TOGA! TOGA! TOGA!

What a week! I felt like I was pulling teeth like an old school dentist. In my case, the teeth were finished poetry podcasts. I'm hoping that this experience has demonstrated the need to use time wisely. Finishing podcasts can be stressful, but it's very rewarding to see the final products.

It all started with me being out while scripts were being written. I left explicit instructions both before I left and with the substitute that each group needed to write their script and leave a copy for me. I also explained that if it wasn't finished someone in the group should take it with them to finish before Monday and Tuesday.

Monday and Tuesday rolled around and scripts were incomplete. Many of the groups that hadn't finished in class simply forgot about finishing. This meant that when they were supposed to be recording and finding images, they were finishing their scripts. I then explained that they would need to find images during connections or at home if they were going to finish on time.

Wednesday and Thursday came and many groups were imageless. I demonstrated how to do the basics to get their podcasts ready, and then helped them get moving. I had explained that there simply wouldn't be enough time to find images and edit the podcast together.

Nevertheless, we pushed through and produced our podcasts. While the tone of this post may not convey it, this was a great week! The podcasts could have been better, but overall they're pretty good. I have a few groups who might want to fix it before they're presented, but they will do.

And along came Friday! Friday was so much fun. All of the freshmen teachers plus one junior teacher dressed in togas to go to discovery place. The kids were a riot. They couldn't believe we were really going to wear our togas into Discovery Place.

We kicked off our Shake-N-Bake unit with gusto! After seeing the Pompeii exhibit, I cannot wait to get lost in The Odyssey! I think a lot of what we saw will really help give a backdrop to the reading.

Let the journey begin!