New School Year!

I can't not believe how crazily busy I am this year. School started at the end of August, with teachers going back officially the week before (I say officially because I was writing the district French Benchmark exams for two weeks before that!). I have not really had a chance to sit down and collect my thoughts because things are happening at such a whirlwind pace!! So we just finished our third (!!!) week of school. My students are pretty likable for the most part. I had to kind of win over my French III class, because they had the same teacher for their first two years, and are understandably attached to her. I don't mind them going to her tutorials, but I want them to understand that they can come to me as well. I always forget how motivated teachers and students are at the beginning of the year. students are handing in work, teachers are smiling, everyone's in a good mood....it's great. It precisely the opposite in February (also known as the bane of my existence month). I don't really get around much in the building since my portable is a good 5 minute walk away, which means I don't get ti mingle between classes with other teachers. I have however, noticed a difference this year in the staff and student body. Everyone seems to have a positive outlook. I know that I am contradicting myself, but even at the beginning of last year, there seemed to be a lot of conflict on the staff, negativity from the students, and a overall pessimistic mood in the building. I hope that this feeling stays, because it is much easier teaching a group of kids that want to be there. So in addition to my teaching duties, French Club, French National Honor Society, Staff Development, Campus Improvement Team, and AP French are all doing there best to wear me down. The upside is I have become much, much more organized for the first time in a loooong time. It feels pretty good. It's my fourth year, and I feel as though I have already grown into my niche and style, I hope that I just don't get stale! I should go back now and read my post from the beginning of last year. Wonder what my feeling was...

School is Starting??

Yep. Last Friday was our first day back from an ever-short sumer vacation. I celebrated by spending this week nursing a very treacherous throat infection...I can't believe my little angels will be sitting in front of me 4 days from now. I want to be well!!!

About Volunteerism

I'm beginning to think that volunteerism might be overrated. I had grand visions for the upcoming school year. I joined 2 committees (staff development and campus improvement) that hopefully will help me to decide my future Master's degree plans. In addition, I asked if I could help write the District French benchmark exams (last year I helped to rewrite the French curriculum). Normally, when committees are formed, or things need to be done, my name never gets called. Except for my first day on campus, when I was told I was the French Club sponsor (of the non-existent French Club), I have not been asked to do anything else. I thought that it was a slight against my performance in creating French Club, or maybe something else I wasn't aware of. At the end of the year I was talking to my best friend that teaches Spanish if she was in agreement with my assessment. She thinks that it more has to do with they think I do too much already. A quick rundown led to me to concur: French Club and French National Honor Society (created both), attend football games, the one dance required, AP teacher, attend district meetings, and I guess the list goes on. Imagine my surprise when I get an email yesterday congratulating me on being "selected" to participate in the Welcome Back breakfast in front of the faculty and staff. Welcome Back (or whatever it's called) usually involves dancing on stage to some musical number that one of the assistant principals has choreographed. Luckily, I think I can get out of it by telling her I am already writing a Benchmark during practice times (please work, please work)!

Back!

Ok, so I took a break...I had a lot of things going on that did not allow me to think a blogging for a while. But now, I have (somewhat) successful moved classrooms, begun a new term, and have glided more or less effortlessly into Spring Break. I have been putting a lot of thought into the next two years; whether or not to stay here in north Texas, or move and persue my Master's Degree elsewhere. It is still a difficult decision, because I do (most days) love my job. Where my portable classroom sits, I am pretty much disconnected from everything going on in the building. I must walk outside and across the parking lot to use both the restroom and talk to others--this is a best lonely. For some reason things seem to be getting more difficult instead of easier in teaching. I think because we are on trimesters, the third term is most always something you've already taught 12 weeks previous, leading to a feeling of bordeom. I will leave it at that, and add more later.

So I Figured It Out...

This past week and this upcoming week are what will finally kill me. Yep. That's it. In addition to all of the madness of last week, I found out Wednesday that I am moving classrooms...If you're thinking that this is crazy 2/3 into the school year, then you win the prize! I am not sure when I will get back into blogging, but I have to grade, post grades, and setup a classroom all before Monday--Not to mention my getting new students on Monday. I'll be back. I promise!

The Week...

So this is it. This week is probably going to be the hardest of the year. Although it's only February, it seems as though "Spring Craziness" is already afoot! That wasn't the topic of my post, so I digress... This week is 3 things: the state ELA (English/Language Arts) exam, term finals, and the end of a term. To boot, next Monday, I get all new classes and students. This is going to be an exercise in keeping my sanity. The only break between terms is a weekend...Ce n'est pas de tout une bonne idee.

A (Not So Common) History Lesson

Gladys Knight & The Pips (Diana Ross &) The Supremes Marvin Gaye The Temptations Most people have heard of the Oscar-nominated film "Dreamgirls". Most people (or so I would assume) know that it is loosely based upon the 60's/70's girl group the Supremes. Now, I haven't seen the movie, but I have read enough about it to know that the story tells something of an up-and-coming group making their way through the music business. This isn't a post about the movie, but rather the basis of the movie, The Supremes. You see, in class last week, a student had mentioned that she watched a Motown special the previous weekend. Her friend, sitting next to her, asked her what Motown was. I think that I have to interject at this point that I grew up listening to Motown groups, since my parents listened to Motown groups. I must have had some strange look on my face, when she asked what Motown was. I asked if she had heard of Marvin Gaye (no), The Supremes (no), or anyone else I could think of from that era. No, No, and No. I was shocked. This weekend I procured a burned CD of various Motown artists to let my kids explore this very important chapter in America's history. This morning, as they came into the room I had Motown music playing. They were swaying a little back and forth, and generally enjoying the sound. It was the first time that I had played English-language music in my classroom in over three years. They were surprised that I would ever do such a thing! I asked again how many knew of Motown groups, and only half raised their hands (one student said his dad used to listen to that 80's stuff from time to time). I proceeded to tell the story of why Motown was founded, and the exposure it gave Black artists who previously had no commercial outlet for their music. It was well-received, making me pretty content I was able to impart a little knowledge on my younggin's. This is why I love my job!

Winter Doldrums

If you've visited my blog lately, you've probably noticed that there seems to be a lack of posts. I'm still here, I just don't know if I have anything to say. I used to have tons of posts ready to go so that if I didn't have anything interesting to say, I could click a button and post a thought that I had had one night weeks ago. Well, gone are those days. I've run out. It seems that my lack of upkeep in cyberspace (do people still use that word) has also reared its ugly head in my "real" life, too. Gone are the days where I would eagerly come home, nap, then plant myself in front of a movie and grade. Now, I just nap, then watch a movie. I couldn't figure out why my school bag was so heavy. It wasn't until today that I realized it was because I had papers from January 9th (!) that I needed to reconcile. It's not like I don't have the intention to grade. I faithfully bring the bag home, set it near me, and then for some reason, just looking at it puts me to sleep. Maybe I should start a holistic grading program that is based solely on oral answers that you give during the course of the class period...could I get away with that? Well I am sure that soon I will have some exciting news and virtues to extol, but as for now, enjoy this wonderful, deflated windsock that describes my current state: By the way, I do still love my job!

Snow Day!

So here we are again! A day of from school due to ice and snow. Back in November, I posted about Texans fear of ice here. All this weekend, the lovely people at the local news stations told us that all hell was going to break loose, and that we were going to see a massive ice storm...Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, I watched as some pellets fell from the sky. Monday, the icing was a bit worse, but the weather did not complicate matters due to the MLK Holiday. In all, the ice basically amounted to a big load of nuthin'. We were also warned that there would be a few flakes of snow over night Tuesday, into this morning. I wake up at 5, hoping to get out of the house by 6, so that I could go to Kinko's to make a few copies for class. It was icy, sleeting, and snowing. Still, I hadn't received a phone call telling me school was cancelled, so I assumed that I needed to keep trucking along. Throughout my 20 minute commute, I did my normal morning routine of switching back and forth through the radio stations. Still, no phone call. I pull into the school parking lot at around 6:30, and notice that I am one of two cars in the lot (normally, there are at least 30). At that exact moment, I receive "the call". So much for the early bird getting the worm. Not only did I leave my warm bed, I had to also trudge back home on an icy road. Maybe I should start being less responsible! Don't get me wrong--I don't mind missing school, but we had a 4-day week last week, and will have a 3-day week this week. That's a lot of discontinuity. I hate making up days! What is up with all of the snow this year?? I did not see my first snowfall until I was a sophomore in high school. Evidently this is supposed to be a warm winter, but oranges, roses, and avocados are freezing in California. If you don't think it's that important, Valentine's Day is in less than a month, and Guacamole is a staple at many a Super Bowl party (Feb. 4th)! I was listening to the forecast, and we are supposed to see snow Saturday and Tuesday of next week. Man, that El Niño is a bad little boy.

Helping the Community

Prior to this school year, I was a bit jealous of the Spanish section of the Foreign Language Department at my school. There was no Spanish Club, but there was a International Club and a Spanish National Honor Society. My school is pretty good at getting new teachers into the mix of things. It's kind of like in class when the teacher (am I the only one that does this?) asks for volunteers, sees none, then proceeds to thank "John" for volunteering--You know that John knows the answer, he just hasn't raised his hand! In any case, at the beginning of the year, we receive a list of organizations and their sponsors. I was shocked to see that I was the French Club sponsor! How did that happen??? Last I heard, there WAS no French Club. Fast-Forward 3 years, and we have about 20 or so members who come to meetings to watch French films (at least the ones that don't involve sex/nudity--that leaves...oh about 2), meet for dinner at La Madeleine, and just general Frenchiness. Last year, I decided that the successful students deserved to be a part of something more service and academically related. I researched and finally created La Société Honoraire de Français. I had 15 applications (3.5 GPA, B+ Avg in French, and at least in French III), and admitted them. This week, we had our first service opportunity. We went to a nearby "retirement community" to play games with the residents. I was a bit wary, because I know what I thought about the elderly when I was their age. They were a bit scary...We arrived, and found out that they had set up dominoes. Unknown to me, only one of the 10 students there knew how to play! My Grandmother taught my cousins and I how to play at a young age. She would want to play, so she would just ask us "Can you count? Ok well sit down and play!" We sit down at various tables, and I watch the residents teach my students how to play. It was great. They were all having a great time with the games. They were complaining later that the old-timers were showing them no mercy! Later, I was told that one of the male nurses speaks French, and wanted to talk to my students. We gathered around him as he introduced himself (he is from Cameroon), talked about his life there and here, and his lack of French-speakers in the area. I cannot say how proud I was when he would ask questions and they would answer him in French! Three years ago, these kids knew nothing more than Bonjour! So the residents were happy and my students were happy...I will say that besides the smell, and the old ladies who wouldn't let go of my hand, it was a success!

Getting those days in !

Yesterday at school, the faculty put on the annual Faculty Talent (or lack of) Show. It's a great idea, and a fitting end to the calendar year before Christmas Vacation. Because of a lack of space in the school auditorium, there was a limit of 800 tickets sold. At $5 a piece, the tickets go towards scholarships for the senior class. Since our school has 2600 wonderful students, there were quite a few that either didn't want to go, or did not get a ticket before they were sold out. That left a lot of teachers with students in their classrooms from 7:30-12:30. We couldn't teach, we couldn't test, so we were told to watch G movies (we don't have finals until Feb.). Luckily, my class this period is small and are juniors, so we didn't have a problem. Because of mixing classes because of performances, I know that some teachers had upwards of 50 students in their room for this time period. This "do nothing day", coupled with the fact that I was expected to teach 6 weeks of material in a little less than 5 weeks made for some interesting testing. I know the state mandates how many days the students have to be in school, but really, why should I be forced to entertain them for 5 hours? If they want to watch movies, there is an AMC down the road, or they all have these movies at the house to watch anyway. Over the Hedge was actually pretty good. It is one of those movies where kids and adults can both enjoy on two different levels. Oh well, I don't have to be back until January 8th, so life is good. On to shopping!

Winter Break

I'm pretty much perplexed by the lack of issues that I am having at school lately. Besides random chattiness in class (which I can handle...it means the students are more or less engaged), the biggest issue I've had to face was the arrival of a fluent French speaker in my French III class. She's been utterly bored because we are reviewing the past tense, directions, and other random things that are good to know. If this class were taught in English, it would probably be like being 14 years old in a 4th grade class. The other French teacher and I somewhat made the executive decision to put her in the AP French class, that way she could have some semblance of a challenge. The highest level she could officially be in is III, because II is the highest level offered for credit by exam. So right now, she's not struggling, but at least she's not in a class with 8 year olds. I had my Professional Development Assessment recently, and I was pretty I was worried because this year our department got a new head and principal over foreign languages. I wasn't sure how the principal rated her evaluations, so I wasn't sure what to be in store for. Luckily, she came to one of my French III classes, and I spoke French for just about the whole time, so she had no idea what was going on (a fact relayed to me later). I felt really good about the evaluation, and knew that my kids were speaking back to me in French and asking questions, so it was a waiting game. I pulled out the typed evaluation form from my box, and I almost fell over. I had rated exceeds expectations in every category! The rating system is Doesn't Meet, Meets, Proficient, and Exceeds. Proficient is a bit of a misnomer, as it actually translates to an A. Things are falling into place and looking good. Hopefully, getting his marks these last 3 years will help me on my grad school apps. Who knows? Christmas Winter break begins Thursday afternoon after the Faculty Talent Show. The kids are ready, and I am right there with them. I'm hitting the road running with some eggnog. Only 11 days until I leave for Montreal!

The 5 a.m. Alarm

This picture has nothing to do with the post--I was just reminded how much I loved this cheese spread when I lived in France. It seems very rare these days that someone actually loves their job. I hear so many stories of people getting up and going to a job they hate. I have a ton of friends who feel exactly this way. Back when I began college, my first major was economics. It was actually something that I loved, thanks to a great (and by great, I mean fantastic) high school econ teacher. After my second econ class, I decided that it wasn't for me. Unfortunately, thanks to a poor (and by poor, I mean horrible) macro-economics professor. She was one of those professors who would sneer and correct you if you called her Mrs. instead of Dr. I remember my mom being really upset that I had changed my major, because she felt as though I was giving up an opportunity to be independently wealthy in the business world. This wasn't the first time we'd had this conversation, and by this time, I felt I was old enough to make my own decisions concerning my future. The same semester I had the horrible macro professor, I had a really good psychology professor. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it, but I was happy, and that was ll that mattered at the time. Since then, and even to this day, I refuse to take a job based on money. I always say that I couldn't imagine getting up everyday depressed because I hate myself because of my job. I think that I am a product of my generation. The "millennials" as I believe we are called, are much less elf-serving, and much more altruistic than our predecessors. I cannot count the number of people I know in the Peace Corps, Teach for America, doing mission trips to Asia and Africa, building housing for the victims of the tsunami, etc... I could write about this for a while, so I'll have to revisit the topic. In short, I love my job, and cannot think of anything else I could happily way of at 5 am for. It's a great feeling when your students genuinely want to learn and are interactive in class (obviously, not every classroom is like this!). There are, of course, the days when you want to strangle them, but they are teenagers, so I can put it in perspective. I can much better deal with a 15 year-old being unreliable or moody,than a 40 year-old! I know that most of my students will not use French in the future, but just knowing that I have exposed them to a different culture, a different way of doing things, is enough for me. There are many students that I have that very strong in French. Those I will encourage to continue, so that they might have an opportunity to turn it into something that will be of use to them in the future. Although I am tired most of the time, I'm glad I'm tired from something that I enjoy.

Continuing Studies

I'm getting ramped up about going to Graduate School. I know that my plan is to get a Masters in Education in either Education Policy or Education Leadership. The only problem is where to go. I've been looking at a number of schools, but as I examined them, I noticed that I probably need to find a few "safety schools". Of course,there are some Ivy-league schools that have the "dream program" for me, but I have to try not to place all of my eggs in one basket, as it were. To further complicate matters, this morning I was using instant messenger to talk to a friend in France, who is now a lectrice at a university in Metz. It's been 3 years since I've lived in France, but I find myself missing it quite a bit. I know a guaranteed position that I could get there, but I've become far too Americanized. I have too many bills and loans that I must pay that surely would not be paid with the French salary. So, for now I am going to throw myself into researching schools, and hope to go to France during summers...

Interesting

Your Dominant Intelligence is Linguistic Intelligence You are excellent with words and language. You explain yourself well. An elegant speaker, you can converse well with anyone on the fly. You are also good at remembering information and convicing someone of your point of view. A master of creative phrasing and unique words, you enjoy expanding your vocabulary. You would make a fantastic poet, journalist, writer, teacher, lawyer, politician, or translator. What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?

The Gap

I'm not sure when the cultural shift took place, but my students informed me (much to my complete and utter horror) the GAP is no longer cool. One of my students was talking today about getting a new jacket without a hood (hoodies are banned at school), and he was expressing discontent at the inability to find on that looks "pimp". He said that he tried Abercrombie, PacSun, and Aeropostale among other stores, but to no avail. I mentioned the GAP, and every student looked at me and laughed! I was mortified. I thought to myself "Wait...what's wrong with GAP". D tells me: "Mr. French, please tell me that you don't shop at the GAP, that's so corny"! I lied and said "Of course not". I actually spent $30 there yesterday. I was then told that I looked like I usually have better taste than that, and that I look like I probably shop at Express (I do). It's our little secret, readers, that I don't mind the GAP...

It's MY Week!

This is officially "Teacher Appreciation Week". If there are any other teacher (or people for that matter) that read my blog, take a bow. Hopefully you'll get an apple. For its part, our school hosted an Honors Banquet for the senior class. The students were to choose a teacher that has impacted them at some point in their scholastic career. Early last week, much to my surprise, I was chosen. I must say that the food was pretty good. I will never turn down a free meal! It felt pretty good to be thanked, but I guess it was really for the seniors, and not me...but who cares! I got cake! Overheard: N: Hey, E, what's your middle name? E: Alfredo. N: Oh, like the cheese? I really like pasta and cheese.

I'm Tired.

May 25. 2:31 p.m. I think that my mind is venturing further and further to that point. At that precise moment, my summer will begin. Rest for the weary. It is really difficult to teach these days. The days seem to get longer and longer. The kids are sleepy & they can't wait to go to Six Flags. I think I may be in the same situation. Not that I have anything against my kids, but I would much prefer to baby-sit a rock than a room full of hormone-infused 16 year-olds right now. Hey, it's less than a month, though, right?? Overheard: [Students in the In School Suspension Room are served their lunch in little doggie bags. It is brought to them, and they must eat in their little cubicle] C---- (after opening her box): "Ewww....my food has herpes!!" Lunch-Bringer Dude: "Sorry guys, some of the baked apple dessert slid onto your mashed potatoes" CH----- (walking into the classroom between classes): "well it's ok, she only gave him a blowjob. OOOOPS! Mr. French, sorry, I didn't see you!"

Spring Craziness

I'm pretty sure that people are familiar with the term "Senioritis". It's that time of year that seniors severely retard, or even flat-out quit their studies, because they are pretty much done with high school. Contrary to popular belief, this same malady afflicts students of all ages. They are very much aware that there are only 7 weeks of school left, and they are starting to shut down. Today, in my French I class, I had to do a little bit of "yelling" and use a little of my "feel-a-little-bad-about-yourself-because-you've-made-Mr. French-mad language". Freshman are really a strange breed. I have decided that I cannot take them talking--having CONVERSATIONS--while I am at the board teaching or talking to them. We have 7 weeks left, and tomorrow will bring stiffer penalties, plus a new seating chart. I don't have time to be stressed out over some 14-year olds

Etc...

First of all, I know you are wondering what this picture has to do with anything. My friend Vic took this while we were on the subway in NYC last week. This was part of a series of ads by a NYC legal firm. To go along with their 212-DIVORCE & 212-BAIL-OUT, they felt as if they needed to help our Hispanic brethren. I know they wanted something easy to remember, but seriously!? News front: If you read my post below, I seem a bit dispondent and worried. I was afraid that I wasn't going to get the numbers needed to teach French III next year. Well, that section increased three-fold in 2 days , so it looks like I will get to finally have a full schedule next year! If you know me, you know that Overheard in New York is one of my favorite websites. In honor of that, I have collected some choice quotes today that I will call: "Overheard in North Dallas Suburban High". Let's see how that will fit on the uniforms...here we go: A student throws up in the in-school suspension room, and runs to the bathroom. Observing Student: I wonder how many times he stuck his finger down his throat so that he didn't have to stay here. I should do that. A few students are having a conversation while waiting for class to begin. J: Mr., why do we have to learn French? If I go somewhere in Europe, it'd be ItaliaSpain. S: Where's ItaliaSpain? G: Dummy, it's Italy and Spain. S: Oh, are those countries? G: Yes! S: Oh...what continent is that? Girl drops pen, crouches down to get it, and some paper, as well. B: Hey! What's she doing? R (the whitest white guy): She's gettin' low!