I'm Spoilt

I've got some awesome presents this month. I haven't really had time to take it all in before now. Everyone seems to have left town now and I am home and have the house to myself so I have been noticing how spoilt I've been.

My kids gave me a pile of my favourite DVDs as well as aromatherapy treats, new headphones for my much loved and used ipod and a great photo file. My dear brother has delighted me in many ways by giving me a beautifully framed family photo taken at his wedding last year. I treasure it. He has also given me a stack of great music, which is an annual treat from him. I have been enjoying them for the past couple of days. He also got me a grill as my family has a Kris kindle type thing with the grownups. My parents gave me quite a few great gifts, as they always do, it's cause I still believe in Santa and I'm a very good girl, but my favourite is the crisp white sheets. I love white sheets, especially new ones!

This month of December, with my birthday as well I have been literally showered with great presents from all my friends. The kinds of things I really wanted too. The kids at school spoilt me as well on their last days with very generous pressies.

Tonight Andy has surprised me with a belated gift and I am gobsmacked. I love astrology, yet most people in my life don't seem to recognise that. Not sure why that is, anyway he has given me a Jonathon Cainer subscription for the next year and I am over the moon about it.

Updates from Out and About

I'm having a wonderful holiday and will describe with photo's when I get home.

I caught up with news about our schools VCE scores and was pleased to hear many students have enjoyed successful results. It is a challenging time for young people to be waiting for their scores.

I was delighted when I checked my emails to find that I had won the Imaginif competition for a tip about child safety. I really love the work Megan is doing on Imaginif. Child safety and well being is something I am quite passionate about.

I'm writing today from Adelaide. I arrived yesterday and experienced lots of rain, which was perfect as I was tired and felt justified having a little nap. I went shopping in the afternoon and enjoyed strolling around the streets dodging rain drops. I'm about to head off to the markets. I am catching up with a friend this afternoon.

Last Day at Work Tomorrow

My desk is clear and I have moved to my new office. I am excited about next year and the challenges and opportunities I will have in my new role at school as a Year Level Co-ordinator. I have felt very enthusiastic in my preparations. There are lots of changes and shifts at our school next year.

I have finished my mosaic table - really truly this time! I will put up a photo when I get back from my trip.

We have 3 campuses and there has been a lot of movement between them. People are leaving the school for a variety of reasons. It will be quite different next year due to all the movement.

Tomorrow will be filled mostly with celebrations. A breakfast with our campus, complete with Santa and Kris kindle/kringle (whatever!) will begin the day. Then our entire college will join for a mass and then a luncheon and the year will be completed.

I am looking forward to some time off. I need to sleep a bit more and get relaxed. I have an adventure planned and lots of little things around my home I would like to achieve.

This year has been huge. I am ready for a rest.

Mosaics Teacher?

Next year I have been given an Integrated Projects class that consists of teaching students Mosaic tiling. I am not an art/technology trained teacher, although media studies was considered in the art stream when I did my course and I did those teaching rounds with an art teacher. The Art/Technology people definitely don't consider me to be 'one of them'. I am more confident teaching English. I have taught Humanities though and had no training at all in that area.

I am excited because this week two of the teachers are going to show me how to grout and what better project to grout than my unfinished mosaic table! So, no matter how this experiment (me teaching an arty subject) goes, I will have finally finished this project! That's got to be good.

I enjoyed making the table and I love mosaics, so it could be fun from that perspective. It will no doubt be a learning curve and hopefully not too steep. I am confident that I will be supported by the teachers, because they are good people.

Happy and Tired

It's been very busy at school. I have farewelled my much loved year 9 students. They head off to the senior campus next year. I was immensely touched by the warm good-byes I received from the students and their families. They are amazing young people and the future looks bright for all of us if it's in their hands.
Today we had the last school day for the year 7's and 8's and it was typically energetic. After last nights events with the year 9's graduation mass and social, tonight I had a farewell dinner for two wonderful women who are retiring from teaching. If it had been anything less than such an important occasion I would have 'wagged'.
So now I am feeling quite exhausted but immensely satisfied with my working year. I have another week of attending work to get through, yet without students, it tends to be less demanding.

December - What a great month!

December is such a huge and wonderful month. Summer starts and my birthday, which continued coming today. I received more gifts and good wishes as I went back to work and caught up with a few people who didn't catch me yesterday. I love it! When I was a kid I used to say my birthday is always good for a weeks worth of joy, and it hasn't changed much really. So many treats....

Tonight's 'Awards Night' at school was a most enjoyable evening. It is always a treat to see the students who work diligently during the year, receive acknowledgement from their school community. We had the author Scot Gardiner speak at the event tonight and he spoke very well. I enjoy the guest speakers I have heard in the two years we have been holding this event. Scot was excellent. He spoke for long enough and was very entertaining. The common factor with both speakers was a message that academics is not everything and it is important to be a good, kind human being. Our school strives for that personhood aspect of education and that is what I love most about it.

This week I have one more evening out for a school event. I also have a massage and chiropractic appointment, so it's a busy week. My daughter is home staying with me which is lovely, yet I will need to enjoy every moment we have, due to the heavy commitments. She's just out with her dad for dinner right now. I'm giving her a massage when she gets home and looking forward to another practise.

Busy Busy Times

Last night we had the Christmas concert in the park in the middle of town. It was great. I walked down, enjoyed the kids music making and walked home.

It's been frantic at work. My Digital Storytelling class are undertaking to make a short film for each homeroom to be shown to the whole school next week and as these things always happen, at the last minute, there are still some that aren't complete yet. I am rushing around to get that organised in lunchtimes and feeling very flustered about it.

I still haven't started my report writing yet, but am making a lot of progress with my marking, in snatches here and there. We have a public holiday on Friday for the local show, so I expect, I will spend it writing reports.

Today we went to an 'adventure' park with our year nines as part of a transition program. They are going to the senior campus next year. It was exhausting.

My team talked me into participating in a couple of things. So I did the 'Leap of Faith' which involved walking a plank with a harness on, up very very high.

I also did one of the team activities. We had to all as a team get over this really high wall. There was one student left who hadn't done it and as I was attempting to convince her it would be fine, some bright spark suggested I show her, for extra points for the team. I would have gladly disappeared, yet instead allowed my students to boost me up and drag me up over this wall.

Bruises galore! Why do I always fall for these things? The kids are younger and braver than me! I am so tired, but it was great to see the kids push their boundaries. Some of them are amazingly strong, brave and fit. One more day of teaching and then a marathon report writing weekend, including my birthday somehow. Oh, I have to make my wish list!

Restorative Justice

Tonight we had a speaker talk to us about 'Restorative Justice'. Terry O'Connell came to our school to run a session and it was a bit of a shame that only about a quarter of the teachers attended, because it was brilliant. I totally agree with most of what he said and I can't wait to explain it to my students and practise it with next year. I am going to be one of the year 9 co-coordinators next year.

The result of the no compromise situation, I ended up getting the position I wanted!

The power of restorative justice, I feel is that it is relationship building. It also gives all involved to have a learning experience. This is the kind of environment I want to work in and belong to. Read the article in the link about Terry because it outlines more about what this system is about. It works equally in all relationships I imagine and I had a play with it tonight with my son over a small situation and found the questions very satisfying and the outcome pleasing.

I have learnt more in the last three days than I have in a long time. My brain feels very satisfied! It's wonderful when you have highly productive learning experiences. A great high for me and rare too! Often it can be tedious and hard to get through, yet both courses I have attended were really interesting and useful.

I didn't get home from work until late and have mounds of corrections so I am beginning to feel a little under the hammer.

Who Do Teens Admire?

This week in my year 9 English class, students were delivering prepared oral presentations on the subject "A Person I Admire". I love this assignment. Every year, I have been delighted as students have usually prepared well and revealed the heroes in their lives.

Most years there are a couple of 'celebrity' heroes and they have predominantly been sporting and entertainment heroes until this year. I was delighted with the 'famous' heroes chosen this year, social activists, business people doing extraordinary things and courageous survivors were the only 'personally unknowns' in the speeches. This is really important to me because I feel young people need real role models. Role models that are worthy of their admiration and worth imitating.

Most students select a family member. Grandparents, mothers, fathers, aunts, brothers and sisters are all the people most looked up to by teenagers over the 6 years I have been teaching year 9 English. The love and gratitude the teenagers express in these speeches are precious. Whenever I can, I let parents know this because I wonder if they realise how much their young person appreciates and respects them.Usually they are surprised.

Tears came to my eyes in class a few times whilst listening to the speeches as they were so touching. As I looked around the room, some of the students were feeling similarly moved. I felt proud this class has created such a safe learning environment that they can share their passions and express their emotions within it. It feels human to me.

24th November 2007 -Full Moon in Gemini

This Full Moon has all sorts of interesting things going for it. Mystic Medusa in the Tasmanian Mercury:Bad News Rising predicts some surprises for us on election day in Australia. The moon will be full tomorrow night in Australia.

I am participating in a massage course this weekend. It is an introductory course and I have been looking forward to it for a while now, even though I knew it would come at a busy time in the school year. I have been correcting essays all week in preparation. I think I will manage it though. We have a short week next week and a local public holiday for the show on Friday, which helps.

Schools Today

I've just returned from our schools fashion parade. The talent displayed by the kids just blows me away. The beauty of each individual kid who modelled the clothes, all different shapes and sizes, hair colours, individuals shone for all to see. The creativity and work that was on display in the drawings and sketches in the foyer, in the recycled fashion items modelled by the students was stunning. It saddens me that it is so obvious to the adults in their lives, parents, teachers and friends, yet they miss it in themselves. This is why I loved Anthea Paul's awesome speech last night.

It's been a busy week at school and I have seen some amazing displays of goodness this week. On Monday we held a Remembrance Day service. A group of students organised and delivered speeches acknowledging their appreciation of the selflessness of those who served the country. Students then pinned names of family members who had served to a string. The remainder of the student body, roughly 600 students all seated on the ground around the flagpole, were so silent and respectful, you could hear the names gently flapping in the wind. Every year I witness this in awe. I look at the sea of faces and feel proud to work among these kids who rise to such occasions.

It is also a privilege to work alongside the teachers who make these things happen. The teacher responsible for the Remembrance Day service and the Fashion Parade sits next to me at my desk. I watch her every year making calls, driving around town, running fundraisers to make these events a success. She gets exhausted, tired, stressed yet her passion for her students and life keeps her turning up every day to make these truly educational experiences happen. She is not paid any more than other teachers at our school, she has no special position, she enriches our school community because that is an expression of who she is. I appreciate her greatly.

The media rarely reports these things. Reporters don't tell about the kids who support one another through family, friendship and health crisis's. They don't find it newsworthy to inform about the efforts that go into fundraising and social action in most schools around the country. They don't celebrate the talent and creativity we get to see in the art shows, fashion parades, musical performances, to mention a few of the events I get to see every year.

Yes, we will all be exhausted over the next few weeks wrapping up the year into corrections, reports and award nights, but it is entirely worth it.

Beautiful World by Colin Hay

I heard this song for the first time today and just loved it. I heard it on a remix (Shift Happens) of that great clip : Did You Know/Shift Happens . For anyone who is interested the original presentation can be accessed at this blog The Fischbowl.


Getting back to Colin Hay, I recognised his voice, which pleased me. When my pa died I listened to his song "Waiting For My Real Life to Begin" over and over. I'm not sure why, I just found it quite soothing and comforting. I guess my pa was always a bit of a dreamer and perhaps it embraced that. This song 'Beautiful World' is lovely.

I showed the clip to my year 9 students today in the Careers class to assist them in thinking about the kinds of jobs that may be available in the future. They responded so well to it, I shared it with my year 9 English class as well. They found it interesting and inspiring.

Halloween Reflections

I like the honoring the dead idea, and have lit some candles tonight to remember mine. There have been small interesting signs that have made me smile and reflect.

I know it's not really seasonally appropriate in Australia. My son is gathering his friends and they are having a bit of a small night here. It has the feel of a spring carnival though, as they dress up, laugh and eat together.

I explored the origins of Halloween in my classes today. The year 7 novel 'Remote Man' makes some references to the way it's celebrated in the US.

We shared with each other what we find scary. The year 9s discussed scary stories written by well known authors, and the retelling in other media of scary stories. The favourite example was "The Simpsons" doing Poe's 'Raven'. My favourite of course is Kate Bush's 'Wuthering Heights', none of my students had heard of it!

The students wrote some of their own scary stories and read them very well to the class. There were some treasures. I was delighted that they heeded my comment that violence and destruction did not necessarily make scary. They even went sparingly on the gore.

Halloween elsewhere :

Parent Sense on Halloween : Imaginif

Dia de los Muertos, All Saints Day, and Halloween 2007: Aquarius Papers

Halloween? I don't think so! This is Australia right?:Life in the Country

Trick or Treating: Do you let your kids beg for lollies?: Red Sultana

I Just Can't Seem to Get Halloween Right: Blogpond

I am Done with Compromise

"In a relationship, when does the art of compromise, become compromising?" Sarah Jessica Parker

"We all have a childhood dream that when there is love, everything goes like silk, but the reality is that marriage requires a lot of compromise."Raquel Welch

So who is right? Sarah or Raquel?
A man I adored had this saying as his mantra, 'Life's a compromise', he would say, frequently. It never sat well with me. I am a win/win or no deal kind of person. However I went along, thinking perhaps that way is right. I wondered, maybe I'm stubborn, unco-operative or difficult to get along with? The compromises didn't work out. It drained me. I was never quite happy with the compromises. I find some are laziness in regards to ourselves, leaving both involved dissatisfied.

"If you limit your choices only to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want, and all that is left is compromise." Robert Fritz

If you take the time, communicate the truth and remain open to other solutions, you can usually find something that meets needs. If you can't and that is continuous, I think you are in the wrong place. The truth is, if it is only half what you want or some other mix, it usually isn't what you want at all.

"Don't compromise yourself, you're all you've got" Janis Joplin

Today I was offered a position very similar to the one I applied for at my school. Same wage, same type of job, different location. I have promised my son I would not work at the school he now attends, which was exactly where this was. I would consider working there in the future. He has one year to go. I had to turn it down. I may not get a leadership position now.

I feel really good about my decision. Had I accepted the compromise, I would now be trying to convince my son, it would be OK. I would be hoping it would be OK. I know this is not the kind of start I would want in a challenging new job. I love what I do now and am happy to keep doing it.

Daylight Savings Blues

It was a rough start to the work week for me today. The students noticed the clock reading quarter to eight and we all sat around in homeroom in a bit of a daze, imagining that just a week ago, we'd have had an extra hour in bed. We never considered we'd have gone to bed an hour earlier as well.

Having the delightful time at camp last week, meant catching up with my other classes and the notices and such that go on when you are out for three days. I noticed a few others were dragging their feet a little also around me. Sometimes we just have days like these I guess.

I do love daylight savings though. I have always looked forward to those extra daylight hours that give the impression of more time. Perhaps it is more useful time. I'm not sure. History tells me I will come to like it.

The one year I wasn't a fan was when I was cutting asparagus for a season. We began work at sunrise and daylight savings effectively meant finishing an hour later.

All in all though, there are still 24 hours in the day. No matter how it feels.

Correction Time

I have a pile of corrections glaring at me from my bench. Neatly typed essays that will, when I stop procrastinating, be a pleasure to read. It's times like these I wonder why I'm not teaching PE. The answer is obvious in the lack of sporting ability.

I have decided on NaNoWriMo. I really want to do it. I have applied for a leadership position at school and have been told I have been successful, just don't know which position yet. I know I may not have time to write much for the next 3 years so I want to have a go at it. I really have to get organised and get my corrections handled.

The other motivating force is that my birthday is the day before reports are due. If I procrastinate now I will spend that day writing reports. I love my birthday and know from past experience I will feel very sorry for myself if I have to spend it report writing!

I notice other bloggers write that they won't be posting as much due to large workloads, but I know myself, I will possibly post more - I love distractions. I understand all those organisational gurus. I hear what they are saying, yet we will see.

Corrections, report writing and yard duty - if they could just be outsourced teaching would be the best job in the whole world!

Year 9 Camp 2007

This camp was the best I have attended with a year 9 group. This is entirely due to the enthusiastic spirit and willingness to co-operate and enjoy time together by all involved. They were absolutely a pleasure to be with. We all enjoyed good sleep, they settled well, they were appreciative of everything and got along well. I am so delighted with them.

The staff who came were great to work with and participated in all the activities. When everyone pulls their weight and has a sense of humour it is fun. We rode horses, surfed, had long walks and spent time at Point Nepean. It's a bit of a challenge for me at 41, to keep up with teenagers physically. I have some seldom used muscles that are now begging for a long hot bath, (that is currently running!).

I always enjoy the year 9 camps. There are usually ups and downs but at the end, no matter how exhausted I am, I enjoy getting to know the kids better. These kids were exceptional though. There was always someone offering to help or volunteer their service, usually several vying for the chance. They cooked, cleaned, ate well, said their 'please' and 'thanks' and looked after themselves and each other with ease. They made me coffee carried each others bags and did lots of little, yet considerate and thoughtful things that made a difference.

There was no whining, complaining or bickering between them, as is often the case. Frequently on camps a handful of students will stand out as people you would be happy to send home to their parents, I can honestly say, I didn't feel this at all about a single one of them.

No Tamboritha Camp for 2007

I have been going to Tamboritha for our school camp every year since I began teaching 7 years ago. I've experienced all types of weather there. It has snowed and been sunny, freezing cold, windy, yet always felt close to nature and refreshing for my spirit. This year, due to flood damage that occurred earlier in the year we are off to the Mornington Penninsula for our year 9 camp tomorrow.

Licola and the surrounding area has suffered from bushfire's, floods and mudslides in the past 12 months. We were on bushfire alert last year and always have to work around this when we are planning our camps up there. It is a beautiful part of the world and I feel sad we are not able to access it this year.

One of the things I love about camp, is students are removed from mobile phone access, electricity (for some of the time - there are generators at night for cooking and lighting), but no televisions or other gadgets. It's a real experience for many of them, but surprisingly it doesn't really bother them. They sit around and chat, play cards, we go for long walks, ride horses and just be with each other.

Sometimes on the way home someone will mention something about what they've missed on TV. A message will come though on a mobile and they will have to search for it, having almost forgotten about their 'life support system' - they don't believe they can do without them before we leave.

Most kids look forward to seeing their families and the comfort and luxury of their homes. They appreciate them anew.

I am attending this camp with my homeroom. This class is a fantastic group and I expect to have a very enjoyable time. I hope we can still capture that spirit of enjoying nature and each others company. Now I best go and pack!

Students Today... (a bit of a rant)

This could make you think.....

A Vision of Students Today by Mike Welsh and class


On my school based blog that I recently deleted due to lack of interest from fellow staff members, I had posted The Machine is Using Us. I read today about Mike Welsh's latest clip Information R/evolution on Sultana Blog:Observations on How We've Changed and noticed the clip above.

Granted the students are obviously university students, yet from conversations I have with secondary students (12-16yr old) replace Facebook with Myspace and you would get some similar feedback. I have noticed many of them don't use email as much as we 'grownups' do either. Quite a few students use forums to discuss their gaming and other online interests. They socialise and use their mobiles similarly.

Another good clip on this theme, I had previously posted on that other blog was...

Pay Attention


Youtube is blocked at my school. We have 4 computer labs shared between 22 classes. MP3 players and mobile phones are banned. There are good reasons for this, but I often wish we could harness the positive use of these things. I wish some others got over being scared and listening to the scare campaigns about the latest scary thing that happened online, and learn and be effective for this generation.

Schools aren't protecting students from online threats by excluding the Internet from their education. The one place they could get some leadership and guidance, is largely ignoring online experience.

Sometimes I wonder if the first biro ever brought into a school was used as a weapon and stabbed someone in the eye, would they have been banned across the country? If someone reflected on the amount of times students use paper to make planes and fly them around, thus causing a distraction, should paper be banned? And what about paper cuts? I know I am becoming cynical now, but I'm frustrated.

Interested vs Interesting

We all want to be interesting, don't we? When it comes to interacting with others, you can have more success in your communications if you are genuinely interested, rather than trying to be interesting.

I watched a film on Saturday night that my daughter recommended to me. "Freedom Writers" was about a young, idealistic teacher who went into a pretty scary school and worked at making it a place of learning for her class. Unfortunately I didn't get to see the end of the movie cause my DVD player wouldn't play the second half, yet what I saw was that her genuine interest in them, won them over, and allowed them to be able to listen to her.

It echoes Stephen Covey's fifth habit, "Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood" in "7 Habits of Highly Effective People". I see a lot of teachers put hours into planning fantastic lessons with students, but until they have built rapport with their class, the most interesting lessons will be hijacked by resentful and uncooperative students. When you show genuine interest in students and come to know them as people, you can take them anywhere, teach them anything. Why didn't anyone tell me that when I was a student-teacher?

When I have focused on trying to be interesting to students I find myself feeling like a one man show. Who can compete with all the amusements available to young people today? If you ask them, they will tell you all kinds of useful things to assist in their learning.

Ironically, I also saw in that movie, her passion for her work, became a priority and she stopped being interested in her partner. So the reverse became true at home. He became resentful and their relationship began to sour. I didn't get to see what happened, but I hope it worked out.

Today in one of my classes a relief teacher had just taught them and I noticed there was a mind map on the whiteboard. It was a subject that class usually complains about and I don't think they really enjoy. I asked them about it and they were positive and enthusiastic about the lesson they'd had. One student said, "He asked us about what we thought, he didn't tell us what to think, it was great, I learnt heaps". I know it's not always practical for teachers to focus on what students think, but if you do it often enough, you can give them something to think about.

It is a mark of respect to listen to another. Before the holidays I read the article about respect and I have been thinking a lot about it. It really resonated with me, yet I have been wondering, who teaches that kind of stuff to teachers. I am mentoring a first year teacher this year, so I am interested in finding ways to share this kind of information. Student management becomes much easier when you have genuine working relationships.