Zack:
- He and his roommate are the veterans, and ninth graders in a 7th/8th grade dorm, so he is feeling like the big man on campus.
- He has so much confidence, has opinions about teaching styles and is excited about the content (well, some of it, anyway.)
- He even ran for 9th grade class representative for the Student Council. He did not win, but the simple fact that he ran speaks volumes!
- Has a new, "old school" teacher for Reconstructive Language. She is making them write in cursive (the physical act of writing the connected letters helps them learn the letter-sounds.) He sent a hand-written letter to us through the mail. YES, people- paper, envelope, stamp- the whole shebang!
- He is getting rave reviews from his teachers, including the following:
- He is attentive to his work, punctual with his assignments, and has adjusted well to my requirements.
- Few students can ‘see the bigger picture’, but Zack seems to be demonstrating that he understands why we have to work so hard on the ‘details’. I’m very impressed with his commitment to the work, and hope it continues throughout the year.
Jake:
- After three days, he declared that this has been the "best year ever!"
- He tried out for modified volleyball and didn't make the team. His attitude has been excellent and he now looks forward to joining in on the musical, which, I think he will really like.
- He endured the change of routine that comes with going back to school and has taken to it, like a champ!
- He has tackled homework with excitement and his grades have been excellent.
- Joined chorus and is trying out for show choir.
Me: I arrived back at school to find some exciting changes, as well as some un-welcome ones.
- On the first day back, my classroom, which was once half-filled with paper towels, was 3/4 filled with unwanted equipment: overhead projectors, pre-k kitchen furniture, clinic furniture (those nice vinyl "beds," defunct copiers, hard drives, macs, and a big glass case.) Said equipment, mostly, blocked the entrance to the room about 3/4 of the way, and completely obstructed the outside exit. After some nagging, begging, and threats to go up the chain of command, the engineers cleared it all out by my first day of teaching.
- My caseload is higher this year, BUT, I am very fortunate to have reasonably sized groups of students- no more than 12 at a time.
- I am working with one of my favorite classroom teachers, who really understands ESL students- and that makes all the difference!
- I have decided to take the plunge and gone back to school to become an Administrator. This will be funded with student loans that I will be paying off for the rest of my life, however, I have decided that this is the best way to effect change, on a system that is horribly broken, one school at a time!
Pat: Well, I think that Pat is still delighting in having his routine back! He enjoys having us around for the summer, but we really make it hard for him to get anything done.
So, that's it. We're back to school. We have an extra mortgage-sized payment to make every month, payable to Gow, but with the help of our "village" we have gotten Zack where he needs to be. Our indiegogo account is active for a few more days. We didn't come close to making our goal, but we have more than we started out with, so I am thrilled. If you know anyone who still wants to make a donation, please direct them here: http://www.indiegogo.com/ZackGow Anything we add to that total will help make that tuition payment every month, so we can still use the help!!
Thank you all!
xoxoxo
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