The Last Long Term Job this year

I had a long-term sub job at a local elementary school not too far from my LOST (Legion of Substitute Teacher's) lair.

Great kids! Ended up having about a half dozen who would stay after school and write on the white boards, record names of students who didn't clean up under their desks, and generally avoid going to A+.

The only trick the kids used time and again was the: I've got an 'owie' the size of a pixel on the tip of my thumb, so can I go to the health room? It got old quick, but I had a hard time refusing to send them. However, mentioning that they had a health card that was four pages long tended to make them quit asking quite as often. (Surprise! LOST's tend to figure things out pretty fast, since we're the brunt of 80% of students' trickery)

I got the distinct impression that there was a problem with misplaced loyalty amongst the permanent staff at the school. 'Mrs. A. did it this way.' Or, 'You don't understand our culture at this school.' (I've only been in the islands since 1974 and I'm married to a part-Hawaiian man, but, yeah,I don't understand how it works yet) :-{

However, it was an excellent learning experience and I did make a good acquaintance at this job. Having a steady paycheck for two months was a good thing, too. So, it was a positive experience overall.

My cat has 'issues'

It's official. My red cat, Punono, is bulemic. He eats his food. He eats Poki'i's food. He eats the dog's food. Then he regurgitates. It's sad to see a cat with an eating disorder. What have I done?

Job interview number four

Went to interview number four yesterday. The principal is a nice lady. The school, not so much. She admitted they have a number of behavioral issues with the students.

I need the job, just nervous that I will struggle with the out of control students.

Job hunting!

Interviewed today at 3 schools; two DOE and one charter. The first was a DOE school that in which I would like to teach. The second a charter school that I hope I would fit in, but I am doubtful. The third was a DOE school in which I would never like to visit, much less teach.

Interviews one and two went well. Interview number three was like watching something plummet from the sky in a heap. Why do some interviews go well and others go bad from the beginning? School culture or poor chemistry?

Received a call from interview number three saying that they had just received a memo telling them they couldn't hire a new English teacher. (True, false? I wonder)

Will wait to see what happens with the other two.

Punono the red cat

Just when you thought it was safe to enter
your room, Punono, the crazy, red cat reaches
out to touch the video camera's lens.

Hope you are all enjoying summer vacation. Remember to eat breakfast, and don't let the cat near your glass of milk...

Update-four months later

It's been four months since the last post. I've been living the life of a sub now for a while. Had a long term sub job with a school about a mile from home up until Spring Break. It's getting easier. Finally realizing that a lot of what subs do is psyching out the students.
If they smell weakness, if they see that you're easy to derail, the day will be a LONG one. If you go in with your guard up which, unfortunately, you must do, you will probably have a successful time in that classroom.
The kids are interesting and often lovable. The money is good, but, no benefits for LOSTs. :-{
If you've got a backbone of steel and enjoy standing on concrete for seven hours a day in a hot classroom, this is the job for you! Good luck.