Okay, alright, okay. I took a little break from blogging because I was busy enough that I didn't have time, nor did I really know what to post about. And now I'm back. Interestingly, the couple of weeks that I didn't post were a period during which I was constantly looking forward to a different time. And I think that I felt, somehow, that if I wrote about them they would not change as quickly. Strange, I know.
I spent a large part of those two weeks as a substitute teacher. Shudder. As much as I know that there are plenty of competent, interesting people who work as substitutes, every time I hear the words "substitute teacher" I still think of the weirdest, most awkward, least qualified individuals ever, and as a result I don't really respect subs. So I didn't like to think of myself as one. The circumstances around my short stint as a substitute were very specific, however. In August I interviewed for a possible job as a theatre teacher in an elementary school. It was complicated, however, because although I have a degree in Educational Theatre, I do not currently hold a teaching certificate. So the principal told me to get my transcripts evaluated and look into certification programs, and in the meantime to acquire a substitute teaching certificate, since he might be able to have me teach theatre as a sub in the meantime. So I did all that. And once I got my sub card, he said "I don't have all the theatre details worked out yet, but I really need a sub in this one classroom for awhile." Turns out their teacher had randomly retired, they didn't have a new teacher, and I was really starting to need the money. Yarrr.
So I did it. And on the first day, I found out that it was a class of 7th and 8th grade special ed, which in this case meant an awful-sounding, puzzling category known as "trainable mentally handicapped." There were only 13 of them, but it was the widest range of abilities and special needs ever. Two were non-verbal, two could read and multiply, and everyone else was at a different place in between. It was a wild two weeks, but I have to say, quite entertaining. This was a very funny group of kids. There was none of the usual maliciousness and self-hatred that you might find in a typical group of 12- and 13-year-olds, and a healthy dose of crushes and sexual urges. Classroom management was not difficult (thank god), though enforcing the "no touching each other" rule was not so easy. Also, there was no "curriculum" to follow, nor textbooks, so every day was sort of up to me. Some funny shit happened. Burps and farts were totally commonplace, hilarious to all but not grounds for ostracizing anyone. I had glue puddles on desks, some pretty major odor-control issues, and a kid who cut a one-foot-wide hole in the crotch of his sweatpants one day. And not everything went wrong-- I had some of the most successful impromptu dramatic storytelling sessions I've ever done in that class, and we did some wicked collages and M&M math lessons.
Aaaaanyway, so that's over now. It wasn't a horrible couple of weeks, but the principal ultimately dragged his feet for a long time, and in the meantime I got another job. So there! Now in addition to my high school theatre stuff, I'll be working on a grant project with the Chicago Teachers Center, helping to enhance early reading initiatives by modeling and training staff in ways to integrate the arts into their curricula. Fun! The people are great and I like the work already.
In other fun news, Brian and I went to Traverse City over the weekend to visit my dear friends Andy and Lizzie, who both should have blogs but don't. We had such a good time, hiking on sand dunes, admiring pretty leaves, seeing movies, and eating, eating, eating. Best. Hot. Apple. Cider. Ever. It was so nice, in the midst of all this, to get out of town and relax and have a good time. I've never been so happy to not get phone calls!
Now I have to go...valuable Halloween costume planning time is being wasted!
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