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RE: mentally ill teacher - 2/23/2010 7:52:22 AM
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heremainsfaithful
Posts: 1137
Joined: 10/14/2009
From: Alabama
Status: offline
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Okay, this isn't entirely on topic, but hey, I started this thread! 
I am about done today. Last week, one of the upper graders I teach was learning about compare/contrast in language arts. I try to integrate when I can, so I came up with this brilliant idea. In 1985, the first "We Are the World" was recorded. In 2010, a 25th anniversary one was recorded. I researched all lyrics. Nothing profane, mystic, religious, etc. Just a feel good help people song. So we watched both and then compared/contrasted. The kids did a great job, and they thought it was so cool. One class had a few minutes left and begged to listen to something by Michael Jackson. I still had a clip of "Beat It," the song about avoiding gang violence (not the zombie one) from when 5th grade studied American 20th century music, so I let them see that because I knew it was okay.
Apparently not.
Yesterday morning I am greeted with this ANGRY email, laden with exclamation points, about how this dad tried to shield his kids from sexually explicit (what? nothing about sex in there!), profane (no cursing), occultic (this isn't the zombie one!!) material, only to have it undermined by ME! I felt sick. And of course it was cc'ed to administration. I talked to the principal (who thought it was ridiculous and backed me), and then I called the dad. Well, living with a superintendent mom, I learned well the principle of verses like "a soft answer turns away wrath." I validated his right to be concerned, explained what we had done in class. He didn't realize the context, didn't realize we only watched a clip, was fine with it, except for one last comment about students learning about musicians who didn't have good lifestyles. Of course we didn't learn "about" them. We listened to a song. And for the record, Mozart and Beethoven were not exactly pillars of society in their personal lives.
Ya know, I am like a mommy bank. I spend money, I save money. If we are at Wal-Mart and the kids want something but forgot their wallets, I "loan" them money and they repay the loan at home. I have a checking account. And I want to make sure my bank doesn't make any mathematical errors on my account. But, at least to a point, I need to trust my bank. If I can't trust my bank, I need to withdraw my money and bury it in the back yard.
My first year at this school, a parent got really mad at the media specialist. She had a book of fairy tales that the child checked out, and in one of the illustrations there were cherubs. A little one was flying with it's back to the page, and its bottom was naked. It was muted, so it wasn't like it was explicit, but the parents made huge noises about pornography in the library. Really? Pornography?
We have wonderful parents at our school. And I have gotten way more nice notes and emails than this one complaint about a 15 minute lesson. But good grief. Ugh. Maybe I need to become a banker. Of maybe I need to have my textbooks and materials in a bag and the next time say, "Can you be here in 30 minutes? I'll let you teach music.....for the rest of the year."
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Jer. 29:11, II Tim. 2:13, Jude 24, 25
https://www2.xlibris.com/bookstore/bookdisplay.aspx?bookid=58896
Eihstein's IQ may be higher than mine, but God's IQ is higher than anyone's.
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RE: mentally ill teacher - 2/23/2010 10:31:29 AM
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Kath
Posts: 17759
Joined: 2/28/2005
Status: offline
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I'm glad it worked out :)
Have you given any thought for next year? Teacher contracts are signed in April, are they not? Do you still want to teach? Will you apply to another district?
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RE: mentally ill teacher - 2/23/2010 10:59:23 AM
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heremainsfaithful
Posts: 1137
Joined: 10/14/2009
From: Alabama
Status: offline
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I'm applying other places. But honestly, I am also thinking about other career things within education. Maybe fine arts supervisor, or grant writer, or something like that. If all I had to do was teach wonderful kids, I'd be fine. It's all the other stuff that.....I don't know. It'll work out. It always does.
_____________________________
Jer. 29:11, II Tim. 2:13, Jude 24, 25
https://www2.xlibris.com/bookstore/bookdisplay.aspx?bookid=58896
Eihstein's IQ may be higher than mine, but God's IQ is higher than anyone's.
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