Wednesday, January 23, 2008
dealing with computer problems
Today I had to call HP due to a computer not working--It was still under warranty--barely--tomorrow was the last day. The person that I spoke with did not want to be helpful--she wanted to seem helpful, but was not really hearing the problem. I have nothing against the Eastern Indians (who seem to always be at the other end of the phone when I have to call for help with anything I buy) but why can't English speaking Americans speak to someone in America that speaks English--this has gotten out of hand in my opinion. I couldn't understand her and apparently she didn't understand me. So finally she sends me to the technical person for "help"--great I thought--now I'll get an American--no--another foreigner! I spent an hour trying to get a simple request through--if a warranty with HP is that hard to use--I would rather stay away from HP in the future--I'm through with buying anything else HP carries!
What is it with high school girls fighting?
Another day--another kind of problem. New problems arise almost daily. I pray for guidance in how to deal with them to get the best results. The biggest problem I have in art class is usually with the girls--too talky. Today, as the students were silently working on a drawing assignment, a distracting noise was being made at one particular group. I made a quick response for it to stop--not expecting to have to say anything more. As I figured out later, a girl in the group made the noise again that the boy I had corrected made--yet I still thought it was him, and they thought it was funny I guess. Another girl in another table grouping, decided to start it up about the girl who made the noise--staring at her and even going so far as to call her a "bitch" loud enough for students to hear---I need to say here that the class is very quiet, other than this distraction, so everyone knows what is going on and this loud girl must have thought it her chance to get back at this girl--claiming that she was "talking about her" to the people in her group. I never heard this girl say a thing, so what would I do? get on to this rude, loud mouth girl who has a chip on her shoulder toward this pretty girl in the class. I decide to send her to a counselor, but couldn't get one on the phone--so I call her up at the end of class and tell her that I will either write an office referral or she can go see a counselor ==reminded her that this kind of behavior is unacceptable, not to mention very immature. To make a long story short, she ended up trying to get the "pretty" girl to fight her by hitting at her near the restroom--I was watching them go down the hall after class and thought everything was going to be ok--didn't see the incident happen--but i am short and the students are taller than me--so in such a crowd---anyway, the "pretty" girl goes to the counselor and complains--so I wrote the rude girl a dicipline referral and sent it on to the counselor. Trying to keep something from happening between silly girls is much more unpredictable than working with boys--I prefer to work with boys.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
high school art class
Diary of yesterday and today
I get to school around 7:00 yesterday and begin preparing the room for the day...turn the computer on, get the assignment together, straighten up the desks a little better....then I lock the door back and go sign in. Nothing seems unusual today--I pick up the bulletin and attendance record from yesterday, check my box, and head on back to the classroom. Typically, while seated at the computer looking over mail or checking enrollment (it has been changing every day for the past week), I will get a visitor--a student I no longer teach, but who is consistently coming by to get advise on a portrait drawing. This is a student I have put in extra hours with during art club after school on Wednesday's. He has come a long way in his ability and is a little slow with communication, so some days I really don't feel like trying to understand his questions, but i do it anyway. Finally I will say something like "don't be late for class" and he will hurry on.
On this particular day, he didn't even get a chance to talk--he came in the room about the same time as a phone call from my fellow art teacher saying "isn't this the day the representative is coming to talk to our students?" Oh my--I told the young man standing there with his latest drawing--sorry-we'll look at it later--and I took off to the library---I needed to check on reserving the multimedia room. This day slipped up on me this time. I had to wait on the librarian to get to the library so I could check on the availibility--wow it was actually available---I checked on what I needed, then went back to the classroom--the final bell was about to ring. I announced the change taking place that would override what was written on the board. We were going to hear from the art institute. My students are mostly 9th graders for the first two blocks and pretty immature---some of their comments were embarrassing--but they've not even begun learning in this class --they don't know hardly what art is even about...here is this lady talking to them about culinary arts and more----it was great seeing how suprised they were to know that preparing food could be considered ART. A few students behaved badly enough that I had to write them a discipline letter referral (to copy and get signed).
The end of third block finally came, along with lunch--the last lunch---scrape the bucket to get some cabbage--I enjoyed the stuffed bell pepper--don't know why she keeps cooking them when the kids hardly touch them--maybe it's for the teachers.
After school, the art club is suppose to meet--a bulletin announcement told of the "important meeting", but no one shows up except the young man and his portraits of course. We were going to make clay beads to fire, then string up to sell for valentines day in the lunchroom. I told him--"since no one is coming to help us, we are not going to do this alone" I wish it could have worked out---or did I? Too much is going on for me to be in to the art club--not enough members either--I really have not done well with them the past two years. It is my poor planning.
Today I go to school, and have a new set of problems. The bookkeeper calls and says a receipt is missing that she has to have by tomorrow. I looked and looked in my purse and couldn't find anything---decided to go out to my car which is parked right beside my door---the students in first block were working quietly, so I went out, praying to the Lord to help me find it--I had almost given up when I saw the packs of parchment paper still in the floor board---that was such a while back--surely it is not with that, but there it was, in with the parchment. Thank you Lord. Then I had another problem--an email saying that I missed an important workshop/training session that enabled me to get mentor pay---I had gotten a check during Christmas break for several hundred dollars and wondered what it was for---just presumed it was due to the raise, and my last check wasn't right. I thought no more about it---then today I found out why. During my prep this afternoon I had to attend a workshop on how to post your professional development online. That ended up easy, but just more work for me to do. There are a lot of changes going on in the educational system with trying to get everything online.
After this workshop was over I continue working in my room, getting grades for the last project down in STI and preparing for the substitute tomorrow while I am out with my husband in the hospital. I am glad to be home for a little while.
I get to school around 7:00 yesterday and begin preparing the room for the day...turn the computer on, get the assignment together, straighten up the desks a little better....then I lock the door back and go sign in. Nothing seems unusual today--I pick up the bulletin and attendance record from yesterday, check my box, and head on back to the classroom. Typically, while seated at the computer looking over mail or checking enrollment (it has been changing every day for the past week), I will get a visitor--a student I no longer teach, but who is consistently coming by to get advise on a portrait drawing. This is a student I have put in extra hours with during art club after school on Wednesday's. He has come a long way in his ability and is a little slow with communication, so some days I really don't feel like trying to understand his questions, but i do it anyway. Finally I will say something like "don't be late for class" and he will hurry on.
On this particular day, he didn't even get a chance to talk--he came in the room about the same time as a phone call from my fellow art teacher saying "isn't this the day the representative is coming to talk to our students?" Oh my--I told the young man standing there with his latest drawing--sorry-we'll look at it later--and I took off to the library---I needed to check on reserving the multimedia room. This day slipped up on me this time. I had to wait on the librarian to get to the library so I could check on the availibility--wow it was actually available---I checked on what I needed, then went back to the classroom--the final bell was about to ring. I announced the change taking place that would override what was written on the board. We were going to hear from the art institute. My students are mostly 9th graders for the first two blocks and pretty immature---some of their comments were embarrassing--but they've not even begun learning in this class --they don't know hardly what art is even about...here is this lady talking to them about culinary arts and more----it was great seeing how suprised they were to know that preparing food could be considered ART. A few students behaved badly enough that I had to write them a discipline letter referral (to copy and get signed).
The end of third block finally came, along with lunch--the last lunch---scrape the bucket to get some cabbage--I enjoyed the stuffed bell pepper--don't know why she keeps cooking them when the kids hardly touch them--maybe it's for the teachers.
After school, the art club is suppose to meet--a bulletin announcement told of the "important meeting", but no one shows up except the young man and his portraits of course. We were going to make clay beads to fire, then string up to sell for valentines day in the lunchroom. I told him--"since no one is coming to help us, we are not going to do this alone" I wish it could have worked out---or did I? Too much is going on for me to be in to the art club--not enough members either--I really have not done well with them the past two years. It is my poor planning.
Today I go to school, and have a new set of problems. The bookkeeper calls and says a receipt is missing that she has to have by tomorrow. I looked and looked in my purse and couldn't find anything---decided to go out to my car which is parked right beside my door---the students in first block were working quietly, so I went out, praying to the Lord to help me find it--I had almost given up when I saw the packs of parchment paper still in the floor board---that was such a while back--surely it is not with that, but there it was, in with the parchment. Thank you Lord. Then I had another problem--an email saying that I missed an important workshop/training session that enabled me to get mentor pay---I had gotten a check during Christmas break for several hundred dollars and wondered what it was for---just presumed it was due to the raise, and my last check wasn't right. I thought no more about it---then today I found out why. During my prep this afternoon I had to attend a workshop on how to post your professional development online. That ended up easy, but just more work for me to do. There are a lot of changes going on in the educational system with trying to get everything online.
After this workshop was over I continue working in my room, getting grades for the last project down in STI and preparing for the substitute tomorrow while I am out with my husband in the hospital. I am glad to be home for a little while.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Teaching 9th graders
If you are an art teacher in high school, you will definately teach a lot of freshmen--they need so much guidance--so influenced in all the wrong ways---watch out who you let them sit next to--that can make a huge difference in how they do in class. They are wanted so badly to be special and noticed for being cool and many will do anything to keep that--even act out.
In order to teach high school art, you've got to get past this first or you will always be working to get their attention
Give them time to socialize, then call class to order and let them know you mean it--no more socializing! Practice these procedures--practice listening and following simple directions---practice the class watching the screen or looking at someone as they speak--one person at a time speaks when having a class discussion; when working on artworks, talking is not allowed except about the project and that should be quietly---attention is given to learning to focus. I play ADD music that is 60 beats per minute to help them concentrate and listen better--don't know for sure how it is working, or if it does, but it's worth a shot.
In order to teach high school art, you've got to get past this first or you will always be working to get their attention
Give them time to socialize, then call class to order and let them know you mean it--no more socializing! Practice these procedures--practice listening and following simple directions---practice the class watching the screen or looking at someone as they speak--one person at a time speaks when having a class discussion; when working on artworks, talking is not allowed except about the project and that should be quietly---attention is given to learning to focus. I play ADD music that is 60 beats per minute to help them concentrate and listen better--don't know for sure how it is working, or if it does, but it's worth a shot.
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