Winter Break

Around Thanksgiving, I was thinking, “There is a hot tub overlooking a snowy hillside with my name on it” as school got out for the three-day break. Today, the last day of school before winter break, I’m too busy to think about the break. I think tomorrow I’m going to sleep in, and as I look at my calendar, I’m shocked at how quickly I’ve managed to fill the two weeks off. There’s something almost every day already, and no “vacation” in sight. I’m going to have to make sure I leave time for baking and playing with the dogs.

I sent my kids off for winter break with a writing assignment, and they went whining all the way. They are to write a 5-paragraph compare/contrast rough draft for the book we just finished. If they were to sit down and do the whole assignment in one go, it would probably take them about an hour, give or take some middle school math… (Take the individual writing ability of the student, multiplied by a numeric ranking representing the student’s quick-thinking and critical thinking skills – 1 through 5, 1 high, 5 low – and add in the number of family, recreational, and parentally-forced activities and events in the student’s 2-week vacation… the higher the number, the longer it will take the kid to write the paper.) ONE hour out of two weeks… and yet, I know I will have students who show up on Monday, January 3rd with a bunch of excuses about why they couldn’t complete the assignment. Seriously lame. I predict an 85% homework return rate on this assignment.

Third Week of December... Two Days Until Vacation

What a crazy month. What a crazy WEEK, even. So far this week, I have had a meeting before school every day AND a meeting after school every day, as well as a sub for the second half of one day (and I'll have a sub in the morning tomorrow). Mr. Chandler has similar issues this week -- basketball supervision after school, a 3-hour class with a giant project due, etc. On top of everything, he has a sister who flew in from Africa and subsequently went into labor (long story), causing the whole family to gather at the hospital. I'm hoping he doesn't expect to be visiting her today, as I have a meeting in 15 minutes.

Winter break is fast approaching, and in spite of all the crazy, my students are holding up well. They are calm and focused, which is rare during normal weeks and downright miraculous this week. This is good because we have a LOT to finish before they leave for two weeks. Originally, I had grand plans of wrapping up a compare/contrast essay with them by the end of this week, but we're just not going to be ready. I could rush it by skipping the practice round we're doing in social studies... but it would be at the expense of their mastery of this particular writing skill, and I don't think that's wise. Fortunately, it occurred to me that it would not be such a bad thing for me psychologically (or schedule-wise) if I had to give them the first two days in January to finish up their essays. Hm... No lecturing, no activities, very little explanation, even... just students writing. I think I can handle that. That means I will be assigning their rough drafts as homework over winter break, which suits me just fine and makes their lives slightly easier.

In other news, I have once again been invited to go to the dance on Friday with one of my students. (And, again, I said no, although I managed not to laugh this time.) The other bit of seasonal middle school mischief this week is the "winter gram" sale at the student store. Students pay $1 to send a small card and a candy bar to another student. The winter grams are delivered every day during 7th period, so I get to read all the cards before I give them to the students. (I've substituted fake names on these examples to protect student identities.) Yesterday, there was one in my class that said, "To Jane. Here's some candy. From Jane." It's probably easier to send one to yourself than to get someone else to send it to you, right? I also saw one that said, "You're awesome. Love, Mom." That's sweet! Perhaps the most memorable card, although slightly depressing, was the one that said, "To Jim. I just want to be friends, sorry. From Jane." Dumped by winter gram... I don't know how a kid gets over that.

December

December is a terrifying month for teachers. The usual four weeks of school is shortened to three, and they seem to fly by at break-neck speed. The students are hyper from their time off at Thanksgiving and wired in expectation of their upcoming two-week winter break. There are holiday plans to distract everyone and concerts and field trips and the start of the winter flu season to keep students away from class. Whatever plans you had for November are probably far from completed in the classroom, while January and the middle of the school year loom over your lesson plans like a vulture waiting to rip the flesh from your dying scope and sequence. Meanwhile, the weather hovers between standard Portland rain and what I like to call the "Troutdale teaser" -- freakishly sunny with the frigid, blustery east winds. (Winter on the West Coast is a strange thing...) The Starbucks cups change color, as do the interiors of most stores, and radio stations play classic Christmas songs sung by the most unlikely artists. (I recently heard a rock-and-roll version of "O Holy Night" that I have not yet managed to forget.) For whatever reason, my local Safeway is now selling penguins in its floral department. I'm not sure why penguins are so meaningful at holiday time, except for their association with cold weather, but these were intriguing enough for us to buy one. He sits on our porch, and his name is Pierre. Why? It's December. Why not?