I ..... Am a Teacher!!

I am a Teacher! How often do you hear those words spoken with pride?

"So ... what do you do for a living?" " Well, ummmm, I'm a teacher."

It is said almost as an apology, yet it is one of the most important, if not THE most important, professions in the world.

I am a recently retired teacher. I will never forget the first time I heard the words "I am a teacher!" said proudly. It was 1984, I was in my 2nd year of teaching and the words were spoken by an escapee from a mental institution who was a substitute teacher in the movie "TEACHERS". Somehow, he intercepted a phone call requesting a substitute to come to a certain school at a certain time. So he showed up! They gave him a US History class to teach and he was wonderful. He dressed as Abraham Lincoln and recited the Gettysburg Address. He had students pretend to row across the Potomac while he played George Washington. He enjoyed the classes and the classes enjoyed him. When it was finally discovered who he really was, officials came to take him away. With men on each side of him carrying him out, he proclaimed, "Unhand me! I .... am a TEACHER!"

I cried.

I .... am a TEACHER. And sadly, that is why I retired. I taught High School Math for the past 22 years, the last 11 years for LISD. I love teaching. I love my students. I strongly dislike what education has become. In my last year of teaching, I felt like a robot. I had to do the same exact things every other Geometry teacher in my school was doing. Preferably on the same exact day. There was no room and no time for a teacher to be creative in his or her approach. Doing things differently was frowned upon. Preparation for the upcoming TAKS tests was paramount. And the Texas Legislature seemed intent on punishing educators at every turn. The joy in teaching was gone for me.

So, I retired. But I am too young to be retired. I'm only 45, and I still want to teach. I have a gift. I can teach. I can teach Math. I can teach teenagers Math! And I am good at it.

So, I will be teaching some Math classes to Homeschoolers on Wednesdays. And I will be tutoring Math in my home at night. And I will be trying to think of some other ways to use my talents to help young people learn, and enjoy, Math.

I never wanted to be, I never planned to be, yet I come alive when I am asked to be ... a TEACHER.

Happy and Relaxed ....

Happy and Relaxed .... that's me these days .... I am sending out emails and passing out cards, trying to generate business ... I know it will come ... but otherwise, I am managing to keep mildly busy and NOT stressed.

One thing I really like is that I can now help my son with his homework! Up until this year, Robbie would get home from school and work on his homework and I would get home from school and collapse. Usually I had an evening of tutoring AND a stack of papers needing to be graded to look forward to after a quick dinner (which my wonderful hubby would cook). All I wanted to do when I walked in the door was sit and recharge!! I would help Robbie if he asked, but usually he just avoided asking because my whole attitude spoke "TIRED". And he is a really good kid ... sensitive to those vibes.

Now ... he is taking Algebra II Pre-AP ... and he does his homework sitting at the table where I do my tutoring ... and I happily sit there with him .... reading a magazine or a book, but making it very clear that I am there to help HIM if he needs it. And I really like being able to do that.

Now I am home when he gets home .... previous years he always got home first. I like being able to welcome him home and ask about his day. I really like being HOME.

I do miss the kids. I do miss the teaching. I don't miss the JOB. I really miss the kids, though.

Once tutoring gets going good in the evenings, though ... I will have an outlet for my teaching energy!! And if my homeschool classes get 3 or more enrollees at the Home Educator's Resource Store .... I'll have an outlet on Wednesdays each week!

But being happy and relaxed and able to help my son when he gets home ... that is the BEST thing!

Our Money Tree ....

Tom and I have a money tree. It was given to us by friends as a housewarming gift 3 years or so ago. It looked like a marijuanna plant!! And it was really small. We set it in a window and it grew happily (but we are still waiting for the 20's to appear on it's leaves!!)

I re-potted it last Fall and it continued to thrive, producing more and more 5-leaved stems and getting bigger and bigger. In March of 2005, Tom and I both decided to change careers and we both chose to give up a dependable monthly income for control of our own time and the chance for even larger incomes in the future. I also moved the money tree into the upstairs bathroom window where it now gets a Southern and a Western exposure. Since March, I have kind of linked the growth of the money tree to the changes in our careers and plans.

For instance .... when Tom gave his two-weeks notice at his IT job, the money tree put out a tiny 5-leaved stem .... it is now one of the largest 5-leaved stems on the plant. When I finally decided on a name for my business, the money tree put out another 5-leaved stem ... and it has grown ... happily putting out more 5-leaved stems itself. In fact, it seemed that with each phone call or email I recieved about tutoring, another 5-leaved stem appeared!

The money tree has gotten much larger since I moved it into the bathroom (and since we both changed jobs). I water it and talk to it ... and smile with each new growth.

However .... around mid-July .... the money tree started losing leaves. They turned brown and slowly fell off! I got really worried! Tom's final paycheck from his 3 months of training arrived at the end of June .... his first paycheck from writing mortgages is due in mid-August .... he has gone July and half of August with-out a paycheck. My final paycheck from school arrived on August 1st. No more monthly paychecks from LISD .... and our money tree has leaves turning brown and falling off!!! YIKES!!!

But, you know what? I realized that the money tree knows exactly what it is doing!! Off with the old, on with the new! As our old sources of income dry up and stop producing .... the old leaves of the money tree are drying up and falling off. This is leaving more nutrients and water for the new growth the tree is producing .... and Tom and I are finding new ways to bring income into our lives.

It is a scary, but very exciting, time in our lives! I feel so blessed to have such a great husband who decided to take this leap and who supported my urge to leap, too .... even though it might have been better for at least one of us to keep a steady, dependable income until the other one got established. I feel blessed that he believes in me .... and in himself!!

I realize that the money tree is just a plant .... and that our financial lives are what we make them .... but I will do my best to keep the money tree (and the lucky bamboo beside it) healthy and happy!!

I'm still hoping for $20 bills for leaves, too!!

Change in Plans ...

I have decided to not charge as much per hour as I had originally planned. I have to build up a following again .... and charging too much per hour isn't going to help that.

Over the past few years I had actually tried to cut down on my tutoring at night ... turned people down, removed myself from lists .... now I am trying to build that part back up. I have a faithful, but small, following at the moment .... and I had a woman call me from McKinney (1 hour away) who heard wonderful things about me and wants to get her son into tutoring with me. I am looking forward to working with them.

School starts tomorrow for LISD .... so I am expecting my evening tutoring to pick up over the next few weeks as students settle in to their new Math classes.

I am also going to teach at a local Home Educators Resource Center on Wednesdays. That will be a good introduction into the Homeschooling community .... and that is what I need!!

Tom's new job is going pretty well. He is MUCH happier! I like seeing that. He hasn't had a paycheck for a month and a half .... hoping to get one this week or next .... and only one per month. He is strictly commission ... and I guess I am too now!

Wish us luck! And success!!

Early August ...

I went to the homeschooling conference in Plano on Saturday. I mainly went to look at the Math Curriculums offered for Home Schoolers. I didn't hear any of the speakers, but I did roam around the exhibition hall and observe. I spoke with Stephen Lunsford for several minutes. He has been so nice and supportive of me ... and has given me excellent advice!! Thanks Stephen, if you are reading!!

I looked at several curriculums .... but honestly ... the only way to know if a book is good is to actually TEACH out of it!! I don't have the time to do that!! Nor the means!! So ... the Key Note speaker has published a book called 100 Top Picks for Homschool Curriculum .... and she reviews several Math Curriculums l was considering .... so I purchased that book ... and I am following her advice.

I'm going with Saxon Math. I am offering to teach 3 courses at the local Home Educators Resource Center .... so I will teach Alg I and Alg II and Advanced Math using the Saxon Books.

I must say .... there were a lot of kids at this convention ... and overall there was a sense of calm and discipline. The kids were very well behaved ... for the most part. It was very interesting just observing the families ...

I'm Liking This ....

I spent all day running errands yesterday ... and as I was out and about, I was also thinking of my teacher friends being back to school ... and how grateful I am that I am NOT!!

I stopped by the Home Educator's Resource Center in Lewisville and it looks like I will be able to offer a couple of Math Classes through them. They are allowing me to choose the curriculum and the course and what to charge ... I just need to get it all written up and submitted to them. They supply classroom space. This will be one way to get myself and my abilities known to the homeschooling public.

Now I just have to figure out which curriculum to use. I know which ones NOT to use ... the Math Curriculums that LISD uses are awful!! The best way to learn if a curriculum is good is to actually teach it ... which I haven't done with the Homeschool Curriculums. I am going to go to the conference on Saturday and check out the available curriculums there.

I must say once again that I am very happy to not be back in school this week ... although I do miss my fellow Math teachers and catching up with them and what they did this summer. I sent them an email earlier this week and told them that if the Principal rags on them today like she did last year, they should go to lunch and then come to my place for relaxing by the pool and margaritas the rest of the afternoon. Believe it or not, someone forwarded that email to the Principal! She was not a happy camper about that and sent me an email to let me know!!

Geez .... I'm not even teaching there anymore and I am still getting in trouble with the Principal!!

The Faculty Meeting is probably starting right about now ... and I am here at home with a kitty on my lap ... along with my laptop .... and a cup of coffee by my side .... life is good ....

Here We Go ....

Today is the first day of Teacher Inservice for Lewisville ISD .... and I must say that I am EXTREMELY happy to not be attending !!!

I received my final paycheck on Aug 1st and that is a bit nervewracking as I wait for tutoring to start up again. I know it will ... school is starting Aug. 11th and I will begin to get busy shortly after that with evening tutoring. I also realized that I can take on students who have "senior out" during the day and need to pass Math to graduate. I will be sure to point that out to counselors and Math Dept. heads as I pass out my cards.

I have also found a Homeschooling Co-op in Lewisville and I am hoping to get to teach a Math class or two for them during the day. Margaret Kahn with PEAH has been very kind in passing my name along to people. I am also going to attend the NTHEN Conference in Plano this weekend ... and mingle and listen and pass out my cards!! Wish me luck!

The district is calling in my laptop so I have to go get a new laptop and printer today .... that will be a major expense, but necessary! I have really enjoyed this laptop and hate giving it up .... but it is probably best to own my own.