Welcome to the new and improved me! Thanks to Suzi for her inspiration! This is my big FAT statement on what you can expect to find on my blog. OK, since no one wants to read a 1,000 word post, here’s the short version.
Love my dearest teaching widower!
Love to worship Jesus!
Love to teach!
Love to play!
Love dogs and love to take photos!
Love to read, HATE racism, love technology, and love exclamation points!!! Did I say I HATE racism?
I am a semi-retired special educator with 45+ years experience. Yes, that makes me pretty old and I was probably teaching long before many of you were born. I always wanted to be a teacher, probably because I had some amazing and loving teachers myself. I have taught kids with a wide variety of disabilities, primarily in the public school system at the elementary level. My specialties are reading and social skills. Have you heard of Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Outliers: The Story of Success?” Gladwell summarizes research that suggests it takes at least 10,000 hours to develop expertise in some field. That makes me appreciate all those long hours at school when I start to feel old and creaky. I hope you enjoy this site as much I enjoy sharing it.
My husband of 42 years and best friend for 45 (yes, I had to use a calculator) now declares himself a Blogging Widower. He just came out here, where I am hunched over my computer, gave me a kiss, and announced his new status. He’s been a Teacher Widower for 41 years, so this is not an entirely new role for him. You would love him if you met him. All my students who have met him always ask when he’s coming back. He has made many runs to school when I frantically ask him to bring my lunch, that file folder, my purse, the materials I need RIGHT NOW to teach, my phone, and my planner (for all the good that has done me). He’s also made trips to school when I have taken his house and office keys to work; fortunately, he keeps his car keys in a separate place.
He writes a lot for his job but it’s slow going. First of all, he has really hard stuff to write. Second, he’s a perfectionist about that first paragraph. I agree that the first paragraph is important, but I’ve suggested he skip it and “just” start writing. But my husband is careful and precise and analytical. When he finishes something, it’s a jewel. My writing feels more like what you get out of a rock tumbler. A teaching tip: don’t tumble rocks in your class. It’s a lot like having a cement mixer parked in the room. There are no fumes but you can’t be heard above the rumble. And after all that racket, the outcome can be pure misery. Imagine the eager faces of kids who are waiting for huge, shiny gems to pocket, when their rocks and minerals have crumbled into dust. And the more paranoid ones think I have taken the diamonds out for myself. But who said there are no riches in teaching?
