It's Getting Better All The Time...
“For the life of me I cannot remember
What made us think that we were wise and
We'd never compromise
For the life of me I cannot believe
We'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen”
The Freshman by The Verve Pipe, 2004
I think I did something that was either incredibly brilliant or exceedingly stupid—although I will vote for the former over the latter. I asked to teach freshman.
Oh, before you gasp at astonishment, gentle reader; hear me out.
If I can capture them at a young mind, I can pave the way for Social Sciences as a meaningful manner of study,
This year is the last year of one of my closest friends and dearest confidants, Gene Burnett. Gene is among the greatest reasons I am still teaching. He is an excellent educator and a quality man. Not only that, he is a great friend. I was honored to be a member of his wedding party and proud to be his best man. I asked Gene if I could teach the freshman Ancient History class because I wanted to “snag” the kids early and work in a positive manner with them.
So far, I have the kids right where I want them—interested in Social Sciences. I have thus far introduced them to a writing prompt, a reading prompt, the social science rubric, and the beauty of Ancient History—all without the freshman knowledge of much of anything.
Do not mistake my meaning, the freshman have been given a brief understanding of historical documentation and primary source documents and they do not even know it—which is fine. Now the trick is to snag them in as if they are fish on the line.
I like the freshman, and I like being upfront enough to teach them. I understand that if I grab their attention early enough, the benefits reach my department. I want to capture their interest in social science and their attention for four years. As I preach to every freshman class—history is important if for no other reason than “we” have our own channel.
I vow, that in my career, I will always reach out to the students and the undereducated or ignorant more so than any other type. My sole goal is to educate the young minds. I also vow to follow the lead of my department chair in making history and social sciences relevant in the here and now for our students. Without an understanding of the past, we are doomed to repeat the mistakes of former generations.
I also enjoy capturing the minds of our youth with the details of the past. The freshman have a look of awe and a look of the inquisitive when it comes to study. I love to teach, and I love to reach out to the young to promote interest and positive regard.
So here’s to my young freshman and the youth of America!
I will share this thought with each of you: I have the best job in the world.
What made us think that we were wise and
We'd never compromise
For the life of me I cannot believe
We'd ever die for these sins
We were merely freshmen”
The Freshman by The Verve Pipe, 2004
I think I did something that was either incredibly brilliant or exceedingly stupid—although I will vote for the former over the latter. I asked to teach freshman.
Oh, before you gasp at astonishment, gentle reader; hear me out.
If I can capture them at a young mind, I can pave the way for Social Sciences as a meaningful manner of study,
This year is the last year of one of my closest friends and dearest confidants, Gene Burnett. Gene is among the greatest reasons I am still teaching. He is an excellent educator and a quality man. Not only that, he is a great friend. I was honored to be a member of his wedding party and proud to be his best man. I asked Gene if I could teach the freshman Ancient History class because I wanted to “snag” the kids early and work in a positive manner with them.
So far, I have the kids right where I want them—interested in Social Sciences. I have thus far introduced them to a writing prompt, a reading prompt, the social science rubric, and the beauty of Ancient History—all without the freshman knowledge of much of anything.
Do not mistake my meaning, the freshman have been given a brief understanding of historical documentation and primary source documents and they do not even know it—which is fine. Now the trick is to snag them in as if they are fish on the line.
I like the freshman, and I like being upfront enough to teach them. I understand that if I grab their attention early enough, the benefits reach my department. I want to capture their interest in social science and their attention for four years. As I preach to every freshman class—history is important if for no other reason than “we” have our own channel.
I vow, that in my career, I will always reach out to the students and the undereducated or ignorant more so than any other type. My sole goal is to educate the young minds. I also vow to follow the lead of my department chair in making history and social sciences relevant in the here and now for our students. Without an understanding of the past, we are doomed to repeat the mistakes of former generations.
I also enjoy capturing the minds of our youth with the details of the past. The freshman have a look of awe and a look of the inquisitive when it comes to study. I love to teach, and I love to reach out to the young to promote interest and positive regard.
So here’s to my young freshman and the youth of America!
I will share this thought with each of you: I have the best job in the world.
posted by Eric Sweetwood at 2:59 PM
2 Comments:
Eric:
I wondered why you were teaching freshmen this semester. I see why now. Just trying to get to them early and sneak in those skills.
If I had a chance to do it over, I would have done Social science, too. I love the stuff.
One of my friends has been retired for a couple of years. She has been subbing in Unit 5 where she taught math for 33 years. Now she gets to sub in other subjects and said that she likes social science the best of all.
Have a great year and especially first semester with your freshmen.
Lou
Ah the freshman love me. I met an aquaintence of yours, a Mrs. Coyne who worked in Odell during my cardiac rehab. She was a treasure. I wish her the best! She spoke well of you, as we all do.
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