I had a great start to my week! I absolutely enjoy my classes, and my new collegaues seem to be adjusting and fitting in well. Here’s how my week went with some key lessons. College in the H.S. (American Lit.) I started the kids with a dozen literary terms. I created a chart with the following columns: literary term, definition, example ...

Today was an excellent first day of class. The kids were positive and enthusiastic, and my colleagues were in good spirits. One teacher who retired last year brought in donuts for my department. Gotta love that guy! All in all, it was a super day. 

I’m ready for my classes after a couple of hours hiding in my room getting work done. I think I’m basically ready for the first two weeks of school, but we’ll see how quickly (or slowly) we move in the classes. I think I’ll go up to the school today to make sure everyone has what he/she needs and then go read my book ...

At last, I will be able to prepare for my classes today! The last three weeks have been nothing but department and building issues; “putting out fires” is what I tell people I’ve been doing. We have one English position to fill, which will be filled with a substitute until the five day hiring window closes. I think all of the ...

Today we had an entire day of meetings and then I was pulled into another because my department is short two teachers with five days before the kids arrive. We lost one teacher because of an involuntary transfer, and we still do not have a journalism teacher (no qualified applicants). It’s getting desperate. We may have a solution, but at ...

My department had our first meeting of the year, and all seemed to go well. We finished everything on the agenda early, so we had over an hour of individual time to prepare our rooms and work on curriculum stuff. I’m pretty tired, so here’s a joke for ya: A six-year-old was learning to read using phonics, and he pointed at a picture ...

For those of you who love fonts or just an interest in them, here are a few enjoyable sites: a College Humor video about the Council of Fonts, a movie about Helvetica, a funny interview about banning a font, and a poster I think all journalism teachers should have (buy it here).

As I was getting off the phone and after setting up an orientation meeting with a brand new teacher, she obviously didn’t realize she hadn’t hung up before saying to her husband after a high-pitched squeal, “I have my first meeting! Woo-hoo!” How cute is that?!

I apologize for my silence the last few days, but my “to do” list is enormous stemming from my new position here at my high school. My wife and I are also putting in new floors in our home, which is taking up quite a bit of time. I will be posting again tomorrow. Until then, have a wonderful day!

“Leaving on a jet plane, Don’t know when I’ll be back again…” I am leaving for Washington D.C. and the NEA-RA Convention today. I will post about what I learn upon my return. Also, I am helping to hire three new English teachers the day after I get back, so I’ll report on that as well. Until [...]