Although I did not complete my ambitious quota of three slings a day, nor did I sew while I did laundry on Friday night, last night I completed another sling and chose fabric for a few more projects. Unfortunately, one a day is a snail’s pace compared to the three I would knock out in one three hour sitting when I first started sewing. However, many things have since changed.
First, I’ve always been known as Speedy Gonzalez on and off the track. I used to speed through sewing projects to enjoy the exhilarating thrill of a finished project, but I am now slow and careful, not just because I want to be more precise, but because I want to be intentional and stay in the moment.
In addition, the pendulum has swung. I used to love sewing more than teaching, but my new school has revived my passion for teaching. At my former school, I taught a writing elective, and my teaching program was relatively easy. I had a curriculum that simply needed tweaking from time to time.
Now, I teach AP English Language and Composition, a more challenging class, one of my favorites, a course that keeps me on my toes. To add to that, I will be teaching AP African American Studies as a senior English class. This summer, I attend a five-day AP Summer Institute to learn how to implement and facilitate AP African American Studies; then, the next week I embark on a residency with the NY Public Library. Both opportunities will enable me to draft and refine my curriculum for next school year.
Curriculum and planning, along with being in the classroom, are my favorite aspects of teaching. So, like most teachers tasked with knowing what they will teach and with minds that are always on their work and students, I am preoccupied with beginning my units and lesson plans. In the back of my mind, my teaching pedagogy and philosophy are deep at work constructing approaches to each course.
Still, since I am in the home stretch of the school year, the last week of school, I have the luxury to sew as much as I can, but my preoccupied mind may lead me down an alternative path to plan and read and write. Nonetheless, I have made progress, and slow progress is better than no progress.
Eduspiration 