H-town Teaching

“Baby, if you needed help you should have just asked.” said a teacher who walked into the mess that was my classroom. The environmentalist in me had been collecting scraps of same-colored butcher paper for days, to make up for my school’s lack of recycling, and stapling the paper to my bulletin boards. I didn’t think it was THAT obvious that I’d reused old paper, or that it didn’t quite fit the board. For those of you who think that decorating a classroom is easy, YOU’RE WRONG. I’m lucky I wasn’t assigned to elementary school, that would have been a tragedy. I now salute all the teachers I’ve had in years past, who probably spent days perfecting the rooms I took for granted.

The scenario with this teacher was funny because I’d never actually spoken to her before. This stranger took my hands in hers and said “I’m going to help you.” So we made our way to the Teacher Workroom, which smelled like mold and other undesirable things, and she proceeded to show me how one successfuly rolls out butcher paper in a way that minimizes wrinkles and tears. We made our way back to my class, and this teacher handed me a stapler. Four hours later my room looked legit, colorful borders and all. A different teacher entered my room later in the day and started clapping, that’s right, she clapped!

So now I have my room under control, but that doesn’t mean I’m anywhere close to being prepared to meet my students tomorrow. I have some “getting to know you” activities planned out, and I’m going to have to take care of a lot of paper work. Even though it’s going to be a very bureaucratic day, it’s going to set the tone for the entire year. One of my roommates recently commented that my students would probably say this about me…”She’s so CRAZY…but I think I really like her!” I hope that’s true, both parts. I think the craziest teachers are the most memorable, and I hope my students will appreciate our class mascot who is currently sitting on my desk: Sombrero Sam the Skeleton. When I first arrived to my room a few weeks ago I found an old model skeleton who was missing his right arm and leg, and the top half of his skull. A few days later I remembered I had a sombrero in my car, which I’d stolen from some TFA event a few weeks ago (bad teacher!). Well it fits perfectly on Sam’s head, and it looks quite becoming on him. I figure that anytime the students get loud, I’ll quiet them by saying “Quiet! Sam can’t hear all the good things I’m saying AND YOU KNOW he wants to learn!”

Here’s to hoping my kids like me and Sombrero Sam, and that I can effectively teach problem solving and lab safety to students who have a limited knowledge of English. Scary but so exciting!

It’s been three weeks of rest and relaxation, mixed in with some planning and random TFA sessions, but I’m ready and anxious to begin my new position as a middle school ESL math and science teacher. If someone had told me in college that I would one day teach math and science I would have laughed. Although I started off college as a biology major, I quickly dropped in favor of history…science was BORING! But here I am, a few years later, eagerly studying up on everything I need to teach my students and actually enjoying myself at the same time. Math is all about games, ok maybe not just games, but it’s actually kind of fun….sshhhhhh…..don’t tell! But I’m nervous, SO NERVOUS, about teaching students who know little to know English. I speak Spanish, but we are absolutely discouraged from using it in the classroom (after studying my roster it looks like this is the native language for all but two of the 40 ESL students, and the remaining two are from the Middle East). It was almost impossible communicating my procedures and expectations this summer, and at least those kids spoke English! Oh man….

Today was our first day reporting to school, and no first day is complete without an icebreaker. We learned a little bit about another teacher and then shared it with the entire faculty. My favorite of the morning:

“This is Ms. X, she’s the nurse here. Her number one accomplishment is that in the 07-08 year no middle schooler got pregnant!!!”

The crowd went crazy.

The other teachers at my school seem really great. Almost everyone is new, either new to the profession or just new to the school. My school has had 8 principals over 10 years, along with student/administrator scandals and a declining student enrollment from year to year. Last year’s principal was fired after severely messing up the budget and paying teachers for days they hadn’t attended. Attendance was a major problem at my school last year, at least for the teachers. The teacher I’m replacing had over 40 missed days…and she was paid for them. Her case was not unique, it seems that many teachers just skipped Fridays. The new principal at my school was hired from a successful school in the district, and she brought most of her administrative staff with her too (it seems as though they’ve traveled together from school to school in Houston, fixing them). They re-interviewed every teacher at my school and ended up firing most of them. That’s where we all come in, to re-build this school which has lost its good reputation in the community and is under strict scrutiny from HISD.

I’m excited about the opportunity to change things at this school, but it is really overwhelming. My classes are divided by English proficiency level rather than grade level, so I will be teaching all grade levels of Math and Science within each class. Lots of differentiation and lots of lesson planning. Not to mention the language barrier. I’ve heard that ESL students are very well behaved at this school, as compared to the rest of the student body, and that they usually love their teachers. I’ve also heard that teaching ESL is sooooo very hard, especially within a content area like science. Scientific method anyone?
The other teachers at my school have been very eager to help. I spoke at length with a former ESL teacher, and tried to run some ideas past her.

Me: “I heard that getting a classroom pet is a great classroom management technique. I’m thinking of getting a gerbil.”

Teacher: “DON’T DO THAT! The kids I used to teach were from African refugee camps. How do I say this? The kids would have tried to eat it. They’re feral!”

I politely nodded my head and thanked her for her time. How do you respond to that??

New school, new position, new stories. Stay tuned….