Teacher Humor

Humor is sometimes the only thing that can get you through the day, but if you use it daily, your classroom will be a happier place for EVERYONE!!!

These are just some of those LOLs that I thought I'd share with the fabulous teachers of the world! Enjoy and keep laughing; it burns calories, you know?!

Be Creative

My son Hunter (graciously modeling above) and I wanted to give his 6th grade teacher a nice end-of-year gift that meant something to her, so we made a wordle for her and a "candy bouquet" with a Restaurant.com gift card attached. The wordle featured her best characteristics and interests and we placed the end result in a nice frame that she could hang in her classroom.

The candy bouquet included fun sized Reese's Cups, Kit Kats, Twix Bars, and Snickers.  I attached each fun sized bar to a thin wooden skewer and taped them in place. Then I put a cone-shaped Styrofoam piece into a thick, silver and blue gift wrap sheet and placed the wrapped Styrofoam into a small glass jar. The Styrofoam allowed me to keep the skewers upright in the jar so it looked like a full bouquet. I varied the skewer sizes to they fanned out nicely.  I finished the bouquet with her name painted on the jar so she could use it for treats, supplies, etc in her classroom.
Hunter was so excited to give it to her. Mrs. Craven was surprised and delighted and couldn't wait to place it on her wall.   It turned out so well that I may have to make myself one too! :)

Mrs. Craven and Hunter

And so starts a new chapter

When one door closes, another one opens. In my case a door that leads into a fantastic classroom; complete with my own office!

I am starting a new chapter in my life as an ABS cluster teacher at Eastmont Middle School in Sandy, UT. I will be a proud Patriot and educator to 12 wonderful 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students. Yes, I know what you're thinking; only 12 students? Well, they are wonderfully active and exceptional students that mostly fall into the EBD category, so 12 students is plenty. 

I will be teaching Math, Science, Social Studies, Language Arts, Reading, Social Skills/Character Development, and PE/Health! Wow, I got tired just typing that!
I am lucky though, because I will have a part-time and full-time paraprofessional in the class to help make the class run smoothly. ;)

The administration is AMAZING and super supportive, and the district has been wonderful to work with. I had the pleasure of meeting many of the teachers at a training in June where they were welcoming and accommodating even though training happened after the school year was over.  That right there made me realize that these were professional educators willing to make themselves, and thus their students, the best they can be.

My smiling face and bio should be up on the Eastmont website soon, so take a look and let me know what you think. GO PATRIOTS!

Dealing with loss

I was laid off in April from a charter school that, unfortunately, has some administrators that aren't the most ethical and don't like to be called on it.  It was a HUGE surprise to the students, parents, other staff, and of course, me. I had nothing but positive reviews from academic coaches and other teachers, and even the administration, until I became vocal. There is a reason you cannot be a part of the teacher's union when you work for a charter school; they can get rid of you for ANY reason they want to. Even if you're a great teacher.
I was really hit hard by this, especially because I devoted a TON of time to my class, the school, and those amazing students. Students cried when they found out, parents kept asking "why", and I was a blubbering mess for a many, many days.  I just couldn't wrap my mind around why they would do this to those students and to a good teacher, but it wasn't about me or the students; it was about covering their butts and continuing on their unethical ways.

Although I had no intention of renewing my contract for the following school year, I felt bad that the students were left in a lurch and were told lies about my leaving. I truly loved those kiddos and I was luckily able to let them know that they were amazing and that I wanted them to continue on the path to excellence that I was trying to help pave for them.

I entered the education world to help make it better, change the things that needed changing, and help students get to places that they never dreamed they could go. This experience was hard to deal with but I have learned and grown from it. My passion for education is even greater now, as is my desire to help address those "issues" that are negetively affecting our youth.

My advice to anyone who goes through this type of situation is to never lose hear,t and really think about why you became a teacher.  We all go through the same type of politics, the same long hours, the same obstacles in our way, but we're in it for the same end result too; to make the world a better place to live in by educating and caring about our youth. Go TEAM!