so subbed again today....same teacher I subbed for on Friday. I only had 2 blocks of classes today, and the plan was to review nuclear chemistry. talking about alpha, beta, and gamma emissions, all that fun stuff.
one packet handed out, students are working on the questions and it becomes abundantly clear that people are struggling. I do a little inquiry, and find out that this material was covered yesterday only. and only some of it....so change of pace.
I gave the class some time to work on the questions (many answers were found in the packet) and then went through everything together. with each answer that someone shouted out (that was correct), I responded with "Why is that the answer?" or "Please explain." the "teacher moments" I guess.
second packet...much smoother. guess half-life questions are easier than questions about positrons, electrons, neutrons, alpha particles and gamma emissions, huh? did the same thing (had the students work on the questions, then went through them all as a class).
second block, same thing. and a slightly more rambunctious group of students. had one group that I finally told "I will split you up," and often stopped. the first few times I stopped, I told the class "I will not talk over you, so I will stop until you are done talking. We have quite a bit of material to cover though, so keep that in mind." it seemed to work, since I would stop and then hear a student go "Guys, be quiet, please," or something like that.
got through both packets with both groups....a girl in the second group (which got done about 5 or 10 minutes early) I asked "How did I do?" she told me "Well, you got through the entire lesson plan, which hasn't happened before for this group."
cleaned up, left a note...and then a teacher talked with me, asking how things went. told her about how the classes went. chatted some about my background...she told me "Call BOCES 2 here, see what you need to be certified in Science. I bet you're almost there." FYI, BOCES stands for Board of Cooperative Educational Services...which includes adult education, GED training, and certification for those who do not go through a college or university program. so I get to look into that....this teacher told me how her daughter got certified in Science and took a job in Charlotte, NC that paid relocation, about $40,000 a year to start, and a signing bonus. so yeah...since I minored in Chemistry, I might have all those classes done...it could honestly be some student teaching and a few classes (curriculum design and such) and I could be certified as a teacher...and if I get offered a job like the one in Charlotte (relocation costs paid for, signing bonus, and $40,000 a year), yeah, I'll move south.
so a fun day...and even better, the annoying manager called me during one of my free blocks, I answered and she goes "Want to work today?" I replied "I'm subbing." 'nuff said. after all, this is the same manager who does her shopping on the clock, made some kid who bought beer return what he just bought because his friend didn't have ID, and never is consistent. so it was nice to be "Nope, bite me" without being so harsh!
so yeah, that's my day...got work tomorrow and who knows Friday. and Saturday looks to be free....time to see if I can get a chat going for the Psychology group Saturday afternoon, and see if anyone shows up for chat later on that night....
now I leave you with Kermit from my last blog....
one packet handed out, students are working on the questions and it becomes abundantly clear that people are struggling. I do a little inquiry, and find out that this material was covered yesterday only. and only some of it....so change of pace.
I gave the class some time to work on the questions (many answers were found in the packet) and then went through everything together. with each answer that someone shouted out (that was correct), I responded with "Why is that the answer?" or "Please explain." the "teacher moments" I guess.
second packet...much smoother. guess half-life questions are easier than questions about positrons, electrons, neutrons, alpha particles and gamma emissions, huh? did the same thing (had the students work on the questions, then went through them all as a class).
second block, same thing. and a slightly more rambunctious group of students. had one group that I finally told "I will split you up," and often stopped. the first few times I stopped, I told the class "I will not talk over you, so I will stop until you are done talking. We have quite a bit of material to cover though, so keep that in mind." it seemed to work, since I would stop and then hear a student go "Guys, be quiet, please," or something like that.
got through both packets with both groups....a girl in the second group (which got done about 5 or 10 minutes early) I asked "How did I do?" she told me "Well, you got through the entire lesson plan, which hasn't happened before for this group."
cleaned up, left a note...and then a teacher talked with me, asking how things went. told her about how the classes went. chatted some about my background...she told me "Call BOCES 2 here, see what you need to be certified in Science. I bet you're almost there." FYI, BOCES stands for Board of Cooperative Educational Services...which includes adult education, GED training, and certification for those who do not go through a college or university program. so I get to look into that....this teacher told me how her daughter got certified in Science and took a job in Charlotte, NC that paid relocation, about $40,000 a year to start, and a signing bonus. so yeah...since I minored in Chemistry, I might have all those classes done...it could honestly be some student teaching and a few classes (curriculum design and such) and I could be certified as a teacher...and if I get offered a job like the one in Charlotte (relocation costs paid for, signing bonus, and $40,000 a year), yeah, I'll move south.
so a fun day...and even better, the annoying manager called me during one of my free blocks, I answered and she goes "Want to work today?" I replied "I'm subbing." 'nuff said. after all, this is the same manager who does her shopping on the clock, made some kid who bought beer return what he just bought because his friend didn't have ID, and never is consistent. so it was nice to be "Nope, bite me" without being so harsh!
so yeah, that's my day...got work tomorrow and who knows Friday. and Saturday looks to be free....time to see if I can get a chat going for the Psychology group Saturday afternoon, and see if anyone shows up for chat later on that night....
now I leave you with Kermit from my last blog....
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Having been there the experience is way different than standard classes. Mine were 4 classes "periods" of normal school spent in a shop. They counted for a math and science and all required electives. I took Vo-tech, gym, History, and English through high-school and nothing else.
The times i was at BOCES in NY i drooled at the resources those kids had. I got sooo screwed! The very subjects i had interest in i never got to take (math + science).
The approach was train the kids with no chance in life a profession they 'could' survive doing. Mechanic, bodyshop, carpentry, retail, welding, small engine, and machine shop. Most of my classmates are in jail or on welfare.