Thanksgiving is a time for reflection on the things in life that really matter. It has long been my favorite holiday because it is just about the last one left that is not "commercialized" to death and no one expects a gift! I am so thankful for my wife and two little girls. I have truly been blessed when it comes the women/girls in my life. I could have never hoped for more.
This past Monday I started a long term substitute gig at Star City Middle School in 8th grade science. The regular teacher just had her first child and I was fortunate enough to be asked to long-term for her. I am thanful for the opportunity to get a small taste of being a real teacher.
So far, things have been going really well. I have a couple of kids that think they are cute but all in all, the students are all well behaved.
Tonight is the first Friday night since August that I have been home. I have been keeping stats and writing for the Commercial for the Bulldogs football team. They lost to Bald Knob last Friday night in the second round of the playoffs so the season ended for us with a 9-3 record. I love football and I am missing it already!
Friday, November 27, 2009
Saturday, November 14, 2009
I have been busy!!!
When I did not get a full time teaching job this year I decided to sign up to sub at Star City High and Middle Schools. So far this year I have subbed somewhere close to 40 days so I have been kept busy. I have also been writing for the Pine Bluff Commercial and the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. During my stat and note keeping for the games, the radio broadcast crew asked if they could use my stats during their halftime and post game shows. All of this has led to me being the unofficial stat man for the Bulldogs and I am now keeping the AAA records for the school during their playoff run.
I was contacted by the sports editor at the Pine Bluff Commercial a couple of weeks before football season and asked if I would be interested in writing for their sports section during high school football season. I told the editor that I would only be interested in covering Star City games because I would be atttending those games. I LOVE football in general but I wanted to go to Star City games and I knew that if I told them I would go elsewhere, I would not get to see many SC games. With the position that I am in, I want to do all that I can so that the people at Star City see that I truly want to be involved with the school there.
I remember years ago when I played football that I used to love to see my name in the paper on the rare occasion that our game was covered (The Commercial doesn't give much love to Star City historically) so I thought that I would write for SC because I know how great it feels to see your name in the paper. These players work really hard and I think that they really appreciate being written about.
Next week, Star City travels to Bald Knob for their second round game and I will make my radio play-by-play debut. The regular play-by-play man is going on a big hunting trip and will be out of town so he asked me to cover for him. I am really looking forward to that, I just hope I don't stick my foot in my mouth!! If you happen to be in the SE Arkansas area next Friday night, tune in to 99.9 and give me a listen! I may sound like a country hick but I do know football!
I was contacted by the sports editor at the Pine Bluff Commercial a couple of weeks before football season and asked if I would be interested in writing for their sports section during high school football season. I told the editor that I would only be interested in covering Star City games because I would be atttending those games. I LOVE football in general but I wanted to go to Star City games and I knew that if I told them I would go elsewhere, I would not get to see many SC games. With the position that I am in, I want to do all that I can so that the people at Star City see that I truly want to be involved with the school there.
I remember years ago when I played football that I used to love to see my name in the paper on the rare occasion that our game was covered (The Commercial doesn't give much love to Star City historically) so I thought that I would write for SC because I know how great it feels to see your name in the paper. These players work really hard and I think that they really appreciate being written about.
Next week, Star City travels to Bald Knob for their second round game and I will make my radio play-by-play debut. The regular play-by-play man is going on a big hunting trip and will be out of town so he asked me to cover for him. I am really looking forward to that, I just hope I don't stick my foot in my mouth!! If you happen to be in the SE Arkansas area next Friday night, tune in to 99.9 and give me a listen! I may sound like a country hick but I do know football!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Been a While
I has been a while since I have posted on this blog. To be totally honest, I forgot about it.
I don't have much to say or report, really. I have been averaging about 4 days per week subbing. I am pretty bored with handing out worksheets and potty passes to be quite honest. I am not discouraged about the teaching profession ... quite the opposite actually. The experience I am gaining as a sub is going to be beneficial for me in the future because I will be able to better understand what issues that subs deal with and ways I can help make their experience better.
I am looking forward to having my own class and subject to teach. I am still sure that I have chosen the right path for me career-wise. To say it has not been a smooth ride would be a massive understatement, but I have faith that in the end it will be worth the effort.
I am going to enter dates in my PDA so that I will have a reminder to blog more often than once per month. I know that the suspense has been killing some of you guys ... just wondering "what the sub is going on?"
I don't have much to say or report, really. I have been averaging about 4 days per week subbing. I am pretty bored with handing out worksheets and potty passes to be quite honest. I am not discouraged about the teaching profession ... quite the opposite actually. The experience I am gaining as a sub is going to be beneficial for me in the future because I will be able to better understand what issues that subs deal with and ways I can help make their experience better.
I am looking forward to having my own class and subject to teach. I am still sure that I have chosen the right path for me career-wise. To say it has not been a smooth ride would be a massive understatement, but I have faith that in the end it will be worth the effort.
I am going to enter dates in my PDA so that I will have a reminder to blog more often than once per month. I know that the suspense has been killing some of you guys ... just wondering "what the sub is going on?"
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Blow your horn!
Well, as most all of you know, I have seen subbing at my local high school. I have already subbed for 12 days this semester. Since I did not get a teaching job this year, I have decided to share my experiences as a sub. Maybe this will help those of you that have never filled the role of a substitute teacher better understand what subs have to deal with.
Late Friday evening, September the 18th, I got a call from the middle school asking me to sub for the band director. I thought that it was someone playing a joke on me. My sister is a teacher and I thought that she had worked up a scheme to "punk me". You see, back in the day when I was in school, if the band director was absent, the music teacher looked in on us and the drum major ran the show. Well, those days are gone because the band director not only teaches band now but also has three music appreciation classes so it is a full day.
First, second and third periods were not much of an issue because those classes are experienced musicians. However, the afternoon was a different story.
Music appreciation for grades 7 and 8 was a nightmare. The instructor left me beginning music videos for the kids to watch. Problem was, the videos only lasted about 20 minutes and the class period lasts for 50 minutes. I had 30 minutes of music appreciation time to fill and I have absolutely ZERO musical skills. Now, I can sing like nobody's business in my truck but that is about as far as my music skills go.
I ended up finding another video on choreography for them to watch. The girls all wanted to dance and the boys all wanted to crawl in a hole (I would not have minded a quiet hiding place myself:). Needless to say I was so glad when the day was over.
The moral of the story is this: When you have a substitute coming in for you, make sure that you have enough to fill the ENTIRE class period. Too much idle time is tough for a sub to cover. Specifically a sub that has no clue about the subject matter that they are subbing for.
Late Friday evening, September the 18th, I got a call from the middle school asking me to sub for the band director. I thought that it was someone playing a joke on me. My sister is a teacher and I thought that she had worked up a scheme to "punk me". You see, back in the day when I was in school, if the band director was absent, the music teacher looked in on us and the drum major ran the show. Well, those days are gone because the band director not only teaches band now but also has three music appreciation classes so it is a full day.
First, second and third periods were not much of an issue because those classes are experienced musicians. However, the afternoon was a different story.
Music appreciation for grades 7 and 8 was a nightmare. The instructor left me beginning music videos for the kids to watch. Problem was, the videos only lasted about 20 minutes and the class period lasts for 50 minutes. I had 30 minutes of music appreciation time to fill and I have absolutely ZERO musical skills. Now, I can sing like nobody's business in my truck but that is about as far as my music skills go.
I ended up finding another video on choreography for them to watch. The girls all wanted to dance and the boys all wanted to crawl in a hole (I would not have minded a quiet hiding place myself:). Needless to say I was so glad when the day was over.
The moral of the story is this: When you have a substitute coming in for you, make sure that you have enough to fill the ENTIRE class period. Too much idle time is tough for a sub to cover. Specifically a sub that has no clue about the subject matter that they are subbing for.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Maybe next year ...
I hope my first attempt at blogging goes a bit better than my first attempt at joining the teaching profession. However, I am not feeling too confident that it will. Having not obtained a teaching position, I have asked myself multiple times why I am still pursuing this career path. Each time I come up with the same answer ... I want to teach!
I signed up to substitute teach at Star City this fall and I have picked up a few days already. I have affirmed in my mind that I really enjoy being around kids ... I want to teach! Subbing so far has really seemed like nothing more than "babysitting". But at the same time I am learning about the students and how to better interact with them. I am getting my foot in the door at the school at which I hope to work next year. I will do my best to make that happen because I want to teach ... maybe next year!
I signed up to substitute teach at Star City this fall and I have picked up a few days already. I have affirmed in my mind that I really enjoy being around kids ... I want to teach! Subbing so far has really seemed like nothing more than "babysitting". But at the same time I am learning about the students and how to better interact with them. I am getting my foot in the door at the school at which I hope to work next year. I will do my best to make that happen because I want to teach ... maybe next year!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)