My New Favorite Song!

Compliments Keep Me Going.

I received a compliment yesterday that made me feel great! Between student teaching, working, raising my son, and trying to keep my home from turning into a disaster area from neglect, I do get a bit tired and down-trodden. 

My weekly journal entry for my student teaching segment was, "Reflect on how you are balancing teaching with your daily life and family. What are you doing (or what could you be doing) to take care of yourself and make it through demonstration teaching in a strong way? Based on your experience so far, describe any adjustments you could make to help the second half of your DT experiences go even more smoothly."  

Go even more smoothly?HA! I need to meet their pharmacist!  This is what I wrote in response: 

Adjustments? Ah, ha, ha, ha, ha! My typical week goes like this: 

Monday thru Friday: Up at 5:00 a.m. Shower, dress, have a cup of coffee while packing our lunch and dinner for the day, wake up the Boy Child and address his needs (I am a single mom), review lesson plan for the day, make the 3x5 card as my guide, leave at 7, arrive at school at 7:15, leave school at 3:30, pick up the Boy Child, go to work, arrive at work by 4:15, work until 9:15, go home, make sure lesson plan is in place for next day and if not, draft it with the appropriate worksheets, fall into bed completely exhausted and generally still completely dressed at 11.

Saturday: Up at 6:00 a.m. Shower, dress, have a cup of coffee while scribbling a grocery list for the following week, wake up the Boy Child, start lesson planning for following week, be at work by 10 with the Boy Child, leave work at 11:45 to take Boy Child to baseball camp, back at work by 12:05, leave work at 2:50 to pick up Boy Child from baseball camp, back at work by 3:10, order something to eat from someplace that delivers around 5, work until 10:30 p.m. (or later, if I need to put in more than 12.5 hours on the weekend to make my total hours at work 37.5), go home, fall into bed completely exhausted and generally still completely dressed between 11 p.m. and 1 a.m., depending on how long I had to work.

Sunday: Up at 7:00 a.m. because by Sunday, I can’t get up at 5 or 6. Grab a cup of coffee and get laundry started, plan lessons for the week including worksheets and tests, eat whatever Boy Child prepares when he gets up and then quickly shop for groceries, prepare and freeze sandwiches for lunches/dinners for the week; get journal entry done for SGAK in Taskstream, respond to weekly discussion in edTPA community, finish lesson planning for week, fall into bed completely exhausted at 10.

Adjustment? Somewhere in here I have to cram writing my edTPA. It’s not going to get any better until the middle of May when I am done student teaching, unless somewhere, somehow, more hours get put into a day.  I cannot quit my job, or even take a leave of absence. If I don’t work, I don’t get paid. If I don’t get paid, the bills don’t get paid and we can’t eat and end up homeless. Homeless people generally do not have laptop computers and access to the internet, so obtaining my education would come to a screeching halt. Furthermore, test results are in, and it is discovered my son has a learning disability. He helps me how he can, but has needs of his own.

My son is doing the housecleaning, shoveling, taking out the trash, all of the things we did together before I started student teaching. He is on board and knows this situation is temporary.  It is what it is. The fact that this situation is temporary is what is getting my son and me through it. We can do anything as long as we know it won’t last forever. 

My mentor's response was great:   

WOW! You really have this down to a science...time management at its best! I totally understand that this is a stressful time in the life of a student teacher and that sometimes family takes second place. But this will soon pass and things will get back to semi normality - whatever that is. ;-) Hang in there!

I will, Denise. I sure will. Although my friends and family think I'm absolutely bonkers for wanting to teach math - to middle school kids, no less! - it is my dream, my goal, and my purpose. I will make it happen. 

Integrating Technology into My Classes

The kids LOVE to sing and dance...so why not give them song about Math?