Thank you for your comments. Obviously I had some superbug as I still have a touch of a sore throat and a bit of a cough from that darn cold. And now DH has it. Poor DH, he is stuck in CT. Not that being in CT is a bad thing at all, but his flight was cancelled due to the weather and he was moved to a second flight. Then the second flight got cancelled and he is waiting in Bradley Airport as I write this for his flight to take off. Add to that, not feeling well. I can only imagine what he will feel like when he lands here in wet cool weather at 9:30pm. He may stay home tomorrow.
School is actually improving. Right now the biggest problem is one of the teachers. He has managed to antagonize the students. Granted he did such things as (gasp) expect them to be on time; expect them to do their work; expect them not to swear at him! (You get the gist of the kind of kids we have?!!). We are dealing with kids who have so much baggage that this is actually too much for them! In part it is the way he says it. So, he is back pedalling right now to develop a rapport with the kids, and asking me for help such as books he can read etc on dealing with these kinds of kids.
To give you a snapshot of what these kids are like. Some actually live in the streets. We are considering bringing in AA to run weekly meetings in the school AND we would have to give the kids volunteer hours (they need 40 to graduate here) just to attend. We have Student of the Week assemblies where each of the 4 teachers nominates a student (so we really have students of the week ot student) and they get a certifcate and a movie coupon. They save the coupons so they can go to a special movie. I opened a corporate account with one of the big movie houses so I get the coupons at a discount.
You may be shocked and alarmed that we basically bribe kids to go to school and do their work. Keep in mind that I have 17 year olds with NO credits. I have students who dropped out in grade 8 and are, at 16, coming back to try school again. We become their parents and their role models. When I first started teaching I taught kids who actually dreaded Christmas break because we were the most stable adults in their lives and they would be without us and with their parents. One kid, at 13, went to court to be legally removed from his parents. I teach kids who when I meet their parents and see how they interact with their kids I want to encourage the kid to run away from home (no, I don’t say it, but I want to!).
Apparently the person previously in my position did not have the easiest personality to work with. (not that I am any great shakes) so I have also worked on being supportive of the staff. I believe that if the staff know they are appreciated, then they go into the classroom with a better attitude and can focus on the kids. I think we have all had bosses who were so awful to work with that we spent the afternoon rehashing arguments and not really working?! Not an option when teaching these types of kids, so I try to make it as pleasant a work environment as I can. Sometimes all that takes is buying a dozen donuts for the staff meeting so people get a treat while there. I think it is a small price to pay.
As for the title of this posting. I went to my favourite Goodwill on the weekend. I should comment that this is the Goodwill that a fair chunk of wealthy women in Toronto drop their barely worn stuff in. I tried on about 12 pairs of dress pants for work. A pair of Ralph Lauren pants fit but they were pleated so not a great look. A pair of Bob Mackie pants fit but didn’t look great. I settled for a pair of Liz Clairborne pants. The price for any of these? $6.99. They look practically new. So, you see why I love to shop there. And there is my constant dream that I only need them for a few months before I lose waitte so why spend a lot of money?!! During my quest I found soooo many great pairs of pants, and suits but in a size 12. I am a 14 - 16. So, you can understand my pain!
I will try to be more faithful with my postings!
