Sunday, September 13, 2009

A Bit of This and That

The banner is a photo of tiny town from last fall. There weren't many trees left after the tornado, but the few that remained were beautiful. I'm rushing the season a bit, but I am looking forward to fall colors, cooler temperatures, and the first freeze. (My allergies are having a grand ol' time!)

A reader seemed amazed our students had no lockers. After the tornado wiped us out, a few lockers were salvaged and put into the "cafegymatorium" hallway. Some students were able to get a locker, with most going to underclassmen or non-drivers who can't use their cars for storage. However, in the next few weeks, construction on our new school is going to require the loss of the little hallway and the end of the few lockers. (And we aren't too far way from losing the biggest parking area that the students have. I'm not sure what anyone will use for storage when they have to trudge a couple blocks from parking to school.)

Last week our geometry classes figured out the mileage each geometry student walked per school day. They measured their daily routes with tape measures. Most students average a mile a day on their trek between classes. The least walked was a lucky student who walks just a little over half a mile a day, and the most was one boy who walked a mile and a quarter. Their next assignment should probably be to figure the weight of the backpacks they carry and the calories burned each day on their hikes between classes.

I should mention that construction of our new building is making for muddy sidewalks every time it rains. (Mini Mudslides) There is a lot of slipping and sliding on the jaunts between classes, and a lot of mud is tracked onto decks and into our trailer classrooms. The positive side is that there IS construction going on.

Is anyone else sensing that our students are going to have some pretty great stories to tell their children and grandchildren someday about how hard it was "back in the day"?

5 comments:

Ragamuffin Gal said...

Talk about making mudpies out of mud ~ the students are making memories and learning just what they need to through all of the adversity. I am so glad they have wonderful teachers like you guiding them along their paths. Have a great (and hopefully dry) week!
L & B,
kt

Heidi said...

I can hear it now, "I walked a mile and a half a day to get from one class to the other, through mud- all uphill..."

Yep. Good "back in the day" stories are being made in the makeshift trailerschoolhouses.

Weirdly, when I read the word "mini-Mudslides"- my thoughtlife momentarily invented a nice, diet sized hot fudge sundae-like ice cream desert that I would enjoy eating right now.

Here's hoping you have tread on your boots, Teach!

christina said...

yes, some of those backpacks are huge! like small sofas. : )
i so love the fall colors. i am ready for the new season too.
xoxo

Gayle said...

Oh yes, those will be some good stories!

Puna said...

Yes, stories for sure. I'm so glad they have such a caring teacher as you. And they are getting exercise too.