Wednesday, January 6, 2010

WMW: My embarrassing moment & My enjoyable job

Working Mom Wednesday: by Sweet as Punkin Pie




What is your most embarrassing moment?

My most embarrassing moment....... hmmmm.... I've Fallen and Keep Falling

I was twenty at the time and at the bowling alley.  I hadn't bowled since I was a kid, so I was out of touch. I was all pysched to bowl and walked up to the lane, in borrowed bowling shoes, hoping to be half way decent.  Well, I got ready to toss the bowling ball and decided to get a little closer........SLAM.  Down I fell.  All I heard was laughing.... my boyfriend at the time was laughing, his friends were laughing, and people in the other lanes were laughing.  So embarrased I got up only to fall again - and the laughing continues.  Only after I fell the third time did my boyfriend at the time tell me that I am not supposed to got past the line.  Oh, thanks a lot for letting me fall and laughing at me.    I wanted to leave that place so bad, but we had to stay and play all night.  It was horrible.  Needless to say we are no longer together for many reasons, not just that. 
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Carma Sez asked me to spill the beans about my "enjoyable job", so I thought that would be a great post.

I should actually call it a career, I must start at the beginning.... but I will make it interesitng.

After five years of working as a special education teacher at a terrible school that was more of a mental instituion, I came to my current school.  An opportunity arrose during a conference day.  My current colleague and office mate Cathy was presenting that day and informed me about a reading position at her school. I gave her my resume and she in turn forwarded it over to the Director of Special Education.  Needless to say, I was hired. 
So, my first year at my current school (which serves 18+ districts and proudly has numerous special education programs) I was one of three reading specialists at the high school. It was the first time this was done, little did I know it was the beginning of a wonderful career. It was a rough year as we tried to figure out our roles within the high school.


Each year I was placed with a different high school program and each year our roles continued to change.
Aren't you the miracle workers who get kids to read?
Just take these students, they are not listening and are disrupting my class.
Don't let them in your class, they will tell you how to teach.
Well, now that you're in my class, I'll go get some coffee, see you later.

During my five years we went from being reading specialists to literacy specialists to instructional specialists.

Now we are sought out by content area techers to provided assistance to students in need, sought out for consultations and to collaborate in class, sought out to modify work for students, sought out as an important resource.

I really love what I do, I co-teach in classrooms but don't have pressure or stress of having lead students.  I work individually with students and small groups. We have a small reading department (compareed to special education) and pretty much are the golden children.  Sure some of the people I work with are crazy but it makes for a more interesting day.

3 comments:

Julia Ladewski said...

oh my gosh. i hate those kinds of moments. you just want to run and hide. bad boyfriend for not helping you! thanks for playing!

i said...

Happy New Year!

I think if I were you when I was that age, I'd probably have aimed the ball at him next LOL.

You have a great job there! I've always wanted to teach but lack the patience.

Carma Sez said...

I'm tickled that you did this post. And I can see why you enjoy your job! Making a difference like that in some child's life has got to be a remarkable feeling. And being one of the "golden children" ain't too shabby either ;-)

Someone asked me last night at the recital if I was a teacher (a person I'd never met) - I often think I should get brave enough to go back to substituting. Maybe at a private school where the kids are a bit less rambuctious this time!!