Group Hug

June 1998 was when I came in to interview with the incoming principal, Jane E. I was delighted to be able to move into a school where I could look out my classroom window and see grass. Previously, being confined to basement classrooms, I would see only blue sky out my window. The view out across the field came to mean a lot to me, since from time to time I would gather my thoughts simply by looking out across the grass and enjoying the view. Jane told me "grade seven is supposed to be hard." She said to buy whatever I need to run my music program and to set up my English/Math classroom. She backed up every word with decisive actions. Who could forget the "click click" of her heels coming down the hall? Sue S. is a worthy successor in this department.

Ken G., Dave J., Steve O., Doug D.... These men all have put their distinctive stamp upon us all, and have come to be known an d remembered for their gifts and styles of working. If there is one thing that I have come to appreciate about administrators, is that they deal with a heck of a lot more on their plate than I've ever had to! "Ask not what your principal can do for you; ask what you can do for your principal." Sometimes that is easier to carry out than others! Best wishes to you Doug as you move up the hill. Hope the laptop can keep up!

VPs are too numerous to number, but I'll try- John, George, Joanne, Elizabeth, Gabrielle, Ursula, Eto, Denise. So much to wrap their head around, so little time. So many land mines along the path. It's amazing that they come out smiling at the end. I have lots of respect for those who choose to move into administration; I'm sure none of them make the choice lightly. Their ability to morph instantly to fit the school, students and staff is remarkable. Thank you, Denise M. for being so open, caring and helpful in your brief stint at our school. You have lots to offer- best wishes in all you do.

Another perk about being at this school has been the caretaking staff. Bob, you are absolutely top notch. What a treat it has been to work with you for these past 8 years. Having taught your kids at Memorial, I feel a special friendship with you. But more than that, your constant, hard work around Viscount, including the painting, is a great example to everyone. No other school has a yard as trim as ours. All I can say is I'm glad I never had to endure one of your practical jokes! And to Desiree, I will miss you. Thanks for sharing my home baked cookies when we celebrated Elinor's birth! Donna, you too have been such a great help, putting up with many ikky messes and stuff that I was (partly) to blame for.

Zora, you should be receiving a memento of the school along with this note. Thanks for encouraging me and taking interest in our band trips and in general, day in, day out. Enjoy the weeks of peace and quiet and no answering machine this summer!

This group of teachers have taught me more than I could ever repay. To these amazing teachers and friends I am unable to put into words what help and encouragement and example they have been to me: Liz and Wayne, you two are the best examples of teacher-leaders I know. Your teaching practice is fine tuned and worth imitating in so many ways. Liz, thank you for your confidence and encouragement when I first taught gr. 7 english. And for your partnership with the multi-media stuff. And the computer stuff. Such a great example of a constant learner, a well managed classroom, new lesson plans... a true pro. Wayne, we have had hundreds of conversations about classroom management, Kilcoo, sports, kids, and numerous other topics. Always willing to share some sound advice. I'm glad to have been able to eavesdrop on your health classes. Your professional rapport and cool-head are worth imitating. I've seen your approach when tough decisions have been facing us. You are able to read the situation and help us all find reasonable middle ground. You have helped us pull together and articulate for us what needs to get done. Mark F., you have become my confidante over the years. I've watched your kids grow up. There is no other dad I know who phones his family daily to tell them he's thinking about them. The amount of respect your students have for you is a reflection of what you give to them. You are often the first one they seek out when they return to visit. The same will be true of me when I come to visit! Dorothy, thank you for your example of skill and advocacy, and for your generous offer of assistance as I make my transition to the primary classroom. Wally, you have transformed our science room. You have poured hundreds of hours into equipping your room and your program, and continue to do so. I enjoy your example of taking time with kids during recess and lunch breaks to show them what's new. The period table contest must continue! Yay jelly beans. Paola, thank you for being such a good rep for us at the HWETL, and for being tolerant of all manner of sounds coming out of my music room! I hope they get your new computer sorted out for Sept. Andris, Dave, Sue, John, Derek, AJ- I count you all among my friends, having served here together and often collaborated in various things.

To Amanda and Danae- special thanks is due for being willing to share the report card "thing." You can't begin to imagine how much of a difference it made to have other people like you to share the job with. I know it would be in capable hands if you chose to do the job for another year.

To our Educational Assistants- Linda, Debbie, Mary, Paula, Erica. You truly have lightened the load for us all as you work so closely with your children. I appreciate your acquaintance and friendship. Linda, your cream puffs were amazing. Paula and Erica- what a great rapport you had with those boys under your care. You are a great team. Mary, your morning smile always starts me off on the right foot. Debbie, I'm so glad to say that you passed grade 7 music in flying colours, and are now officially qualified to play the glockenspiel!

To continue my ramble... I have a few parting thoughts that might appropriately be shared here.

The computer lab needs someone designated to be "in charge" of that room. It needs a daily cleanup and checkup, daily monitoring and requesting for repairs. New keyboards and mouses are needed. If there isn't a point person, we will see the equipment deteriorate beyond recognition. The same person will need to oversee sending of messages to the Help Desk for setting up the new machines purchased by the Home and School. The Smart Board purchase has been proposed and presented to Home and School, and approved in principle. The purchase is to be followed up and made in the fall.

I wish you all the best over the summer and into next September. This has been such a great experience for me. I have come away much richer and very thankful for you all.

I'll be seeing you later!

Computer Lab Notes

To the next computer teacher:

Chances are that this job has fallen to someone who is volunteering to oversee the lab with limited time to do so. It would be nice if there was some scheduled administration time for things like cleaning keyboards, calling and tracking service calls, ordering supplies, testing software and the like. If you've got it that's great.

If you only have volunteer time to oversee the lab, I hope these suggestions will help you.

1. The computer lab will get very dumpy if it is not tidied up daily. Try to swing through the lab and pick up garbage, check machines for damage, graffiti etc. every day.
2. Service calls need to be emailed to the Help Desk ASAP. Broken stuff not fixed sends the wrong message to the students. Machine information follows a format of identification which includes the serial number and room location. The service technician can come in at any time during the day. Things like CD trays will be replaced under warranty, as will fried monitors.
3. The audio wires need to be looked after. I found that one easy way to keep the lab silent is to disconnect the audio wires from the monitors. The better plan would be to leave the cables and have a class set of headphones available for special audio tasks. This would need careful management and a considerable commitment to monitoring and collecting the headsets.
4. The Computer Acceptable Use Agreement is the board document that forms the basis of the agreement between all users of the computers and the board. Teachers and students are both bound to this Contract when it is signed. If we are to have recourse to discipline a student for improper computer use, then these Agreements must be signed and kept on file, and referred to regularly. This administrative task has been difficult to complete in the three years I've been doing computer teaching, because of problems in collecting the forms. But, to do it alone is overwhelming, so all teachers should track the forms for their own class and pass them on to you.
   
5. Kids must use their own ID and not share it with anyone. Kids must use a private password unknown to anyone else.
   
6. An educational philosophy of computer use is important to successful use of the computer lab. Students should be using the computers for educational tasks. The Board has produced an excellent resource binder called IT Connections that ties the computer to all grades and several subject areas.
7. The First Class IT conferences are extremely valuable in keeping up with latest issues across the system. Watch them daily.

May you enjoy every minute you spend working on our computers, with our students.

Glen Brown

The End of a Year

So, now I've come full circle. It's the end of starting something new. I'm ending my first year as a teacher librarian. Here are my collective thoughts in no particular order:

• the whole idea of collaborating with teachers is not so simple. In most cases they are too precoccupied with what they're doing to take initiative or to sit down after classes and plan. However, when they are ready to take initiative, it works.
• I found that there is a constant feeling of being pulled in many directions. Having to cover three social studies classes was awful. I was never properly prepared for those lessons, and the teaching of the course material was very poor.
  
• Teaching in the library was not enjoyable. It is like having an Open House sign on the door at all times. People walk in. They use a computer while I'm teaching. That's not something I enjoy- having two or three other teachers who are on their prep. time sitting there working while I'm teaching. (I suppose if it was a perfect lesson that would be OK, but too often I found that I was having a crappy lesson, and then there were all those extra eyes and ears listening to me having to deal with class management, etc.)
• Teaching in the library was not enjoyable. The room is always getting messed up. The circulation of books and materials is a constant issue. Teachers leave piles of books on the desk. Kids from all classes mess up the stacks, pulling books off and putting them sideways or on the floor or whatever.
  
• Teaching in the library was not enjoyable. Meetings and special events are always being held there. It's like running a banquet facility and a meeting room service, then having to quickly clean up for the social studies class coming in. How crazy!
• I enjoyed having a few faithful library helpers. My grade fours were awesome. They were eager and always full of energy, and really on the ball.
• The big lesson this year for me was that the teacher librarian job is a huge piece of pie. It encompasses all the A.V. equipment, including repairs and sign out systems. It includes training of teachers, training of adult and student volunteers, it includes purchasing various materials. Then, the other part of it is that you're expected to be a literacy leader in the school. That, as the teaching librarian you understand how to support teacher's literacy efforts and how to assist them. That didn't happen much for me this year.
  
• I found that time was so limited, and the task so huge. Even just setting up the room and tidying things up never got totally finished. Many people said they like the look of the room, but I know that it's not finished yet!
• Other things like a loud, clunky, squeaky door; a ridiculously loud PA speaker; outdated windows all combined to make the place "special."
• I may yet return to the role of TL. Perhaps at this school, perhaps at another. But now, I'm spread too thin. I've set my goals to narrow my focus for next year. I'm going to teach grade two!
• Watch for the new blog, called Gnu to Two, about my crazy adventure retooling to teach grade two.