This morning at around 10:00 am, I sat alone at my desk during my prep period in my 50-something degree portable with a hoodie and a winter parka and contemplated quitting my job. My portable was just over 40 degrees when I arrived at work, and the two plug-in heaters I had running could only do so much to mitigate the cold.
Almost all the other portables had their heaters turned on when the workmen came to my school at least a month ago, and it was already cold in the mornings even at that time. My students and I were thrilled when the guys came in to turn on the heater. They fiddled around with it for awhile and then declared there was something wrong with the thermostat. Oh, I don’t mind, I told them; it will just have an on/off switch then? No, the heater cannot function without the thermostat. Someone else would be coming a different day to fix it.
Days passed, and then weeks, and it was still not fixed. My administrators put in numerous work orders and arranged for me to have the option to switch to a classroom inside the main building until my heater was fixed. But I didn’t want to move. I like this classroom. It has all my posters, reference charts, and materials. Being out in a portable helps me leave everyone alone and mind my own business at work. I was not comfortable with the idea of moving, but I told my students we would if the temperature was ever below 40 degrees in the room when I arrived in the morning.
The heater was finally fixed the week before Thanksgiving. I asked these workmen what had been wrong with the thermostat, and they said nothing was wrong with the thermostat.
“So the previous guys were just dumb?!” I asked.
“Well, I’m not going to say that…”
The heater did not last long before it turned off again. I asked the head custodian to come look at it, and he said the pilot light had gone out because the workers turned off the gas. Well, when would they be back?! He didn’t know.
More work orders were put in, and again the offer was extended for me to move classrooms. So as I sat there this morning letting taking a leave of absence get dangerously close to an actual option in my mind, I had an idea. I thought I might get in trouble, but I decided it was worth it. I went on Google on my work laptop and looked up my district’s maintenance department. I read through the descriptions of each sub-department and realized heating falls under electrical. And then I used my personal cell to call the head of the district’s electrical department.
He didn’t answer, so I left a message that was both courteous and insistent. I let him know that my pilot light was out and that nobody at my school was allowed to light it due to liability, so I just needed his guys to do a quick stop. I told him my kids and I were freezing and that we’d really appreciate this quick fix. I left my name, school and room number, and personal cell, and pleaded for this to be taken care of.
Within an hour, I got a call back, and within two hours, my heater was running.
I don’t know what the moral of the story is, but I sure hope the damn thing turns on when I crank the switch tomorrow at 8:15 am.
Almost all the other portables had their heaters turned on when the workmen came to my school at least a month ago, and it was already cold in the mornings even at that time. My students and I were thrilled when the guys came in to turn on the heater. They fiddled around with it for awhile and then declared there was something wrong with the thermostat. Oh, I don’t mind, I told them; it will just have an on/off switch then? No, the heater cannot function without the thermostat. Someone else would be coming a different day to fix it.
Days passed, and then weeks, and it was still not fixed. My administrators put in numerous work orders and arranged for me to have the option to switch to a classroom inside the main building until my heater was fixed. But I didn’t want to move. I like this classroom. It has all my posters, reference charts, and materials. Being out in a portable helps me leave everyone alone and mind my own business at work. I was not comfortable with the idea of moving, but I told my students we would if the temperature was ever below 40 degrees in the room when I arrived in the morning.
The heater was finally fixed the week before Thanksgiving. I asked these workmen what had been wrong with the thermostat, and they said nothing was wrong with the thermostat.
“So the previous guys were just dumb?!” I asked.
“Well, I’m not going to say that…”
The heater did not last long before it turned off again. I asked the head custodian to come look at it, and he said the pilot light had gone out because the workers turned off the gas. Well, when would they be back?! He didn’t know.
More work orders were put in, and again the offer was extended for me to move classrooms. So as I sat there this morning letting taking a leave of absence get dangerously close to an actual option in my mind, I had an idea. I thought I might get in trouble, but I decided it was worth it. I went on Google on my work laptop and looked up my district’s maintenance department. I read through the descriptions of each sub-department and realized heating falls under electrical. And then I used my personal cell to call the head of the district’s electrical department.
He didn’t answer, so I left a message that was both courteous and insistent. I let him know that my pilot light was out and that nobody at my school was allowed to light it due to liability, so I just needed his guys to do a quick stop. I told him my kids and I were freezing and that we’d really appreciate this quick fix. I left my name, school and room number, and personal cell, and pleaded for this to be taken care of.
Within an hour, I got a call back, and within two hours, my heater was running.
I don’t know what the moral of the story is, but I sure hope the damn thing turns on when I crank the switch tomorrow at 8:15 am.
It’s been a little while since I’ve updated on here, but nothing has really changed. After being called out by my principal because of a parent complaint, I started wearing my mask again, but I still did not remind students to put theirs back on. The last week or so before winter break, I took my mask back off.
I think I’m going to continue not to wear it in my classroom when we go back in January. Studies are showing that cloth and surgical masks do not prevent the spread of the delta and omicron variants, and those variants are also less deadly than the original. I know my actions might put my principal in a tough situation, as he’ll likely be expected to write me up if there is another complaint about masks in my classroom. He told me privately that he thinks we’ll be masking until the 2022 election when MLG is on the ballot, and I’m not doing this another year.
I am working with Sarah to get some of her cards into the staff restrooms and maybe also teachers’ lounge at my school. I’ll be interested to see who might respond and fill out the contact form. I think it will be helpful if multiple teachers at the same school are all standing up together.
I think I’m going to continue not to wear it in my classroom when we go back in January. Studies are showing that cloth and surgical masks do not prevent the spread of the delta and omicron variants, and those variants are also less deadly than the original. I know my actions might put my principal in a tough situation, as he’ll likely be expected to write me up if there is another complaint about masks in my classroom. He told me privately that he thinks we’ll be masking until the 2022 election when MLG is on the ballot, and I’m not doing this another year.
I am working with Sarah to get some of her cards into the staff restrooms and maybe also teachers’ lounge at my school. I’ll be interested to see who might respond and fill out the contact form. I think it will be helpful if multiple teachers at the same school are all standing up together.
I’m currently reading this book (listening on Audible). It’s a very important book, and I said as much when I shared on Facebook and was promptly blasted to no end. Apparently this is a dangerous book, and the author is transphobic.
I currently know two 18-year-old biological females who identify as transgender; one I babysat when she was a little girl, and the other I met for the first time when she was 13 when I was working at a summer program. One appears to be medically transitioning, and the other seems to be considering it.
At my school, to the best of my knowledge I don’t currently have any transgender students, but I have colleagues who do. Some go by a different gender at school than at home. In a training, I was informed that should a child come out to me as transgender, I am not to tell the parents unless specifically asked by the parents whether the child has said this to me.
I can see myself in these girls, the ones I know in real life and the ones described in the book. I’ve told a few friends that I am glad nobody ever told my tomboyish, awkward self at 10 or 12 years old that the reason I didn’t fit in with other girls was that I was actually a boy. This idea was never planted in my head, and I grew up to be an adult woman, still somewhat awkward, but a woman nonetheless. Saving these girls feels personal to me.
Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters https://www.amazon.com/dp/168451228X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_9VTYJQJ8VPDQAZ5HE2WE
I currently know two 18-year-old biological females who identify as transgender; one I babysat when she was a little girl, and the other I met for the first time when she was 13 when I was working at a summer program. One appears to be medically transitioning, and the other seems to be considering it.
At my school, to the best of my knowledge I don’t currently have any transgender students, but I have colleagues who do. Some go by a different gender at school than at home. In a training, I was informed that should a child come out to me as transgender, I am not to tell the parents unless specifically asked by the parents whether the child has said this to me.
I can see myself in these girls, the ones I know in real life and the ones described in the book. I’ve told a few friends that I am glad nobody ever told my tomboyish, awkward self at 10 or 12 years old that the reason I didn’t fit in with other girls was that I was actually a boy. This idea was never planted in my head, and I grew up to be an adult woman, still somewhat awkward, but a woman nonetheless. Saving these girls feels personal to me.
Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters https://www.amazon.com/dp/168451228X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_9VTYJQJ8VPDQAZ5HE2WE
Amazon
Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters
On their i-Ready diagnostic at the beginning of the school year, 42% of my 7th grade math students placed three or more grade levels below, and on their December diagnostic, that was reduced to 34%. Additionally, zero students scored on grade level at the beginning of the year, and now 8% are early on grade level and 1% mid or above grade level. Onward!
This episode has already been taken down on YouTube. We’ll see how long it lasts on Spotify!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3SCsueX2bZdbEzRtKOCEyT?si=kFk8H1r6ShGjHk_68jdUFQ
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3SCsueX2bZdbEzRtKOCEyT?si=kFk8H1r6ShGjHk_68jdUFQ
New COVID policies from Albuquerque Public Schools
When will it end? No really - not a rhetorical question - when will they stop? When there is zero covid?
https://www.aps.edu/schools/covid-updates-for-2021-2022/documents/plan-for-implementing-enhanced-covid-safe-practices-pdf
When will it end? No really - not a rhetorical question - when will they stop? When there is zero covid?
https://www.aps.edu/schools/covid-updates-for-2021-2022/documents/plan-for-implementing-enhanced-covid-safe-practices-pdf
Call for assistance:
I am interested in an age-appropriate resource that is as noncontroversial as possible to explain to my middle schoolers that:
1. Omicron is much, much less deadly than the original COVID strain, and the chances of dying are less than the seasonal flu.
2. Cloth and surgical masks do not work against omicron, as stated even by Dr. Scott Gottlieb.
We have a mask mandate, and I’m trying to push back, but my students are still scared to take off their masks. I teach math, so discussing current events and news is not really part of my curriculum; this needs to be able to be presented quickly and casually.
I am interested in an age-appropriate resource that is as noncontroversial as possible to explain to my middle schoolers that:
1. Omicron is much, much less deadly than the original COVID strain, and the chances of dying are less than the seasonal flu.
2. Cloth and surgical masks do not work against omicron, as stated even by Dr. Scott Gottlieb.
We have a mask mandate, and I’m trying to push back, but my students are still scared to take off their masks. I teach math, so discussing current events and news is not really part of my curriculum; this needs to be able to be presented quickly and casually.
I have a set of business cards that direct people to askhealthyquestions.com/teachers, and I’ve been leaving them around my school in the restroom, workroom, lounge, etc. I have found them in the restroom trash can multiple times already! If they are ripped up like these, I have to leave them, but if they’re salvageable, I dig them out and return them to a visible spot. Joke’s on you, offended colleague(s), because I have 250 of these!
These cards, however, were right where I had set them when I checked hours later!
The aforementioned NM teacher/school personnel page of the Ask Healthy Questions website
https://www.askhealthyquestions.com/nmteachers
https://www.askhealthyquestions.com/nmteachers
AskHealthyQuestions
NM Teachers | Ask Healthy Questions
My school has a program that lets 8th graders in the dual language program earn a bilingual seal. They can then earn their high school bilingual seal in 12th grade. Our kids have been working on this for months, and it’s a big deal. I was excited to see their presentations, especially since I’m new to this school and being in a dual language program.
Well, the presentations are actually going to be… virtual to slow the spread. Way to go, New Mexico.
Well, the presentations are actually going to be… virtual to slow the spread. Way to go, New Mexico.
I have a cold that may or may not be COVID. I had a fever over the weekend and threw up, but I’m better and even took today off to rest. Do you think it’s reasonable to go back to work when I feel better rather than getting tested? If I’m positive for COVID, I have to stay home from work for ten days.
An interesting proposition! https://www.abqjournal.com/2459572/out-of-the-school-box.html
Two teachers from my school signed up at https://www.askhealthyquestions.com/nmteachers after seeing the business cards I’ve been leaving around. I am debating “outing” myself to them as the person with the cards and asking if they want some cards, too, to leave around school. I assume they wouldn’t out me to others; after all, I could out them right back, right? 🤔
APS is changing the guidelines to include masks indoors and outdoors and no spectators at sporting events. https://www.aps.edu/news/news-from-2021-2022/all-aps-schools-to-implement-enhanced-covid-safe-practices
Albuquerque Public Schools
All APS Schools to Implement Enhanced COVID-Safe Practices
Beginning Wednesday, Jan. 19, schools will take extra precautions to help reduce the spread of the virus.