I was actually kind of excited to make the trip to Lakeshore Learning in Roseville, even though I was going alone. I needed gas, so I went out of my way to go to Costco. No Costco card...Daniel has it. I'm mad he didn't give it back to me, so I text him. He's says, no, it's on the dresser. That doesn't really help me, I'm not home...But Chevron was right around the corner, but I'm a little on edge because it's not in the best part of town.
My first stop was Ikea to check if they still have those cool crayon "toolboxes" I saw last year. Upon driving into the parking lot at 9:35, I discover they don't open until 10:00 (crap!). I have to pee and am a bit hungry so I take care of that and go to the cafeteria. The family of 5 in front of me can't make up their minds, finally order the "big breakfast" (all of them), the server runs out of potatoes, has to go get more, ok. My turn. I order a small side of french toast. The said family of 5 in front of me is now deciding what they want to drink....coffee? water? What do you want, Honey? When they finally get out of my way, I pay my $3 for a soda and my french toast. The family of 5 is now deciding what soda they want from the soda fountain, which is not functioning properly and has no ice (the soda cost more than my french toast). The mom actually took pity on me and told me to go first. So I sit down at a table with my iceless (diet) soda and 5 french toast sticks, which are now cold as ice. *sigh* At least I made my purchases without further ado, except I wanted everything I saw at Ikea and the bed frame we bought 2 years ago is now $100 less...
So I head off to Lakeshore Learning, the most awesome store for teacher, parents, and kids. Oops! (not the actual word I used). There's a CHP radar-gunning people! How fast am I going?!? Relieved, I realize that I was smart and utilized my cruise control. Whew!
I over spent at Lakeshore but that all went pretty well, too. My next stop was the Bead Shoppe. I was very disciplined and only bought what I came to get, even though I really, really, really wanted the beautiful opal briolettes for half off... I can't get out of the parking lot because there's a bizarre number of big rigs blocking me. I finally find my way out only to end up nose to nose with a UPS truck. Geez! (again, not the actual word I used).
Once on the freeway, nobody is even going the speed limit of 65 mph and I can't get around anybody. When I finally do, the big rig on my right showers my newish car with baby bits of gravel (sounds like hail, but it's GRAVEL).
I had another stop to make, but I decided to call it quits. I'm home now and have not checked for damage to my car because I'm not ready for that yet. Will check when I venture out to go grocery shopping...
Monday, July 25, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Nothing
Teachers look forward to summer like kids look forward to Christmas. For as long as I can remember, well, since I started Kindergarten, I've had this cycle of having summer off then starting fresh in September, except for when I was in college, during which time I still had to work. Even that was still a break from academics...all I had to do was wait tables, not pass any tests or write any papers. Just earn tips. Easy.
School's been out now for exactly 2 weeks. I have yet to sit around all day doing nothing. Since that's what I fantasize about all year long, you'd think that would be the first thing I'd do. Nothing, blessed, peaceful nothing. But that's proving to be a challenge. Friends ask me what I'm going to do all summer, to which I reply with a shrug of my shoulders, mostly because I feel like the possibilies are endless. But they're not. Ten weeks is a lot of time and it isn't a lot of time. In June, 10 weeks stretches out in front of me like the view from atop a mountain. In August, it's just a memory, and I find myself wondering where summer went.
I know how to pack in the memories, though. Sitting around is nice, but it's not all it's cracked up to be. A person can only watch so many reruns and see so many movies...Yeah, I drove 778 rt miles to see a rocket launch and it didn't pan out. But now I can say, "Remember that time...?"
In the past two weeks, I've been to Utah, Las Vegas, and Lompoc. I watched my nephew graduate from high school, met my new 4 month old niece, visited with family, saw dinosaur tracks and a Vegas show, hiked in some very beautiful places, heard (due to fog) a rocket launch, and ate Danish pancakes. I've read two books and seen two movies. I've taken all the pets to the vet on two separate visits and had to euthanized my cat, but found out my 12 year old dogs are healthy. I suffered a muscle spasm in my neck. I took another jewelry making class and have thought about opening a store on Etsy. It goes on and on and on....the chores alone make me wonder how it is possible for me to even have a full time job.
Yet summer means more than "doing nothing." It's time to do what I want to do, without the restrictions of a schedule or a commute. Today I can make choices.
Today I choose to do Nothing... later.
School's been out now for exactly 2 weeks. I have yet to sit around all day doing nothing. Since that's what I fantasize about all year long, you'd think that would be the first thing I'd do. Nothing, blessed, peaceful nothing. But that's proving to be a challenge. Friends ask me what I'm going to do all summer, to which I reply with a shrug of my shoulders, mostly because I feel like the possibilies are endless. But they're not. Ten weeks is a lot of time and it isn't a lot of time. In June, 10 weeks stretches out in front of me like the view from atop a mountain. In August, it's just a memory, and I find myself wondering where summer went.
I know how to pack in the memories, though. Sitting around is nice, but it's not all it's cracked up to be. A person can only watch so many reruns and see so many movies...Yeah, I drove 778 rt miles to see a rocket launch and it didn't pan out. But now I can say, "Remember that time...?"
In the past two weeks, I've been to Utah, Las Vegas, and Lompoc. I watched my nephew graduate from high school, met my new 4 month old niece, visited with family, saw dinosaur tracks and a Vegas show, hiked in some very beautiful places, heard (due to fog) a rocket launch, and ate Danish pancakes. I've read two books and seen two movies. I've taken all the pets to the vet on two separate visits and had to euthanized my cat, but found out my 12 year old dogs are healthy. I suffered a muscle spasm in my neck. I took another jewelry making class and have thought about opening a store on Etsy. It goes on and on and on....the chores alone make me wonder how it is possible for me to even have a full time job.
Yet summer means more than "doing nothing." It's time to do what I want to do, without the restrictions of a schedule or a commute. Today I can make choices.
Today I choose to do Nothing... later.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Letting Go
Starting tomorrow I have to hand the reigns over to my student teacher (ST). She's completely capable...no worries there. Part of me relishes the easy time I'll have at work for the next couple of weeks, but another part of me really wants to experience this time of year.
Spring in First Grade is the best. The students finally, finally! get it. They can do so much now that they seemed incapable of doing in the fall. Every year it astonishes me to see kids who could barely scrawl out a simple sentence in the fall legibly write 4-8 sentences on a topic. With ease.
They can sit still, read a book, sign in to Accelerated Reader (if you only knew the stress of that), problem solve, and add and subtract. They know the rules, and, for the most part, follow them. I don't have to use the eyes in the back of my head so often anymore, and they listen to reason.
While planning with my ST, I suggested an Easter egg project for art, but now I want to do it! She taught them the money unit and experienced the frustration and confusion that comes with trying to figure out why they didn't get the fact that one can make a value (say, 15 cents) in several different ways. Then she got to experience the feeling of success after reteaching that concept.
She once sent me a text that said, "First grade is exhausting!" Don't I know it, sista! She took over when I got sick (see Germ Factories) and pretty much kept it up since I came back. I'm glad, because now her solo 2 weeks won't seem so daunting.
I'm torn between being grateful that I get a little break and having a chance to get caught up on paperwork and little odds and ends that never seem to get done, feeling guilty that I have this time, and wanting to be a fly on the wall when she has those little guys all to herself. I'm stressing...will she remember to update the behavior chart? pass out nickels? fill out daily reports (behavior contracts for a small few), put things away? run off needed materials? etc, etc...of course she will. She will learn by doing, and not doing. That's how I learned.
So...for the next few weeks, I get to create my own work. Organize my file cabinets, clean out cupboards, find all my "lost" manipulatives that I know I have somewhere, update cumulative folders.... I don't have to be the exhausted one for a little while. I get to have energy at the end of the day. Yippee?
Spring in First Grade is the best. The students finally, finally! get it. They can do so much now that they seemed incapable of doing in the fall. Every year it astonishes me to see kids who could barely scrawl out a simple sentence in the fall legibly write 4-8 sentences on a topic. With ease.
They can sit still, read a book, sign in to Accelerated Reader (if you only knew the stress of that), problem solve, and add and subtract. They know the rules, and, for the most part, follow them. I don't have to use the eyes in the back of my head so often anymore, and they listen to reason.
While planning with my ST, I suggested an Easter egg project for art, but now I want to do it! She taught them the money unit and experienced the frustration and confusion that comes with trying to figure out why they didn't get the fact that one can make a value (say, 15 cents) in several different ways. Then she got to experience the feeling of success after reteaching that concept.
She once sent me a text that said, "First grade is exhausting!" Don't I know it, sista! She took over when I got sick (see Germ Factories) and pretty much kept it up since I came back. I'm glad, because now her solo 2 weeks won't seem so daunting.
I'm torn between being grateful that I get a little break and having a chance to get caught up on paperwork and little odds and ends that never seem to get done, feeling guilty that I have this time, and wanting to be a fly on the wall when she has those little guys all to herself. I'm stressing...will she remember to update the behavior chart? pass out nickels? fill out daily reports (behavior contracts for a small few), put things away? run off needed materials? etc, etc...of course she will. She will learn by doing, and not doing. That's how I learned.
So...for the next few weeks, I get to create my own work. Organize my file cabinets, clean out cupboards, find all my "lost" manipulatives that I know I have somewhere, update cumulative folders.... I don't have to be the exhausted one for a little while. I get to have energy at the end of the day. Yippee?
Monday, April 4, 2011
Baby, I'm a Star!
I am a celebrity in my own microcosm of celebrity-hood otherwise known as Room 17. I know this because every time a student sees me out of the context of the classroom, my name is shouted from wherever said student is and he/she is waving and smiling, hoping to get a wave back. I'm even treated to hugs if I'm spotted in a vicinity anywhere near the play structure after school. It's so great, especially since I'll never ever be hounded by paparazzi in my lifetime nor will I ever be featured in People magazine for winning an Oscar.
In first grade, we like to cook. Before we ever make soup or pancakes, pizza or rice krispy treats (even mini pumpkin cheesecakes one year!), students are reminded of the Rules.
When kids are asked open-ended questions about Rules, they come up with some pretty bizarre ideas. They know the basics, which usually start with the word "no." We teachers have this annoying need to phrase everything in the positive (me, not so much, but I try to keep it balanced). If a student responds with, "No pinching," I'd rephrase it as, "Keep your hands to yourself" or "Hands off." So imagine what was said when we discussed cooking rules.
1. Keep your hands off (yes, that's very good, what's-your-name)
2. Be nice (of course)
3. Be kind (isn't that what "be nice" means?)
4. No punching someone in the face (would you do that when you're cooking?) (I don't really want to know the answer to that question)
5. Never touch the pan (FINALLY a relevant response)
I asked, "Why not touch the pan?" The little girl (who obviously has helped out in the kitchen) exasperatedly responded with her eyes open wide and eyebrows arched, "So you don't burn your hand." Duh.
I explained, once again, about germs and clean hands (again with the clean hands-sheesh!). So rule #1 is to always wash with soap and water first (in the bathroom, of course, so my sink isn't destroyed). Also, we don't lick our fingers or cough/sneeze on the food we're preparing.
For our first cooking experiment we cooked noodle soup. I chose soup to go with our story called Hot Fox Soup in which a fox with a big vat in the forest tries to get his animals friends into the vat so he can cook them (none of them take him up on his offer). In the end, the animals sit down at the table to eat their noodle soup. It's not that great of a story as there's only so much an author can do with short vowel words.
So anyway....I gave each child a paper plate, a plastic knife, one baby carrot and one small piece of celery. They were told to chop their vegetables and come up to put them in the pan (in which I was sauteeing pre-sliced onion-imagine 22 6 year olds chopping onion!). They wordlessly sawed at those poor carrots and celery. As I was standing at my table sauteeing I imagined myself on a cooking show. I began to speak like Julia Child. They didn't get the joke, they probably thought I was just losing my marbles again. Typical. I continued in this way for my own enjoyment, though.
"Now class, if your celery is ragged, just toss it in the pot anyway....who's to see?" There was a lot of ragged celery and carrots that looked like they'd been through the mulcher. "Oh, well, it all looks the same in your tummy!" I added water and bullion to boil, so while we waited we drew what was in the pot.
One time we made rice krispy treats (supposedly to reinforce "sequencing"). "Ok, class, now we melt the butter-but we mustn't burn it," came my Julia Child voice. Why? Why do I do that? "Then we add the marshmallows and let them melt." Why aren't the damn marshmallows melting? And I'm supposed to mix how many cups of rice krispies into this pot? It sure doesn't look like the dry will mix with the liquid very well, but that's what the recipe says...
I'm sorry, but my right arm was not made to stir rice krispy treats. A mom came in later in the day and I told her that she'd have to take over while I went to get a massage (joking) so she informed me that she, "always uses less rice krispies" because she knows how hard it is. Well, isn't she the smart one.
To go with our story If You Give a Pig a Pancake we made.....you guessed it. Pancakes! And just so you know, it's about what happens if a pig should happen to come to your window and you decide to give it a pancake since you're making them anyway and a pig coming to your window isn't weird at all. By this time in the year, they've cooked a few things and have the Rules down. They can practically get their own squirt and hardly anyone attempts the drip dry method anymore.
I cheat and buy mix. All we have to do is add water. But I do bring in my griddle and all the necessary tools. I feel like a pack mule as I make my way from my car to the classroom the day we make pancakes, what with carrying bags full of groceries, utensils, bowls, cutlery and plates, and of course, the griddle and syrup.
They oooohhhh and ahhhhhhh when I put the butter on the hot griddle (somebody always has to test rule # 5 and he/she is told to "hold your finger under cold water"). They each get to stir it and watch as I scoop out the batter into 6 perfect pancakes. They watch them bubble as though they were witnessing a miracle. They clap when I flip them. Yaayyyy, she didn't screw it up! A mom popped in and started taking pictures. These will be so cute in the yearbook, she said.
Wait a minute. I have an audience, I am screamed at when spotted from afar, I receive fan mail (fodder for another post perhaps!), and didn't I just have my picture taken unbidden?! Maybe I'll win an award someday, too, I think...nah. This is the best reward anybody can ask for.
Best. Job. Ever.
In first grade, we like to cook. Before we ever make soup or pancakes, pizza or rice krispy treats (even mini pumpkin cheesecakes one year!), students are reminded of the Rules.
When kids are asked open-ended questions about Rules, they come up with some pretty bizarre ideas. They know the basics, which usually start with the word "no." We teachers have this annoying need to phrase everything in the positive (me, not so much, but I try to keep it balanced). If a student responds with, "No pinching," I'd rephrase it as, "Keep your hands to yourself" or "Hands off." So imagine what was said when we discussed cooking rules.
1. Keep your hands off (yes, that's very good, what's-your-name)
2. Be nice (of course)
3. Be kind (isn't that what "be nice" means?)
4. No punching someone in the face (would you do that when you're cooking?) (I don't really want to know the answer to that question)
5. Never touch the pan (FINALLY a relevant response)
I asked, "Why not touch the pan?" The little girl (who obviously has helped out in the kitchen) exasperatedly responded with her eyes open wide and eyebrows arched, "So you don't burn your hand." Duh.
I explained, once again, about germs and clean hands (again with the clean hands-sheesh!). So rule #1 is to always wash with soap and water first (in the bathroom, of course, so my sink isn't destroyed). Also, we don't lick our fingers or cough/sneeze on the food we're preparing.
For our first cooking experiment we cooked noodle soup. I chose soup to go with our story called Hot Fox Soup in which a fox with a big vat in the forest tries to get his animals friends into the vat so he can cook them (none of them take him up on his offer). In the end, the animals sit down at the table to eat their noodle soup. It's not that great of a story as there's only so much an author can do with short vowel words.
So anyway....I gave each child a paper plate, a plastic knife, one baby carrot and one small piece of celery. They were told to chop their vegetables and come up to put them in the pan (in which I was sauteeing pre-sliced onion-imagine 22 6 year olds chopping onion!). They wordlessly sawed at those poor carrots and celery. As I was standing at my table sauteeing I imagined myself on a cooking show. I began to speak like Julia Child. They didn't get the joke, they probably thought I was just losing my marbles again. Typical. I continued in this way for my own enjoyment, though.
"Now class, if your celery is ragged, just toss it in the pot anyway....who's to see?" There was a lot of ragged celery and carrots that looked like they'd been through the mulcher. "Oh, well, it all looks the same in your tummy!" I added water and bullion to boil, so while we waited we drew what was in the pot.
One time we made rice krispy treats (supposedly to reinforce "sequencing"). "Ok, class, now we melt the butter-but we mustn't burn it," came my Julia Child voice. Why? Why do I do that? "Then we add the marshmallows and let them melt." Why aren't the damn marshmallows melting? And I'm supposed to mix how many cups of rice krispies into this pot? It sure doesn't look like the dry will mix with the liquid very well, but that's what the recipe says...
I'm sorry, but my right arm was not made to stir rice krispy treats. A mom came in later in the day and I told her that she'd have to take over while I went to get a massage (joking) so she informed me that she, "always uses less rice krispies" because she knows how hard it is. Well, isn't she the smart one.
To go with our story If You Give a Pig a Pancake we made.....you guessed it. Pancakes! And just so you know, it's about what happens if a pig should happen to come to your window and you decide to give it a pancake since you're making them anyway and a pig coming to your window isn't weird at all. By this time in the year, they've cooked a few things and have the Rules down. They can practically get their own squirt and hardly anyone attempts the drip dry method anymore.
I cheat and buy mix. All we have to do is add water. But I do bring in my griddle and all the necessary tools. I feel like a pack mule as I make my way from my car to the classroom the day we make pancakes, what with carrying bags full of groceries, utensils, bowls, cutlery and plates, and of course, the griddle and syrup.
They oooohhhh and ahhhhhhh when I put the butter on the hot griddle (somebody always has to test rule # 5 and he/she is told to "hold your finger under cold water"). They each get to stir it and watch as I scoop out the batter into 6 perfect pancakes. They watch them bubble as though they were witnessing a miracle. They clap when I flip them. Yaayyyy, she didn't screw it up! A mom popped in and started taking pictures. These will be so cute in the yearbook, she said.
Wait a minute. I have an audience, I am screamed at when spotted from afar, I receive fan mail (fodder for another post perhaps!), and didn't I just have my picture taken unbidden?! Maybe I'll win an award someday, too, I think...nah. This is the best reward anybody can ask for.
Best. Job. Ever.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Germ Factories
It occurred to me how much time we all spend getting rid of germs. Here's what went through my mind...
...filthy hands, filthy tables, filthy chairs, doorknobs, drinking fountains, pencils, crayons, toys, and manipulatives, playground balls, jumpropes, swing chain, play structure, sandbox, and whatever bugs and other critters kids are curious about (how many kids have come up to you holding a worm? "Look, Teacher!"). Our doors should have a warning sign that says, "Enter at your own risk" or "Beware of Bacteria."
I must go through a gallon or more of hand sanitizer every year. Just squirt that stuff right into a child's brown hand after he comes in from playing in the sandbox or playing handball. At least the germs are killed, I think to myself, because I can't have 22 kids at the sink actually washing their hands with soap and water. I've done it before, I don't recommend.
The Clorox wipe people should pay me some sort of kickback. We go through a big container once a month or so on cleaning the filthy tables. It's a good thing I have terrific room parents who donate the stuff. How do tables get that filthy, you wonder? Imagine this: a child arrives on the first day of school (clean) and finds her desk (also clean). She colors a picture and perhaps is told to cut something and use her glue stick. She kindly follows directions, but accidentally gets some glue stick on the table. No big deal. Ah, but that's only the beginning...after one day of use and 2 recesses later, the glue-stick-covered table has become a magnet for dirt. Suddenly, everything that comes in contact with that table sticks to it so that there is now a concoction of glue/dirt from dirty hands/germs/crayon and marker all over it.
I teach numerous lessons on personal hygiene. Since I don't want to be coughed or sneezed on and thus, get sick, I spend probably a good hour or two (when you add up a 10 minute lesson here and there) on how to cough/sneeze (into your elbow), blow your nose (by actually blowing into the tissue, not rolling the tissue into a spike to stick up your nose so you can see your snot as you pull it out), and how to wash your hands with soap and dry them off (not shake and drip dry so everything in your path gets wet). Oh, and don't forget the lessons on how to use the drinking fountain (didn't your mother teach you not to put your mouth ON the nozzle?). Mine did and I obeyed. Kids today...(sigh).
It's March, I figure we made it through flu season, and the kids who are still sick are in the last stages and will be well soon. They're not contagious and my immune system is strong! I haven't been sick all year and haven't been for a good 3 years running. By "sick" I mean so sick that I have to use a sick day on actually being sick. Then it happened. I was directly in the line of fire when a kid coughed directly in my face. He put his little elbow up but his aim was lacking and he over shot. Instead of all his germs landing safely in his jacket sleeve, they flew above it and joyously invaded my eyes, nose, and mouth. I imagined a microscopic army not believing their good luck and going to work invading my healthy tissue, Jackpot!. This was on a Monday.
About 5 days went by and I felt fine. I thought, "Wooohoooo! I beat it!" But by Sunday I was starting to feel run down. "I'm just tired from all the late days," I thought. But I downed some Emergen-C just in case. By Monday, 7 days since the Incident, I had a slight cough and runny nose, but it was going nowhere. I persevered through the staff meeting. I thought, "I have such a strong immune system!" By Tuesday afternoon, I ditched the after lunch meeting to go home and rest. "I'll be so much better tomorrow," I thought. Hahahahaha...that is so funny...
I had to take the next day off. I was losing the battle with the mighty army of germs that invaded my body over a week ago. But I managed to get out of bed Thursday morning. Must. Get. To. Work. They. Can't. Live. Without. Me. and when did I get hit by a truck? Two days later I would find out that I had pneumonia. I lost the battle, but I would not lose the war, as I had been given antibiotics and as it turned out, I used 5 sick days on actually being sick. Go figure. That'll teach me to be so high and mighty about my "strong" immune system.
The very day I came back to work the first thing I had the kids do was get out those Clorox wipes and clean. Then they had to get a "baby wipe" (no, they DON'T smell like poop, as the kids would have me believe) to clean the chemicals and dirt (did I mention kids have dirty hands?) off their hands. They also had to endure yet another lesson on how to cough and/or sneeze. I made them practice over and over. By about the 20th time, there was severe eye rolling. I didn't care.
Here are some helpful hints for anyone who volunteers (angels) and/or anyone who otherwise finds themselves surrounded by germ factories:
1. Wash your hands once an hour and every time you use the restroom and before you eat.
2. Never (I mean NEVER) touch your face.
3. Avoid using the same pencils/markers/crayons/erasers, etc. the kids use. Have your own.
4. NEVER open a leaky lunchbox. You just don't know.
5. The same goes for leaky backpacks (or anything leaking).
6. Eat healthy and get plenty of rest (I go to bed around 8:45. No, I'm not 7).
You think I'm paranoid. But not really. If we knew how much bacteria exists in the average elementary classroom, nobody would enter, and I go there everyday and live to tell about it. I was forced to spend 5 days, 24 hours a day, in bed or on the couch. Getting up to go the bathroom or get something to eat exhausted me. There is only so much tv one can watch. I read 3 whole books, played "Every Word" on my Kindle til my eyes crossed, and took lots of naps. I almost finished Season 4 of Rescue Me, compliments of Netflix Instant Play (it's awesome).
It's been a week plus since I felt well enough to return to the germ factories and am very happy to say that I really missed them!! They missed me, too. Aww...
...filthy hands, filthy tables, filthy chairs, doorknobs, drinking fountains, pencils, crayons, toys, and manipulatives, playground balls, jumpropes, swing chain, play structure, sandbox, and whatever bugs and other critters kids are curious about (how many kids have come up to you holding a worm? "Look, Teacher!"). Our doors should have a warning sign that says, "Enter at your own risk" or "Beware of Bacteria."
I must go through a gallon or more of hand sanitizer every year. Just squirt that stuff right into a child's brown hand after he comes in from playing in the sandbox or playing handball. At least the germs are killed, I think to myself, because I can't have 22 kids at the sink actually washing their hands with soap and water. I've done it before, I don't recommend.
The Clorox wipe people should pay me some sort of kickback. We go through a big container once a month or so on cleaning the filthy tables. It's a good thing I have terrific room parents who donate the stuff. How do tables get that filthy, you wonder? Imagine this: a child arrives on the first day of school (clean) and finds her desk (also clean). She colors a picture and perhaps is told to cut something and use her glue stick. She kindly follows directions, but accidentally gets some glue stick on the table. No big deal. Ah, but that's only the beginning...after one day of use and 2 recesses later, the glue-stick-covered table has become a magnet for dirt. Suddenly, everything that comes in contact with that table sticks to it so that there is now a concoction of glue/dirt from dirty hands/germs/crayon and marker all over it.
I teach numerous lessons on personal hygiene. Since I don't want to be coughed or sneezed on and thus, get sick, I spend probably a good hour or two (when you add up a 10 minute lesson here and there) on how to cough/sneeze (into your elbow), blow your nose (by actually blowing into the tissue, not rolling the tissue into a spike to stick up your nose so you can see your snot as you pull it out), and how to wash your hands with soap and dry them off (not shake and drip dry so everything in your path gets wet). Oh, and don't forget the lessons on how to use the drinking fountain (didn't your mother teach you not to put your mouth ON the nozzle?). Mine did and I obeyed. Kids today...(sigh).
It's March, I figure we made it through flu season, and the kids who are still sick are in the last stages and will be well soon. They're not contagious and my immune system is strong! I haven't been sick all year and haven't been for a good 3 years running. By "sick" I mean so sick that I have to use a sick day on actually being sick. Then it happened. I was directly in the line of fire when a kid coughed directly in my face. He put his little elbow up but his aim was lacking and he over shot. Instead of all his germs landing safely in his jacket sleeve, they flew above it and joyously invaded my eyes, nose, and mouth. I imagined a microscopic army not believing their good luck and going to work invading my healthy tissue, Jackpot!. This was on a Monday.
About 5 days went by and I felt fine. I thought, "Wooohoooo! I beat it!" But by Sunday I was starting to feel run down. "I'm just tired from all the late days," I thought. But I downed some Emergen-C just in case. By Monday, 7 days since the Incident, I had a slight cough and runny nose, but it was going nowhere. I persevered through the staff meeting. I thought, "I have such a strong immune system!" By Tuesday afternoon, I ditched the after lunch meeting to go home and rest. "I'll be so much better tomorrow," I thought. Hahahahaha...that is so funny...
I had to take the next day off. I was losing the battle with the mighty army of germs that invaded my body over a week ago. But I managed to get out of bed Thursday morning. Must. Get. To. Work. They. Can't. Live. Without. Me. and when did I get hit by a truck? Two days later I would find out that I had pneumonia. I lost the battle, but I would not lose the war, as I had been given antibiotics and as it turned out, I used 5 sick days on actually being sick. Go figure. That'll teach me to be so high and mighty about my "strong" immune system.
The very day I came back to work the first thing I had the kids do was get out those Clorox wipes and clean. Then they had to get a "baby wipe" (no, they DON'T smell like poop, as the kids would have me believe) to clean the chemicals and dirt (did I mention kids have dirty hands?) off their hands. They also had to endure yet another lesson on how to cough and/or sneeze. I made them practice over and over. By about the 20th time, there was severe eye rolling. I didn't care.
Here are some helpful hints for anyone who volunteers (angels) and/or anyone who otherwise finds themselves surrounded by germ factories:
1. Wash your hands once an hour and every time you use the restroom and before you eat.
2. Never (I mean NEVER) touch your face.
3. Avoid using the same pencils/markers/crayons/erasers, etc. the kids use. Have your own.
4. NEVER open a leaky lunchbox. You just don't know.
5. The same goes for leaky backpacks (or anything leaking).
6. Eat healthy and get plenty of rest (I go to bed around 8:45. No, I'm not 7).
You think I'm paranoid. But not really. If we knew how much bacteria exists in the average elementary classroom, nobody would enter, and I go there everyday and live to tell about it. I was forced to spend 5 days, 24 hours a day, in bed or on the couch. Getting up to go the bathroom or get something to eat exhausted me. There is only so much tv one can watch. I read 3 whole books, played "Every Word" on my Kindle til my eyes crossed, and took lots of naps. I almost finished Season 4 of Rescue Me, compliments of Netflix Instant Play (it's awesome).
It's been a week plus since I felt well enough to return to the germ factories and am very happy to say that I really missed them!! They missed me, too. Aww...
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Space Case II
It's been a long time since my attempt to experience a space shuttle launch in November. It seems like it, anyway. When I got home from the trip and went back to work, I told my students of my disappointment, but that I wasn't going to give up. I could tell they felt bad for me. I brought a "program" of the STS-133 launch/mission for them to look at whenever they had free time, not really thinking anyone would take interest. It contained glossy color pictures of the shuttle, the crew and descriptions of the mission to the space station.
To my surprise, in the past 3 months, many students took quite an interest. When they finish a task, the only thing to do is "read on the floor" (for so many reasons, which I won't get into now). They often choose to read this book, and I'd often look up to scan for behavior (all teachers have multiple eyes for scanning) and see kids huddled around it. I should have bought more than one copy. They loved looking at this book (it is becoming "well-loved" as it is becoming competely mangled by the little hands of adoring children) and began to ask questions. They also asked me to show them where the books about space were in the library and began checking them out. Our school also has a tile from a retired shuttle. They got to hold it and know they were holding something that protects the orbiter and the astronauts from 3,000 degree heat as they reenter earth's atmosphere.
I followed NASA and Kennedy Space Center on Facebook. They're really good about posting just enough so one doesn't want to "hide" them. I was able to stay up-to-date on the progress of the repairs to Discovery. Lots of vocabulary words were being used in their descriptions of what was wrong with her. Words that come to mind..."stringer," "umbilical," "external tank" (I knew that one), and there was lots of talk about foam and leaking. When it was posted that Discovery was being moved back into the gargantuan Vehicle Assembly Building for further repair, I knew it was bad. But I also had faith in the engineers and other people who had a part in fixing what was wrong.
I took the time to occasionally read stories about space to my class. Whenever we had a few minutes between transitions, I'd get the program book out and teach them a tidbit about the shuttle. When the time came to watch the launch, they were knowledgable about the external tank and rocket boosters, that they'd be blasted off and would fall into the ocean. They knew that the orbiter would complete its mission and land like an airplane. They also know that NASA and the shuttle program are responsible for many things in our lives on earth.
"Like what?" When I said, "Cable tv, the internet, and cell phones," they understood. "Ooohhhh..."
On the day of the launch I told them that we'd watch it on the computer. They were very excited. I had it up all day during lessons with the sound off so we could see the getting-ready process. They got to see the astronauts enter the shuttle and the hatch closed. They got to see the inside of the shuttle as the astronauts performed their pre-flight checklists. Since they had learned about solids, liquids, and gases in science earlier, I heard them commenting about the gas they saw coming off the external tank.
To relate it to their own lives a little more, I got out a picture/song book. This Land Is Your Land. I "sang" (if you can call that sound that comes out of me "singing") the lyrics as I showed the pictures of our country. But before I started, I related this book/song to what I've heard the astronauts feel when they get to space and look out at our planet, the only one in our solar system that is perfect enough to support life as we know it. And that is an extreme feeling of awe and love for our very fragile planet and a strong sense of responsibility.
At about 10 minutes to launch, we stopped work and took our seats around the computer. I had slid the monitor to the edge of my desk and tilted it down so no one would complain that they can't see. We could hear the chatter of the commentators, but they could also hear the radio chatter of the astronauts and the people at launch control. I don't think they really knew that this was happening RIGHT NOW. So I told them again that this is not a recording on video or dvd. This is live, and might not actually happen. It's possible that something could go wrong and they'd have to try again tomorrow. And, indeed, when I got home and watched the recording, something did happen that could have scrubbed the launch (not with the shuttle itself). But I was unaware in the classroom.
At about 1 minute to launch (they could see the countdown clock) they suddenly got very quiet. They started to actually listen to the chatter. One asked me, "Who pushes the button?" My response, "I don't know." I kind of got used to saying that. Right after I said that, the announcer told us that the astronauts and the shuttle computer are in complete control. Instructions were given to the astronauts to check the gimbles on the main engines (thank goodness they didn't ask me what a gimble is) and we saw the engines move (much squealing ensued). Then suddenly the engines and the boosters ignited and so did the kids! They suddenly, in unison, began to clap, scream, cheer and smile. We watched the beauty of science unfold as 7 million of pounds of thrust shot the shuttle up and away from earth...
...this happened during their recess time, so I told them they could stay and continue watching (they did, until they saw the boosters fall away) or go to recess. I'm told by my peers (who were on yard duty) that they were very excited to have seen it.
I am aware of what I've done. I know I've given them a first grade memory they will never forget, just as I will never forget when Christa McAuliffe was going to be the first teacher in space or when NASA sent my precious pictures of space. I, also, have been given a precious memory. I will never forget this day. Their reactions as they watched the last launch of Discovery will always make me feel fantastic. It was worth not being in Florida. When I was at Kennedy Space Center in November, I had purchased postcards showing a shuttle launching. I finally got to give them out. One parent told me the next day that her son proudly put it up on his bedroom wall.
The shuttle program is ending and our astronauts will depend on other countries to get them to space to conduct experiments on the space station. I get the sense that our country is just stepping down, a little like when the shuttle reaches max q and has to throttle down before the forces of gravity become too great. But then she powers back up to reach orbit, as I believe the United States will do another day.
I will go to Florida one more time to see the last launch of a space shuttle.
There are two more launches scheduled...one in April (Endeavor) and one in June (Atlantis).
I'm so inspired by NASA I added shuttle jewelry to my etsy store. If you're curious, please visit at
https://www.etsy.com/listing/76775419/small-space-shuttle-necklace
To my surprise, in the past 3 months, many students took quite an interest. When they finish a task, the only thing to do is "read on the floor" (for so many reasons, which I won't get into now). They often choose to read this book, and I'd often look up to scan for behavior (all teachers have multiple eyes for scanning) and see kids huddled around it. I should have bought more than one copy. They loved looking at this book (it is becoming "well-loved" as it is becoming competely mangled by the little hands of adoring children) and began to ask questions. They also asked me to show them where the books about space were in the library and began checking them out. Our school also has a tile from a retired shuttle. They got to hold it and know they were holding something that protects the orbiter and the astronauts from 3,000 degree heat as they reenter earth's atmosphere.
I followed NASA and Kennedy Space Center on Facebook. They're really good about posting just enough so one doesn't want to "hide" them. I was able to stay up-to-date on the progress of the repairs to Discovery. Lots of vocabulary words were being used in their descriptions of what was wrong with her. Words that come to mind..."stringer," "umbilical," "external tank" (I knew that one), and there was lots of talk about foam and leaking. When it was posted that Discovery was being moved back into the gargantuan Vehicle Assembly Building for further repair, I knew it was bad. But I also had faith in the engineers and other people who had a part in fixing what was wrong.
I took the time to occasionally read stories about space to my class. Whenever we had a few minutes between transitions, I'd get the program book out and teach them a tidbit about the shuttle. When the time came to watch the launch, they were knowledgable about the external tank and rocket boosters, that they'd be blasted off and would fall into the ocean. They knew that the orbiter would complete its mission and land like an airplane. They also know that NASA and the shuttle program are responsible for many things in our lives on earth.
"Like what?" When I said, "Cable tv, the internet, and cell phones," they understood. "Ooohhhh..."
On the day of the launch I told them that we'd watch it on the computer. They were very excited. I had it up all day during lessons with the sound off so we could see the getting-ready process. They got to see the astronauts enter the shuttle and the hatch closed. They got to see the inside of the shuttle as the astronauts performed their pre-flight checklists. Since they had learned about solids, liquids, and gases in science earlier, I heard them commenting about the gas they saw coming off the external tank.
To relate it to their own lives a little more, I got out a picture/song book. This Land Is Your Land. I "sang" (if you can call that sound that comes out of me "singing") the lyrics as I showed the pictures of our country. But before I started, I related this book/song to what I've heard the astronauts feel when they get to space and look out at our planet, the only one in our solar system that is perfect enough to support life as we know it. And that is an extreme feeling of awe and love for our very fragile planet and a strong sense of responsibility.
At about 10 minutes to launch, we stopped work and took our seats around the computer. I had slid the monitor to the edge of my desk and tilted it down so no one would complain that they can't see. We could hear the chatter of the commentators, but they could also hear the radio chatter of the astronauts and the people at launch control. I don't think they really knew that this was happening RIGHT NOW. So I told them again that this is not a recording on video or dvd. This is live, and might not actually happen. It's possible that something could go wrong and they'd have to try again tomorrow. And, indeed, when I got home and watched the recording, something did happen that could have scrubbed the launch (not with the shuttle itself). But I was unaware in the classroom.
At about 1 minute to launch (they could see the countdown clock) they suddenly got very quiet. They started to actually listen to the chatter. One asked me, "Who pushes the button?" My response, "I don't know." I kind of got used to saying that. Right after I said that, the announcer told us that the astronauts and the shuttle computer are in complete control. Instructions were given to the astronauts to check the gimbles on the main engines (thank goodness they didn't ask me what a gimble is) and we saw the engines move (much squealing ensued). Then suddenly the engines and the boosters ignited and so did the kids! They suddenly, in unison, began to clap, scream, cheer and smile. We watched the beauty of science unfold as 7 million of pounds of thrust shot the shuttle up and away from earth...
...this happened during their recess time, so I told them they could stay and continue watching (they did, until they saw the boosters fall away) or go to recess. I'm told by my peers (who were on yard duty) that they were very excited to have seen it.
I am aware of what I've done. I know I've given them a first grade memory they will never forget, just as I will never forget when Christa McAuliffe was going to be the first teacher in space or when NASA sent my precious pictures of space. I, also, have been given a precious memory. I will never forget this day. Their reactions as they watched the last launch of Discovery will always make me feel fantastic. It was worth not being in Florida. When I was at Kennedy Space Center in November, I had purchased postcards showing a shuttle launching. I finally got to give them out. One parent told me the next day that her son proudly put it up on his bedroom wall.
The shuttle program is ending and our astronauts will depend on other countries to get them to space to conduct experiments on the space station. I get the sense that our country is just stepping down, a little like when the shuttle reaches max q and has to throttle down before the forces of gravity become too great. But then she powers back up to reach orbit, as I believe the United States will do another day.
I will go to Florida one more time to see the last launch of a space shuttle.
There are two more launches scheduled...one in April (Endeavor) and one in June (Atlantis).
I'm so inspired by NASA I added shuttle jewelry to my etsy store. If you're curious, please visit at
https://www.etsy.com/listing/76775419/small-space-shuttle-necklace
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Space Case
"We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard..." -President John F. Kennedy
"Why? Is this the WAST? WAUNCH. of the space shuttoo?" asked a kid during the Question and Answer portion of the Astronaut Encounter session at Kennedy Space Center. We all inwardly chuckled as this kid was obviously dumbfounded that they would stop flying shuttles to outer space and back. When I saw the microphone be placed in his little hand to ask a question, I thought, "oh...this is gonna be good," because I had been eavesdropping on his and his mom's conversation before the lights went out in the theater. He used his biggest, best, outdoor, recess voice in a microphone that was tuned for the softest of voices. He made sure to articulate as best he could with pauses in between words.
I wanted to know, too. But as an adult, and as all adults know, it all comes down to money. Which is basically the answer he was given by Astronaut Jim Reilly, who was a veteran of three shuttle missions. As I listened to him speak about his flight experience, I was filled with pride for my country, which in the recent past had waned. All I seem to hear lately is how schools are failing, the United States is ranked behind this country or that country in math and science, that kids are being "left behind," and that our country is failing.
I've been interested in space since childhood. I wasn't obsessed and I didn't glue myself to news about NASA, I wasn't a complete Geek (just a partial geek), but I was very aware of the space race since it all occurred during my early childhood and news about it was usually on the TV. I was born in the same year Neil Armstrong stepped on the Moon. It was on my birthday (two years before I was born) that the Apollo astronauts burned alive in the very capsule that was supposed to protect them from death. Along those lines, it was the day after my 17th birthday, when I was at school in my drill team uniform practicing our half-time routine that we learned of the explosion of the space shuttle, Challenger, and the death of all the astronauts and teacher, Christa McAuliffe. I vividly remember reading about her in People magazine before the flight and thinking about how cool that would be and wishing she was my teacher. I will always remember when Ms. Doughty came out to tell us.
When the shuttle program began in the early 80s I was an elementary school student. After the first space shuttle, Columbia, launched, in 1981, I wrote to NASA. I have no idea what I said, but a few weeks later a large envelope from NASA was in our mailbox! And it was addressed to ME! It contained beautiful pictures of stars and planets. I loved them so much and considered myself so lucky to have received them, that I rarely took them out of the package and no one (I mean NO ONE) else was allowed to touch them. In sixth grade, I wanted to do my science fair project on space, so my mom took me to Woolworth's to buy supplies. I knew exactly what I wanted to do: make a mock-up of the solar system and maybe (MAYBE) use some of my precious NASA photos for background. We couldn't find everything so I asked a clerk, who was up on a ladder hanging something from a ceiling, "Do you have styrofoam balls?" In the next second my mom was cracking up and the man nearly fell off the ladder. I needed 10 of them in various sizes so I could make them into the sun and planets. What was so dang funny?
Ever since seeing the launch and successful landing on TV, I thought it would be "neat" to see that someday. Well, Someday is here. I became so wrapped up in my own life, my own education, career, and marriage, I forgot about space. Sure, I knew astronauts were flying the space shuttle and doing who-knows-what from news blurbs and brief radio announcements. One morning about a year ago, I was making my sack lunch and heard on the news that the shuttle had successfully launched and that there were only 3 launches left before the end of the program. It took 5 seconds for that to register. I dropped the knife and backed up the story. Sure enough, she had said what I thought she said. The shuttle program was coming to an end after 30 years. The Space Transportation System was to be no more. It hit me like a bolt of lightening: I might not ever see a launch.
THIRTY YEARS!? How could that be?? So I started googling and facebooking to get information and eventually made a plan to travel to Kennedy Space Center in Florida to fulfill my life-long dream "to see the shuttle launch someday." So was everyone else, including people from all over the world. I scanned the internet, gathered information, and decided to plan our trip to Florida for the final launch of Discovery on November 1, 2010, which fell right smack in the middle of the busiest time of year for a first grade teacher--assessment, report cards, and conferences. Well, I thought, something has to give, and it's not going to be my only chance to see a launch. So I made it happen.
I worked my teacher magic, prepared to be gone for 5 days, completed all assessments, and got conferences scheduled. The day before leaving, I finally told my students where I was going and what I was doing. I began with my early childhood impressions and told them about what the space shuttle is and why I wanted to see it launch, that I wanted to witness history. There were some questions..."What if it doesn't have enough gas to get up there?" "What is a space shuttle?" (are you kidding me) One girl burst out crying, but most were very excited. I was surprised (and a little appalled) at how many knew absolutely nothing about it. But that issue is a subject for another blog...
The trip started off with much excitement. Finally! We were on our way! I could almost hear those solid rocket boosters igniting. I knew full well that the mission could be scrubbed completely, our trip ruined, our money spent and gone. I had low expectations and told myself that if I could just see the shuttle up close the trip would be worth it.
We arrived in Florida late at night and had to get up early for our tour to Kennedy Space Center. Once there, we got on another bus and went directly to the launch pad viewing gantry. There she was, Discovery, 3 miles away. Her back was to us, but I was actually looking at the real deal! We took so many photos you'd have thought I was a super model on a photo shoot. I didn't want to leave. What a beautiful, perfect, warm, sunny day. We completed our tour after a few more hours, during which we viewed the Saturn V rocket from the Apollo days, watched videos and viewed displays, and basically filled our brains to capacity. With our brains full and our stomachs empty, we headed back to the visitor complex to eat.
Each day, we checked the internet only to discover the launch was again re-scheduled. Every 24 hours it seemed we had to check in. Then she was ready to launch on Thursday, but wait, it's supposed to rain. Ugh! Sure enough, it was postponed to Friday, our last day in Florida. We got up Friday morning, checked the internet, and sure enough, she was "go for launch!" Yippee!! We anxiously packed and raced to Titusville. On our way, the radio announced the scrub of the mission due to a hydrogen leak. Like the day I heard about the end of the program, it took a few seconds to register, as I was so happily drinking my coffee and dreaming of those rocket boosters.
I thought I heard wrong. HUH? It's scrubbed? Why does "scrubbed" mean cancelled? When we arrived at the park where we planned to view it and saw people leaving, I knew. It was over and I wasn't going to see it. I began to cry, but tried very hard not to. But I couldn't believe it. Even though I knew before ever leaving Sacramento that this could happen, it was still a shock.
Wait, we only had to fly 7 hours to get here and our flights were free. What about all the people who came from Australia, Europe, and other exotic locales? At least I didn't have to fly 25 hours to get home, at least I didn't have to spend thousands on airfare and have jet lag that lasts forever. I don't think I know of any programs in any countries other my own. I was barely aware of my own country's space program but people from other countries are fully aware of it. Shame on me.
I returned home and went back to my classroom to tell the kids the news. I learned that they had been asking their substitute teacher if it had launched. They had been asking their parents about it. They checked out library books about space. Could it be that I'd sparked an interest?! In my own quest to fulfill this dream of mine, un-lofty as it is, I've made previously unaware people, students and their parents, aware of the space program, and maybe (MAYBE) Someday, I'll see one of my former students flying the next generation of space craft!
John Kennedy said, "We set sail on this new sea because there is new knowledge to be gained, and new rights to be won, and they must be won and used for the progress of all people." Taken out of the space race context in which it was uttered almost 50 years ago, it applies even now. I hope that President Kennedy's words will echo in future president's ears and they will have a vision for our country to once again be at the forefront of science, education, and equal rights for all.
There exists a new NASA space program called Constellation and it uses the Orion space vehicle. It uses existing Shuttle and Apollo components, but "On February 1, 2010, President Barack Obama announced a proposal to cancel the program, effective with the U.S. 2011 fiscal year budget, but later announced changes to the proposal in a major space policy speech at Kennedy Space Center on April 15, 2010. Obama signed the NASA Authorization Act 2010 on October 11 which officially brought the program to an end." Do you think if I forward Kennedy's Space Speech to President Obama, he'll change his mind?
NASA's space program has helped us people here on Earth, something I didn't know until my visit to KSC. Everybody knows about velcro, but I didn't know the development of major life-changing, life-improving, and life-saving gadgets such as artificial limbs, silicon, eye-glass anti-scratch and UV coatings, heart monitors, ultra sound, and all of our technological advances in personal computers, cell phones and internet were all due to NASA.
Well, I'll be up in the wee hours of the night on November 30th at to watch the final launch of Discovery at 1:05 a.m. on NASA TV. It will be the most expensive, furthest travelled, most anticipated, 30 second long, TV-show viewing EVER!
I'm so inspired by NASA I created jewelry. If you're curious, visit my etsy shop at
https://www.etsy.com/listing/76775419/small-space-shuttle-necklace
Links:
President Kennedy's Space Speech: http://www.historyplace.com/speeches/jfk-space.htm
Constellation Program: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/main/index.html
Kennedy Space Center: http://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/
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