Poetry by the Numbers

As April draws to a close, I spent some time this afternoon crunching some numbers on the Poetry Challenge.

Here's a bit of the data:

130 students wrote 1223 poems!

41 wrote 20+ times and won a spin of the prize wheel;
21 others wrote the required 10 poems or more;
67 wrote at least one poem,
and 11 did not participate.

Overall? I'd say the month was a qualified success, and there was some amazing writing as always. The results are pretty similar to last year's group, which is pretty remarkable considering that then I had 80 writers to oversee and now it's sooooooooo many more.

One big difference is that last year, there was only a single student who never shared a single poem, and this year there were eleven.

The voices who choose not to be heard are always the ones I miss most.

Golf Clap

I ran into four of my male colleagues congratulating themselves on their performance in a student-staff football game today.

"I'm guessing you guys won?" I said.

"Sometimes you have to take the 8th graders down a peg!" one of them explained.

The others laughed.

Do you? I thought. Do you?

Would the math teacher show a student how much quicker he could solve a problem?

Would the social studies teacher feel the need to demonstrate his superior knowledge of history?

Would the IB coordinator want the students to focus on just how little they understand compared to him?

Would the assistant principal want students to exclude younger kids because they don't add anything to the group?

Since they are all very good educators, I'm guessing the answer is No.

Then why is it such a victory for a group of men to beat 13 and 14 year old boys on a football field?

Walking the Cats

When the rain cleared at about 11 this morning, we opened the windows and doors to let the late April breeze air out the house. One of our cats, Tibby, was already in the kitty stroller that I got for my birthday. Both she and Milo love to hang out in it, and so most of the time it sits in the dining room like a cat hideout on wheels.

"We should take them for a stroll!" Heidi suggested, and I knew she was right.

So I shook off the last of the gray morning and headed out into the spring sunshine to walk not just the dog, but the cats, too.

Preventative Measures

I was disappointed when I tried to get advance tickets to the last Avengers movie. Three weeks out, there were already no decent seats in any theaters at a good time for the entire opening weekend. After a little consideration, I resigned myself to seeing it the following weekend.

Well, I thought I had made peace with the situation until the press machine shifted into high gear earlier this week. After reading and hearing all about the movie, I began to regret having to wait. In desperation, I searched again for tickets, and this time miraculously hit on an empty theater at an ideal time. Feeling like I won the lottery, I snagged the third row center seats for a Saturday afternoon screening and instantly began counting the days.

For the first summer blockbuster of the year, showtimes began Thursday evening ahead of the formal Friday opening, and some of my students were there. Once the movie screened, the closely-guarded plot twists were available to anyone who wished to spoil the story, and so going to school on Friday was a perilous experience. More than once I stuffed my fingers in my ears and loudly chanted la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la. I also threatened dire consequences to any blabbermouth who might ruin the movie, and when at last we left the building at 4:30 yesterday, I was confident that my experience would be pristine.

And it was! Although some of the plot points were predictable, I never knew what was going to happen. I spent the full three hours enjoying the experience, which is fortunate, because it would have been impossible to go back to school until I'd seen the movie for myself.

Beggars and Choosers

"Can I have some candy?" a student demanded after school today.

I never comply with such impolite requests, but today with my head pounding courtesy of the Anime Club, I was even more short than usual. "No!" I snapped and returned to my work.

"Why not?" she whined.

I looked up over my glasses at her and took a deep breath. "Because it's rude to ask people for things. You should wait until I offer."

"You never offer!" she scoffed.

"You never offer anything, either," I told her.

"What can I offer?" she asked with some irritation.

"Look around," I shrugged. "Think of ways you could be helpful."

To her credit, she considered my words, and in very short time, the room was more tidy than it had been. The chairs were pushed in, stray papers and books were returned to their designated places. "How do you like it?" she asked, flourishing her arm.

"I like it!" I answered. "Would you care for a piece of candy?"

"Yes!" she replied, and then cut her eyes at me. "But, can I have two?"

"Nope," I answered.

Just then, the bell rang, but the Anime Club members lingered loudly, despite my hearty wishes of Have a good weekend! and See you later!

The student took matters into her own hands. "Anime Club!" she shouted. "Leave! Leave! Leave!"

"Gah! You don't have to be so harsh!" they grumbled as they filed out the door.

"Thank you!" I nodded at the candy kid in appreciation.  "And for that?" I continued, "You can have 2 pieces of candy!"

Oversight

No one was more surprised than I was when I walked into my classroom yesterday morning to find a total stranger peeling off my word a day calendar page. "Uhhhhhh," I stuttered. "Do I have a sub today?"

The woman looked at me brightly, but without comprehension. She continued updating my calendar. My desk was kind of a mess. I was confused. Gradually, the situation became clear to me: I had a doctors appointment which I rescheduled, but I forgot to cancel the sub. "I'm so sorry," I started when I realized my mistake.

"Don't be," the woman said before I could finish. And then she introduced herself to me as a parent of former students. She professed an abiding love for our school and all who worked there. She did not let me explain the situation.

"Um, I'll be right back," I said and headed to the office. The secretary in charge of substitutes was very understanding.

"Send her to me," she said, "and I'll put her to work."

Back in my room, students were starting to arrive. Again, I tried to apologize and explain. The substitute nodded, and continued wandering around the room, offering complimentary comments about the furnishings. The announcements came on; she sat down at a table.

The phone rang; it was the secretary. "Did you send her to the office?" she asked.

"I tried," I said quietly, "but she's not leaving."

"I'll be right there to give her the schedule," she assured me.

A minute later, she entered my room, spoke quietly to the substitute, and led her away.

I sighed in relief, and promised myself to never make that mistake again.

The Tao of Construction

I See the Positive in Every Situation

Ommmmmm

There was so much vibration right outside my window this afternoon that I felt like I was in a massaging chair. If it hadn't been for the loud whine of the steam shovel as it deposited scoop after giant scoop of gravel directly below my classroom, it might even have been a bit relaxing.

Ommmmmm