I have only got a few minutes to write. I just got home from school, am headed to dinner, and then back to school to chaperon the movie night benifitting Relay for Life. I figure I won't get home until midnight, so if I'm to stick to my pledge I'd better do it now.
It is the time of year where I work frantically to get the papers graded and exams written, so I'm a little more tired than usual. Everyone in the school community gets a bit on edge at the end of the school. Fatigue, stress, and deadlines all contribute to our frayedness (hmm, is this a word? If not, it should be!).
Today there was a brightspot, a moment when all of the hard work from the year felt worth it. We held our annual Honors Day, and students were recognized for their acheivements in academics, service, athletics, and the fine arts. I work with incredible young people, and this ceremony reminds me each year just how lucky I am. It is so rewarding and so precious to be able to watch your students grow into leaders and scholars.
Blessing #24, May 21, 2010
I am thankful that my students and children have access to education. I am thankful that I had that same access, and realize that countless good things in my life are present because of it. I am grateful for the amazing students with whom I work, and I feel blessed beyond measure to work in this profession.
Showing posts with label Teaching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Teaching. Show all posts
Friday, May 21, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
Wonder Woman--And Can you Believe I am still Going!!?? I am doing the #20 Dance :-)
When I was a little girl, adults would ask me, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I would reply, without flinching, "Wonder Woman." Imagine how tricky it became to navigate my career path when I realized that becoming a super hero wasn't actually an option.
I am grown up (well most of the time), but I am still impressed and inspired by strong, honest heroines. My favorite TV show, by far, is Bones. It comes on FOX, and the heroine doesn't wear a red, white and blue leotard (well, there is one episode) but she and her team of scientists solve murders using emperical evidence. She is fiercely committed to the truth (think Golden Lasso) and always gets the culprit.
She is a forensic anthropologist, and uses the bones to identify victims and reconstruct crimes. The show is like a marraige between two of my favorite things; super hero ideals and science.
Well, this week, I get to play forensic anthropologist in my classroom with a University of Georgia Professor, Dr. Norm Thomson. He has brought his collection of ~35 skulls from extant and extinct organisms, including many of our hominid relatives (Lucy, Hobbit man, etc) to teach me and my students about using skeletal remains to draw inferences about an individual's sex, size, diet, and habitat.
It is such a treat for this teacher to be a student. Science teaching is a blast, but it also requires me to learn all the time. What we know in science is constantly changing, and when you teach full time, it is nearly impossible to stay up to date on current news in the field. When professors and experts loan themselves to science classrooms, it is not just the students that benefit, but also the teacher. Getting to be the student refreshes me, reminds me why I chose to study and teach in this field, and gives me ideas for revamping my curriculum in the coming years.
Blessing #20, May 17, 2010
I am thankful to be in a career that demands that I keep learning and growing. I am thankful there are professors and experts who are passionate about science education and willing to give of their time and expertise to teach students and teachers about recent developments in science. And I'm thankful that my imagination allows me to believe, on some level, that being a science teacher translates to living up to my childhood superhero fantasy.
I am grown up (well most of the time), but I am still impressed and inspired by strong, honest heroines. My favorite TV show, by far, is Bones. It comes on FOX, and the heroine doesn't wear a red, white and blue leotard (well, there is one episode) but she and her team of scientists solve murders using emperical evidence. She is fiercely committed to the truth (think Golden Lasso) and always gets the culprit.
She is a forensic anthropologist, and uses the bones to identify victims and reconstruct crimes. The show is like a marraige between two of my favorite things; super hero ideals and science.
Well, this week, I get to play forensic anthropologist in my classroom with a University of Georgia Professor, Dr. Norm Thomson. He has brought his collection of ~35 skulls from extant and extinct organisms, including many of our hominid relatives (Lucy, Hobbit man, etc) to teach me and my students about using skeletal remains to draw inferences about an individual's sex, size, diet, and habitat.
It is such a treat for this teacher to be a student. Science teaching is a blast, but it also requires me to learn all the time. What we know in science is constantly changing, and when you teach full time, it is nearly impossible to stay up to date on current news in the field. When professors and experts loan themselves to science classrooms, it is not just the students that benefit, but also the teacher. Getting to be the student refreshes me, reminds me why I chose to study and teach in this field, and gives me ideas for revamping my curriculum in the coming years.
Blessing #20, May 17, 2010
I am thankful to be in a career that demands that I keep learning and growing. I am thankful there are professors and experts who are passionate about science education and willing to give of their time and expertise to teach students and teachers about recent developments in science. And I'm thankful that my imagination allows me to believe, on some level, that being a science teacher translates to living up to my childhood superhero fantasy.
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