Confessions of a High School Teacher

Mugs of coffee: 4
Caffeinated H2o: 1
Emergency chocolates: 5 (sneaking into Halloween candy early)
Diet Cherry Cokes: 1
Students who smell strangely like old moth balls: 2
Confiscated cell phones: 3
Cafeteria food eaten: 0

Getting up before the crack of dawn to teach apathetic teens, one needs massive amounts of caffeine--at least I do. This is what I cannot live without. As a teacher, I could live without kids who show up for class unprepared with no pens and no paper. Um...it's a writing class, remember? Didn't think you would need anything to write with or write on today?
Why is it they all remember to bring their cell phones and the only thing they are motivated to write is to "text" to their friends on phone, carelessly hidden under desk on top of lap?

Advice to all new teachers: keep things going, change things up. Do not stick to the same lesson all hour. Our job is not to entertain, yet we have to be entertaining or we lose them. Too many kids are already lost.

Days to Thanksgiving break: 16 (not counting weekends) :)

RAVE REVIEW FOR NEW BOOK

Please check out this week's Suburban Lifestyles newspaper. Book reviewer, Margo Lagattuta says, "There is much to appreciate in CONFESSIONS OF A CATHOLIC SCHOOLGIRL..." and "This is a story many young people could relate to, and perhaps their parents as well."

Catholic schoolgirl

Here's a photo of me on my first day of school at St. Suzanne, Detroit, Michigan. And this was only the beginning...

notice the church in the background.

Hellooooo Father Fingers!!!!! R.I.P.