A new city. A fresh start.
This quarter was my opportunity to reassess all the things I did wrong as a first-year teacher, and start all over. It hasn’t been without challenges, but it has gone much more smoothly than last year. I’m still teaching an urban population in Los Angeles – but it’s not nearly the headache the urban population in Las Vegas brought me.
I’ve had a blast getting to know my co-workers better on an individual level, and working with both a wonderful Tech team, and a US History partner in crime to come up with wonderful lessons for the students.
Behavior wise, the students are MUCH better than Las Vegas, albeit there are a few challenging ones I still need to figure out how to effectively deal with. Some students respond better to flattery while others respond better to fear and intimidation. It’s finding that right balance that will make it all worth it in the end.
The systems put in place at Rise Kohyang Middle School make it rather difficult to have free time. Last year in Las Vegas I was able to leave school by 2:30 or 3PM most days. Due to meetings and the entire setup of the charter system, I end up leaving at 5 or 6 PM most weeknights. As a direct result of this system, one of my technology comrades has had to leave, and I will miss him dearly.
Despite the setbacks, the kids have been wonderful – my advisory kids being awesome in more ways than you can count. I have one “good” history class and one “bad” history class in terms of behavior. I have 2 “good” technology class and 1 “relatively annoying” class that just happens to fall at the end of the day.
I have my lesson plans mapped out for next quarter in its entirety – for both US History and Technology. Coming into first quarter I didn’t have many things plan and was doing them in quite a whimsical fashion. With the extra time this week due to students taking 2-hour midterms everyday, I was able to get an effective head-start.
Next quarter – continuing to teach US History (tackling great subjects like the American Revolution and the Constitution), and making Technology more rigorous with the incorporation of Google Sheets and Digital Portfolios. It will be a blast, and I’ll be ready for it, after a much needed FALL BREAK.
