Writing

I got an email from a regional coordinator (or something like that) for the National Writers Month. I tried unsuccessfully last year, but with the conditioning I have done in keeping this blog alive and pretty much regular, aside from last week, I think I can do it.

I am still struggling with being a "good" teacher. I tend to talk instead of getting the kids involved with hands-on stuff. I don't have a great depth of manipulatives for them to mess around with, plus I don't have a huge level of trust that those things won't be pocketed, broken, thrown, etc. I spent a good deal of time looking for poker chips so I could make sets of positive and negative counters (concrete items for rather non-concrete concepts) to work on adding, subtracting negative integers, and forming zero pairs.

This lack of structure is, in theory, what is making my classes have a potential for disruption. In theory, again, students who aren't engaged will find other things to engage them. On the other hand, some kids won't let themselves be engaged, either because it is more fun to disrupt or because they can't sit still, can't recognize their own behavior. Argh.

Still haven't had that impending bicycle accident, but Memphis drivers are sure giving me a run for my money. Today I checked behind me, let a car pass me and signaled to move into the left lane (which is essentially the double yellow line, as I was going to turn left onto my street) because the next car coming up was in my current far right lane. As I get into my left lane, here is the car, who switched lanes without signaling, and won't respect my position. He cuts past me, half into the oncoming lane, forcing me back into the right lane (where I can't really see what is coming). Naturally, he was on the phone. Banning cell phones while driving wouldn't work here, though, since people ignore any regulations that inconvenience themselves. Like signaling turns, stopping at signals, yielding to traffic, etc. A boy was killed this weekend while riding his bike, and the news reported that hit-and-run fatalities have a 10% solve rate, compared to 85% for murders.