3 months

I have been back in the US for three months now. Kind of strange. Instead of gearing up for the hottest month in Dakar, I am wearing layers, many layers.

Overall the school transition hasn't been too bad. I think I'll always have those moments when I want to shake my kids and say, "Don't you know how lucky you are?" I think living in a third-world country will cause that attitude at times. Really though, let's be honest. Sometimes I need to shake myself and say the same thing.

From August 20th

This is an excerpt from my journal on August 20th:

First day with all the teachers. Thought I should finally start journaling. I know I should’ve started earlier. But when I first encountered all of this, I wanted my writing to be “perfect.” Now it’s past my bedtime so I don’t care what comes out. So here you have my first ramblings.

My first reaction was “Eek!” How can I reinvent how I teach? I mean, on some level I have been successful-kids like my class, students have gone on to be successful in math-related majors, my AP kids killed the exam. I don’t write this to brag. My closest friends know that I need more confidence in myself. But I always knew I could do more. That’s what appealed to me about this job. How can I go further?


The Present:
So far I have had my students start blogs, shown movie clips, focused on more real-world apps, and basically am trying to take risks. This shall be an interesting year...

Testing 1, 2, 3

My students have to create blogs so I am testing some things for them. Blogging in math class huh? Sorta crazy but I think it'll be sweet.