A little bit of Red Green in all of us

So tonight I had to put together an "alternative response" to a novel I'd read. I'd chosen "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time", which is an absolutely fabulous novel that I highly recommend to everyone. It's written by Mark Haddon from the point of view of an autistic child who loves math and logic but has trouble with emotions.

An alternative response is a totally free creation in response to a piece of literature. I.e., it is not a book report, nor the boring diorama we all had to make. Rather, it's something that represents the book to us. For example, one could write a song, or bake some food that's discussed in the book, or make a poster or build a boat (e.g., for The Life of Pi). Anyhow, I chose to do up a math brainteaser that's discussed in the book (yes, I am a geek). Regardless of what I made, the point of this story is I decided to "fancify" it by gluing my printout onto construction paper so it would have a backing (I'm sure there's a fancy scrapbooking term for this). When I had previously helped make a poster (see here for a look at mine - here is a slideshow of all the class's work, in case you're really bored), this technique had made this look quite snappy.

This is when I realized the difference between girls and boys. I had done that project with a nice girl named Jen. She scrapbooks. She does crafts. She had stencils and glue and scissors and construction paper and stickers and glitter and markers and all sorts of odds and sods for us to make our poster. Tonight I discovered that I do not have any of those things. I have no stencils, no glue stick, no scissors, no construction paper or any of those other things...

...and this is where my Red Green came in. I took three file folders (nice bright red) down to the storage locker, opened my toolbox and pulled out my utility knife. And the set square. Cut the file folders in half to make the backings, then trimmed the printed pages so they were slightly smaller than the backings. Finally, I pulled out my industrial glue bottle (it glues tile, wood, metal and pretty much anything else it touches), carefully spread some on the paper and voila! Art. A couple of hole punches later and I had my project finished. Not bad for just a boy...but I'm thinking I should pick up some construction paper before next semester :-)

Last minute pressures

Ah, the beauty of the close of a semester (yes, semester one for us is almost over - less than two weeks to go). All our projects are coming due at the same time, particularly those that we were supposed to be working on for the last two months :-) You'd think I wouldn't have a spare moment to...well...spare.

And I don't really, but I've been making sure to stay well-rounded. Last week, despite diving head-first into my observation days at the high school, I attended a basketball referee meeting on Wednesday night. On Thursday night I checked out an excellent show by the Weakerthans, a band from Winnipeg that Bassett introduced me to. I think they might very well qualify as my favourite group right now. And the setting was crazy - small room with probably only a couple of hundred people in attendance. A far cry from the last time I saw them at Barrymore's in Ottawa!

Friday night I returned to the high school at 5:30 to try and help coach the junior boys basketball team, but they already had enough coaches, so I just watched the tryout - first one I'd ever really observed. It's amazing how well-behaved teenagers are when they're interested in something, as opposed to class. Took in the UNB-STU hockey game afterwards, which was very exciting. Packed into a small arena that probably sat at most 1500 (and I mean packed), the noise level was deafening and the game was highly entertaining. A far cry from the game two weeks ago where UNB plastered STU 6-1. STU even managed to pull this one out, with a 3-1 (empty netter) victory, much to the delight of the "Tommy" supporters in the crowd. Following the game, several of us reconvened at Dolan's pub for a couple of pitchers, nachos and poutine. Think I had three heart attacks just sitting there, but man did it ever taste good.

Then, just for good measure, I attended a hockey referee clinic all day Saturday and part of Sunday. No wonder I've got all my projects piling up. But it's been worth it - very enjoyable being this busy, and the school work will get done if it really needs to get done...like tonight :-) Off I go!

Dear God

Please, please don't let me get like this with my kids or students...On the CBC website today, there was an article about a school in Massachusetts that has banned "Tag" at recess, because it can lead to injury and maybe lawsuits...Maybe we should just get rid of recess entirely, so kids won't trip on their way in and out of the school. Better yet, let's just have them all stay at home nice and safe and teachers can't just lecture to empty classrooms.

I recognize there are risks in this world. And you're talking to a pretty risk adverse person. But there has to be a point where we ask if it's worth stopping living in order to marginally decrease our risk. *sigh*

One day down…

First day as an intern is now under my belt. High school sure has changed since my day…and some things have stayed the same. My school is huge by my standards, at around 1700 students covering grades 9-12. (My own high school was about 1000 students for grades 9-13.) There are all sorts of new policies on exemptions from exams, late submission of assignments – even down to washroom breaks (one per month per student). Absenteeism seems to be a big issue. Attendance for all four grades was ranging between 88 and 91% for September, and folks seemed satisfied with this. In pretty much every class there was somebody who was either suspended, or had stopped coming to class or had massive amounts of detention. Have kids really gone that bad? Was my class/school that good? Are schools just over the top on punishment and discipline now?

I also find the whole NB way of “streaming” grades confusing. Technically speaking, there is no division in grades 9 and 10. But for grades 11 and 12 they have stream 1, 2, 3, and 3M. Stream 1 is the most “advanced”. Streams 1 and 2 are for students going to university. Stream 3 kids will never go to university – their diploma is not the same as streams 1 and 2. Stream 3M (the ‘M’ is for modified) is for kids with various special needs who can’t handle the full dose of 3M (NB has a policy of inclusion for all “needy” students). In addition to these modified classes, special needs kids can end up in one on one help in the resource center (if they are severally affected) or in a regular classroom (if more mildly affected) with the teacher being responsible for adjusting the curriculum, lessons, assignments and tests to meet that student’s needs. So in a class with four “accommodated” students (their term), a teacher could end up having to plan and mark five different lessons. Pretty daunting.

And while I say that technically there is no division in grades 9 and 10 (i.e., theoretically, students have until grade 11 to figure out what stream they want to take), the school filters students in the “appropriate” stream at these grades as well, and then informs the student whether they will be able to cut it in stream 1 or 2 or 3 at the higher grades. My first reaction to this is that is smacks of arrogance and robs students of their independence. Who wants their future decided based on what a grade 9 or 10 teacher thinks of them? Apparently it used to be that kids had to decide in grade eight whether they wanted university-stream courses or not. As I said, it’s since been moved to grade 10, but teachers want to return it to grade 8.

Anyhow, I am observing two grade 10 math classes (pseudo stream 2s) and a grade 11 math class (stream 3 – full of “troubled” kids). My teacher is very interventionist – he rules the classroom tightly and brooks no disagreements. Lots of moving talking students around, speaking sternly and direct instruction (not a lot of drawing explanations out of students). That being said, the classes were relatively well-behaved, the students seem to respect him and his authority, in particular the stream 3 kids, who I think like him because he treats them as regular students. But it will certainly be an effort to try out any different kind of classroom management theory in his room!

Supervising teacher is quite nice, if opinionated and strong-willed. Also ambitious – he’s been teaching 6 years and is already trying to get on the principalship track. Runs the lunchhour detention centre. Coach of the varsity boys soccer team. Running a research project.

Anyhow, I survived – even managed to answer a couple of questions from students. At least I wasn’t like one of my colleagues. Her class got so out of control her teacher’s face turned red trying to get them to quiet down, but couldn’t. My colleague stood up and said, “Mr. Blank, can I say something? If this were a university class, the professor would just walk out the door and give up. You would all receive Fs and would have to pay $500 to take the course over again. This behaviour is unacceptable and when I’m in from of this classroom I expect it to be very different.” Pretty ballsy and, I thought, a bit presumptuous. But apparently the teacher was more grateful than annoyed and the students gave her a round of applause and behaved better for the rest of the day. I have no idea if they were actually being bad. This is the same girl who was absolutely mortified and beet red in the staff room. Apparently some teachers were telling war stories (as always happens) about two students of the opposite sex who were fooling around with each other at the back of the classroom…another had a story about a student masturbating at the back of the room. “I just couldn’t believe they were having a conversation about those things!” The girl lacks a bit of exposure to earthy dialogue, me thinks.

So…one day down, two more observation days to go…then two months of teaching! Still worried about classroom management and discipline, especially with the czar of discipline as my supervisor. Fairly confident I can teach the material, if everyone is listening and watching. I’ll let you know how it goes!

First Day of School Jitters

So tomorrow is my first day at my "teaching school". We go for three days of observation this week before returning in November for 7 weeks of actual teaching practice. But tomorrow I will be meeting my cooperating teacher and all of his classes and students. Very scary. I'm even nervous about what to wear! It's like the nerves of all the first day of schools from your childhood, but without the comfort of knowing you'll know people there. There will not be a single familiar face in those classrooms tomorrow. Pretty daunting. Fortunately, I think I basically get to just sit there and watch, but I know the kids will be watching me as well, sizing me up for when I'll be trying to edumacate them. Here's hoping I give off a decent first impression!

From Homework Night in Canada to Hockey Night in Fredericton

Well...I'm sore. First hockey game of the season was tonight. I was *very* nervous, since I ended up getting recruited by a competitive team - I think they just needed another warm body. As you may know, I have no car, so tonight at 9:15 I slung my hockey bag onto my back, picked up my two sticks and hopped on my bike. Now, I haven't detailed to bike route to school yet for my readers. It's not far - just a shade under 3kms. But it is almost entirely straight up. And I'm not talking a small little hill here. It makes the Gordon and Edinburgh hills in Guelph (for those that remember them) look downright puny.

So I dropped the bike into its easiest gear and started pedalling. Fifteen minutes later I pulled up at the arena with an aching back, shaky legs and very out of breath. Took me a while to find the change room too, so I was last one getting ready...but I was there long enough to hear that, at least as far as I could figure, several of the players on the team also play junior hockey in their hometowns. Not encouraging for me.

Got out on the ice early enough to get a little bit of a warmup in, watching the other players blast slapshots (yeah, I still don't know how to do that), while I struggle just skating backwards. The referee (yes, first time ever with a referee for me!) blew his whistle and I, quite wisely, started the game on the bench. This way I got to watch the game a bit before I dove in. It was pretty fast and some of the players were very talented. It is a non-contact league, but that seemed to mean a non-body-checking league, as there was lots of jostling in the corners and in front of the net.

Soon enough, my first shift came quickly and I hopped onto the ice (well, stepped - no way I was going to try and go over the boards first time out). Almost as soon as I set foot on the ice, an opposing player came my way with the puck. I lunged my stick at him, then watched him deftly step around me as my stick went fluttering off down the ice. So much for good first impressions.

Spent the rest of the first period trying to keep up with guys and get the flow of the game. I actually didn't do too badly. I'm just very aware I will never deke anyone out or wire a shot to the top corner or outskate anyone...but I'm determined and generally well-positioned. Then, a miracle happened. A goal mouth scramble at their end, the puck pops loose and I have the whole net to shoot at. I quite literally shovelled the puck towards the net and it barely slid across the line to tie the game at 1-1. I should retire now, with my 100% shooting percentage! This definitely made me feel more at ease.

The game continued and I did a decent job of keeping up with the play - always choosing the safe play and trying not to take any risks. A good game too - back and forth, lots of chances. With us nursing a 3-2 lead into the third, they stormed the net off a faceoff and tied it 3-3. Then, with 2 minutes to go, my true talent shone through. They made a nice little give and go around our net with me playing the role of swiveling pylon and they potted the game winning goal...

So we lost 4-3, I scored a goal and was responsible for one of theirs. Not too bad, but it was pretty clear I was the worst guy on our team. I'll have to check with the captain if they want me back - the recreational league is always there for me! But I kind of enjoyed it and think it might help me improve my game. Either way, I got a good workout! (Of course, I then had to crawl back on the bike for the ride home, which, fortunately, is entirely downhill, so I could just coast.)

Homework Night in Canada

So today, in a group of four, I had to do a presentation/debate on the issue of assigning homework or not assigning homework to students: how does it impact their social, academic and family lives? The content itself is mildly interesting – the upshot seems to be it’s all an opinion question – but our format was killer.

We spoofed Hockey Night in Canada, complete with theme music, modified opening sequence and logos. I played Ron MacLean. Kurt was my sidekick, Don Cherry. Matt was Kelly Hrudey and Lisa was Elliott Friedman. Kurt is a very funny guy and did a great Don Cherry. The rest of us delivered respectable performances and the class loved it. I must have had 30 people come up afterwards and say how funny they found it. Heck, they even gave us a standing ovation, which has not happened before for anyone else’s presentations.

I really feel like I worked hard on this project and put a lot into it and it was really gratifying so many people enjoyed it. This group was a dream to work with (and with so many of our projects being group work, I’ve experienced bad ones) and I had a great time. Usually after a presentation or big assignment I just feel relief, but today I felt great satisfaction at a job well done. I’ve come home and am now having a glass of wine to celebrate.
Oh, and for those wondering, yes – this is how they train teachers :-)

No beer and no TV make Homer something something…

Well, I still have a bit of beer left (but not that much, and I should be worried. There may not be any left at the liquor store. Today’s paper announced that Fredericton leads New Brunswick towns in liquor consumption), but no longer do I enjoy the benefits of free cable. Yes, that’s right, just like in Ottawa, when I moved here I hooked up the cable and it worked fine. But two nights ago, it stopped working. Seems they finally caught on to me. I wrestled with the idea of ordering it, but can’t bring myself to spend the money. So instead, I started this blog :-) And turned on the radio in an attempt to bring CBC back into my life. So far that means I’ve been exposed to a lot of stories about mill closings and listening to interviews with people who would not seem out of place in Fargo. But it’s nice to hear the familiar refrains of As It Happens and The World at Six. Maybe this will help make me more edumacated too…at least more than CSI was.

From A Ways Away

Why am I from a ways away? Earlier this year I packed up my things and moved to Fredericton, New Brunswick (the move adventure will be detailed later). Not a lot of people from Ontario here. And, according to what I’ve read, if you can't claim that at least three generations of your ancestors lived here--or if your ancestors are from here, but you've moved away and then returned--then you're from away. If you've moved here--even if from the next community--then you're from away. A regional joke states that, like children born locally to parents from away, "Hatchin' chickens in the stove, doesn't make 'em muffins, does it!"

It most certainly does not make them muffins, and my muffin status is also denied by my Ontario heritage. And if the next community over qualifies one for “from away” status, then I must truly be “from a ways away”. That, and fromaway.blogspot.com was already taken. But I am here and have been relatively well-received by the locals. New Brunswick is a funny place. It is Canada’s only officially bilingual province (French and English). It has a provincial population of 749,168, less than that of Ottawa! Fredericton, where I live, has only around 60,000 residents. The province is full of trees (80% wooded) and very empty of people. Most people seem to use New Brunswick as a thoroughfare for going to and from Nova Scotia and Quebec. As a result, it is often overlooked as a tourist destination and, really, as much of anything.

But I’m here, and kind of like it. I don’t think I can see myself here long term – it’s really, really small, with no access to a large city near by. But for one year, it’s more than livable. Why one year? I’m training to become a teacher at St. Thomas University. In class we play games, sing songs, act out plays and this, evidently, prepares one for teaching. That being said, next week I go into the schools, so I assume the kids will be the ones educating me.