Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Dang! It's Been a While

*a very wise friend advised me that I should "ammend" this post a bit...which I've done. I'm reading a new book and I'll have a brand spanking new post up about something completely different later this afternoon* Thanks for your prayers. I'm doing great....vacation started Friday! :) (wise friend, yeah, you...the one who NEVER comments on my blog anymore....could you email me again and let me know how this is?;)

Good gravy. I'm such a blogging slob. Not a good thing. If I'm not blogging...it's bad.
*note that*

Here's the low-down. I'm an extremely creative RIGHT-BRAINED....(totally) person... I'm right-brained to the point of deficiency as it pertains to left-brained sorts of activities. For real.

ok.

So. I'm working for a SUPREMELY left-brained principal. And, every time he comes in my room he's blown AWAY and AMAZED at the sorts of things he sees 7th graders doing, saying, sharing, etc..... He's a wonderful man, actually. Personally and professionally.


Jay....hear this. Be prepared for this. Education can be very challenging for folks like us. And yet. I love it. I love kids. I love teaching. I love love love being in the classroom every day.

And I'm having a horrible time right now.

Pray.

love and grace,
pam


View Current Blog

11 comments:

Peterson Toscano said...

Pam, yeah, teaching can be one of the most rewarding, exciting and creative art forms.
Schools can be one of the most deflating, discouraging, crappy places to teach.

I feel for you. You have so many people to please and so many demands to meet. I imagine that in the midst of it, you still rock as a teacher.

Good to see you up and blogging (no pressure!). I missed you.

grace said...

Thanks Peterson...you ROCK as a friend!
I'll be back in the swing of it soon!
love,
pam

Carole Turner said...

Glad your back to the blog block!

Have you seen "School of Rock"? We love that movie.

Creative teachers rock!

Carole Turner said...

I'm such a redundant rhymer in that last post!

Anonymous said...

Hope you take this as humorous and not negative . . .

This reminds me of a story. Once, there was a young middle schooler who was new to youth group outings. One night, an older, more “mature” left-brained high schooler decided he would tell this novice a story about a man who goes around doing cruel things to young middle schoolers in their sleep.

This story concerned this young right-brained middle schooler. His powerful imagination and creativity made the story worse in his mind by the second. It got so bad that he had to approach his wise, charming, and good-looking youth minister for help with his dilemma. Never one to mess up a good joke, the handsome youth minister figured out what was going on and confirms the story.

Until . . . after a few minutes the very left-brained studly youth minister began to perceive (he has worked hard at developing his left-brained side) that this young middle schooler is legitimately scared. So, the youth minister decided to help out the poor right-brained middle schooler.

The youth minister decided to help the middle schooler turn the joke around on the high schooler. First, he made sure the middle schooler understood that the story was not true. Next, he suggested that the middle schooler should act scared for the remainder of the weekend and then get his mom in on the joke. He suggested that after about a week later the middle schooler’s mom should go and talk to the high schooler’s mom and mention that some older boys were telling stories that scared the middle schooler. She should say that it scared him so much that he hadn’t slept in a week, he had begun wetting the bed, and he had been to the doctor twice about the problem. This, in turn, would scare the high schooler because he really genuinely cares for the middle schooler and does not want to seriously hurt him in any way.

What happened? Nothing. The second the middle schooler heard a portion of what the youth minister told him (the part about the story not being true), his mind was somewhere else and he missed most of the conversation. The second he saw the high schooler he told him that his most excellent youth minister told him the story was not true, therefore messing up the joke that the youth minister so cleverly devised.

Because the boy is so right-brained he missed most of the details of the conversation. He got the main idea (that the story wasn’t true) but he missed the details. Though left-brained people bring so much to the table in terms of the big picture, they often miss the details (even of conversations).

Lucky thing we have both types in the world.

Tin Man

grace said...

Tin Man,
I love that story! The only confusing parts were the ones referring to the charming, handsome, and studly youth minister. ;)

The answer is for all of us to "celebrate" one another and work in a symbiotic relationship relying on one another to kick in where the others are weak...and that's okay. I thank God every day for my left-brained teaching partner who really "gets" me and uses me to her advantage...and I do the same right back. This is how God intended it. He's a smart one, that God guy!

Thanks for your "constructive" sort of criticism.

love,
pam

Kathy said...

Welcome back, Pam!

As a retired school secretary I'm accustomed to being in the middle between teachers and admins, so can empathize with both those of the 'late with reason-ers' and 'on time with reason-ers.' So what does that make me, an ambidextrous-brainer? :)

There is a common ground - mutual respect - as well as extending that respect to others attending said meetings, allowing them a blessed opportunity to chat during the lapse between 'time late' and 'time actual' ;)

btw-I have great admiration for any and everyone teaching middle schoolers - the most difficult task in the book, next only to parenting middle schoolers!!!!

kurt_t said...

I'm very right-brained, so I can really relate. And I loathe meetings. Especially meetings where people "brainstorm." Why is everybody doing that these days? Is that some kind of new management fad?

grace said...

Kurt,
EXACTLY....left-brainers act like brainstorming is some sort of special activity....good grief, what are they doing with their brains all the rest of the times??? haha!!! I do wish that my brain could be a bit less stormy sometimes...but, it has it's perks. And I have so many loving and supportive lefties who tell me where and when to be...then I go there and come up with ideas for them! ha!!

Kathy,
You are right about teaching middle schoolers in that it does take a unique sort of personality. I absolutely adore them. Not a class period goes by that one of them doesn't absolutely warm my heart in their sick little twisted ways.

Glad you are HERE!!

love,
pam

Jay said...

Oh, you think your classroom's right-brained. Wait till you see what mine's going to be like! :)

Trust me. My mother has told me enough horror stories about what it's like for a very creative person working in education (she was an elementary school art teacher, so she had a hard time dealing with the left-brainers). Me, though, I'm excited. Nothing's going to sway me from education. :)

Hang in there, girl. Christmas break's coming soon, right?

Joe said...

I love that story! The only confusing parts were the ones referring to the charming, handsome, and studly youth minister. ;)

I lost track of the story details at the first mention of the handsome youth minister.

Pam, you sound like the kind of person who keeps everyone awake at meetings. :)

I hope the "horrible time right now" doesn't put a dampener on your Christmas break.