[Video] President Obama on Improving Chances of Young African American Men

From Upworthy.com: http://www.upworthy.com/every-once-in-a-while-he-says-something-so-true-it-makes-me-want-to-stand-up-and-applaud-for-days-4?c=ufb1

Sub Adventures #7: 9th Grade ELA in the Bronx

Today's adventure started with taking two buses and walking around an entire block unnecessarily because Google Maps steered me wrong--again. (Refer to Sub Adventure, 6th/7th grade science in Brooklyn.)

Walk northwest on H Street towards G Place, it said. Turn right onto G Street, it said. Turn right onto H Street, it sai--Wait. Wasn't I just on H Street? And this is actually F Street! As I could use the exercise, I decided to continue around the block to get back onto H Street, just to realize that the school had been directly across the street from the bus stop. If only I had looked up from my screen.

Entering the building, I was impressed by the new, sleek look of the school. It was extremely clean with great lighting. The principal greeted students with a handshake as they entered the building. I got a handshake as well before explaining that I was a substitute.

For the first period, I "babysat" for an art class whose teacher was running late. The students had a project and they spent the period working on that. The rest of the day, I covered two Rhetoric and Composition classes and three English I classes. The students were chatty as to be expected, but no major issues.

The school had a very comfortable atmosphere. Teachers had a shared office where all of their desks were held. Students had a hangout nook with couches and vending machines for when they have free periods or in between classes. On the door of each classroom was a sign showing what each teacher was currently reading with book covers. I love that!

This was a great assignment. I couldn't help thinking that I wouldn't mind working there as I could feel the strong sense of community between students, between teachers, and between students and teachers.

Sub Adventures #6: 6th Grade Math in the Bronx

Today, I substituted for two 6th grade math classes in the Bronx

There weren't any major issues with either class, except that for the first period, I thought I was teaching from 9:20 to 10:05 so I sped through the packet they were supposed to be working on. However, the receptionist made an error and I was actually teaching until 10:55. So, the students finished early and I didn't have anything for them. I let them chat amongst themselves; Big Mistake. They became too loud and an administrator had to come in and tell them to stay quiet.

I finished teaching at 12:00pm, since the teacher returned. This meant, that I spent the next FOUR hours folding fliers, and labeling, stuffing, and sealing envelopes. Lots and lots and lots of envelopes. I wanted to die of the tediousness of it all! Alas, I survived, barely.

That's all folks. Today's assignment wasn't too eventful.

Until next time!

Sub Adventures #5: 9th and 10th grade History in the Bronx

Today was . . . interesting.

It started off normally enough. Actually . . .  no it didn't. From the second I set eyes on the building, I thought uh-oh. For one thing, the building was absolutely ginormous. And as is typical of many Bronx public schools, it housed 5-6 other schools. Upon first entering the building, I was subjected to walking through detectors. Then, I had to be hand-wanded for some reason. Next, I had to find the main office of the particular school where I was subbing. To avoid getting lost in the maze-like halls, I went against my natural tendencies and immediately asked for directions.

From there, things were pretty normal for the first 4 periods. I think I was covering for a co-special education teacher, so there wasn't a need for me to lead the class. I was kind of bored since I wasn't doing much. One student even took it upon himself to call me out on it: "I would love your job. Getting paid to do nothing." Brat!

Then during period 5, there was a fire drill. I repeat: A fire drill. At a school with thousands of students. In the freezing cold. It was not fun and it was not effective. I could barely find my way out of the building and I lost my students. #FAIL

Period 6 was lunch. Period 7 was a disaster. The teacher I was covering for doesn't have classes after 5th period, so I was sent to help another sub for 7th period. The students had a project to work on, but needed laptops to do so. Laptops they could not use because there was no official teacher in the room. The students then took that to mean that they could sit there and do nothing.

At that point, neither I or the other sub wanted to confront them. However, the level of blatant disrespect towards adults was appalling. I felt invisible trying to tell them to stop yelling at one another. And the potty mouths on these young people. I thought I had a potty mouth, but I ain't got nothing on these kiddies. Every curse word in the book was said. It didn't end there though: they slapped one another; they yelled at the top of their lungs; they even pulled out condoms that one of the boys had and one girl started puncturing them with a pen. Yeah, that was my reaction as well--utter shock.

What upsets me the most is that I'm discovering that these Bronx schools all have the same disciplinary issues and there seems to be a lack of authority. Students get away with too much. They are roaming the halls, yelling and fighting one another in the halls and no teacher, dean, or administrator ever scolds them for the inappropriate behavior. When, how, and why have adults in school buildings started to avoid confronting children?

On another note, I saw a student from my student teaching experience in a Bronx middle school two years ago. That was pretty cool.

Well that's my adventure for today. Tomorrow, we're still in the Bronx. A few blocks away from today's assignment actually, at a middle school.

Sub Adventures #4: 9th and 10th grade Health/Physical Education in the Bronx

Yes, you read that correctly. I was covering health and gym classes today. Pure torture.

9th/10th graders + health/phys ed busy work + half of the teachers and students gone on a trip = 

CHAOS AND MAYHEM!

The students were out of control, even more so at the end of the day. I didn't have a class until the third hour (10:30a). The teacher had wanted me to read a chapter in the textbook with the students aloud and then they were supposed to complete some questions. However, the students were unwilling to read aloud. I don't know why--I've always found contraceptives absolutely fascinating! *rolls eyes

So, I gave up, told them to read silently and complete the task, and sat back. The students spent the entire time talking--loudly. And the potty mouths on these young people, my goodness! I ignored the talking for the most part--until period 7 that is. They were out of control and the volume was ear-splitting. I got sick of it finally and demanded utter silence for the 15 minutes that were left of the period. If I hear a single word, I told them, I'm calling a dean in here immediately. And they shut up. For a little while anyway.

My last two periods were gym, which I was secretly looking forward to. However, they moved the gym classes to the health classroom. So, I ended up with 10 students in 8th period and 4 students in 9th period as the rest of the students decided not to show. And I was perfectly okay with that. 

At 4:30, I dragged my butt home, exhausted after 8.5 hours of subbing.

Week one of substitute teaching: SURVIVED!

Sub Adventures #3: 6th Science in Brooklyn

Today was another half day assignment covering 6th grade science, again. I'm not sure what's going on with the 6th grade science teachers around the city, but three in a row seems like more than coincidence.

The students weren't the most pleasant and downright insubordinate at some points of the day, but the dean of the school was pretty darn scary and was extremely helpful to me in dealing with the students. After making sure that I knew that she was just a phone call away, I threw her name around as a threat whenever the kids were too rowdy or noisy.

Picking the students up from lunch and taking them to their Mandarin class (Mandarin! How cool is that?!) was a total chore. After walking a small group up, I explain to the dean that the rest of them were running amuck.

When I picked them up from Mandarin to take them to science, I threatened to walk by the dean's office to drop a few of them off if they couldn't be quietly line up and remain silent during walk back to classroom. They shut up so quickly, I'm sure I heard some teeth clink. If only, I could have half of the dean's scare power.

At the end of the day, she came in and gave the class a riot act. She even asked me to point out who was in the group I walked up. Everyone who wasn't . . . was pulled from the class and suspended. Woah! Even I was terrified of this woman, but I guess that's what makes her a dean.

On a more positive note, the school is absolutely gorgeous! I mean, stunning. It's such a colorful and welcoming place and I don't think the students realize or appreciate how special that is. I went to schools with barf-green paint that shouldn't be sold, let alone put on walls. Seeing a school where every inch of wall, it seemed, was covered with posters, student projects, motivational quotes, and more was heartening to see. I even discovered a reading nook in the stairway, in between the 2nd and 3rd floors. A reading nook, I say! 

On another positive note, my travels in Brooklyn were a lot more pleasant today. Google navigation took perfect care of me and the train station and school were easily found. No more getting lost for me. I hope.

Well, that's my adventure for today. Tomorrow I'm off to cover 9th and 10th grade Health/P.E. in the Bronx!

Sub Adventures #2: 6th Grade Science in Washington Heights

Once again, I was a sub for 6th grade science. This time, it was only a half day. As the school was located in Washington Heights, it was a much shorter commute for me.

The kids were pretty pleasant. A few of them did try to test me a little, but as soon as I informed them that I knew about "restitutions" and they could still serve detention the next day, they settled down. I appreciated the teacher's preparation of not only student work to complete, but seating charts and disciplinary system of the school. It was extremely helpful.

A great benefit of substitute teaching in general is the chance to visit different school and classrooms and receiving a quick glimpse of how they do things. It's an excellent way for an inexperienced teacher like myself to collect great ideas.

The teacher for today's assignment has a great classroom. It's well-organized and comfortable. I loved it so much that I might have crossed a line and snapped a few pics. There were a few great classroom ideas that I would love to potentially implement in my own future classroom.

My fave is this large pocket hanging organizer to store a month's worth of handouts/student work. I mean, how useful is that! It'll be a great way to plan/prepare work ahead of time as well as provide students with a place to find assignments from long ago.

 

The classroom has what's called a "Peace Corner." I'm assuming it's for disruptive students to be able to step away and calm down before returning to their seats and to work. I also got a kick out of the painted tree curtain to give the area the necessary peaceful feeling.

Lastly, the teacher writes the essential questions for a particular unit on a wall to remain up for the entirety of the unit. I think that's a great way to ensure students remain focused and continuously consider the essential questions.

I hope that I haven't breached any privacy with this post/pictures. I tried to make sure to capture the pictures in a way that wouldn't reveal the identity of either the teacher or any students. If I've missed something, please mention it in the comments.

Sub Adventures #1: 6th and 7th Grade Science in Brooklyn (2/25/2014)

I don't know if I've mentioned yet, but I've started substitute teaching work with a temp agency in New York called School Professionals. Yesterday, I had my first assignment covering 6th and 7th grade science in Brooklyn.

 

I arrived super early, which was great thinking on my part, as I circled blocks a few times trying to find the school. After arriving, I introduced myself and waited until one of the principals came in.

My greatest fear went unrealized as the teacher left very clear plans. The day started with a bit of a hiccup as the teacher had sent the wrong Notebook file, but with the principal's help everything worked out.

One surprise was that I worked with a co-sub as each class in the school has two teachers. That was interesting. I felt as if I ended up pulling most of the weight, which I don't mind. I'll never say no to gaining more experience and learning new things.

The students weren't complete monsters, but they weren't very polite either. The 6th graders were sweet and mostly returned to task when I put my foot down a little. However, the 7th graders were quite rude. I ignored it when I felt it was appropriate as I could tell that they were a very confrontational group and I didn't want to get into it with them. Although, I made it very clear that their teachers had specific instructions and expectations for the amount of work to be completed.

After the school day was over, I realized I had a message from the agency. I returned the call to learn of a leave replacement for 8th grade English in Queen. Jackpot! However, by the time I came home, looked up directions, and talked to my parents about it, the assignment had already been accepted by someone else. Bummer!

Oh, and have I mentioned that I have a strong dislike for traveling to Brooklyn? For some reason, I always get lost! I was near York St. and the Manhattan Bridge. With the darn bridge dividing streets, navigating was difficult and I couldn't find the F-train station on my way home. Not to mention that Brooklyn blocks seem to be miles long. I ran into some tourists, who were just as lost as I was. I could see the F-train going by before entering a tunnel underground, but couldn't figure out where the subway entrance was. Google Maps was useless as it indicated that I was right on top of the station, but obviously I wasn't! And to make it worse, I'm that person who hates asking for directions. My solution? Wandering around, circling blocks, and turning random corners until the universe eventually guided me to where I needed to go. Seeing as I'm typing this up from home . . . I finally found that train station.

Officially Certified!

BREAKING NEWS:

I, Fatuma Hydara, am officially certified to teach English Language Arts, 

to grades 7 through 12 in the great state of New York.

Planning to Read List

Below is a list of books related to the field of education that I am planning to or would like to read: