Saturday, April 11, 2009

While I Try to Figure Out How to Be Grown Up

Just an update. I taught 2nd grade on Tuesday--exhausting.

I taught 5th grade on Wed--surprisingly fun. I especially liked when the class went to computers for an hour and I read my book. Lame, but true. I also liked the way these kids ran their own classroom, everyone knowing their job and performing fantastically. This teacher has these kids well-trained. Managing a classroom is an art I tell you! When I substitute teach in the really well run classrooms, I start to think, "I could do this for real." The other days when I'm in a classroom that is run more like I would do it, (a little disorganized and overwhelming) not so much!

Thursday I taught 7-9th grade German. Haha. I don't speak any German but I know how to put a video in. And I enjoyed reading my book some more.

Friday, German again, only this time in the high school. A different video, not nearly as entertaining. Some question exists about my ability to run the DVD player. I probably shouldn't let people know how lame I am, huh?

Plus, I feel lame for recommending the book I finished that day, Esperanza Rising, by Pam Munoz Ryan. The book was great! The lame thing is that books for 6-8th graders are really right at my level. Plus, the truth is that I found it for the first time in a 4th grade classroom last week. I knew right away it was a story for me when I read the back cover. Esperanza means hope in Spanish. It's the story of how a rich Mexican girl loses all her earthly possessions when her wealthy father dies. It recounts the story of how she learns to become a working girl. Just seemed to fit for me, and I felt hope. If you're not above reading books for teens, I think you'll like it too.

1 comment:

Carol said...

I am actually starting to think Junior and Young Adult fiction is the way to go. I've been burned with language and content in the last few novels I've tried to read and haven't even finished reading a couple of them - which I never do because I hate an unfinished book. But sometimes it's just not worth it. It's really frustrating because I just want to escape to a good and wholesome world and there are only so many Jane Austen books. :)