Parent/Teacher Conference

Today is the first session of our fall Parent/Teacher Conference. This means that I won't be home tonight until after 8 tonight and after 7:30 tomorrow. Teachers bi-annually squish 3 work days into 2. The life-saving benefit is no school on Friday.

I must endure 4 hours today and 3 hours tomorrow in a state of almost boredom. Almost. Being a Special Educator, I don't join the teacher mass in the gym where the entire faculty (minus 5) meets. In the gym there are masses of parents and students lined up in front of the teachers they want to see. Little children are often not left at home as their parents make the conference a family affair. These little children are tortured by their parents who make them sit still while mom and dad scrutinize the teacher and their middle schoolers. Some of the little ones manage to make an escape and freely run about the gym until restrictions are once again imposed.

The Middle School Student suffers torture of a different sort if their folks make them accompany them to the conference. If the student is a polite, well-behaved, academically appropriate student, the torture is easy to endure. If the student is the opposite of the aforementioned lot, watch out!

Parent: Why are your grades so bad?
Student: I don't know.
Parent: Well, are you turning in your work?
Student: Work?
Parent: Yes, work? Obviously not.
Student: We have work? We're supposed to turn it in?
Parent: Argh! Why aren't you turning in your work?
Student: I don't know.
Parent: Is it in your locker? On your dresser at home? In your black hole of a back pack?
Student: I don't know.

Is it any wonder this student is feeling tortured at the conference? Is it any wonder that the teacher is feeling a little tortured listening to the exchange? Heck, the parents probably feel tortured themselves.

The above sketch occurs in my classroom more than I would like to admit. The only difference is that there aren't 300 people possibly listening in to the conversation. In my room, it's just me, the student, and the parent(s).

Why do we put ourselves through this twice every school year?

Bill Cosby said it best and he said it in two words: Brain damage!

Art Show

A former student of mine invited me to her first ever art show a couple of weeks ago. My mom and I made the trek and had a very enjoyable time. I thought I would post a few of her paintings.

This picture is at a funny angle because I was trying to avoid getting people in the shot.

This is the first painting that caught our eye. It is actually my favorite of the three my student did.

Here are a few of the paintings that were done. The one by my student is the beach scene.

How to Save a Life

Last night I had the pleasure of attending a class for CPR/First-aid/AED training at the school where I work. Three gentlemen from the South Jordan Fire Department came to facilitate the training.

They did a really nice job and it was very entertaining as well. Here are a few things I learned that I will never forget:

The first three items are direct quotes from the S. Jordan Fire Department Instructor explaining the way to properly perform chest compressions.

"Some people's nipples might not be where they were when they were born."

"Mannequins are not anatomically correct."

"Kids are redundant and pliable."

These three come from the video about First-aid:

"Amputation is an injury that causes bleeding."

"Suspect a head injury if the victim received a blow to the head."

"Burns can be caused by contact with heat."

My Civic Duty

Tuesday: I get a notice for jury duty.
Thursday: My phone crashed. Grrr.
Friday morning: I wake up at 2 a.m. with major pain in my right shoulder.
Later Friday morning: I'm cranky at work. Never a good thing.
Friday afternoon: I'm feeling like I've been drowning at work since school started this year. My phone doesn't work, I'm sleep deprived. My shoulder hurts.
Friday after work: I stop by AT&T to see about my phone. They tell me I have to take it to the Apple Store.
Friday evening: I go to the Apple Store. I wait. Who knew one needed an appointment? I wait some more. They do take care of me. I get a new phone.
Later Friday evening: I call the courts...my number comes up and I'm to report on Monday at 8:30 a.m. for jury duty.

I feel that I can't handle one more thing. I thought most certainly that Heavenly Father would see to it that I wouldn't have to serve jury duty but since I was wrong I prayed that I would see the wisdom in the "one more thing" I was being asked to do.

Monday morning: I am right on time for jury duty. 8:30 sharp!
By 10:30 I am done and $18.50 richer. The defendant decided to take a plea deal.
I invited a friend who works down town to lunch and walked around Temple Square and checked out the Church History Museum. The weather was perfect.

So, it would seem, that I'm an idiot and I learned a great lesson about having more trust in my Heavenly Father who knows what's best.

I never would have taken the day off and I never would have gotten a much needed break to lift my spirits and replenish my energy. And on top of it, I performed an important civic duty.

I Wrote a Guest Post

While in California, I went to a computer museum near San Jose. I wrote a post about the chess game I played with Colter. If you want to read it please visit The Chess Game

Enjoy.

Labor Day

Today has been a glorious day. After only one work week complete with students, I was ready for a day off. It has rained and the temperatures have dropped into the 40s and 50s today. I'm not bothered. I'm at home. I'm enjoying alone time. I've read. I've watched TV. I've played with my iPhone applications, I've played on the computer.

I'm glad that Labor Day doesn't live up to its name!

Everyone's an Expert

I'm a big fan of the Olympics. Winter. Summer. I love them both. I have my favorite events, of course. My favorite winter games include ice skating, skeleton, luge, even some of the skiing and snowboarding. In the summer I'm a sucker for gymnastics, swimming, and diving.

When I watch these events, I become an expert. Instantaneously I know when an athlete's performance makes muster and when an athlete falters. I use phrases like, "stick the landing", "too much angle on the entry", and "pointed toes". I know if a gymnast doesn't stick the landing, he/she is not performing to the highest standards of the event.

Really I don't know anything important about any of the sports but I sure enjoy watching. I am pretty sure I'm not alone. Don't we all fancy ourselves something of an expert when we watch the Olympics?

Isn't that part of the fun?