Don't Disappoint

 I am under strict orders not to be on the computer for long today. I am recovering from a migraine and have an ear infection. Usually, I write my blog posts on the weekend, but this weekend was just too hectic to get it done on time. My husband keeps telling me to take it easy, but it's hard. 

There's so much to do and I don't want to disappoint anyone.

I'm writing about disappointment today because of something that happened on Friday. To protect the identity of those involved, I won't go into detail. Some students poked pencils into some of my flexible furniture while I was supporting others. When I discovered this, I didn't yell, but I asked them to stay in at recess to see if they could figure out how to get the pencils out - a consequence to match the misdeed. What I did not expect was to see two of the four students crying uncontrollably after recess was over. They realized that the pencils weren't coming out, but worse for them was they realized that I was disappointed in them. I had to make it very clear that I still liked them, that I still cared about them, and that I forgave them. At lunch time, one of them sought me out with his class teacher. He spent the hour between recess and lunch writing and drawing me a picture of remorse and an apology. I didn't expect this at all. I cried. My tears startled the student. His class teacher had to explain that Mrs. Mali wasn't sad but was happy with his effort and words. He spent the rest of the day checking on me to ensure I was okay.

The desire to satisfy and please those whose opinion matters to us is a strong one. 

Today, we had our Remembrance Day ceremony at school. Usually, our talented music teacher Connie Chan coordinates the event. Connie is off recovering from an injury and so I took up the mantle, with significant contributions and planning by our Grade 7 teacher, Lisa Daley. We wanted to do our best, for Connie's sake and for all the staff and students. It went well, considering we did not have a lot of time to rehearse. Unfortunately, because Lisa and I were making all the arrangements, I didn't get the opportunity to take any photos. It's too bad, because the students sat quietly and the choir, band, and poets worked hard. Sorry!

With my blog posts, I always include photos (that I take myself - copyright belongs to me as the photographer). I'm sharing posts of the multilingual learners in my ESL class as they went on their "directions hunt" two weeks ago. This week, they are having a quiz (that my son helped me create) to check for understanding and consolidation of the ideas. Two weeks ago, they had to find the hidden turtle by reading clues that used some of the directional words (in / on / under / behind / beside / between) we've been practicing hearing and saying.

I worry about disappointing my ESL students. They are so keen to come with me for lessons that they pepper me with questions ("Is today ESL?") and they get very disappointed if I have to cancel class because we have a shortage of supply teachers. Today, we welcomed two new students to our school. Neither speak English. This makes 4-5 Newcomer Profiles I need to complete ASAP. I may need to rejig my ESL schedule to better accommodate the students who are fluent in their home languages but require some basic English phrases so they can communicate with their teachers. If I have to demit some students to make room, I have a feeling they'll be disappointed.

I also don't want to disappoint my staff. I have a series of collaborative lessons in store and I want to ensure that "teaching in twos" happens this year and is a rewarding experience for those involved. I'll try to keep my expectations realistic, but I do put a bit of pressure on myself.

It's another busy week. I'll do my best, and try not to disappoint.

Fun with Friends and my "new" Phone

 I really wanted to tie together the idea of positive personal relationships in today's blog post, since so many of last week's adventures involved connecting with others. One day, I'll need to try feeding in all of my past blog posts into an AI LLM and see what kind of "Diana post" it churns out. However, today is not that day.

My current iPhone (an iPhone 6, I think) is on its last legs. It reminds me of the children's movie, "The Brave Little Toaster" and the rant that the objects have against "planned obsolescence". It really does feel as if the technology is pre-programmed to fail after a couple of years, in order to force me to buy a new phone. When I call home at the end of the day, my husband can only hear me 50% of the time and it's equally spotty for me trying to hear him. My texts don't always go through; it's getting a bit frustrating.

One of my ESL students asked me about the kind of phone I own. He really likes "Samsung". His current classroom teacher is probably one of the best things that has happened to this kid. She genuinely likes him and I think he senses how she feels about him, because he tries harder, acts happier, and speaks more frequently this school year than any other previous year I've witnessed. He chats with his teacher regularly and technology is a frequent topic. He was having a hard time pronouncing the Ss in "Samsung", so talking about this phone has given him extra, authentic practice making those sounds. His classroom teacher already owns a Samsung phone, so the student decided to give me a Samsung phone.

This is a very valuable phone, not because of the material cost, but because of the time and effort cost, and what it represents. This student doesn't like to write much, but he spent time writing the numbers on the keypad display and adding all the features, which he proudly pointed out to me when he gifted it to me. I make a point of trying to call him on my "new phone" and he talks a lot about how his present to me made me so happy. I think he plans on making a second phone. He was already chatting with his teacher about giving him more paper of this particular size to craft another phone.

Positive personal relationships are so important to cultivate. We need friends in our lives. 

I got to see some of my dear library friends at the Ontario Teachers Federation Curriculum Forum on Saturday, such as Julie Milan, Melanie Mulcaster, and Kate Johnson-McGregor. Kate and Melanie helped me design some questions to use for my end-of-collaboration-unit "exit tickets" to improve my impact surveys.

Melanie and I are going to be presenting a workshop next Tuesday, November 12, for Canadian School Libraries, in conjunction with Ontario School Library Association, about creating action research for Treasure Mountain Canada 8. We've been planning it online, so it was such a bucket-filler to see her happy face in person. We all can use some friends, especially when they are supporting us with our goals, like Melanie is doing with this webinar and like Joanie Proske is doing with our shared TMC8 research paper.

I usually don't go to the Curriculum Forum, but I was stepping in for my colleagues from AML, Chelsea and Neil, who had prior commitments. I was happy to attend because the facilitator was the talented and knowledgeable Moses Velasco. I swear, I become smarter every time I have a conversation with Moses. (I even said this the last time I talked about Moses on my blog, back in April!) 

Then there are my friends that I work with at my school. I've learned, from bitter prior experience, that you cannot be friends with everyone you work with in a school, but you can always be friendly. There's a difference. Our staff members have been praised, from everyone from LTOs to single-day visitors, about how friendly and welcoming we are. We pulled together to take a #redfored photo on November 1 to show our support for our union negotiators. We hope that these photos make a difference.

Photos for a greater purpose, photos for fun - this past week was Diwali and Halloween and we snapped a few fun photos to use for the yearbook. 

(Here's generous Thess Isidro, distributing her own candy to every child in the school!)

(Here's serious police officers Diana Maliszewski and Brenda Him mugging for the camera!)

Finally, even though we have to respect professional boundaries, I must say I treasure the positive relationships I have with our superintendent and with the parents in our community. This past Tuesday (October 29), we had our area superintendent visit our school in the morning, and we had a Parent Council meeting in the afternoon. I am really grateful that these people take the time out of their busy schedules to come to the school to see what's going on and to offer their help and support in various ways. 

So, thank you friends and friendly folks, for bringing the joy into my life. Thank you to people like Kerri and Serena, who have volunteered to assist me with choir, and to Lisa, who is helping me to plan the Remembrance Day assembly in Connie's absence. Work is less onerous when you have helping hands to lighten the load, and familiar faces to focus on when the going gets tough!