POV: Counting Time as a School Secretary (If You Are Seated at the Front Desk)

In this post, I articulate the unique perspective a school secretary has on the inner workings of a school.

Point-of-View: The Main Hallway of a School as Seen by the School Secretary

Ms. Lauren Yandow walks down the main hallway
with her kindergarteners and
waves to the school secretary.

School secretaries have a unique insight into how the inner workings of a school function, allowing them incredible insight that few other people can even begin to fathom. Sitting at the front desk during the school day is almost like being immersed in an ever-flowing river of students — it's fascinating! Each passing moment brings new surprises and never fails to remind you just how diverse and vibrant life at each school can be.

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Quote: John Heywood On Happy Endings (And Today is Thanksgiving in the United States of America!)

 "All is well that ends well"

— John Heywood, 1497-1580

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May Teacher Journal: Teacher Gonna Teach Animated GIF

Year in Review

This year has been a pretty good year (at least in terms of my own professional development, what we (meaning my students and I) accomplished in the classroom, the environment we created to spend the year together, and the relationships we fostered).

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In September, I started the year with a teaching schedule that was different from any teaching schedule I had ever been handed. I taught a Middle and High School Ethics class (a first for me), and I conducted a Research and Computer-based class with Sixth Graders - that on top of my regular duties as an English Language teacher. I also worked as an inclusion teacher, helping content-area teachers break down concepts so English Language Learners can more easily digest them (and learn them). I also took on the task of editing my school's weekly newsletter (which teachers contribute to, and I put together into a beautiful, sendable PDF document). Kids also roped me into performing in a play they wrote, and my school's Model United Nations club invited me to go with them to the Model UN conference at Cornell. I also got to chaperone a Spring Break fun trip to Nantucket Island in the great state of Massachusetts. Whew. It was a whirlwind of a year.

NEH Summer Scholar at Amherst College

This Summer, I will be a National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Scholar - I am joining a cohort of fifteen or so other educators for a month at Amherst College. We're going to study the concept of reward and punishment, combing through several texts of acclaimed World Literature. I am so excited! Teachers often don't get a chance to read carefully important texts; nor, do we get a chance to discuss texts with other teachers in a professional environment (outside of our own classrooms). Be sure to check back here to learn about the program. 

The Year is Not Finished (YET)

I am not entirely finished the year - YET. We still have this week and next week for classes, and then we have a week of final exams, and later a week of end-of-the-year meetings. But I can see the finish line. One of my colleagues has a countdown in her classroom. Everyone is ready for the Summer - kids included. This is the month where kids get sick of each other, call each other awful names, and get into altercations. What is it about May and kids not getting along with each other? I am sure there must be a research study on this topic.

Are you a teacher? How has your month been going? I'd love to hear what is going on with you. Leave us a message in the comments.

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GIF: Teachers Do Lunch Duty!

I don't like doing lunch duty. However, I love the teachers who I share lunch duty responsibilities with every day. One teacher has been a teacher for fifty years. That's an accomplishment. The other teacher is my work wife. We're married according to the holy vows of accredited teacher-marriage. The other teacher is my roommate. We share a room, boo. And the last teacher is a science teacher who enjoys eating his lunch with us. Love Y'all! *besos*

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Robin the Boy Wonder Celebrates His 78th Year As a Costumed Superhero Sidekick

Robin the Boy Wonder Made His Debut in Action Comics On this Day in 1940

"Later, Gator!"
So, I am a Robin the Boy Wonder fan. Who doesn't like the Boy Wonder? I especially like him in his yellow-cape costume get-up from the 1968 animated television series Batman with Robin the Boy Wonder.

The show aired on CBS and was produced by Filmation Studios. I have no idea which episode from the series this particular GIF originates but maybe one of you knows?

Let me know in the comments section.

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Image Source: chuber channel

GIF: Teach Like a Boss

Wisdom from the Animated Feature Film "The Sword in the Stone"

The animated GIF is my favorite type of digital file. It's been around forever, right? It's been around longer than Vine has been a platform for short video clips - that's for sure.* And, what is a Vine but a glorified GIF?

So, here is a favorite of mine - some words of epistemological wisdom on the difference between knowledge and understanding — from the young King Arthur in Disney's animated adaptation of T. H. White's children's literary classic The Sword in the Stone:

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source: Disney

*The GIF (Graphic Interchange Format) was created by a Compuserve engineer in 1987.

Jesus Was A Slacker

Jesus was not considered Dean's List material in his home country of Palestine. He irked the professors of his day with his youthful sarcasm and basically failed his exam and was kicked out of the synagogue (Luke 4:28-29). He picked up the pieces and eventually became known as a great orator — giving first-rate parables only a Literature professor could love. That's courage.

image source: funny jesus

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Why the Scarecrow is Boss (Even Though He Doesn't Have a Brain)

Did you know that in the original Oz books, the Scarecrow is named the ruler of Oz?

How Can You Talk If You Haven't A Brain?

In the original novels by L. Frank Baum, even though the Scarecrow lacks a brain, he is named Ruler of Oz! Take that Dorothy, and your little dog too. In the classic 1939 MGM movie he gets an honorary degree from the Wizard, and in the 1978 Michael Jackson version, his genius is in the song “You Can’t Win” where he reminds us “to refuel our brains.” I love a guy with no brains.

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image source (GIF): pandawhale

GIF: A Kid Rides his BMX Bike down a Flight of Stairs

A kid riding his BMX bike down a spiral concrete staircase.

photo credit: gifbin.com

Just a random GIF of a kid riding his BMX bike down a flight of stairs.

Maybe in a former life, I was a BMXer? Why not.

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The Plea of the Aquarium: A Fish's Silent Message - 'Don't Eat Me'

Dive into the captivating world of aquarium life as we explore a unique interaction with a fish that seems to say, 'Don't Eat Me'.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhoneIn an unexpected twist, a fish from our aquarium shared a silent plea — 'Don't Eat Me'. This fascinating interaction invites us to reconsider our relationship with marine life and raises questions about their awareness and communication abilities.E-Z Link for Sharing