I am an English teacher at a JK-12 school in Illinois.
Working on a puzzle in the middle of the Atlantic
For seven years I taught seventh grade (I love seventh graders) and for the last three I have taught in the upper school (mostly juniors and seniors). Beginning AY09-10, I am back to my beloved seventh graders. A career switcher, I have worked in advertising (client side) and video production.
Arrived in Illinois by way of South Dakota, Northwestern University, Boston, and a year on the S/Y Jubilee as cook/stewardess/deckhand. The boat took me to the Caribbean (as far south as Union Island in the Grenadines), Gibraltar, Sardinia, Corsica, Italy, France, Croatia, and Bosnia.
Love: music, poetry, up eared dogs, cooking, reading, computers, Buffy and Angel, cashmere sweaters, my garden, my kids and husband.
This blog is where I reflect on my teaching and my life. Sometimes it’s a good moment from my day or a project that succeeded, sometimes it’s an explication of a piece of writing that helps me clarify why I teach it, and sometimes it’s a place to share disappointments.
I can be reached at tabor330 [at] gmail [dot] com
January 3, 2009 at 1:30 am
i found you. and i love your site. and i’ve been reading it for the last hour–after i finished “she’s the man.”
January 21, 2009 at 10:22 pm
I too came to teaching as a second career, however middle school would make me crazy. Even 9th graders are too squirrely for me. This year I have all upper classmen and I love it. Of course, the majority of them are students I had as sophomores and who I trained very well. It’s all paying off this year.
January 21, 2009 at 10:41 pm
@dkzody – Seventh graders have a very special challenge – they have to be prepared for changes to everything (the bodies, the brains, their friends, their relationships) every day. But they also have an honesty in their work that is refreshing. I just use the squirrely stuff to my advantage! Great to hear from you – visit again. Thanks for the time to read and comment.