Fall Break

I am in the final hours of my fall break.  It is 10:30 pm on Sunday night after a two week hiatus from teaching.  I think I am definitely going to enjoy my years at a school that follows a balanced calendar.  This particular year, being that it is my first year in the district, I am required to attend "GCL", a professional development course designed by the school corporation.  There are two options for completing these 30 hours of professional development: Option A: attend several night classes throughout the year that last all the way through May.  Option B: knock all 30 hours out during your first week of fall break.  Option B fills up fast and was my top choice so I signed up right away.  I was quite bitter that I had to spend 8 AM - 4 PM Monday-Thursday locked up in a conference room instead of enjoying an extra week off, but now it's all done and out of the way.  

A few thoughts/comments/musings about GCL:

• GCL doesn't stand for anything, they are just the initials in the administrator handbook under which this course is discussed
• If I have to talk about Marzano again I might punch through a window
• I hate being forced to comment on things about which I have nothing to say.  It really is a testament to my English education as to how well I was able to simply restate the question and simply agree but somehow make it sound as if what I said was brilliant and original.  It made me feel like an evil genius and a circus monkey at the same time.
• Orchestra is a very different school subject than every other subject.  But people get tired of hearing that and I am painfully aware of it so I have to play the game of "How does my subject fit into this conversation and how do I act like I give a damn so I don't come off like an Elitist Bitch?"
• I have bad handwriting and markers really highlight that.  Ironically enough, highlighters hide it.
• More than once I had the urge to pull a Costanza and "leave on a high note" after cracking a joke and making everyone laugh.
• There were far too many good snacks and far too much boring down time.  Dangerous combination.
• Teachers are the worst students.  Not sure how much you'd have to pay me to teach this course, but it'd have to be big bucks.
• I enjoy the company of other teachers.  I like talking to them, especially when our conversations are not contrived or being driven by means of a dumb game.

The rest of my fall break was very enjoyable.  Some highlights:

• We have hardwood floors now, courtesy of my very handy husband
• My puppy and I visited my parents and had a fun time
• I got EVERYTHING done on my checklist, including cleaning the bathroom today AND writing this blog post at the last minute :)
• I took several hearty naps, an absolute must in any vacation of mine
• I cooked and baked several new recipes- yum!
• I assembled and sent my sister a care package (spoiler alert if you haven't gotten it yet, Elaine...)
• I was able to go to the gym almost every day and got a good rhythm going- now I'm not as reluctant about it.  Good feeling
• I don't feel bummed about going back to school tomorrow, which means my fall break was a success!

Other than GCL, I only did a tiny bit of grading and I stopped by school today for an hour to set up my chairs and stands.  That means I did not dwell on school over break, but it also means I really have to get back into school mode tomorrow.  Luckily, next week I'm on resource room duty, which means instead of doing cafeteria duty, I get to go upstairs and sit at the resource desk and basically work.  I may answer the phone or help a kid take a test, but usually I get an extra 40 minutes of prep, which is awesome.  I am really lucky that my resource room week aligned with the week after break- I can get caught up on my organization stuff and won't have to deal with any back-to-school idiots in the cafeteria.  Such a bonus.

Here we go.  Three and a half weeks till Thanksgiving break.