Get Schooled

By OldSchool

August 15, 2006 01:19 PM | Link to this

I actually had a pretty good first day with students (Aug. 4) and the rest of my days have also been rolling along smoothly. There are still schedule changes being made and we’ll likely have some after Labor Day students show up but for now I have no complaints.

My board drafting students are hanging on my every word and are really trying to master the skills. I think I’ll pick up the pace with them. I have few AutoCAD students this term (most are in foreign language classes) and most are experienced. Those I’ll use as peer tutors for the new ACAD students.

Next Monday evening is Open House. I’m actually hoping to see more parents this year. I usually have between 18 and 25 show up but would really like to see more.

So, all’s right with my world! Most of my students are adding the “ma’am” and all are just plain polite…wonder what’s up with that!?!

By decaturparent

August 15, 2006 01:20 PM | Link to this

1st grader had a great teacher and a great day. 4th grader - another great teacher, but she ended up on the wrong bus and was a bit rattled by the time the bus driver took her back to school and I picked her up. She was fine in the end though - what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger! Plus - she got a free tour of Decatur!

By Hmm

August 15, 2006 01:23 PM | Link to this

Optimistic. My kid had a great first day in 7th grade.
He does have one teacher that appears to have some bias against the gifted kids. We’ll see how that plays out. Pretty crazy if what I’m hearing is true. The school has such a high gifted/tag indentified population. For some reason, she thinks all those tag kids need a healthy dose of EQ boosting classes, lessons, projects, etc. She comes across as one of those teachers who believe that all TAG kids suffer socialization issues. And, since such a high percentage of gifted kids are simply introverts and not socially stunted, they can quickly become a project for an extremely extroverted and misguided teacher like her.

By Cammi

August 15, 2006 01:33 PM | Link to this

My 3rd grader had a MUCH better than expected first day. For some reason she suffered an anxiety attack about starting 3rd grade this past weekend. I guess I can relax now.

By luvs2teach

August 15, 2006 01:34 PM | Link to this

Great first day - minimal glitches!

Kids seem really neat - some are going to have learn that science isn’t a drag!

My son’s first day as a SOPHOMORE(!!!) went very well also. He’s thrilled because he has friends in all his classes. He also has two teachers he has had in the past and really likes.

My daughter, lucky thing, has another week to go before her college classes start.

By MMM

August 15, 2006 01:42 PM | Link to this

When they got in the minivan and I asked “How was your day” the 1st grader said “OK” and the 4th grader said “can you please stop talking so I can read my book”. Same responses that I got most days last year!

Do any of your elementary kids actually tell you what they did?

By Hmm

August 15, 2006 02:28 PM | Link to this

Man, I hope you put that 4th grader in their place. They can answer a few questions from dear old Mom or Dad before continuing with their book, jeez!

My kid doesn’t talk much about his schoolday at first, either. Usually, he gets super-babbly toward the end of the evening and I hear all about it then. I still ask him a few minor things and he’ll answer in short respones if he doesn’t want to talk. Sometimes, it’s enough to get him talking. So try asking non-Yes/No questions and try prodding them gently with other questions. You can also try not asking them anything, so they’ll wonder ‘What’s wrong with Mom/Dad?’ and ask you stuff.

By notinclass

August 15, 2006 02:40 PM | Link to this

Why do some GA high school teacher’s (namely teacher’s at Mill Creek)insist on making the statement “no one gets an A in my class ? ” My answer ” Then you must really suck at teaching”

By Lisa B.

August 15, 2006 03:22 PM | Link to this

School here began August 4. I seem to have a good group of 4th graders who are willing to work hard. That’s all I ever ask for! My 7th grade son still loves Middle School. This is his second year. His school has more than 1,400 kids, which seems huge to me, but my son loves his teachers and the academic challenges offered. He was somewhat bored in elementary school.

So far so good!

By TinaTeach

August 15, 2006 03:25 PM | Link to this

We’ve just started our third week teaching at Rockdale County schools. The honeymoon phase is over so to speak and now we are getting into the nitty-gritty of the year. I am already able to pick out most the kids that are going to have the can-do and the can’t attitudes so I am adjusting my lesson plans accordingly.
It is my first year teaching and I am happy to say that aside from them being a little energized (chaotically so) they are so far a great group of kids!

By Ernest

August 15, 2006 03:27 PM | Link to this

All in all, a good first day for my household. ES children got picked up earlier than I’d like so I’ll contact the transportation manager about a slightly later time and pickup point. MS child bus made a mistake and did not pick him up (This was quickly and professionally resolved by the transportation manager). HS child agreed to drop a band class (yippee) for drivers ed (I’d rather an academic class but I can rationalize this is helpful). My wife also indicated things went well at her school. Everyone is still on the ‘honeymoon’ period, looking good in their new clothes. Everyone also had homework on the 1st day. Ahhh, 178 more days to go until end of the year…..

By sue

August 15, 2006 03:40 PM | Link to this

I’m afraid that my eight grader’s first day back was not a happy day. He’s starting the year with a substitute in his home room. Last Thursday, when we went to orientation, we were made aware that that would be the case. On the way home, he said, “I hope our substitute is not Ms. X or Mr. Y. They don’t know anything” His substitute is Mr. Y. He will be there “indefinitely.”

He also mentioned the “silent transition” (although I brought it up on a previous blog and it lead to a second blog, this is the first time it was mentioned between my child and me) and silent classrooms. He said, “ The only time we can talk to each other is during lunch, but only to the people at our table, and we have to sit with our class. I don’t know anyone in my class.” Since they only have 20 minutes for lunch, they don’t have time to eat and talk so it may be fairly quiet in the cafeteria as well.

As a parent, I would hope that Mr. X is qualified to teach for an indefinite period of time. It was an emergency situation that has taken the teacher out of the classroom and she probably didn’t have time to prepare lesson plans. His HR teacher teaches the one subject that my child struggles with and I would hate for him to miss out on instruction during the beginning of the year and have to cover a lot of information in a short period of time to make up for it.

Teachers: Have you ever had a substitute that let your class fall behind? How do you accelerate the curriculum to make up for it?

I won’t open the “silent transition” can of worms with a comment. I do want to state for the record: I told my child that no matter how stupid he thinks a rule is, he is still required to abide by it.

By abc

August 15, 2006 03:42 PM | Link to this

notinclass - Wow, you are so clever and original! Did you come up with that yourself?

How do you equate students not getting an A in class with a teacher’s inability to teach?

By Taxpayer

August 15, 2006 04:02 PM | Link to this

I really hate that “no one gets an A in my class” garbage. I’m a college teacher, and many of my colleagues try that, too. “Weeds out the weak ones,” they love to say. Why tell students that they are beaten before they even start? And if the teacher WILL assign As to the students who earn them, why lie at the beginning? Better to tell students, “You will receive the grade you EARN, and if you want an A, you will have to EARN it.” That’s motivation, not discouragement.

By fk

August 15, 2006 05:26 PM | Link to this

My son, a sophomore, said that almost every one of his teachers said the same line about being stingy with A’s. He did not say much about school, but he did mention at least three times that that special girl sits in front of him in math class. So, I guess he’s pretty much set for the year.

By Jeff

August 15, 2006 05:40 PM | Link to this

My first day -WAY back on July 24!! - was decent. Having difficulties now though. I’ve got about 5 kids - out of 63 - that are definitely going to be major pains. Coddling - and worse, hypocritical - parents. Was forced to write 2 of the 5 up today. Gave them PE detention, literally had to put my hand on their shoulders and push them to get them turned around and not heading to gym. (Never to fear: a) I’m certified to do everything from that all the way to slapping cuffs on and b) the execution was flawless.) One of them was mouthing off, another teacher caught it and walked both of them to the AP. AP said to just write them up, and as always… I followed orders.

By OldSchool

August 15, 2006 05:59 PM | Link to this

To Sue: My husband is a retired Social Studies teacher. He subbed for a couple of weeks when our Citizenship/World History teacher was out honeymooning. Because I had a number of the same students in my elective class, I got to hear the comments on how they “sure didn’t work as hard when {the regular teacher} was there.” You can’t teach Social Studies 32 years without garnering a wealth of interesting facts and information. That is what he brought to the class and not only did they work like the dickens for him, their regular teacher was amazed at the progress they had made. He loved every minute of it and I got to enjoy some of the happiest griping ever.

I guess it depends on the substitute teacher and the arena he/she steps into as to how successful the class will be. I just know my husband LOVES civics, government, world history and geography.

By Kage

August 15, 2006 06:04 PM | Link to this

The first days back have been fantastic. The kids are sharp, have good senses of humor, and are just interesting kids. One of the things that’s really made things good for me, though, is that I’m no longer a homeroom teacher. I cannot get over the insane array of things that elementary homeroom teachers are responsible for. I will miss the community you get from having a homeroom, but I certainly won’t miss the secretarial nonsense that they’re charged with keeping up with.

As far as the getting your kid to tell you about his/her day, ask the teacher what some good conversation starters would be. Maybe they’re reading a book that’s engaging and you can ask your child to predict what’s next. Maybe there’s a great exploration in math that you could ask about.

By b. white

August 16, 2006 09:47 AM | Link to this

I feel like I have died and gone to Heaven. My school was rezoned and the student population went from @1700 to @1200. My classes have a manageable number of students. Last year all the classes had at least 30 students, maybe more. Even the students notice the difference. The school situation was sooooo baddddd last year that many students went somewhere else this year which has had the opposite effect of making this a marvelous school setting. Pray that it will last!!

By SNY

August 16, 2006 03:09 PM | Link to this

We just ran into our 1st jam up in school. My daughters whole schedule has been changed. Keep in mind that it is only 4th grade and there are only 7 kids in the class. No big deal. We had to find an extra hour of instructional time. Took PE away on Tuesdays. Problem solved but by making that one little move, it has changed the whole day around. I think it’s funny as heck. The kids don’t mind, they love the fact that school and teachers can’t seem to make up their minds.

By Confused

August 16, 2006 04:28 PM | Link to this

Basically first day of school was surprising. I had moved from a school out of state that is obviously more competitive to find out that all the assigned summer work for my AP’s was optional. Of course it wasn’t listed as optional but I guess I didn’t get that memo. Teachers and students fit every stereotype of lazy that I can think of here. Last year if the students came to 1st day of class empty handed you got an F. No wonder everyone laughed when they heard I was moving to GA.

By jim d

August 16, 2006 06:07 PM | Link to this

Funny you should ask,

I possed the same question last night to a freind that teachers in Dekalb.

He said it was about normal.——- In two days he’d broken up two fights.