My short week of teaching

As I mentioned earlier, it's been a slow week, but at least I was able to get off another application or two. Wednesday and Thursday it was junior high math, and yesterday high school science. Because of the WASL and all of the schedule fluctuations because of it, however, neither teacher seemed to want to add too much to their students' load, and they were all pretty low-key. The math students got a packet of review assignments to work on, while the science students had a short paper to read and questions to answer. Nothing too hard for them, nor for me. The science teacher even has a student teacher for a few periods, so all I have to do at those times is be the warm certificated body.

Huh...

This is unusual: I actually don't have a job for two days in a row. It's unusual enough to not get work for one day, and I can't recall the last time I didn't find/wasn't offered jobs (outside of the very beginning and end of the school year) when school was going on two days in a row. Well, with spring break now having wrapped up and the WASL starting, I guess there isn't quite as much need for subs right now, and it will pick up again soon. In fact, I already have jobs for the rest of the week and on into Monday. So I'm going to take advantage of today to get some errands taken care of, and fill out yet another application. I'm really getting tired of filling out applications, but at least I've streamlined the process enough that it goes pretty smoothly.

The WASL this week

There is an interesting article in The Seattle Times today about the WASL and how math is taught in this state. As I read, I couldn't help thinking that I'm just the kind of math teacher they're looking for, as I actually take the time to explain why things work. One thing I plan on doing once I get my own class, I might add, is to teach the proper vocabulary for each lesson, how to use it, and expect that my students will use it properly. That alone should go a long way towards making explanations easier.

My abbreviated week of teaching

I'll be real quick here, since there isn't much to say anyway. No luck getting a job on Wednesday, so I filled out and/or updated a couple of applications instead. (One district was advertising about a half dozen math positions, as well as junior and senior high school math pools, so I figured I'd be a fool not to apply there!) Thursday, I was a junior high librarian. It was pretty quiet, no classes were scheduled to be there, so I just had to check books in and out, help and/or watch the handful of students who came in (mostly at lunch), put books on the shelves... All in all, a very pleasant and relaxing way to get back into the swing of things after my break. (Yet why do I feel I didn't get a break at all?) And yesterday, I had a half day "teaching" fourth grade in the afternoon. I put teaching in quotation marks because I really had very little teaching to do. They were at recess when I got there, they had silent reading when they came in, a math packet, games, more recess, I got to read to them, then they were off to various parts of the school for their Fun Friday events, while a few students came to my room and I showed Looney Tunes cartoons! Yeah, it was fun!

Nothing lined up until next Friday, when I have a two day high school science job. Next week the WASL starts up again, so there may be some test proctoring going on, or I just may not get as much work.

Thank goodness for spring vacation!

I know, I know, it's been a while since I posted. I've been pretty busy and/or tired the whole time, however. First off, in case anyone was worried that I was seriously ill, no, it turned out to be a very low-grade cold or somesuch. It did not, thank goodness, turn into the full-blown flu that was going around. It did, however, make me feel just lousy enough to feel crummy most of the time, and I even took a day off to get some rest.

But anyway, now it's spring vacation — sort of. See, the two districts I work in have their breaks on different weeks this year, and so I'm sort of staggering it out. I spent most of last week working in one district (the closer one that also pays better), so that I could take a few days off this week. However, since last Friday was a teachers-only work day, and I ended up with only a half day last Thursday, and I'm likely going to have to take some time off in a couple of weeks to get some dental work done (new crown — I already have the temporary one on right now, at least), I'd like to get at least a couple of days in the other district. (Are you following this? Do you really care?) So I'll see what I can do about getting jobs at least Thursday and Friday, and if something good comes up tomorrow as well, I'll take it.

So, what have I been up to? Lots of requests, mostly math and science, but I also got an elementary PE job (that one half-day last week). I also actually got a call for an elementary job, which rarely happens any more. It turned out to be pretty interesting, as my plans for the fifth grade class were very thorough and complete for the morning, but very sketchy for the afternoon. Of course, the plans failed to mention that this class had a student teacher for the afternoon. Sweet! But wait! One of the fourth grade teachers came back that day after being out two weeks with the flu, and it turned out to be a day or two early, as she didn't make it through the day. So I ended up taking the fourth graders for the afternoon, and the poor student teacher had to fly solo. It was a little hectic, but for the most part it all went well.

This is actually a pretty interesting time of year to sub, since just about everybody in the class knows what to do, and I don't usually have to do much except tell them what's next. I had a two day assignment at one junior high last week where pretty much all I had to do was take roll. By the time I was done, they'd already started in with what they needed to do. Even the one "bad" class was terrific, and the usually-less-than-cooperative students quickly got their stuff, checked in with me, and headed off to where they were doing their thing in other rooms! Yes, a well-run class is a thing of beauty, and I've been doing some reading on how I can create such a room myself. Now, if only the library wasn't so efficient in finding the books I want to borrow and getting them to me, I could finish this book...

Oh, yeah, and I'm working on some job applications. Some of these districts that use online applications need to make sure that they're working all right, however, as I've encountered some technical hitches. We shall see what happens. I have to keep reminding myself that it's still early, and I shouldn't worry that I haven't heard from anyone yet (except the one district that already turned me down — I guess they don't anticipate any need for math teachers this year). Some districts aren't even advertising openings for next year yet. So if I can squeeze out an application or two each week, I should be all right. But man, it sure would be easier if I could get some interviews now...