It's almost Christmas!

Despite baking Christmas cakes, going “light-seeing”, listening to Christmas music (both in class and at home), and exchanging gifts, it really hasn’t felt like Christmas time yet. Maybe it has to do with being in school until December 21st. It’s hard to feel the joy of the season when you’ve got papers to grade, lessons to plan, and 12 year olds to babysit. Because that’s pretty much what it felt like this week: babysitting.

Wednesday was an utter waste of time and energy. It was a half-day, which already spells worthless in my book. The kids come to school with the mindset that they won’t do any work, which is evident by their lack of back packs and basic school supplies. This half-day, even the teachers felt the same way. We had a Christmas program scheduled for the first hour or so of the day, and from there it becomes a matter of feeding children and controlling chaos. But of course, nothing went according to schedule, so I had no idea what was going on for pretty much the whole day. And what’s more annoying than not knowing what’s going on? Oh, say, 100 kids asking you what’s going on. By the end of the day, I was practically shoving kids out my door. “See you in 2012!” was my catch phrase as I walked the kids out to the buses. Praise. The. Lord.

Now the fun could really begin. The rest of the evening was stress-free, filled with laughter and conversation that did not revolve around school or students or test scores. The staff went out to eat and exchanged secret Santa gifts, with nothing hanging over our heads except a week and a half of break.

I absolutely love the people I work with. My principal is hard-working, but she is down to earth and never expects more from us than what she herself is willing and able to give. She is real about our “situation” as a low-performing school, and her honesty is refreshing. My fellow teachers are fun-loving and hysterical. But by far my favorite people are the women I work most closely with, the other 7th grade teachers.

Last year, on those mornings when I would rather get hit by a bus than try to manage the chaos that was my 8th period, I got up to go to work because if nothing else, I knew I’d have fun with my coworkers during our common planning time.

This year, I look forward to our unofficial morning meetings in the hallway, where we mingle for maybe a little too long to watch the chaos that is the 8th grade and bask in the glory of our well-behaved (and well-trained) 7th graders. We are a strong team, mostly because we all like each other and work well together. And apparently, we play well together, too. After our staff dinner, the 7th grade team went shopping “on the town”, making trips to Target and Old Navy, and creating a scene along the way. We had so much fun, and it was a great way to kick off break.

Now, all is right in Glen Allen--Amanda and I are both home, and we are currently preparing for happy hour with our parents.

It's beginning to feel a little more like Christmas...

Baby Jackson?

Playing a "literacy" game I call "A to Z"--students must come up with one word for each letter of the alphabet within a certain category. This week's category: Christmas, of course.

Here's what happened when I tried to help one group....


Student: "Miss H--we need somethin that start with a J."

Miss H: "Hmm okay. Here's one. Who was born on Christmas? Baby......"

Student: "Jackson?"




Is it break yet? Two and a half days and counting....

Goodbye Enfield, Hello Orlando!

After a day like today, Florida couldn't sound any better. Nothing more than kids being kids...and driving me crazy. I dropped the bomb yesterday that I would be leaving for the next three days to go to a conference in Orlando, and while many of my kids seemed disappointed, I'm worried about the kids who I know were silently celebrating in their heads. I can hear their mischievous brains working now...

"You thought one day was chaotic, and now you're leaving us for three?"

It's about to get real.

We're about to find out how extraordinary my class really is. We've been working on becoming a class that other people talk about in a good way, since so much of the talk about Enfield is negative. Some of the kids have put everything they have into being the best, into being different than what other people expect when they walk into our classroom. And some of my students are fine being just plain old "ordinary", as we call them. It doesn't seem to bother them. In fact, I fear that they may even take a little joy in being the weakest link, if for no other reason than the attention that it gets them. I fear for those babies and their lives outside of school.

And while I am excited for the trip, there is still so much to be done. I've taken to recording my voice on every slide of my presentations for each of the three days that I"m gone, so that there will be no confusion about my expectations for each assignment. Which takes forever, by the way. And even still, I need to type up my sub plan to avoid things like, "But Miss H always lets us use the bathroom!" (No she doesn't.) Or, "We go to lunch right away." (No we don't.)

So one more late night of working, one more early morning of setting up my classroom, and then it's off for an afternoon flight to Orlando, and 3 and a half days of Floridian winter (and the conference, of course).

I'll be anxious to see my sub report when I get back. Fingers crossed!

If you were the President...

Do Now Assignment:

1. If you were the President of the United States, what is the first change you would make in America?

Student Responses:

"Stop getting AIDS."


"Change the law of passing math."



"I would change the drug dealers their will not be no drugs."


"I would let the people out of jail." (Upon clarification I learned that yes, she meant ALL the people. She would let everyone out of jail.)


I know you missed this.

Miss H on Senior Year

I've been trying to think of a way to introduce this link for the past 30 minutes of my planning, and I can't come up with anything. Probably because my thoughts are interrupted every 15 seconds with the distant shrieks in the hallways, students stopping by my door for a pencil or a hug or a complaint about their progress report, and the ever-growing to do list on my computer.

So here it is.

Want to see me fumbling my way through giving advice to 4th year college students? Jump over to the Career Services webpage and click on my picture or the "Senior" tab at the top of the page.

A quick shout to my former boss at the Career Center, Elsie. Thanks for being a loyal follower of my blog, a cheerleader for my students, and a firm believer in me. I appreciate your encouragement more than you know!

Counting down until the weekend...5 class periods until freedom.

Happy Halloween!

I wasn't planning on dressing up for Halloween this year. In fact, I actually HATE dressing up or going anywhere where other people are dressed up. Costumes lose their charm when they are all preceded by the word "sexy". And I certainly was not going to dress up for school. I love my kids, but I don't need to give them reasons to make fun of me.

That all changed at 9 pm last night. My roommate emailed me a list of "punny" Halloween costume ideas, because we all know I love a good pun or corny joke. I was flipping through them, not actually looking for an idea, when I saw it: the perfect math teacher costume. And then, a star was born. With some black construction paper and a few safety pins, I had myself a winner:



I'll admit, it's not quite as obvious as some of the others, but once you figure it out it's pretty awesome. Just think for a second...I'm orange. What's orange at Halloween? A pumpkin. What symbol is on my shirt? Ohhhhhhhhh now you get it. And you're laughing. A lot. Either at my ridiculousness, or at how stinkin' funny (punny) I am. (In case you missed it....I'm pumpkin "pi". Laugh away.)

The kids? They didn't get it at first. It took some 'splainin. And once they did get it, some of them just looked at me with blank stares like, really Miss H? You think that's funny?

They obviously don't know me well enough yet. But have no fear, I'll have them trained to laugh at my corny jokes soon enough, slappin' their knees and at least pretending to laugh. My kids from last year thought I was hysterical today. They remember all I taught them.

It's 8:15, it's raining, and we've only had 1 trick or treater. Looks like Halloween is going to pass by the Ponderosa pretty quietly. But we're fine with that, because it means November is waiting to swoop in. Which means we can begin the countdown for 1) Thanksgiving break and 2) Christmas music. Woot woot!

Sick Day

It started on Monday. My voice slowly began to fade away. At first, I thought it was just from a combination of talking all day and straining my voice even more in practice after school. By the end of the day, I could barely talk. Tuesday morning I woke up to a sore throat and a stuffy nose, and I was no better on Wednesday.

By Thursday morning, I felt like crap. My throat still hurt, my voice was barely audible, and both of my ears hurt. Not to mention I was exhausted, as usual. I began devising a plan for taking a sick day. I couldn't just call in sick, because I had never submitted my emergency lesson plans like I was supposed to, so there was nothing for a sub to do with my kids. But I certainly wasn't going to make it through the day. I needed to see a doctor before it got any worse, and I couldn't wait until after school. So as I drove to school that morning, I called our secretary and asked her to find me a sub for at least half a day, if not the full day. I explained that I was on my way to school to prepare for the day and put on my most pathetic voice possible (well, that wasn't too much of a stretch) to emphasize my desperation.

Lo and behold, our administrative assistant came through. I spent homeroom period typing up a quick sub plan and making sure everything was in place. I didn't tell my kids I was leaving until the substitute arrived, for fear that something would go wrong and my dreams would be dashed. She finally showed up about 5 minutes into first period, and I was so grateful. I knew I needed this day off both for my physical health and my sanity. I felt a little guilty walking out the door, but mostly just pure, sweet relief.

And that's how I know I've grown so much since last year.

Last year, when I finally broke down and took a mental health day (it wasn't until February, I believe), I was terrified. Terrified of leaving my class in someone else's hands, terrified of how excited the kids would be to have a break from me for a day, and terrified that they wouldn't want me to come back. Terrified that the substitute would comment on the lack of procedures in my classroom, and the chaos that ensued as a result. And terrified that one day would derail us for the rest of the year.

Last year, I felt so guilty about taking a day off that it almost hurt. I didn't want anyone to think I was a slacker or a pansy. I obsessed over losing a day's worth of pay of an already embarrassingly low salary. How could they not pay me, when all I was going to do was curl up in my bed and work anyway?

My, how things have changed.

Oh, there was certainly still chaos while I was gone. I got reports of students crawling on my floor pretending that they were in war, shooting imaginary weapons at each other with the appropriate sound effects. Students plucking paper at each other with rubber bands. Talking during their quiz. "Joaning" and making fun of each other. And carrying their craziness into other classrooms.

I still felt a small sting of annoyance at losing a day's pay, especially as I forked over the co-pay for urgent care and for an antibiotics prescription.

So...wait. How exactly have things changed, you ask?

I forgot all about my paycheck as I drove down Roanoke Avenue in the middle of the day, enjoying weekday sunshine for the first time in weeks. I finally got to get my oil changed, make a trip to the post office, and beat the after-work crowd at Walmart. I felt productive in a way that wasn't at all related to work. Last year, I worked from 7:30 am until bedtime, using my sick day as a "work-all-day-to-catch-up" day instead. There was no rest, no relief, and no sense of satisfaction.

Before I left school Thursday, my sweet homeroom babies, they begged me not to go. I even had one kid offer to pay me to stay (I will admit I hestitated at this one). Last year, I can guarantee you that most kids were high-fiving the second they found out I was absent.

When I went back on Friday, many of the kids greeted me with words such as, "Thank goodness you are back, they was bad yesterday, they never woulda acted like that if you was here! Please don't ever leave again." Last year, I bet my kids would have been praying for another day with out me. And let's be honest. They way the acted with the sub...well, that's pretty much how they acted with me.

This year, even the principal stopped to tell me that the chaos was not my fault; that there were clearly procedures in place, they were just not carried out appropriately. And of course, 12 year olds will be 12 year olds if no one tells them otherwise. Last year, it was most definitely my fault (at least in part).

This year, when I had conversations with the "troublemakers" from the day before, they hung their heads in embarrassment instead of grinning mischeviously at their victory. My kids know that Miss H don't play.

Obviously, I would have preferred to come back to reports that everything went perfectly, that the students had stepped up and led the class, and that there didn't even need to be an adult in the room because my babies knew exactly what to do. That would surely be the mark of an incredible teacher: one whose expectations can be carried out even when she is absent.

But I'm also a little bit thankful that my kids acted the way they did, because it reminded me of a few things. First, that no matter what the kids say, they need structure, and they like it. The number of kids that complained about the lack of control on Thursday was proof enough that they like knowing what to expect and how to act.

Second, that I've come so far from where I was this time last year. Not just as a teacher, but personally. I was able to make a sound decision about what was best for me, and it didn't take me until February to see that I needed a break. And no matter what may have happened while I was gone, it couldn't make me feel guilty for taking that day off. I needed it, so I took it. Act like zoo animals, for all I care...I needed drugs (antibiotics, of course).

And third, a little ego boost never hurt anyone. It was nice to know that my kids would never dream about behaving that way if I was there, and that they actually cared about my reaction when I got back. And that other adults recognized that it was not my lack of procedures that was the problem.

It all kind of reminds me of one of my favorite childhood books, Miss Nelson is Missing. Remember that book? So good.

This weekend, I have the house to myself in Roanoke Rapids. I'm using the quiet to really rest. I'm still not 100% better, but the down time has helped me recoop and allowed me to get ahead on my work this week so I can rest during the week, too.

As Rihanna says, "Cheers to the freakin' weekend."