Good News: Some generous person or organization funded all the Donors Choose projects in SFUSD today. I got two, one a biggie for recess equipment, which makes me feel better about not having resubmitted the grant for a loft.
Coping Strategies: Something that comes up in teaching at high-needs schools is secondary trauma: many of your students are traumatized, and that trauma is shared with the educators on site. And there's trauma just associated with teaching in a high-poverty environment, or in dealing with systems that really aren't set up to do the best for children. Everyone has some coping strategies for these issues, maladaptive or not.
I have a new one: every time I am upset about classroom stuff or irritated with the district's utter disdain for certain necessities (heat) or fondness for extra-legal procedures that take forever, I am going to up the weights I use at the gym. At this rate, I will be scary cut by May.
Teacher Esoterica, Buy in Bulk: Those little cups that you get pickled ginger in sometimes? About 2 ounces and food safe? Those and the lids have dozens of uses: fill 'em with pre-portioned paint for easy clean up, distribute high-density snacks like dried fruit, store beads that have been sorted by color, etc. These are so great I want to buy some for every teacher at my school and just see what other uses people discover for them. They are not perhaps the most waste-sensitive solution, but we reuse them many times and besides, my class is rumored to be the best composters at the school. So I figure they can have a pass to save me a little after school work.
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