachers, and my mother is a math teacher, also from a long line of teachers. My mother is also musical...both sides of my family are well educated, musical, educators. My parents raised me to make my own decisions, including what I wanted to study in college and what I wanted to do for a living. I just happened to choose to study music (voice, particularly) and then He led me to teach music. Similar to my father, only I was not AT ALL interested in higher education to the extent required to teach on the college level. So I graduated from college with a pretty great foundation of music, voice, choir and choral music, and went to work...in an elementary school. My first teaching job started in January of 1994 at a very small elementary school in the Northwest corner of Greenville County. In order for me to be a full-time employee of the school district, I actually had to teach music to two different schools, which is not uncommon for those who teach a fine art in elementary school.

I taught music in two elementary schools for 3.5 years. I was MISERABLE in my work. This was NOT what I had worked so hard to do...why did I have to drive to two different places almost every day, to be a babysitter for teachers who only got one 40 minute planning period, three (maybe four) times/week. Please keep in mind that the period of time I used to drive from one school to the next was considered my planning time. In the 3.5 years I taught elementary school, I had one school that was considered my "home base" but I taught at three other elementary schools, and never had a real classroom at any of those three schools. My classroom was mobile and it was on a cart...I rolled to each classroom on my cart and we did a really bad class. Did I tell you already that I was MISERABLE???

In order to help myself escape the misery, I volunteered to lead an area rehearsal once each week during the Spring for a children's choir that performed in a large concert toward the end of the year. I did this for 3 years...it was somewhat of a relief, but still not able to do the really great choral music I learned while I was studying. But I did it anyway.

During these 3.5 years, I met and married my wonderful husband. He was GREAT! But he got really tired of hearing me complain about work....which I did a lot of because, if you don't already know, I WAS MISERABLE!!! The Spring after we married I went to him and said "Honey, I'm not sure what I'm gonna do, but I can't keep doing this. I'm miserable. I would rather answer the telephone for a doctor or attorney than to keep doing this!!!" He was extremely supportive and told me that he would do whatever he could to help me find a job I could tolerate, but that we couldn't afford for me to not work. During one of those after school, area rehearsals, I had the opportunity to talk to the district Fine Arts Director and just mentioned to him that I was planning to resign. I said that I had gotten stuck in the circle of elementary music, was no longer in the loop of the larger music world in my district and didn't have any idea if there was a high school job open. He asked me what it would take for me to stay, and I said "Get me a job in a high school, and then we'll talk." So he did...he contacted the principal of the high school with the Choral Director opening and set up the interview.

I got that job and didn't quit teaching. I taught at Berea High School for one school year and LOVED it! Greg had been transferred to the Charlotte area and was living in Rock Hill during the week (in a really bad rented room in a boarding house here) and coming back to Greenville on the weekends. It was really a great set up for us because I was able to devote as much after school time as needed to the choral program at the high school and didn't ever feel guilty about being away from home.

Then in January of 2008 we became pregnant with Caleb. I finished out the school year at Berea, but Greg's transfer to the Charlotte area was final and I resigned to move and to be a full-time mom. How exciting! God allowed me to have a wonderful year in the final year that I was going to teach...because now, as I had planned it, I would be home teaching the most important lessons I'd ever teach in my life!

Spring Break!!!

WOOOO HOOOOO!!!! We're on Spring Break this week. BOY, did we all need it. The kids were getting tired of each other, and the teachers...and the teachers were getting tired of the kids and of each other. Hahaha! I hope this will get us through the next seven weeks!

We really don't have too long left at all if you put it in perspective like this: We have about 3 weeks or a month until the PASS test then only three weeks until school's over after PASS. It seems so much shorter when I say it that way.

My own children have already been scheduled for at least two weeks of the summer, with my oldest planning a week of "Uncle Randy Camp" (learning to play guitar), Grandpa camp (spending a week with my f-i-l), and trying to plan a week of Aunt Becky camp (a week with my step-sister in Washington D.C.). He's gonna keep me in the road, I'm afraid.

My youngest is still too young for me to let her go for that many weeks...I know, I need to cut the apron strings, but she's still my baby. Ah well...there will be plenty of time for me to let her go later! ;-)

A Big Move

Well, it's time for contracts to come out and be signed. I have LOVED teaching at my school this year. So I was a bit upset today, when many other teachers in my building received an email saying "your contract is ready to be signed" and I didn't. Never fear...I did not lose my job, which is especially fantastic considering all the cuts school districts are experiencing right now. But my principal did call me in and tell me that I'm being moved from 7th grade to 6th grade.

I'm not super happy about it, but I will make the best of the situation and I feel sure that I will learn to love 6th graders just as much as I love 7th graders.

Please just keep me in your thoughts and prayers as I prepare for this change and move my classroom. That part is REALLY bothering me! :)

My Shanny...

A while back I posted that I was going to have a full time student intern this semester. I shared some of my concerns about teaching her how to be a teacher, and my concern that she might not learn the good stuff from me.

Well, I've had her in my classroom now for about 2 months. Her name is Shannon and I like to call her Shanny...and you should be able to guess since I have a nickname for her that I like her. She's a great teacher! Shanny walked into my classroom and right into the hearts of my students (and my heart, for that matter). She quickly developed an easy relationship with most of my students, and experienced some of the same types of struggles that I experienced at the beginning of the year with these students.

Pretty quickly after Shannon started coming to my class, we planned what she would be teaching and when she'd begin and stop teaching. She will still be with me for three more weeks, four weeks if you figure that Spring Break comes while she's still with me, and I'm so excited to have seen her grow this semester. I know that I've been able to help her with some things that she has needed help with, but I've also learned from her. It's been more like a partnership of teachers than a mentor/mentee relationship. She's just great.

About three weeks ago Shanny said "I'm going to be so bored after I finish here." I promptly told her that I wasn't discussing that yet and that I want her to be able to get a job in my school. In all seriousness, I will be kind of bored when she finishes too. She has been great at making me see the good in my students at a time of the year when I begin to only see the bad in them. She also has a great since of humor that keeps me laughing! My students will miss her too...one of them proposed to her about 3 weeks into her internship. He's in seventh grade, remember! So anyway, if you read this blog, and you know of any open positions for really great middle school math or language arts teachers, please let me know. I know a really great middle school teacher who is certified in math and language arts and is looking for a job! :)

Shannon and her dog, Hank

Spring has SPRUNG

If you've taught for more than one year you know exactly what I mean when I tell you that my students are acting foolish because Spring has begun! It's kind of like coming to school when there's a full moon outside...you go because you have to and you are getting paid to be there, but you really don't look forward to the foolishness you are about to encounter!

The "Happy Thought" is that there are only 3 more weeks of school before Spring Break starts, which we are all looking forward to. Please don't misunderstand me...I LOVE teaching and LOVE my students but we've all gotten to the point where we need a break from each other.

Let me brag on my students for a little bit here...we have had MAP testing this week. I love MAP testing for a couple of reasons...1) it's computerized so the kids don't have to spend hours bubbling, and 2) students have immediate feedback about how well they've done as their score pops onto the screen when they complete the test. I gave my students a sticky note with their fall score written on it and prior to the test I had given them all a pep talk about doing their absolute best on the test.

Well, I haven't done the math so the figures I'm about to spout are estimates, but my students kicked booty on these tests this week! My estimate is that around 80% of my students showed gains from fall to spring. Somewhere between 15 and 20 of my students had gains greater than 10 points (generally when a student has a "BIG" gain, it's about 5 points or so). And finally I had one child gain 20 POINTS!!!! Yes...I'm shouting! This child worked SO hard on this test and it really paid off!

Lots of people at my school have said things like "well, they gained so much because you've taught them so well" but I don't see it that way. My teammates and I talked to several of our students who showed significant gains. We asked them what made the difference for them...why they scored so much higher this spring, etc. A majority said "because my teachers care about me." How FANTASTIC is that? We care, and they know we care, and because we care and they know, they work harder! I'm really excited about this!!!!

So, if you have any opportunity to lift up a student, show them that you care, please do it. They notice...they may not act like they notice or care, but they do and they work harder!!!

Poker's Over

Thank God!!! It was stressful. I'm not really sure that my students learned what I wanted them to learn by playing Poker. The other teacher who did this same lesson said the same thing..."Do you think the kids wanted to do the math that went along with the poker game? SHOOT NO!" I had the same experience, so we finished that and put the cards away. But I did take some photos of the kids playing and thought I'd post them for your viewing pleasure! :)

Probability and Poker

My friend, and the math dept. chair at my school found a great lesson in the New York Times on teaching probability using the game of poker. She shared it with me and I loved it! So...off the the dollar store I went to purchase cards. Forget about the fact that I don't play poker and really don't have a clue on how to do so.

I printed the lesson for my intern and myself, then printed the article that goes with the lesson (a classroom set) so that my students could read it. Then also printed a classroom set of General Poker Rules so we could all go over them together.

On Thursday each student had a deck of cards and we discussed the number of the following in the deck:
suits
face cards
number cards
high cards
low cards
red cards
black cards

Then I had them shuffle their decks and deal three hands of five cards. We did some pretty cool figurin' on probability based on what they dealt. It was very fun.

Yesterday we went through the article and talked about reasons Poker is a good learning tool, so that when they had the discussion with their parents about what they are doing in math, they would actually be able to say that I am not teaching them to gamble.

Yesterday we also had a few house-keeping things to do before we started on that, and because none of my students work at the same rate, classes as a whole were cut to about 20 minutes (tops). So during my last two class periods I showed them a great card trick my dad taught me...spent some time fooling them all...then taught them the trick. I know...I know...that is not necessarily in the curriculum, however I do have a theory about just having fun in my classroom. There are very few teachers who would take 10-20 minutes to show them a card trick...but you see, what I'm doing when I have fun with my students, is building relationships. Each time I let my "teacher" persona take a rest, they realize they can trust me and it helps them realize that they truly have an advocate in me. Yes...it might semi-backfire every once in a while, so that my students think they can get away with stuff, but all it takes to bring that back in is for me to have a conversation with that particular student about the right time to get to work and the right time to have fun, and the problem is over.

Anyway, if anyone would like to give me hints on how to play Poker, I'm certainly open. I really think I should understand a little of it before I really use it as a teaching tool.