Happy New Year!

I'm a little early, but I do hope everyone has a wonderful New Year. 2007 was pretty superfantastic, so we'll see if 2008 matches. I have so much to be grateful for. Emiko came along in 2007, and she's definitely the greatest thing that's ever happened to me!

It's a good thing she's so awesome and adorable, because she gave us a hard time in LA. She still has a bit of a cold, and she's pretty congested. She'll cough and cough and sometimes she gets choked up and it makes her throw up. So I've been getting thrown up on a lot this week. The worst was on the airplane on the way home from LA -- on my birthday, no less. We were about 30 minutes into the flight, and Emiko was sleeping in my arms. All was going well. Then she started coughing in her sleep. All of a sudden she started throwing up. All over me. I had to just laugh because what else could I do? She got me good. Thank God I was wearing a sweater with a hood -- it caught the brunt of it. So I didn't smell too bad the rest of the way home.

Of course, then she decided to poop and I had to change her in the airplane bathroom. There's no changing table in there! I had to put her on the toilet seat. She screamed at the top of her lungs the entire time. It was awesome!

After that, things were calmer and we made it home. I was really glad to be home. LA was nice, and kinda warm, but it's nice to be home for the holidays. Next year we're not traveling.

Eat some black eyed peas tomorrow for good luck in 2008. And cheer for my Razorbacks in the Cotton Bowl. My dad's actually in Dallas for the game. Maybe that will result in a victory. My Hogs have a poor record when it comes to bowl games.

Here's wishing you much joy and happiness in 2008!

Update Schmupdate

Let's see, last Friday was a bad day for my principal. My school was in the Tribune twice. Once for the gun incident. But we also were mentioned because my principal hired a basketball coach who had previously been fired by CPS for attempting to cash a bogus CPS payroll check for 1500 bucks.

Which makes this story especially funny (or something) is that this guy, Stephen Jennings, was working at Dunbar the first time he got fired. The first day back at school (for teacher in-service), our principal introduced all the new staff members. She introduced Jennings as our new Dean of Students and new basketball coach. She mentioned that he was a Dunbar alum and how glad she was to have him back and blah blah blah. People who had worked here when he was here before were surprised. People knew he'd been fired, but thought it must be certification related or something.

I think it's amazing that she hired him back, knowing that he had a personnel file marked Do Not Hire. And she was the principal the last time he was fired. I have to believe that maybe Arne (our illustrious CEO) will finally come to the realization that perhaps she is not such an effective leader. But I'll probably be proven wrong yet again.

My job just sucks more and more each day. I have one student who is out of control. He wrote a haiku the first week of school in which he used the line "I don't beat my meat." Which is not even correct syllable use, but that's the least of its problems. I had to call the kid's dad and tell him what his son wrote. Apparently he got in big trouble.

Since then, I've tried to ignore him, but he's completely inappropriate. This week alone has been a banner week for him. On Monday he asked if perhaps it was my time of the month, which would explain why I was crabby. Then on Tuesday he was mad, because I made him take out his ridiculously garish earring. He then lost the earring.

He blames me for his losing his "fucking earring" and says that he now gets no Christmas. He says his mother let him wear the ridiculous earring to school to prove that he was responsible (which makes total sense -- what an excellent way to prove responsibility). He keeps yelling at me that it's my fault he won't get a Christmas. I sent him out to Miller, our security guard, but he keeps sending him back to me.

Then yesterday he was being so annoying, as were several of his classmates. I yelled -- I don't know what is wrong with you children! He replied -- you know she means these black children. Which made me so mad! So I said -- That's it! Get out! And I made him stand in the hall the rest of class. Well, at the last five minutes Miller made me let him back in.

Miller said to write him up and the dean will take care of it, but she won't. She'll just say that it's my lack of classroom management skills that are to blame. I don't even bother writing anyone up because it just makes me mad.

But I'm not at work tomorrow, because Emiko's daycare will be closed. So I won't see this kid for two whole weeks. That's a pretty great Christmas present.

Oh, but I hear the kid with the gun turned himself in. Then I heard that the principal was going to let him come back to school. That's awesome. She's the best.

Just Shut Us Down Already

Ever since I've been teaching, I've been a bit afraid of a student with a gun. Not actively afraid, just something that was always in the back of my mind. And at my school, security is lax at best. It would be really easy to get a gun into our building.

Well, today it happened. A student had a gun in his coat, and it went off during class. It happened in another teacher's room down the hall from mine. It happened during 8th period, which is my lunch period. I knew something was up, because I was outside my 9th period class waiting for the bell to ring and I saw the school police officers talking to the teacher outside her room.

I guess the gun went off and the kid immediately ran out of the building. I have no idea if he's been bringing his gun to school for awhile or if this was a one off thing. There were some major fights yesterday, so perhaps it was in response to that. I don't want to think about it too much.

I've never seen so many police officers in my life. I think the whole 29th Street station was there. They finally made an announcement during 9th that we were to keep our kids in the classroom until further notice. My kids were freaking out, of course. Then they announced that the police would come room to room to release us. Then they announced that kids that were done for the day could leave, but kids with 10th period had to stay. Well done, folks. Finally our 3rd floor security guard sent everyone home. There were cops all over the place, though.

Then they weren't going to let the teachers leave, but they finally did around 3:25.

I emailed Todd and then I texted him. Then I called him before they let us leave. I wasn't really upset until I talked to him, then I thought I was going to start crying right in the foyer. But I managed to keep it together.

It's just so senseless. What if the bullet had hit someone? Our kids are surrounded by so much violence that I don't think it even fazes them. But it fazes me. I am really tired of the ghetto. Thank God no one was hurt. I was so glad to pick up my baby girl after work.

I wonder how many kids will come to school tomorrow. I'm really ready for Christmas break. I just am not sure I know what the point of my job is anymore.

Why Can't I Have a Snow Day???

One bad thing (of the many, many bad things) about being a Chicago Public Schools teacher is that no matter how much it snows, you WILL NOT get a snow day. I still get up early on days when it snows and hope that just maybe, just this once we'll get one, but to no avail.

So today was a bad day. I guess the snow made everyone crazy. Far more kids came to school today than expected. That was the first sign it was going to be crazy. I got through my first class and it was actually better than usual. Which had to be a bad sign. We're discussing social norms in that class, so I kept saying -- Social norm violation! Over and over again. I'm actually going to make Social Norm Citation forms and take off 5 points for each citation. I have to work on that after I finish this post.

After that I had a free period and entered most of my 5 week progress report grades.

Then it was time for Division. Division is CPS's version of homeroom. I meet with my division 15 minutes per day (45 minutes on Fridays). It's totally useless and there's no grade for it, so I can't make my kids do anything.

I'm out in the hall trying to get kids to go to class when I hear screaming and cursing from my division classroom. Two of my girls are fighting. Awesome. Actually, they weren't fighting yet. They were preparing to fight with the screaming and cursing. Everyone made a circle around them and was getting worked up. It pissed me off. I got one of the girls -- I don't know why I cared, it just made me mad. So I had her against the wall trying to get her calmed down so I could take her to the security guard. She was screaming and cursing and acting like she was going to hit me. I kept yelling at her, "You hit me, I get to go home early, you get arrested for assault, and I get a nice break from you. So go ahead!" I don't know why I'm so crazy.

Miller, our security guard, finally arrived and took both girls away. I was so mad. I am so sick of this bullshit.

Then I have a meeting 4th period. 5th period I'm out in the hall trying to get kids to go to class (they make us stand out in the hall for about 10 minutes or so at the beginning of each class to yell at kids in the hall. And they wonder why no one learns anything.). Suddenly the kids are piling up around two girls who start fighting. One of the girls is the girl from my division! The one I didn't have against the wall. This girl is in my division and my 5th period class and she's always mouthing off at people. She got punched in the eye and I kinda think she deserved it. Had they sent her home after the first pseudo fight, this one wouldn't have happened. She's ridiculous.

She got suspended for five days. I had a request to provide work for her to do while she's home. I think not.

Then another of my girls tried to get in a fight with some random boy after 6th period (while I was in the hall). Again, I don't know why I care. But I had to grab her and try to calm her down. I guess that's when I know that I actually care about my students, since I'm apparently willing to risk getting in the middle of something for them. Legally I'm only required to say, "Stop, don't fight," and I'm off the hook.

My 7th period class is awful. I hate them and am not sure what to do with them. I gave them a pop quiz today. I'll probably give them another one tomorrow. I usually don't have a problem with classroom management, but that class is not working well. I finally just sat down and ignored them and checked my email. I'm supposed to be observed by the assistant principal this week. Thank God I wasn't observed today.

I've decided this is my toughest year in teaching. It's even worse than my first year, because at least during my first year, I was still harboring the illusion that my job mattered. I've concluded that at this point, I really am just a babysitter. It's pretty upsetting. Any my kids don't care. How can I care when they don't?

I'm really ready for Christmas break. 11 more school days to go!!!! Cross your fingers that I make it.