The Gambler

Wednesday. Second period, sophomore math. (Yes, the same group I discussed yesterday.)

Second period had four boys who just... They'd spend the period hanging out, not paying attention to the math of it all. 

Mr. Y (the co-teacher) had enough, and on Wednesday he separated them to the four corners of the room. So, of course, the obvious happened. Rather than keeping their little party to themselves, they were now talking across the room. Sigh. 

The topic of conversation turned to sports betting. Because one of the boys, Ximenez, has a problem. In the previous class, he talked about how he had won a parlay, but he lost all his winnings on other bets. 

Funnily enough, I was only aware of the terminology at all because my Sunday night show's topic had been about sports betting on apps. In case you'd like to take a look:

(I suppose I should warn you about John Oliver. The show is on HBO, and they take advantage of being allowed to use all the adult language. And the jokes can be a bit juvenile. Along with some good info.)

I held it in as long as I could, but then I spoke up and explained to Ximenez that perhaps the gambling wasn't a good idea. (Especially since I caught him watching a baseball game on his phone rather than taking down the notes that Mr. Y had been giving them earlier in the period.) 

Of course Ximenez didn't see my point and denied that he had a problem. Sigh.

(Okay, so before you ask, yes, Ximenez is a minor. Sophomore. I just looked up his age. He's actually a junior. He's 16--he'll be 17 in a bit under two weeks. I am not surprised this junior is in a sophomore-level class. Clearly he failed a math class in his high school career.) 

He claimed that he'd give it up after... Oh, I don't know. He gave me a couple different times he'd give it up, and I wasn't listening. Because there was a guy in one of the clips Oliver showed that said the exact same thing. Which I pointed out. But Ximenez again wasn't seeing my point. 

This is how gambling problems start. Sadly, there was nothing I was going to say that Ximenez would hear. Not now.

I did recommend the episode. (I knew they post it on YouTube after the episode airs.) Yes, I know it's not really a good show for a minor, but if anyone could get through to him, it'd be through humor, not preaching. 

Ximenez's response? He had a parlay going, and if he won, he'd get $400. And he'd give me $20. (I told him to keep the money. He assumed he'd win. I rather thought the opposite.)

By the time you read this, we should know how that bet went. I don't believe that Ximenez is going to actually follow up with me (and I will likely forget the next time he's in class). 

Edited to add: On Monday Ximenez informed me that... he lost the parlay.

The Boys

Sophomore math. Second period. Monday.

Second period is the class. Every teacher has one. The difficult group. 

This class is made difficult by four boys. They all sit over in one corner of the room, and they spend the period goofing off. Although, they held it together for their test. But during working time...

The previous class period (Wednesday, the day we found out), had been the test. So, on Monday they were starting a new unit on geometry. They had a "what do you remember?" worksheet. And while most of the class was busy trying to remember things (or looking them up on their phones--this was permitted), the boys were playing around. 

They were eating in class even after being asked specifically not to. (Ximenez: "But it's fruit.") They were discussing some new album that some rapper had released. They were talking about gambling. (Jasper to Ximenez: "You keep all but $10 of your winnings, and then bet the $10. You don't bet all of your winnings...") 

If I had been alone and writing this incident in my note to the teacher, I would have said the boys "were having way too much fun". It's not that they shouldn't have fun, but they were clearly not on task. 

But that rap album was too hard to resist. One boy had to play it out. (They have headphones/earbuds. They can listen to music on their own and not blast it for the whole class to hear.) 

Mr. Y warned them to turn it off. And they did, for a time.

But then they played it out again. And again. And again. 

I warned them that it was time to take their phones if they couldn't be trusted to not play music in class. (Me: "I don't want to hear anything coming from your phones.")

But, of course...

This time, Mr. Y went over there and took the phones from two of the boys. Who both claimed that they were not the ones playing the music. 

And yet, the music stopped after that. 

I doubt the boys got any of the work completed. The period finished, and everyone left. Everyone, except the two boys whose phones Mr. Y still had. 

Mr. Y looked at them. I pointed out he still had their phones. 

The boys: "We'll tell you who was playing the music..."

No one knew when class was in session, but after... Yeah. Getting their phones back was a great motivator. 

Not that Mr. Y was going to keep their phones. (He could turn them in to the main office, but considering the situation, it was way more trouble than it was worth. This is a minor cell phone infraction, really.) 

Once the boys left (with their phones), Mr. Y expressed his frustration with the class. Yup, I understood. So, because the boys had been getting on his last nerve, Mr. Y decided it was time to break the group up. New seats for them all.

They did not like this. It helped settle them enough so Mr. Y could teach the class the next period. But after, when they were doing independent work, the boys continued their conversation... across the room. Sigh. 

Booked

I am writing this blog post on Friday, and I just picked up a gig for April 1st. That I'll likely have to drop. Because that's just how this semester has been going.

Ever since this district joined the 21st Century and adopted the computerized booking system, getting gigs is a matter of jumping on them when they pop up on the app on my phone. But I've been letting a lot of those go by lately. 

At the beginning of this semester, at the beginning of January, I had three weeks in that geography/psychology/world history class for a teacher recovering from surgery. 

As that gig ended, I started picking up a bunch of gigs for February. I had about half the month booked when I got the email asking me if I would pick up that special ed long term, the math and world history one. Which (if you've been following along with me, you know) I did. 

There was something sad about watching all the gigs I had picked up, one by one, getting deleted in one big purge. The jobs had to go to other subs as I was going to be busy. I mean, I don't begrudge others having them. It was just how much time and effort it took to fill my month now gone even though my month was going to be busy with the long-term. 

So, again, as that special ed gig was ending, I again went about picking up a bunch of gigs for March. But I've been holding off on taking anything in April. 

Back in something like September, I got an email from a teacher I had done a long term assignment for in the past. She'd be out in the spring as she was pregnant with her second child. Would I be willing to cover? 

Her maternity leave started in February, but because subs can only cover 30 days, she had another sub start when she left, and I'll continue once the first sub finishes her 30 days. Around the beginning of April. 

Which meant that I had March to fill. And, I had just about filled it. Well, I had made a good start, anyway.

But on my last Friday in the special ed long term, I got an email from a secretary (at a different school, so she didn't know I was finishing a long term) about covering a week for a teacher who was suddenly going to be out. 

Sure, I said. And then I sadly dropped all the gigs from that week as I would be busy. 

That's the math class I wrote about last week. 

But, it turns out that Mr. R's foot problem is worse than first thought. When it seemed like the issue might last longer, I went to the secretary and told her that I just had day-to-day assignments for March, so I could drop them and remain in Mr. R's class if necessary. 

On Monday I got word that it would be necessary. 

And so, again, there went two weeks of gigs I had grabbed as they popped up. Sigh. 

It's almost like I shouldn't bother. 

I'm not sure exactly what day I start the long term English class I've been anticipating. The sub desk hasn't officially added me for it. (I know she will. When it's closer.) So, I'm not sure what day it'll start. (The current sub took a sick day, so it got pushed a day out further.)

And, we're not sure if Mr. R will return on April 1st (which is when he's currently scheduled to return). 

But I picked up a gig for April 1st. Which I might end up not doing. Because. 

I mean, at least I've been working steadily. And the days I hoarded ended up going to subs who might not have gotten them otherwise. 

So, I've got two more weeks in that math class. (Well, one more week by the time you read this.) And then the English class that'll take me to nearly the end of May. Better booked than not, I suppose. 

A Protest Near You

I never wanted to live in a fascist country. And here we are. Sigh. 

If you're here, you already know this. I am not going to spend time trying to convince people who are too stupid to follow the news and connect the dots. I need to focus on what we can do. And, there are some good things happening.

Have you been following the #TeslaTakedown? People are coming out en masse to protest Tesla dealerships. They're getting people to sell their Teslas. And this appears to be working. The resale value of a Tesla has plummeted, and Tesla stock prices are cratering. If he wants to take a sledgehammer to everything that makes America great, we'll take a sledgehammer (figuratively) to his fortune. 

Also, the Target boycott (protesting their capitulation on being an inclusive company) appears to be going well. Target is noticing a drop in sales, and their stock price has taken a hit. 

So, if you are looking for a way to be proactive, look for a #TeslaTakedown event near you. 

Or, there's a big series of protests scheduled for April 5th: Hands Off! 

I'll leave you with a little video I found funny. And hopeful. We need a bit of hope in these terrible times. (I tried to embed it here, but I can't. It's from Instagram reels, and it's called the Pettysburg Address. It's only a couple minutes, and it'll bring a smile to your face.) 

Not Quite a Cat

After last week, this week was positively boring. In a good way. But I'm still getting over a cold, so I didn't make too much progress on the cat pillow...

Does it kind of look like a cat yet? I don't think it looks like a cat yet. (Those two slits will be where the ears are attached. Later.)

But I've now gotten to the point where I don't think I'll have enough yarn to complete the thing. And I can't buy new yarn.

I decided on this project as a way to get rid of the blanket yarn I still had on hand. So, buying yarn would defeat the purpose. The plan was to use a different color, anyway. I just decided that I would start with a different color here, and then use the remaining gray more towards the bottom.

This may turn out really cute. Or, it could end up looking ridiculous. Whatever. The point is to use up yarn, so I'm going to use up yarn. 

But I will have to buy polyfill. Sigh. 

And since I've now started the cat pillow series, it's time to include the previous posts at the bottom. As there is only one: 

• Yarn Under my Fingers

The Get-Out-of-the-Test-Free Card

Thursday. Sophomore math. Third period.

I had been in the class since Tuesday as the teacher had some foot injury that meant he couldn't put any weight on it. I was supposed to start Monday, but I stayed home with a cold. 

On Tuesday, the students got the study guide for Thursday's test. (Block schedule. The classes meet every other day.) They had some time to work on it, and then Mr. Y, the co-teacher, went over the problems so the students knew how to do them. (They were studying solving quadratic equations.) 

Then Wednesday happened. (If you haven't seen yesterday's post, you might want to check it out.) 

As first period ended and third period began, I was not surprised at the arrival of the principal, an assistant principal, and three counselors. Because, you see, the student had been in this class, and their passing would be very noticeable. 

(The student sat in the back of the room, so maybe some of them wouldn't have noticed. But one tends to at least have a passing acquaintance with the students in one's classes.)

I mean, this is when it would hit you, if you didn't have the student in another class before this. And three girls huddled in the middle of the room, one bawling while two others held her. Mr. Y found the tissue and made sure to distribute it. 

The principal talked about where the students could go for support. There's a whole system in place currently. The others said a few words. And then, when none of the students had anything to say, they left. 

Test time? Nah. Mr. Y wasn't going to make them take a test. Not now. 

While some of the students weren't close with the student who was now gone, some were. And, it just wasn't the day for it. 

Many of the students spent the period on their phones. Some talked. Some cried. I assume some were avoiding thinking about it. I understand. 

After class, Mr. Y wondered about when he'd give the test. I advocated for just cancelling it for them. (All the other classes took it.) Giving it the next week would throw third period off the same schedule as the rest of the classes. They'd be a day behind. 

(And, it was hard for Mr. Y as well. The previous class he sat with the student and talked to them for a bit. Later, before I left school on Tuesday, Mr. Y told me the student seemed off that day.)

Ultimately, Mr. Y will discuss this with Mr. R (the teacher I was subbing for), and they'll make that decision. (It'll hit Mr. R hard, too. All the teachers who had that student are feeling this.) 

It's such a weird time. I think missing one test won't make all that much difference in the grand scheme of things. 

That Day

It was the end of second period. An announcement came over the PA. Administration needed the staff to meet in the gym during snack. While technically that included me, I figured I really didn't need to be there as subs tend to be exempt from these sorts of things, so I headed to the restroom instead. I was sure I'd hear about whatever it was later. 

I had just gotten back from the restroom when the in-class phone rang. It was the secretary, and I just knew what she was going to ask. The fourth period she wanted me to cover was choir, not too far from the room I was in for the day. The bell was just about to ring, so I headed over. 

And here's where this all makes a very hard left turn...

As security let the class in, Mr. C, the band teacher next door, clued me in to the issue. Ms. C, the choir teacher (no relation--different C-name), was on campus. That announcement? It had to do with the death of a student. 

And it hit the choir teacher hard. 

Mr. C texted the choir teacher for plans, and he got the class started. They had a competition coming up the following weekend, and they needed to do a run-through. Better if the teacher is there, but the student leaders know enough to get something accomplished when a sub is there.

(Think Glee when I say "performance". Singing. Dancing. Contemporary radio hits music. I've covered the choir class before, but not lately. The current choir teacher replaced the choir teacher who retired last year.) 

The students hadn't been informed of the death yet. They were going to do it in waves. Just as soon as they got the counselors in place. 

The class got set up. The girls warmed up. (All-girl choir.) They got into position. They started working on blocking. 

I sat and watched. It hit differently when I knew what was coming. 

Then the phone rang. I was to send two students to the library. The notifications were starting. 

I sent the girls on their way. 

They were curious as to being sent to the library. (When students get called out of class, they are never called to the library. Attendance office, usually. Sometimes counselor's office. Maybe health office. Or front office.) But they went. 

Then security showed up with another list. Another five students headed to the library. 

After those girls left, an email went out school-wide. Student wasn't named, but the student's passing was announced. 

The remaining choir girls started doing some figuring. The student must have been involved in the school musical as the choir girls already gone had all been in the musical. As had their teacher (been involved in staging it). 

They managed a run-through of their show. This was a little weird as all their soloists were in the library. But, the backup gets rehearsed alone quite a bit, so they were able to do it. 

They had just finished a full run through (which took about 20 minutes) when Ms. C returned to the class. She knew that the girls had already heard. I let her know that while they had heard much of it, they did not know the student's name. 

Ms. C provided it. 

And that's when I realized I knew who the student was. 

It was the end of class, and several of the students were in tears. Some had returned from the library. They were processing. Naturally. 

I headed back to the class I was in for the day. And the day prior, and the day following. 

During sixth period (statistics), I had a couple students I recognized from period four. One did not make it to sixth from fourth period. She had been one to be summoned to the library. I was not surprised to not see her in class. 

While the statistics students didn't do their work (I was warned they've got senioritis and weren't going to be very productive), I perused the online attendance for the class. The school is on a block schedule, and we were on the even day. 

I took the attendance back a day. Looked at third period. Then I took the attendance to the next day and looked at third period. 

Yup. They had removed the student from the attendance. They wouldn't be in class the next day. I had seen them the day before. In class. 

I... Yeah. This might hit me harder than I thought it would. (There's more story here, but this post is long enough.)