Haha. I feel like this could often be an appropriate title for one of my blogs. It's always the case. Things change and just when you get comfortable, they change again! At least that's the way it seems to go for me. I'm a part of that though. I kind of like it. At least I like the idea of it. Sometimes in the midst of it, I hate it but before and after I'm always glad for it.
So things have changed. You know I started this blog as an outlet to tell the hilarious stories of my adventures in teaching "sweathogs" and to process some of the tough things. Of course, I didn't do a great job at keeping up with it. Now, here it is another school year and my role has changed. I'm not teaching full time anymore. Instead, I'm substitute teaching. The thing that hasn't changed, sweathogs. :)
Almost immediately after school started I got a job that is VERY much like my last one and was estimated to last 2-4 weeks. It's officially now up to 4 weeks and I'm 2 weeks in. I love it. I'm have a blast. But everyday is an adventure!
Let me tell you a couple funny tales. True stories though the names have been changed... yadi yadi ya.
This school is small and the population is "at risk" but not really very diverse. There are two groups, a younger group and an older group, and we teach them various courses during the same period - depending on what they need. So I'm teaching math and I have kids in all kinds of different levels of math. Anyway, the younger group (they're 12-15 years old) are kind of annoying and joke around too much about stuff they shouldn't. Last week they decided it would be funny to say some inappropriate stuff to one of the older boys, who happens to be African American, about his race. Of course they're wimpy so they do it while running (and I mean flat run) toward their parents cars after school. The older boy doesn't hesitate but instead takes off after them and grabs the boy who actually called out the comment by the neck of his shirt and flattened him. Just laid him down on his back. It was swift and rather smooth and kind of funny! He then proceeded to the bike rack to unlock his bike as if nothing had happened!
This week, they're picking on him again. I don't know if they think we can completely protect them from him or what but they're in for a rude awakening. He's not going to put up with much more without some serious dealing. Today, they were making comments toward him at lunch (though the two groups are required to sit far apart in the cafeteria). He stands up and points at them in a threatening way. Then the littlest one stands up, pulls his pants down to just below his rear (a mocking gesture at the older boy who regularly wears his pants sagged) and sits back down. Again, ridiculous and hilarious.
The craziest story I have right now would be about another of the younger kids. Apparently he brought a fire arm to school and wasn't expelled, as other kids usually are, but instead was enrolled in the special program. It's crazy. He's silly and kind of dopey and I really do wonder what kind of lesson that "break" may have taught him. I don't really think he has any idea how serious that kind of act is and getting special treatment may have taught him that it isn't such a big deal at all. I hope we don't have to see.
Leaving my old sweathogs was very difficult. Leaving other things there wasn't, like the inappropriate boss or the beast of a roommate, but leaving my kids was excruciating. I still get sad thinking about it.
