Ok, I’m having a little fun at the expense of one of my administrators. She has a brilliant sense of humor (how’s that for sucking up?). So hopefully I won’t pay too severely for this post except for a little “ribbing.” It seems that we are going to be “targeting” a lot at school this year. We’ll be targeting groups, subgroups, students, substudents (?), teachers, paras, and yes, subteachers and subparas. So maybe the sub groups don’t exist in most of these categories. I got a little carried away. I blame it on me being me. Stoopid.
Regardless, one of the important things about teaching is the language. Often times we need to change cultures and thinking in education. One of the ways to accomplish that is to come up with a common language. With AYP, NCLB, RTI and any other acronym that you could come up with, teachers are under a lot of scrutiny. Education is a very demanding profession. Expectations are constantly changing. Ways to assess students and teachers are in a state of flux. Education needs to establish these expectations but nobody is sure of how to create a measurable way to assess teachers or students. We need to find a way to improve education, but it’s not one of those things where you can wave a magic wand, and poof, successful change. It takes a long time and a lot of data.
So we will be targeting a lot. Namely, students, groups and subgroups. This is important. We need to find a way to improve education so we can help kids improve. That’s what this business is all about. Helping kids. So while I joke about targeting, it’s necessary. However, I am on a mission to come up with different ways to say targeting, without really saying it. Though in reality, I’ll be saying it A FREAKIN’ LOT. How about spotlight, snipe, focus, address, angle, aspire, attempt, cast, concentrate, contemplate, covet, design, direct, endeavor, essay, fix, focus, intend, level, mean, plan, propose, purpose, set one’s sights on, sight, slant, steer, strive, train, try, want, wish, zero in on, and zoom in? Thank you synonym finder. Maybe it will just stay as target.
I love this profession. Even though the governmental expectations seem to lack clarity everyone can agree on, as a teacher, I know what I need to do. I need to improve students reading and writing skills. I need to provide them with historical content that will help them become productive members of society. I must be open to listening to what my students need. It isn’t just about academics. We’re talking about eighth-grade students who may have an incredibly challenging life. We need to enable these children to develop a voice that will give them confidence and carry them through life. No two days are the same. I’m ready. Let’s get started.
Photos of the day are a mix of some street photos that I took. My son’s photo is from a recent visit to his grandmother’s house. They have one of the best ice cream parlors in the country, Whiteys. Whiteys are the originator of what has become the DQ Blizzard. Whiteys was making these long before Dairy Queen created the Blizzard. Rumor has it that Whiteys did not trademark or patent the shake and Dairy Queen “borrowed” the idea and made it into the Blizzard. That’s the scuttlebutt. Whiteys shakes are so thick, you can turn them upside down and the spoon and ice cream will stay in place. That is the expectation. I should know because my wife worked there in high school/college.
Old Fashioned Ice Cream
Waiting
Train Ride
Shrubbery
Meeting of the Minds
Until Next Time,
Peace!
