Memoir of a Chihuahua Bat

Susan Stanford

Description

Elizabeth Jones, a newly hired Spanish teacher at North Gate High School, finds herself standing in the middle of a cinder block warehouse at her new campus. Formerly an Industrial Arts room with old equipment stored against the walls and rusty nuts and bolts scattered across the floor, Elizabeth is horrified at the thought of this being her new classroom. She is even more horrified to learn that she will be sharing this space with Theater Arts classes and a clinic without a ceiling. Encountering falling flats, puking students, Theater production rehearsals, and without the basic classroom set up like a board and desks, Elizabeth finds herself ready to scream and run! Principal John James, with his dry humor and sarcastic personality, insists that this is the only option he has for a room. Jean Smith, her witty and entertaining department chair, convinces Elizabeth that they can find a solution to this overwhelming challenge. With the help of their rowdy colleagues and lots of laughter, Jean and Elizabeth are determined to find a solution for this instructional nightmare. Faced with the decision to quit or step up, Elizabeth decides to embrace this challenge by throwing away the textbook and traditional methods and creating a new interactive approach to teaching. From her cinder block classroom to a cinder block school atop a mountain in Mexico, she retraces her steps on one part of her educational journey that will dramatically transform her teaching style and change her life forever. Join Elizabeth and her sidekick Jean on a roll a coaster ride, as they rock the boat, challenge their administrators, and become the Chihuahua Bats.

Sujets

• Educators
• Biography
• Autobiography

Informations

• Publié par: Outskirts Press
• Date de parution: 30 août 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781977218025
• Langue: English

Extrait

Memoir of a Chihuahua Bat All Rights Reserved. Copyright © 2019 Susan Stanford v5.0

The opinions expressed in this manuscript are solely the opinions of the author and do not represent the opinions or thoughts of the publisher. The author has represented and warranted full ownership and/or legal right to publish all the materials in this book.

This book may not be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in whole or in part by any means, including graphic, electronic, or mechanical without the express written consent of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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ISBN: 978-1-9772-1802-5

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PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Notes from the Author

This book is my recollection of events that I have related to the best of my knowledge. All names and identities have been changed or are c omposites. Some events have been compressed and some dialogues were recreated.

Edited by Eve Holmans Raine Thank you for your crea tive insight into the world of public education.

If anyone had ever told me that I would find myself in such an unbelievable teaching environment; honestly I would not have believed it. As unpleasant as the day to day struggles were, this test challenged me to grow and become a better teacher. My wish for all educators is this: I hope you find, your Ma la, that person that inspires you to be better and makes you laugh. That is worth more than a paycheck.

Mala and I spent five years together at North Gate High School. During those five years we created twenty-two instructional books about bes t practices in the Foreign Language classroom, developed eight different prese ntations, and formed a company The Chihuahua Bat. In 1999 my husband was transferr ed out of state. No longer at North Gate, Mala and I continued to develop products for our company. In fact, being at different schools gave us a broader perspective of the public classroom and enabled us to reach more educators. We had one rule as consult ants: Never leave the classroom. We gained respect from our audiences because we wer e walking in their shoes and could honestly address their concerns.

Many have asked: Where are the Bats now? Mala and I, now retired, still gather, reflect, and collaborate. Yes, we are still flying around th e state causing trouble. You will find us drinking coffee on the front porch of her El Ran chito or enjoying wine on the bank of the river in front of her cabin. We still advocate for teachers in the classroom on our website, chihuahuabat.com. So check out our blogs a nd dare to become a Chihuahua Bat.

DEDICATION

For Mala

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

Preface

Introduction

ONE: Sometimes, It’s Good to Work for Idiots

TWO: You’re Kidding, Right?

THREE: When’s Lunch?

FOUR: Drunken Noodles & Papel Picado

FIVE: First Day, First Period

SIX: First Day, Rest of Day

SEVEN: Cages, Britches, & Stitches

EIGHT: Salsa Lessons

NINE: Rock the Boat

TEN: What is a Chihuahua Bat, Anyway?

ELEVEN: Cuernavaca Serenades

TWELVE: The Path, the Passion, the Pinnacle

Acknowledgements

To my family, Mike, Taylor, Chris, and Kate,

I am so grateful for all your, love, understanding, patience, and support during my career and this project. You all began the Chihuahu a Bat journey with me and know firsthand the sacrifices that we all made. Your enc ouragement and advice helped me stay the course. Thank you for all the memories.

To Cherryl, my Chibat partner in crime. I am thankf ul that you answered the phone on that hot July day in 1993 and took a chance on me. You brought out my best when I was faced with a challenging teaching situation. Wo rking with you were the best educational years of my life. Thank you. During our first conversation when we shared our experiences, I knew that we were destined to ch ange the world. And we did!

A giant thanks to Bob and Mike, who chose to reconc ile our checkbooks and receipts, edit our books and materials; hike through México y ear after year with our students; support our massive Market, Restaurant, Museum, and Fería projects; and chose to nurture us as we evolved into the Chihuahua Bats. M ost of all, thank you Binko (Bob) and Bat Flash (Mike) for being Chihuahua Bat Husban ds.

To Eve, thank you for helping me find my words and develop my thoughts. You took me from words on a page to a neatly stitched three-dim ensional story. I am forever grateful for all the endless hours you devoted to my project . Having walked in the shoes of a teacher, you understood the struggles we faced every day in the classroom.

Thank you to my Breakfast Club colleagues who lovin gly supported Mala and me and what we stood for in the classroom. That ten minute s of coffee and conversation in the mornings was just the attitude adjustment I needed to survive the Industrial Arts room. Thank you! The Breakfast Club Got it!

To Gloria, thank you for encouraging me to tell my story.

Preface

To all of my educational colleagues—whether you are a new teacher or a veteran; whether you are beginning a new academic year or ar e already deep in the throes of one; or whether you are on a brief holiday respite (but probably still having to work because a teacher’s work can be 24/7/365)—I am thin king of you. If your school year is just beginning, you are perhaps wearing the new dis trict T-shirt with that inspirational motto for the year, and you are surely being greete d with enthusiasm and optimism as you await the arrival of your students. A new year will bring changes in personnel, policies, and procedures, but that can also happen at any time (as every veteran teacher knows). However, at some point, you will ha ve settled into your routine.

You might be sailing along, albeit in occasional ch oppy waters (for weeks or even for months), but then, the unforeseen happens. At any g iven point in a school year, the powers that be might change something that would al ter your established comfort zone. How do you react? You may wish that you could just get out of that boat, but certainly, you need to stay in the boat and keep paddling forw ard. Once in awhile, though, you may just need to rock that boat.

My wish is that you have a great year with great st udents and great learning results. However, if you find yourself struggling with teach ing content or managing your student population or any number of other myriad issues, he re is the secret: Success has to come from you.

Perfect conference periods, perfect curricular prod ucts, and perfect students do not exist. Moreover, don’t count on your administrators to calm the waves of your rough waters; they have their own issues to solve. Plenty of roadblock opposition will come your way, and it can come from all corners of a cam pus—from administrators, from other colleagues, from parents, and from the commun ity at large. Any and all might tell you (as they had told me over the course of my twen ty-nine-year teaching career), what can and cannot, should and should not, be done as t he teacher in charge of your own classroom—your little corner of the world.

Thus, to the new or the veteran teacher, if you are feeling discouraged—at the start of a year or in the midst of one—may I encourage you to read my story? Memoir of a Chihuahua Bat will entertain, inspire, and encourag e you. My story starts with me arriving at a new school district after ten years o f serving elsewhere in the public classroom. I am anxious and nervous to start over a gain in an unfamiliar setting—that is, until I meet Mala, my new colleague and soon-to -become ‘partner in crime’ and fellow Chihuahua Bat. Come along as I retrace my st eps on one part of my journey as an educator—and a crazy, roller-coaster ride of a j ourney it was! Then, upon its conclusion, ask yourself the question that I hope w ill become a memorable and inspiring one for you: “What would a ‘Chihuahua Bat’ do?

A successful teacher loves his or her subject and i s passionate about teaching it to others. Unleash your enthusiasm. Go beyond the text book; go beyond the standardized, federally and state-mandated tests; i nstead, show your students how to love learning. Remember: In the end, success is up to you. To that end, don’t be afraid to rock the boat. Dare to be a Chihuahua Bat.

Introduction

In 1993, two complete strangers met over the phone; shared their passion for teaching; and formed the Foreign Language Department for a sm all school district in South Texas. Commonly, they were each married mothers of three. They were each experienced Spanish teachers. They each had followe d their husbands, whose careers had taken them from city to city.

I remember the first time I ever heard Mala’s voice and thinking,This school is going to be an adventure.ew what was She was comical, witty, and uncensored. I never kn going to come out of her mouth. By contrast, I was poised, professional, and polite. As a team, we were perfect. She provided the one-liner s, and I provided the diplomacy. This is our story.