looking at number 7

It's official, my teacher, J is taking a job in another school. I am now looking at teacher 7 in 5 years. I knew she wouldn't be around for long. She needs to do her practicum for her masters in a severe disabilities classroom, we are moderate. So what does this mean for me?? Well nothing right now, come the end of August it could mean I take over the class room once again. I'm hoping that wont happen. I hoped to be more of an inclusion para than behavioral. Administration keeps telling me I will have a totally new purpose come September. 


I took a class on Accommodation and Modification over the past week. I have to say Lynda and I were surprised how little the regular ed teachers know about this stuff. The younger teachers are so much more receptive on how best to do these things. The older teachers, well that's a different story. One guy, to remain nameless, actually said accommodating and/or modification was cheating. So I asked him, if you have a kid who reads on a 3rd grade level how do you expect him to understand the material if he can't read it? His answer, he'll just have to suck it up and work harder...I kid you not...talk about dinosaur thinking. I have to say this guy was one of Rachel's teachers. I never had an issue with him, but hearing him talk, we defiantly could have.


Heading out for a road trip in the morning with the game night ladies. Don't know where we are heading, Judy is driving, it's her choice.  All I know is we're heading north.....

Last Day of School

The last day of a year I thought would never ever end. I started the year with one teacher and ended it with another. I liked both the teachers I worked with this year. K really didn't want to be in Project Support, and was out often. J is funny, young, and a bit overzealous. She isn't going to stay either, her masters is in severe disability, she has been looking for another  position.

We had two kids expelled. Both needed way more than we could give them. I hope they both find the help they need.

We had our first full time girl. Let me tell you I have had real thugs, drug dealers, criminals come through that room none of them was as tiring as that one girl is. DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA.  For someone who couldn't go anywhere by herself, had to eat lunch with the 6th graders instead of her own grade level, and still  she manages to find trouble.

We had the end of the year party yesterday. I wasn't going to go, as usual. Lynda, as usual, dragged me along. It was fun. Beer pong was the main event. One of the best teachers in the school has retired. We will miss her so very much.

So what's up next? I start a class this morning on Modifying and Accommodating curriculum. Chris, the principle, is going to let Lynda and I, and any other Paraprofessionals who are interested monitor the class for free. We probably have more experience already than most of the teachers taking the class for credit. He keeps telling us we should go back to school.

Well I have to say some of the teachers from the other buildings are taken back from how sarcastic, funny, and down right blunt Chris is.  I guess we are just used to him. There is no BS with Chris, straight up he can be a great guy to work for if you do what is expected of you, but if you don't you'll be sure to know of his displeasure.

We'll see how this goes....

Memorial Day

While having your family BBQ this weekend give a thought or two to the service men and women who have died defending you and those you love. If you head to a local parade respect the solemness of the occasion. Pray to whoever it is you pray to, that peace will one day come to the world and we will add no more names to those who fell in war. 

A Snake in the Locker Room

Got to work on Thursday and Joe the custodian tells us there's a snake loose in the school. He saw it but couldn't catch "the bastard", it was to fast for him. Ok that's it we're going home. I am petrified of all those creepy crawly things. Spiders, hornets, bees of any kind I have no problem but lizards and snakes no way. It was last seen heading down the locker room hallway. The track coach is now freaking because he has to go into the locker room after school and is worse than we were. 

It was 7th grade MCAS testing day so we were in the library with our small groups when we hear a blood curdling scream.... Donna looks at Lynda and I and says, "Guess they found the snake". Next thing we see this 8th grade girl heading towards the office holding this thing, smiling like you can't imagine. She wants to bring it to a science room and keep it........ well thank you CC, he made her release it into the wild!! 

Now the question is how did the "little bastard", to quote Joe, get into the school, and how did the 8th grade boys know about it????....well some of the boys track team thought it would be funny if they left it in the girls locker room....as of today, no ones taking credit for the deed, no one knows anything........ isn't that a surprise!

Seventeen days left in the school year, but who's counting!

I knew it had to happen...

I knew it would happen sooner of later, one of the kids asked me today how Gee died. It started because A asked me what Hospice was/meant. He is reading a book which has a character enter a hospice center.  After explaining that it was more of an idea than a place. That it is a method of care that helps dying  people come to the end of their lives without pain and with dignity. That many people choose to stop all other medical care and die in peace.

Then he said it, like your husband? Yes A, like my husband. So I told him that after many, many years of fighting cancer Gee decided he was done. No more treatments, he had had enough. That he wanted to die at home, so we brought him home. After thinking about it for a minute he says,  I bet you miss him.....Yes A I  miss him....

I had thought it was going to be this very traumatic issue for me, and it really wasn't. It was very matter of fact, no drama just information. It is now that I become emotional. When A was asking questions I guess because he was sincere and the whole conversation came about so gradually it was more of a teaching moment than a personal one.

Lost in You Tube!

Has this ever happened to you? You start looking at one thing and you end up totally wrapped up looking for something else?

 I was watching the ball game, Red Sox loosing badly (what a surprise), so I started listening to some stuff on You Tube. I started with some Alan Jackson, then moved on to some oldies from the 60's. The Beach Boys were never a big thing with me, but I clicked on a Carl Wilson song, what a voice. Ok so now I'm searching for songs he sang, love Darlin. So I start to wonder who sings it now that Carl is no longer with us....well it's the drummer....and who is that drummer, none other than John Cowsill, yep from those Cowsills.

Now I start to remember all those songs the Cowsills sang. I start looking for their songs. Which leads me to a Canadian Country group from the early 90's, The Blue Shadows. Billy Cowsill is the lead singer. What a group...Love the song Deliver Me...having "discovered" this wonderful group I find Billy passed away a few years ago, hard living and addiction were major factors in his death. All this because the Red Sox are playing horrible baseball.

FIELD TRIP

Lynda and I went to Royalston to hear Brett's band play. They were very good. It was open mic night and I now know where all the old hippies went! They are alive and well in the woods of Royalston. I couldn't believe all the people there. This is a little New England town in the middle of nowhere, the venue is upstairs in the town hall. Like most small towns everyone knew each other and they all wondered who we were until Brett from on stage introduces us as his groupies, woot woot Brett. It was fun, one of Lynda's many ideas to get me out of the house...she feels I spend to much time at home alone with my thoughts.

There was a man there, mid sixties I would say, so reminded me of Gee. Moved so smoothly over the floor, like he felt the music instead of just hearing it. Gee loved to dance and would dance with everyone. As I watched him a wave of such sadness over came me. Lynda must have been watching me because she says...He reminds me of Gee......its always right there, just under the surface.......

Knugg

Ok, I had no idea what it was either. It is a music piece Steve, Rachel's boyfriend, played last night at his fraternity recital. All I really can say is WOW! I had no idea that kind of music could come out of a tuba! I had only heard the om pa om pa sounds. Rachel said something about lower resister, blah blah, I really don't understand, but it sounded like singing, mixed with the sounds of an Aborigine instrument, just amazing!
There was guitars, piano, singing and even bagpipes. They have a tenor who's voice was so beautiful, almost took your breath away. All the guys were great!

Rachel will be home in less than 3 weeks, last final for her is May 9th. The final push to get everything done on time. Her stress level is through the roof. She never leaves anything to the last minute but she still stresses on getting everything done. She is still looking for a job, had an offer of an internship, unpaid internship but turned down. It wasn't in her field of social work and she would like to get paid this summer...

Clayton has a new job! He is now working at Mass General Hospital. What he is doing I have no idea, something with computers, and the chance for advancement is there. Which wasn't at Winchester Hospital, where he worked before. He's very excited. Can't believe he will be 29 on the 28th of April! Where did that curly haired boy who lived for Tae Kwon Do and flying over a high jump bar go. I used to worry about my carefree son, always ready for a good time, an adventure, never taking anything very serious. I have always felt Rachel would be the one looking out for him, not the other way around. Well he has become so much like his Dad, Gee was/would be so very proud of him, I no longer have that worry. A true family man in the footsteps of his father.