Hey guys, Erika asked if I (one of her friends/ colleagues) would want to write a guest-post in her blog. Sounded fun, so I agreed. You’ve seen me here before! Erika and I have been teaching at the same school for 3 years strong. We have also bonded over the challenge of fly-fishing – I’m sure you’ll read about some fishing this summer. We will be teaching partners next year, which I am very much looking forward to (<- ignore the prepositional stranding throughout!).
People who get along tend to share values in common. Turns out I get along with people who share my love for being outdoors – my closest friends are women who don’t paint their nails compulsively, but rather hike, bike, run, climb, and compete in their free time. All my other friends are men with whom I play sports. I love people who can yell at each other [or more accurately, when I can give them a hard time on the sports field], and then 2 minutes later we’re over it. Environments where there are so many emotions/too much sensitivity can be a struggle to manage for me. I find that when people handle disagreements with the right balance of sensitivity and reason (emphasis on reason), they are easier to get along with.
I think that’s one reason Erika and I will crush the co-planning gig for Chemistry next year. Erika is a direct communicator, just like I am. My prediction is that we will be VERY efficient in meetings, but have the right amount of socializing in the mix. Due to this predicted efficiency, I think I will finally hit my stride in accomplishing all the things teachers have to do in the 12 minutes of plan time that aren’t consumed by meetings about meetings, more meetings, emails, phone calls, data trackers, and more data trackers.
I am looking forward to what it might be like if my life were NOT consumed by my job – hopefully round three of Chemistry will be less of a struggle than the previous two years. Also, wish me luck as I try to convince Erika to give up some hours over the summer to plan out Chemistry content so we can save time in the fall!
As an aside on the note of direct communication, if you haven’t watched the full monologue of Hasan Minhaj at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, you should really get on that. In my opinion, comedy is one of the most engaging forms of entertainment. When you couple it with direct communication, there isn’t anything more complex or a more astute presentation of information. Hasan’s monologue was so good that I have watched it three (3) times – worth every minute. Finally, and most importantly, I wish I could teach class like this monologue EVERY DAY.
“Do you want to know what he’s not doing while he’s golfing? Being president. Let the man putt-putt… apocalypse delayed; take the W.” – Hasan Minhaj
Teachers Have Lives Too! 