1 Week to Go

So things are progressing very well. I have a lot of stuff moved in and set up in my classroom. My syllabi are completed and the first two weeks of classes are mapped out. I still have a few little things I need to plan out and get organized but overall I think I'm pretty well prepared.

Later this week we will be having orientation for students. On Wednesday I'll be meeting my division for the first time. This year I will have a Sophomore boys' division. Lindblom divides the divisions by gender which I think is a cool idea. I believe I have 17 students in my division and I'm really looking forward to meeting them and the rest of my students.

I also have a correction to make. All of my classes are 100 minutes long. The information I had was from last year's schedule so I don't have to worry about different planning and meeting times. I'll have two classes, both US History, on Mondays and Thursdays and the other 2 US History classes an 1 World Studies class on Tuesdys and Fridays with a debate colloquium on Wednesdays.

Now I just need some students.

2 Weeks Until Classes Begin

Summer is winding down very, very fast. At the end of this week I have new teacher orientation at school. Next week is orientation and the official report date for all teachers and 2 weeks from today will be the first day of classes at Lindblom.

So I'll be teaching US History and World Studies. My US classes will be 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 8th periods and my World class will be 7th period. I found out today that my 3rd and 7th period classes will meet every day except Wednesday for 50 minutes. I will have a division of 20 or 22 sophomore boys this year.

I'm just about ready for classes. I recently completed the syllabus for both of my classes and I have the first 2 weeks mapped out for World Studies. Once I have the same mapped for US History I'll feel a little more prepared.

I'm getting more and more excited about school. I think this is going to be an amazing year.

A New Assignment

Yesterday I received a letter from Joseph White, President of the University of Illinois. I've been invited to become a member of the Global Campus Academic Council for a 1-year term. Global Campus is the new initiative of the University and where I'm working on my M.Ed. Apparently I was nominated to be a member to help improve and expand Global Campus. I'm very excited and it's a nice honor to be invited to be a member.

First Look at My New Classroom

Room 220

So yesterday I got to see what will likely be my new classroom at LMSA. I can't believe what a great room it is. The hardwood floors are really nice. There is a closet and storage back by the desk. I have a computer on my desk and two student computers (to the right off camera) with a printer. There are a total of six dry erase boards with bulletin boards in between. See those cables dangling from the ceiling? That's where the LCD projector is going to go. There are several windows that look out over the courtyard and nice sunlight in the morning. The room was nice and cool because the building has air conditioning!! WHOO HOO!!!

OK, if you're not a teacher you may not understand why I'm so geeked up but this is a great classroom. It's clean, comfortable, versatile, and has all the necessary amenities. It even has a sound system with wall-mounted speakers. How frakkin' cool is that?

The more I learn about this school, the luckier I feel about landing a job there. This is by no means going to be an easy assignment but I am really looking forward to the challenge.

School starts in less than 4 weeks

So things are happening pretty quickly. The first day of school for Lindblom is August 4th and teachers report to work on the 31st of this month. I'll likely be going in a little early for orientation and hopefully I'll get to meet more teachers and recruit for the debate team.

So far this school seems like it will be a fantastic place to work. I am really impressed with how the history department is organized and everyone I have met is very professional. There will be a serious learning curve for me adjusting to all honors classes and the block scheduling, but this is one challenge I am really looking forward to.