Remediation/Enrichment

I hope everyone had a wonderful MLK day. I spent mine sitting in a staff meeting hearing about how my school got a grade of "D" on the new grading scale for NM. We were the lowest school in the district and thus there is a great deal of pressure to raise the grade. The grading scale is very complicated, but the major points that we need to work on as a school are raising test scores. The solution is to change the schedule and insert a remediation/enrichment class for all students. I like the idea, but I feel like it might be a little too late to get started. We will have roughly 30 school days of the new schedule before state testing begins the middle of March. It wasn't the most encouraging day, but I was impressed at how the rest of the staff handled the coming changes and really worked as a team.

The real stress came after the staff meeting when the other 7th grade science teacher and I sat down to look at the information we need to cover before testing begins. I'll just say it's and INSANE amount to try and cover in less than 9 weeks. It can be done we figured out after a great deal of staring at the calendar, but it won't be pretty. I feel bad for having to do this to the students because it is not in any way a good method for learning information. I would rather they have at least be introduced to the information before the test than come to me after the test and say we have never heard of most of the information on the test.

There is hope and a light at the end of the tunnel though! I can teach anything that is left in the book after state testing! The other science teacher is going to do an environmental unit dealing with earth worms and other types of critters. I'm not a huge fan of worms or well versed on environmental science. I think in my class we might do a human body unit. This is life science after all!

Small town life is comforting although I am still in complete culture shock. I'd kill for a latte right now, but due to the lack of decent restaurants I am exploring my culinary skills and even managed to bake a delicious butternut squash earlier this week. The search is on for a new church. I never knew you could make a country version of a Lincoln Brewster song, but these guys managed to do it. Toto we're not in Kansas anymore has become my new mantra!

As a reward to myself this weekend I am leaving town to go see some great friends and celebrate! Oh and I got my first pay check on Friday!!! Peace and Love