Monday, March 18, 2024

Fully Situated Replacement

In January, I got a new iPhone.

My old iPhone wasn't broken or anything. With planned obsolescence, I have to keep on top of replacing my devices every few years. It was time. (One time I waited a bit too long, and my trade in wasn't worth anything.) 

And because of the time it's been since I last upgraded, of course all of the connectors I had before were out of date. 

Which meant it was time to cover my cords. I finally got around to doing that. 

(Before this I was a bit busy with the afghan of two months, so the phone cords had to wait.)

When preparing to sit down and write this, I went through my back posts to find links, and it turns out that the first time I did this was in... gulp... 2013. So, I guess you could say it's a thing. (According to the post, I saw the idea online and decided I had to do it. Now it's just a thing I do.) 

First, I started with my earbuds. Yeah, I could buy AirPods or such, but that's kind of pricey for something I use occasionally. (When I use them, I need them, but I don't use them frequently.) 

Earbuds with cord covered in light blue yarn

Then I did the power cord.

Power cord covered in burnt orange yarn

The cables nowadays are pretty sturdy, and I have a cordless charger (as well as a case that will allow me to use the cordless charger), but I'm used to plugging the phone in, and I'm used to seeing a cord covered in yarn, so I had to do this. For me.

How did I do this? It's hard to explain. I should make a video of it, but I'm still in the process of getting three other videos I made last summer ready to upload, so that won't be happening any time soon. I'm basically slip stitching around the cord. It can be done with a single crochet around the cord, but I didn't like how that turned out.

And now I won't mention this again until I get a new phone. At my current rate of change, that should be in 2028.

Plug end of earbuds covered in light blue yarn

Where I did this previously:

Friday, March 15, 2024

The Cheater

Thursday. Fifth period integrated math 2 (read: math for sophomores). They had a test.

Ms. L, the co-teacher, warned me about Adriel a couple days prior.

As Ms. L was going over the study guide for the test, I had noted that Adriel wasn't doing much of anything. I prompted him to get on task, which he ignored. I moved on to helping other students who had questions over what they'd be tested on.

Ms. L said that Adriel didn't do much in class besides watch his phone. And then she'd find that his computerized class assignments had him getting 100% after working on the problems for five minutes. (It should take a bit longer than that.) Clearly, he had found a way to game the system.

And, apparently, he had attempted to cheat on a test previously this school year.

On test day, Ms. L took her special ed students to test in a different room while I monitored those that weren't special ed identified. Mostly, kiddos don't attempt to cheat on tests, but this time I knew to watch Adriel. 

I didn't intend to make it obvious. However, Adriel was also watching me. 

All the other kiddos were focused on their tests. Occasionally they'd look up. Adriel? He wasn't looking at his test paper at all.

I didn't watch Adriel. But I kept an eye on him (as well as the others in class). I did not catch him on his phone. I did not catch him with anything he should not have. 

But that doesn't mean he didn't sneak something by me. I hope he did not. We'll see...

At least I know where to focus my attention. Although, any student who is watching me when they have something to work on is someone who I need to pay attention to anyway.

Thursday, March 14, 2024

A Bathroom Emergency

For my new long-term assignment, I have three periods of math (two are co-taught) and three periods of computer science. Sixth period is computer science. It was Wednesday.

Tardiness has become a huge issue on campus. (Since they did away with tardy sweep, we have students who amble in at any time during class as if they don't have a care in the world.) 

So, when Reid walked in almost fifteen minutes late, I inwardly grumbled and noted the time. (I note very late arrival times in the attendance.) 

Immediately behind Reid was Kate from security. Uh oh...

Kate asked what Reid had been doing out of class. 

Reid: "I had a bathroom emergency..."

(It's become a thing, mostly with the boys, if they've been out of class "to the restroom" for longer than reasonable and they are questioned on it, their answer is long, involved, and poop-filled.)

Reid's pause carried certain implications.

Kate wasn't buying this. Reid hadn't asked to go to the restroom, so he was considered tardy. (If a student asks to use the restroom during passing period, I don't mark them tardy if they get back to class after the bell.) 

And Reid hadn't been near the restrooms. He had been with several other boys, and they were peeking around corners, looking out for security most likely.

All of this was part of the lecture Kate gave Reid. That was all he got, for now. Once he was settled into class, Kate asked me his name, which I gave her. 

I don't know if Reid fully realized it, but he is now on security's radar. Certain students aren't allowed out of class during class time without an escort because they have a tendency to wander. This was step one of being added to that list. 

(I wonder if he knows Austin. If not, I should introduce them. Austin might be able to warn Reid of what happens if Reid continues down the roaming campus path.) 

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Handled?

Back in October, I did a co-teaching day in a math class. I covered for the special ed teacher. The general ed teacher, Mr. J, talked of leave he'd be taking in March for the birth of his second child. I agreed to cover his class. 

But, in late January his wife was hospitalized with complications, so his leave had to start early. Alas, I had promised another teacher I'd cover her classes at the end of February

They found another sub to cover the classes until I could start. I started last Monday.

They gave us a transition day. 

The co-teacher was around, but of the block schedule days, this was the day she did not co-teach. When she popped in, I had one major question for her:

"When are grades due?"

Because, they have to be. I'm starting a long term assignment, so grades are due. Last year I got slapped in the face with this. Now it's on my radar.

Ms. L, the co-teacher, wasn't sure, but we figured out that the end of the quarter was the next week (read: this week). So, I had some time to get situated before I'd have to submit grades.

As Ms. L discussed what we'd be doing in class, she mentioned some testing that was due. We'd have to do it next week (again read: this week). And I laughed. Because I got hit with that one in the vacant English class I started this school year in. 

At least I have all the things I need for that one. (Getting my log in credentials reinstated for this test ended up being an issue, so I have periodically checked to make sure I still have access since then.) 

I am not going to do anything stupid and say something about being all set. Because I'm not. Something else is going to appear out of the blue that I'll have to scramble to deal with.

But, for the moment, my begin-the-long-term scramble seems to be handled. For now. 

Mr. J is scheduled to return in early May. This should be an interesting two months.

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Pick Your Pain

What if? It's the basis of many stories. We ask. We ponder. We wonder. 

On Tuesdays I throw one out there. What if? It may be speculative. It may stem from something I see. It may be something I pull from the news. 

Make of it what you will. If a for instance is not specified, interpret that instance as you wish. And if the idea turns into a story, I'd appreciate a thank you in the acknowledgements 😉

What if you had a splitting headache, but the remedy that would help upsets your stomach?

Monday, March 11, 2024

Two Months' Work

It. Is. Finished.

blue knitted afghan with gray border

The border went pretty smoothly once I got it going. I worked a bit on it each night last week.

folded blue knitted afghan with gray border

When I went to update its Ravelry page, I discovered something funny. I began the project on January 7th. I completed it on March 7th. Two months exactly.

folded blue knitted afghan with gray border

I'm happy with this one. If I got cold often enough, I might be tempted to make one for myself. But, I would rarely use it. This one was always meant as a birthday present, belated as her birthday was in January. (But she's watched me make it, so she knew it was coming.) 

And now that this is done, it's time to get back to that dragon swatch that I have to redo. Or perhaps something else interesting will pop up. We shall see.

The blue afghan in blog posts:

Friday, March 8, 2024

Video Proof

Friday. Second period accelerated math, seventh grade. 

Accelerated math means the students are learning seventh and eighth grade math at the same time. (They'll take freshman math as eighth graders.) 

The topic on Friday was what I spent two separate days covering with the eighth grade classes: the volume of a cylinder and the volume of a cone. 

There is a way to derive the formula (something we did in calculus), but for middle schoolers, we do an explanation as to why it is correct, and then we have them use it. 

For the eighth graders, my explanation of "it takes three cones to fill a cylinder" was good enough. Alas, the seventh graders did not believe me.

However, I knew that I could find a video that showed that very thing. (There is so much good math material on YouTube.) So, if they needed proof, I'd show them proof. 

They weren't entirely convinced. ("There's still water in the cone.") I explained that getting a perfect pour wasn't necessarily going to happen, human error and all. They grumbled, but they accepted that explanation.

Of course, Friday was one of those days where keeping their focus wasn't really happening. But I have had worse, so it wasn't too terrible.

And now I'm done with that class and on to a new long term that started Monday. I'll begin talking about that next week.