When I was a kid, I used to love watching Dangerous Minds, and getting inspired by how a white female teacher was able to inspire youth in Los Angeles. And although my experience teaching kids in Koreatown is far from comparable, I did have an inkling of pressure when dealing with kids back in Las Vegas. And even though I’m not living in a gangster’s paradise anymore, we did conduct random backpack searches today, which were equatable to what would happen on a daily basis at LAUSD.
I did explode at my 5th period today though, and had to call two parents and send them immediately to the counselor’s office. Behavior management definitely looked easier in the movies. Anyway, I hope to incorporate some skills learned from Dangerous Minds and Freedom Writers (the other white savior teacher movie) into my teaching at some point. (I do the line game at the beginning of every year already). I took some kids to BobaTime after school today, because they used their “Pokemon XP points” that I gave them. I said that the points expired today when half the kids weren’t listening just so they wouldn’t cash them in. Very smart.
After work, I attempted to hang out with co-workers where we mostly complained about work. I tried to help jump start an ASAS person’s car, being their white knight, but ultimately failed.
Oh well. I’m back in Garden Grove for Mother’s Day!
