Coaching, Or What More Can I Do?

This week has been a representative week in high school coaching. We have had two games so far. We won one and lost one. Unfortunately the wins and loses have been over shadowed by the non-coaching issues.

This next week we have a game, but not enough players to legally start the game. That usually means a forfeit. Sometimes. The reason for the problem? Three players are involved in the Miss Exeter pageant for the annual fall festival. Another player is spending the week at Scicon, a local conservation camp in the foothills near here. Four players down and we don't have the seven to start a game legally. My issue isn't with the week at Scicon, nor the Miss Exeter contest.

What about commitment? A person signs up for something, shouldn't they follow through with the full season? We in education don't do a good job of this, at least lately. Commitment is a untaught action many times.

And least I fail to point out my hypocrisy, I am going to skip the game to be at the Miss Exeter pageant to escort our daughter. Maybe I should have said no to coaching this year.

PS I spent close to an hour tonight after our games in discussions with players and parent about the meanness of players to other players. None of these seem willing to take responsibility for their own actions in this dispute.

PPS Friday and Saturday is going to be spent in Clovis at a water polo tournament. We will be at Buchanan HS Friday and if we win again Saturday. If we lose we will be next door at Alta Sierra Middle School. Last year this was the turning point in our season. We bonded and grew better as a team.

Here's to a repeat.

Another Brick in the Wall

Last week was busy and different. Busy is the norm, but I was away from school for two days at a conference. In the last ten plus years I have avoided conferences during school time. Being out of the classroom is problematic in more than one way. Sub plans have to be devised, and many times that is more work than it's worth. I have a few characters in my classes that need constant attention and the sub is at a disadvantage until these characters are figured out. Fortunately they make themselves known soon, that's their issue. Such as this time. Two students tried to change identities. Didn't surprise me as they bragged about doing it all last year. They shall pay.

Conferences also aren't worth the effort. This one was only 15 miles away so travel wasn't an issue. I'm spoiled with my 5 minute bike commute to work.

For me the biggest reason I don't want to be out of class is that I've been hired to teach, not talk to other teachers at a conference. I've known some professional conference attendees and it seems counterproductive to my job description. If it weren't for the students, education would be a hard gig dealing with adults. Myself included.

Great Song

Nice song from the later years of Johnnie Cash: God's Gonna Cut You Down.

Update for the Week

Sam emailed. He said it's still hot, sandy and dry. Though they've been told it will start cooling off. Found out also he is lifting in his spare time and is benching over 300 pounds. He must be in his huge stage again.

Fall baseball is coming to Exeter and the field isn't ready. I will spend part of today clearing the mound and plate of excess grass and weeds. I know it would be easier to spend a few hours a week maintaining an already cleared field, but life gets in the way. Or other obligations. I know a clearing away of more than one type needs to be done.

I have had a bit of hubris about my classroom recycling. Last year I retrieved over $120 worth of cans and bottles from my classroom that students left or threw away. I recently learned one the the girls playing water polo financed a missions trip to Taiwan with her recycling efforts. I am humbled.

I'm still trying to decide about how to pin my knife handle. I'm now thinking of a hollow tube so I can attach a cord later if I want.

School has fallen into routine and that is not all bad. Grades are due early next week, so at lest one day this weekend needs to be spent at school on the computer.

Late Start Wednesday

Last year we implemented a new idea at school, Late Start Wednesday. The idea is that teachers and staff begin school at the normal time and students start school an hour later than usual on Wednesdays. Staff can meet to collaborate, talk about students, test and such. The first time I saw it was at a nearby school and the staff there liked the concept. It does allow for formal and informal discussions between teachers teaching the same subjects. The key seems to be that the majority of the time it needs to be unstructured and unfilled with meetings. Last year that was done most of the time.

This year we have WASC accreditation and meetings out the wazoo. WASC is the school's oversight organization. Schools that perform well in there "self-study" will be given a 6 year accreditation. Those that don't will get less and have to go through the process sooner. Our school has never had anything short of a 6 year accreditation. And with our recent high test scores this should be a slamdunk. But we still have the meetings.

Speaking of Late Start Wednesday and collaboration, when I think of the best collaborating I've been a part of, I think of three times. My marriage, the baseball coaches and the English ladies.

And I have been blessed all three times.

Survived For Another Week

I go through the Rival Week festivities including running the scoreboard and kids in the snack bar. We had a lunch with available family as Wilson is leaving today to go back to Oregon for school. I'm preparing for the first grading period and he hasn't started yet.

We start league in water polo today at the same time the Tulare County Fair is on. Always adjusting for girls who do multi-events. It will be fun.

I went looking for some brass rod to finish my knife project. The local hardware store didn't have rivets, but did have brass brazing rod. Just not big enough. On to another plan. Any ideas?

The baseball field needs to be cleaned up for practice and games. It's been sprayed, now the fun begins with taking out the weeds and sod.

Another week at the 'Zoo begins.

Going to Be a Long Week

Today I'm off to Fresno for a water polo game. We're playing at a new pool at a school, Bullard, that I've only driven by, never stopped. Tomorrow we return to another Fresno school, SJM; this one I've been to a few times. And it is just off a freeway, and not too hard to find a place to park.

It's also rival week, though the rivalry seems more pronounces with the parents of the students than the students themselves. Friday is the latest version of the 3rd longest running game series in the Valley, Exeter vs. Woodlake. These two schools have played for nearly100 years.

Two long travel days with late returns home and a week of amped up students for the Rivalry make for a long week.

P.S. Doesn't Dinner's face look like it's melting off? Kind of feels that way also.

Another Dinner Story

This is another installment in our adventures in turkey raising. Dinner, our wonderful tom, like to "Rule the Roost" in many ways. Yesterday we let all of the chickens and the two turkeys out to roam the backyard. It's the end of the summer growing season and what plants the birds do eat is okay. In a few weeks when the fall/winter garden goes in, they will no longer be welcome to range around the yard. As you can see, the dogs and birds mostly ignore each other.





Previously we've mentioned that Dinner likes to get on the roof of the outside room. His problem is that once he is up he is afraid to "fly" down. We moved the rabbitless hutch so he can't hop up onto the roof and for a few days that solution has worked. I had to make a new perch for the chickens though, as they used the hutch roof to sleep on at night.

Today Dinner added a new place to the list of places he gets stuck.






This is the fence, which I am in the process of raising, between the two chicken pens. Not only is Dinner ruling over his hens, he is now trying to rule over all the hens. Maybe this will turn into a "Marly and Me" type story.

Ever Had Someone Say This To You?

I came across an RSA Animate piece about education and became an instant fan. They make me think differently about the world. They look differently at the world.

This piece I fond on Consciously Frugal and wanted to share it. The narrator is Barbara Enreneich and is based on Enrenreich's book, Bright-Sided: How Positive Thinking Is Undermining America. Hope you enjoy.