Law of Gravity

Seventh grade English. It was a Friday, so of course there weren't enough subs to go around. I was covering a math class for the rest of the day, but for fourth period, I ran across campus to cover this class. As they were getting seated, I perused the lesson plans. I hurriedly passed things out because apparently they had a test, and we were late getting started. (This is normal for covering an extra period. It takes security a while to get to the room to open the door. And then it takes me a bit to get up to speed while they settle in.) I passed out the test. And they balked. "It's in French..." From what I could gather, they'd been studying how to figure out unfamiliar words using context clues. And by "gather", I mean that on the teacher's desk were papers indicating that they had been going over this concept for at least a couple days (if not longer). Then, the instructions on the paper they had in front of them clearly stated that while the pas...

High school science, special ed edition. We were reading a chapter on sound. We had a whole period, and just reading gets a bit tedious, so to break things up I searched for videos demonstrating sound waves. In the limited time, I came up empty, but I did find this article on sounds only young people can hear . Oooh, I had to try this. I played the 8000 Hz. Then, the 12,000 Hz wasn't working in the article, so I found another on YouTube . We could all hear those. As I am over 40, the 15,000 Hz was inaudible to me and the instructional aide. The kiddos said they heard it fine. (They complained that it was irritating, though.) And then I played the 17,400 Hz... "Wait. I can't hear that! Are you playing something?" I've had Josephine Joe in several classes. (You are probably aware I don't use students' actual names, and I haven't here. But I remember her because her first name is the feminine version that shortens to the male name that is her last name.) ...

Seventh grade special ed world history. They're studying the Renaissance. We had a few paragraphs to read. Then they had some multiple choice questions to answer. As they were special ed, we were doing them together. Question number 3: Who was Michelangelo? Very faintly, from the back, I heard, "A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle ." I pounced. (The Ninja Turtles were huge when I worked at the evil toy store. And, he wasn't wrong.) I had the kiddos recall the names of the Ninja Turtles. Raphael. Leonardo. Michelangelo. Donatello. Then I informed them that the Ninja Turtles were named after Renaissance artists.  Ahem. It's a stupid random piece of trivia. I love throwing out stupid random pieces of trivia. Silly, I know...

At the heart of much speculative fiction (and fiction in general) is a question. What if? On Tuesdays I like to throw one out there and see what you make of it. Do with it as you please. If a for-instance is not specified, feel free to interpret that instance as you wish. And if you find this becomes a novel-length answer, I'd appreciate a thank you in the acknowledgements.  😉 I've done this one before, although in a slightly altered form ... What if the only person who could help you was your middle school bully?

I finally finished the scarf! No, not that one . Or that one . But the one that I was making for eldest nephew's birthday. In December. Ahem. Yeah, it's only three months late... But it's finished. I had a couple visitors while photographing it. ...and... Yup, the kahonks are back. (Why kahonk? Here's the explanation .) It's one of those self striping yarns with very subtle color changes. It's hard to see from the above photos, but you can see it here... So, now back to the other scarves. The ones that I've been working on since last summer. I'll get those finished. Eventually.

I was scheduled to go to the continuation high school for day two of a two-day assignment. I got a call in the morning telling me that they had to pull me. There were not enough subs to go around so I was being sent to... Elementary school. I was not happy about this. (I avoid elementary school for various reasons. They know this. I was not given a choice.) But none of this was the fault of the elementary school staff or the students. And the fifth grade class wasn't too terrible. We were midway through their math assignment. A student asked how long until recess. I pointed out the clock... Frequently in the middle school and sometimes in the high school when I point out the clock, the kiddos inform me that they "can't read" it. And I grumble and sigh. They seem to be perfectly content not knowing how to read an analog clock. No, I don't help them out with this. They can figure it out. So, when the fifth graders asked how long until recess, I figured we could go o...

Thursday, two weeks ago. I was covering for a special ed teacher who co-taught all day. It's a pretty easy gig when the other teacher is present (as opposed to also having a sub). I was to co-teach with three different teachers. Plus, I was to cover an extra period somewhere else. The schedule was: Period 1: co-teach English 8 with Ms. W. Period 2: co-teach English 8 with Ms. R. Period 3: co-teach math. Period 4: co-teach English 8 with Ms. R. Period 5: conference (but I was to cover a science class). Period 6: co-teach English 8 with Ms. W.  In other words, I was not in the same room two periods in a row. So, I got to do lots of walking that day.  During first period, I got a call from the office. Instead of co-teaching third period, I was to cover a different English class. As luck would have it, that room was right next door to the class I'd be in periods two and four. Okay, then.  Second period. The eighth graders were writing an essay. It was pretty quiet in the room...

It's district writing assessment time! Four times a year, the district requires all the kiddos write an essay on a given topic. Each grade level is assigned a prompt and is given articles (and sometimes videos) to use as sources. They've been doing this a couple years now, so the kiddos are used to the procedure. (And I've covered this a few times, so I'm used to the procedure as well.) I was at the continuation high school. It was day two. (They get three days to write.) Period one went much as I expected. I had to keep after kiddos who kept talking. Period two went a bit better on the talking front. However, well, this is what I wrote in the note: The good news: They stayed pretty quiet and I didn't have to keep after them whispering... The bad news: ...because most of them were sleeping, so I had to keep waking them up.  Although, to be fair, it was the week after the time change. I was dragging myself. However, I'm sure we would have had a similar issue ev...

At the heart of much speculative fiction (and fiction in general) is a question. What if? On Tuesdays I like to throw one out there and see what you make of it. Do with it as you please. If a for-instance is not specified, feel free to interpret that instance as you wish. And if you find this becomes a novel-length answer, I'd appreciate a thank you in the acknowledgements.  😉 We've been having butterflies everywhere. I first saw them on Friday, but I wasn't surprised, as the news reported what was happening . And it was just amazing to stand as butterflies flew past me. (It wasn't as fun as they flew past as I drove my car. I was very anxious about not hitting them.) But I can't take these things at face value... What if this isn't a butterfly migration? What if they butterflies are fleeing something we can't see?

I haven't posted the last couple Mondays. I didn't forget. I just didn't have anything to write about. I'm working in scarf land, on scarves that I've written about before . We're at what is known in writing as the muddle in the middle, and there's really no story there. Well, there's story, but it's of the things-are-going-along-nicely variety. There'll be nothing much to report until I have finished objects to show off. (Although, I could tell you all about how my yarn somehow got stuck in a zipper and I couldn't get it unstuck so I had to cut it. There. Just did.) And so, I had nothing to write about for today until I was perusing other blogs. Lily Element showed off her latest pair of fingerless gloves. And they made me think of my gauntlets... Yes, there's a story... Several years ago, I saw these knit on a knitting TV show. (Well, not these, exactly. I hated the cable pattern used, so I substituted my own.) And I had to have a pair...

Eighth grade English. Friday. The teacher left them a video. It was the classic  Twilight Zone . We had time to watch two episodes.  "The Fugitive" and "Little Girl Lost" . (If you want to refresh your memory, they're available on Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and CBS.com.) It had been a difficult day. One period would not stop talking. Another whined about having to watch something in black and white. The advanced group was even a challenge to get settled. I had been warned about sixth period. I braced for the worst.  After booting a kid for defiantly eating in class (his parting shot: "fatty Patty"), the rest of the group sort of almost settled. And then I started the show.  Did they sit back and enjoy the show? Of course not. The kiddos heckled the screen.  They compared the old man in the first episode to R. Kelly. They made fun of the crazy contraption that healed the little girl.  Then there were all sorts of suggestions for the second episode. I had t...

Tenth grade world history. Their assignment: continuing watching the movie Swing Kids . Natalie claimed the bean bag cat on the teacher's desk. She said she needed it. It was hers . While the request was a bit odd, it wasn't terribly out of the ordinary. And I didn't see the point in arguing. The reason for the comfort stuffed animal soon became apparent. In case you're not familiar with the movie (via IMDB ): A close-knit group of young kids in Nazi Germany listen to banned swing music from the U.S. Soon, dancing and fun lead to more difficult choices, as the Nazis begin tightening their grip on Germany. Each member of the group is forced to face some tough choices about right, wrong, and survival. Written by Susan Southall   We got to a scene where some Nazi youths beat up one of our central characters. It's rather brutal. They pummel him and kick him when he's down. Repeatedly. That's when I noticed Natalie. She was turned away from the screen, tossing th...

Last week was kind of crazy. On Friday I tallied up my week. I had covered for thirteen different teachers. Normally, I cover a teacher a day. Each teacher generally has one preparation period. (Not all do. Some teachers have a class every period. And some teachers have extra no student periods.) It used to be that I'd be asked to cover a different teacher on that prep period occasionally. Lately, it's more likely than not. (The fact that we're currently experiencing a sub shortage is surprising. Last year at this time they laid off 55 teachers district wide. I was supposed to be worried that we'd have a surplus of subs as laid off teachers go to the top of the sub list. But most of them got called back to full time the first weeks of school.) Of the thirteen, eight were classes I covered for one period. Wood shop. AP computer coding. Special ed science. Middle school ELD. And science (biology), history (world), math (IM2), and English (10th grade). The remaining five t...

At the heart of much speculative fiction (and fiction in general) is a question. What if? On Tuesdays I like to throw one out there and see what you make of it. Do with it as you please. If a for-instance is not specified, feel free to interpret that instance as you wish. And if you find this becomes a novel-length answer, I'd appreciate a thank you in the acknowledgements.  😉 What if you had the most brilliant what if story idea just as you were falling asleep? (Not like that happened to me yesterday or anything...)

ASB (read: student leadership). I was supposed to cover three days, but I got pulled for one of them. They were "working in committees", which meant they were treating the time as free. (They were going to be graded on what they had accomplished when the teacher returned, so if they weren't done, they'll regret not doing anything then.) Second period, talk turned to prom. They were debating the merits of a party bus over a limo. (Apparently driving oneself is not done.) "The party bus was so fire," the girl said. Apparently her friend's family owns one (the company?). Then the talk was on where to go eat before. Certain places were "fire" while others weren't. Yup. Fire. That was the word they kept using. And through context, I was able to figure out that "fire" means good. Really good. Probably what my generation would have called "rad" or "awesome". Consider yourself up on the current lingo 😉

Integrated math 1 for eighth graders (read: advanced eighth grade math). They had a test. The whole district is adopting a new textbook that has an online component. When I covered that co-taught class a couple weeks back , one of the days the class was logging into the website for the first time. So, I wasn't unfamiliar with what the kiddos were doing. But new programs mean glitches... The whole class logged in and got started on their test. Then one boy raised his hand. There was no test for him to access. He explained that he had switched classes, so he was still enrolled online in the teacher's second period class. He logged into that, but there was no test there. I don't have access to the teacher's view, so there wasn't a lot I could do... It took me longer than it should have to remember that I could email the teacher. (I mean, seriously, I email teachers all the time about the crazy that goes on in class . Why it took that long for it to occur to me that I c...

Ninth grade special ed English class. They were doing a lesson on comparative and superlative adjectives . The instructional aide warned me that fifth period was a bit challenging. Freshman boys? That's kind of like warning me I'll get wet when it's raining. Liam did all the usual delay tactics. No pencil. No paper. Not sure what to do. Then the assurance he was brilliant and could complete the whole assignment with minimal effort. Although, when Liam finally did do some work (I was shocked), he did breeze through the first two sets of questions. (I did not check his work, so it might have been sloppily and incompletely done.) The third set of questions had words he was to put in a sentence. Number one was "funny". I didn't much care what his sentences were, but he felt the need to announce them. (Notably, no other boys in the class felt this need.) Then he got to number three. "Longer". Liam: "Mine is longer than everyone's, especially Car...

At the heart of much speculative fiction (and fiction in general) is a question. What if? On Tuesdays I like to throw one out there and see what you make of it. Do with it as you please. If a for-instance is not specified, feel free to interpret that instance as you wish. And if you find this becomes a novel-length answer, I'd appreciate a thank you in the acknowledgements.  😉 The other day on my way into work, one morning radio program had found a bit of news that they were making fun of. Apparently, there's a View-Master movie in the works . And they just found that hilarious. The question they posed to one of the guys on the air was: How could they possibly make a movie about a View-Master ? And off the top of my head, I came up with two different ideas. (One could be a Twilight Zone episode, and the other is more of a bio-pic.) If I can come up with a couple ideas... What if your story had to start (somehow) with or contain a View-Master? (And hey, it sounds like...

ELD (English language development). Third period was the eleventh graders. About twenty minutes into class, Rebecca arrived. She had an excused tardy pass from the attendance office. I told her what the assignment was. (They were writing essays.) She said she'd already finished. Then she asked to go and see her counselor. I gave her a pass. I've had Rebecca in various classes since she was in middle school. She can be a little irritating. But she's never made the blog before now. She returned from the counselor after only about ten minutes. And that's the first time Rafael noticed her. "You're late," he said. "Where have you been? Class is halfway over. You should be working on your essay. It's due tomorrow." Rebecca turned to him and flipped him off. And me? I told Rafael to mind his own business and get back to the essay he was not working on. I'm supposed to call Rebecca out for inappropriate hand gestures and all, but seriously... At ...