...I'm okay with being REALITY-based.




Sunday, September 10, 2006
      ( 4:18 PM )
 
Back To School...Again

Before this week starts and we get caught up in the 5 Year Anniversary, I thought I'd take a few minutes to enjoy the pure delight that fills my soul every time this year. This last week was the first week the students came back. What a rush. I can't help it. I love teenagers. The writhing masses of ferociously self-centered puberty-driven, half-awake human beings that cross my threshold every year just thrill me. It's the greatest feeling to see them sitting there, their hooded eyes (after all, most aren't even awake till sometime near noon) just daring me to teach them something new. I love a challenge, what can I say?

Some new things this year:

1. Not one of the sophomores (15/16 yr olds) believes that Saddam Hussein had anything to do with 9/11. To a kid, they also recognize that the reason for invading Iraq (weapons of mass destruction) turned out to be false. So either they had very frank discussions with their teachers last year, or the truth is finally seeping through to the public at large. I usually find that kids just repeat what they hear at home. In my district, that is often a conservative, very narrow view. So it's really surprising to find such an overwhelming number who actually are aware of the truth from the start.

2. Already all my seniors who are of age are ALREADY registered to vote in the upcoming election!! Wow!!

Some old things: Coming into the class, the kids feel powerless about what's happening in the world. But this is the way I like it. By the time they leave my class they have knowledge and tools to go into the world with power. That's what I love about teenagers, once they get a taste of making change in the world, you can't stop them. It's a heady thing.

This is going to be a great year. I have a classroom this year (I no longer have to run from classroom to classroom with a cart), and I love the subjects I'm teaching. I'm looking forward to how these kids will teach me. That's the best part.

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