Guess What? Teachers Don't Melt!-Strike Day #1

Since my commute is longer than most teachers at my school, I volunteered for the 6am crew.  This crew consists of our union chapter chair and myself.  We felt it was important to be at school when the parking lot gate opened to speak to all people entering the campus.

Both of us we were running on very little sleep.  I went to bed very early but found myself waking up every 60-90 minutes.  I was nervous that I may oversleep my 4am alarm and equally nervous about the act of striking.  By 3:30am, I decided to get up and start checking my email and social media in hopes of reading about a new proposal from LAUSD.

Sadly there was no magic agreement. I got dressed in my #RedforEd colors and by 5:10am I was sitting in Starbucks waiting for my coffee treat.  I arrived at my school by 5:20am and parked right in front of the parking lot gate.  Cars started to come in the gates around 6:15am which is precisely the time the rain started.  I'm happy (but still disappointed) to report that only 1 substitute teacher crossed the picket line.

I'm also happy to report that my colleagues and I ran a very pleasant picket line.  Most teachers reported not sleeping well but we’re ready for the day.  We warmly greeted our non-teacher colleagues as they entered the parking lot for work!  We high fived and hugged students as they entered the school. We smiled a lot! We had so much energy!

Our entire staff walked to our local metro station to ride downtown for our mid-day collective action.  It was amazing to see the sea of red that would enter at every stop.  The trains were filled with chants and various schools announcing their arrival on the metro.  Our trip downtown was very high energy (I felt kind of bad for the non-rally folks on the train, but they couldn't deny the positive vibes and the message we are spreading). The chanting got even louder once we got off the trains. This experience was truly magical!!!!

Massives amounts of people arrived downtown, our group was separated many times because it was just so crowded.  Again, I noticed everyone smiling.  We're not smiling because we are enjoying our time away from our students, we are smiling because there are so many people out there who share our beliefs about our students deserving better.  We smile because we're energized and ready to fight the fight about getting more resources into our underserved schools.

 Let's face it, we're teachers and we are used to surviving with very little resources and plan to fight the fight until the end.

Who said it never rains in Southern California?  It poured today but guess what?  Teachers don't melt!

‘Twas the Night Before the Teacher Strike

The teacher union that supports the second largest district in our nation called for a strike at the very beginning of our winter break. There has been a lot of talk about a strike over the last couple months but I never imagined it would actually happen. It’s so hard to understand how anyone would purposely want to starve our schools and not provide the resources that students need.

On my first day back from winter break, I decided to have a discussion with my fifth graders. I’d say 2/3 of the students had heard nothing about a strike. The remaining students knew about the strike and had a couple accurate talking points to share.  

I could see the level of anxiety rising with my students as the discussion progressed. I did my best to explain the reasons why teachers are striking. I also explained I’d be outside the school and not allowed to enter campus until the strike ended or I voluntarily decide to return to work.

As a teacher, one of the hardest attitudes to have is, “It’s not my problem or that doesn’t concern me” because I care about my students and I care about what happens to them. I was unable to answer lots of there questions about what their days will look like in my absence.  I’m nervous for my well being on the picket line and I am equally nervous for their well being (emotional well being mostly, my students don't do well with change) while I’m striking. 

I entertained all of their questions. Their first questions focused more on logistics like, “Who will teach us?” “Will the school be open?” “Will we have recess?”  Then their questions changed to “Will I be able to have breakfast and lunch?” “How long will you be gone?” “Are you going to get fired?”  

I work at a school where lockdowns are not all the unusual. The students know the procedures for what to do. Hearing gunshots is not too hard to fathom either. One student asked, “What if there is a lockdown?” There wasn’t anything I could do for the kids during a lockdown if I’m not on campus and I immediately started to feel helpless. I reminded the kids to do what we practiced but I was quickly corrected, “No, I mean what if there’s a lockdown and you’re outside? What’s going to happen to you?” At this moment, a light bulb went off. The thought of a lockdown during the strike never occurred to me. I don’t know why this never occurred to me since we have lockdowns fairly regularly. I did not know what to tell her. Another student yells, “Drop like a pancake! That’s what they tell us!”

A couple minutes before the dismissal bell on Friday, I reminded my students that I will be on the picket line Monday morning. One student said, “Good luck Dr. G. Remember, we love you and we support you. See you soon.”

When I say no one wants to strike, I truly mean no one wants to strike. I’d much rather be in my classroom with my students. This is the last effort for the district to stop starving our schools. 

If we aren’t the voice of the students, who will speak for them? Who will stand up for them? They’re counting on us, their futures depend on us. 

This is why I am a teacher on strike until a fair agreement is made. 

New School Year Resolutions: 5 Self-Care Tips

The end of summer brings many New School Year Resolutions. As teachers, we give so much of ourselves to our students. But let’s be honest, teacher burnout is real. I’d like to share my top five self-care tips for enhancing your school year.

1. Disconnect Daily

At the beginning of each school year, have a conversation with department colleagues about your preferred communication times and methods. Let them know you generally turn your phone off at 6pm to be with your family. Aim to check your work email at work and avoid logging into your work email on your personal cell phone.

2. Stay Late

But only one day a week. Use this one day to prep for the week ahead. Make all of your copies and get those lesson plans done. Heck, grade some papers. Just focus on taking care of your classroom needs. The point is, staying late should not be an everyday occurrence, pick one day a week to truly focus on getting your work done.

3. Exercise

Believe it or not, exercising really does give you a boost of energy. I really didn’t believe it either, but it’s true. Getting enough exercise is tough for most teachers, especially during the beginning and end of the school year. With all of the decisions that teachers make on a daily basis, we are completely exhausted. All you can think about is your bed! And those papers aren’t going to grade themselves.

I suggest taking a couple days a week to get a workout in before you go home. Keeping a set of workout clothes and shoes in your trunk makes it easier to swing by the gym before dinner.

4. Non-Negotiable Bedtime

Too many teachers try to burn the midnight oil on a weekday. It is super important that teachers get adequate rest nightly. We are the keepers of the classroom community and it is important that we strive to be our best daily, that means getting rest. Set your bedtime and keep yourself from working at least 30 minutes prior to bed.

5. Make Time for Yourself

Finally, be sure to leave work at the end of your contractual time. Devote a minimum of one day a week to do something you like. Maybe you’ll go shopping or meet up with a friend. Whatever you love to do to refresh and recharge to be your best teacher self.

Balancing the workload of being an awesome teacher can be tough. I really hope my fellow teacher friends out there can adopt some self-care measures. Whatever you do, choose to do things that re-energize you, even if that means setting some limits.

This post is also featured on the adoptaclassroom.org blog.

The Tumultuous Ten

At this point, teaching has been a part of my life for more than a decade.  I've opened 13 classes and even spent a treacherous week in middle school.  I love my job so much and can't imagine a life outside of the field of education.  But let's face it, teaching is hard!

I know of very few jobs that ask for so much and give so little.  I mean this literally and figuratively.  Yes, we teachers do embrace the feeling of accomplishment when we know we've made a difference in the lives of children.  And yes, we get a ton of time off but that doesn't make our job any easier.  I get paid for 6 hours a day and put in 10-12 hours a day on average.  Often times I arrive at work at 6:45am, work through my recess and lunch breaks, and I don't leave until 7:30.  Many people believe that teaching is a job for those who can't.  To those very people, I offer you this invitation...walk a day in my shoes.  Actually, to get the full effect, walk a week.

There is no tired like beginning of school year teacher tired.  The first 40 days are devoted to routine teaching and testing the boundaries on both ends.  My parents wonder why I come home a little later or don't have so much work to do at home.  The answer is, I'm teacher tired!  I'm physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted.  As a matter of fact, the teaching Gods have blessed me with my most challenging group yet for my 10 year anniversary.  Yeah, yeah, I already know, you're not given more than you can handle.  I may beg to differ this year!

This group gets an "A" for their creative storytelling.  In fact, one of these stories actually sparked an investigation on my behalf.  As you can imagine, that was a lot of fun (Takes sip of beverage).  I work in a district that will pull a teacher first and ask questions later, much later! Character education is vital to the education of a child that is often neglected due to the overwhelming directives to test the children.

My class presents a wide range of academic abilities and interests.  The range is very wide, wider than I've seen before, this is one of the perks of being at a small school.  I know I'm a teacher but many people don't understand I'm also a mom, friend, psychologist, counselor, mentor, nurse and referee to my kids.  I spend more waking hours with my kids than most adults in their lives.  I am happy to take on all of these roles but can I get a little respect!

Going back to my original point, teaching is hard!  I toyed with the idea of possibly leaving the classroom this summer.  I figure the best use of my impending doctoral degree would be to obtain a position of leadership and effect greater change on the educational process as a whole.  A couple positions came up that caught my eye, but nothing panned out for me.  I suppose that means it's not my time to leave the classroom and my current group of kids need me.  Being in the classroom is always fun and each year is very different.

Even with all of the challenging situations, I have been very fortunate in my teaching.  There is no greater joy than hearing from past students and being reminding you that you did a good job.  I am very fortunate to be in somewhat regular contact with Andi (circa year 2 teaching) and Britney (circa years 4-5).  Social media has been a great platform to be found by former students.  At last check, both are doing great and ironically both are living out of state.

At the end of this school year, I will look back and be extremely proud of all of the hard work that both the students and myself have accomplished.  We have a long ways to go, but we'll get there.  Teaching is hard, but it's worth it!

Farewell Class of 2015

I know it's been a while since I last blogged.  Going to school full time and teaching full time make it difficult to share.  I had so many fond memories of my kiddos.  I suppose you could say that I took the time to live in the moment and not jump to social media.

Updates, my class originally started off with 43 kids.  It was an adventure.  There was no place for my TA to seat and I didn't even have a chair.  A large portion of the kids were my fourth graders from the previous year.  After 6 weeks with them all, it was very difficult to have half of the kids transition to another class.  At least I was able to enjoy them in the hallways and watch them continue to grow.

For the remainder of the year I only had 21 students.  I must admit it was a lot easier to visit the computer with less kids.  Parent conferences were also a lot quicker to hold.

After 9 years of teaching down, I can honestly say I had the most exceptional group of students this past year.  My students were intellectuals and very caring human beings.  Many of them have been in the same class for several years.  Culmination was difficult to hold back my emotions as my students gave amazing speeches and sang their little hearts out.

Here I am, the night before I officially begin the 2015-2016 school year.  I miss my old kiddos but I'm looking forward to creating new memories with the upcoming batch.  The current class I'll be receiving has scared off numerous substitutes teachers and gave their previous teacher a run for her money.  I have my work cut out for me and there should be tons of stories to share!

Flashback #3 You Know You Have A Lot of Students When...

A look back at my first 6 weeks of school.
You Know You Have A Lot of Students When...

...you need to request 8 more desks and chairs during the first morning of school.

...one kid has to sit at the kidney table because there is no more room for another desk.

....the kidney table is back up against the wall so you have to climb under the table to get to the center. All this to get a few extra inches of walking space.

....you have to suck in your stomach every time you try to maneuver around the room.

....there is no space to set up a projector and document camera.

.....the only space for your teacher's assistant can sit it at the sink.

...name tags come in packs of 36 and you must buy 2 packs to have enough for every student.

....when people ask if I am watching two classes.

...you have a whole bunch of apples on your tree.

Flasback #2: Swag

One day my class was reading a story about how dictionaries are updated.  This concept was very interesting.  According to this story, thousands of new words are added to the dictionary every year.  Language is living and constantly changing.  Editors of the dictionary write down new words on index cards along with the context that the word appeared in.  Words that appear the most often are added to the dictionary.  Every 10 years, the dictionary gets a total makeover.  When discussing this story, I asked the students to think of new words that have recently been integrated into a dictionary or words that may appear soon.  One of my students said we use the word "Swag" a lot.  This is a great example of a word that has recently been brought into existence.  Naturally, I ask my kids if I have swag.  They didn't even know how to break it to me.  They sat there for a moment, speechless probably trying to think of a way to put things nicely.  One student started to speak, "Well....for a teacher..."  I already knew what was coming, and it wasn't very good.  The student continued on, "kind of."  The proceeded to tell me that my swag could be increased if I changed they way I dressed.

A couple weeks later we had parent conferences.  One of my parents brought up this very discussion.  She said that her family was laughing so hard at the possibility of me having swag.  You know you've made it as a teacher when you are the topic of discussion at the dinner table.