The Teacher Toolbox

Over the last few months these guys have been great discussion starters. I love having them sit on the desk, not only for inspiration, but also to get students asking questions about the lads and their work.

Recently my three year old daughter has taken to playing with the characters in her doll house. I’m finding it strangely good fun to see Freud and Dora the Explorer sharing a kitchen or bathroom

There are heaps of these guys to choose from. I think I’ll get  The Artist Collection for a art teacher friend of mine as it has Dali, Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Warhol & Van Gogh in it. A history teacher friend of mine is getting the Revolutionaries Pack for his desk as he feels that, ‘History teachers just can’t have enough revolutionaries in their lives’. I also have an English teacher friend who is getting the  Writers Collection for her desk.

Now it needs to be noted that I had a few dramas in getting these guys shipped to Australia. Firstly I tried the official Jailbreak Toys Website where the prices were very reasonable and there was an excellent variety of figures, but due to a shipping anomaly it was going to cost $57 US (almost $100 Oz) to ship my order. Needless to say I didn’t go with this option.

I then tried Amazon but they don’t ship these figures to Australia but would be a good option for my American readers.

After that I turned to Ebay and Salvador today arrived just in time for my birthday tomorrow.

cheers

Adrian

NB This is not a paid blog post, I just find these guys a wonderful addition to my desk

In a school day where do we inspire our students to truly wonder?

In my experience once people read this thought very few go out and actively incorporate deep thinking and question raising into their classrooms?

Just Do It

In my first few weeks of teaching I was asked to put together a morning tea for the staff. Needless to say I was completely at a loss as I had just survived university on a diet of beer & two minute noodles

Once the initial panic subsided I made a couple of phone calls (no graphical browsers in those days) and friends handed me a collection of hand written, tried and true morning tea recipes.

Almost twenty years later here is my gift to anyone strugglin’ with the rite of passage that is preparing the morning tea.

NB The sweet chilli dip is very, very cheap and tastes great. The crab and tomato soup comes to you direct from cans and is to die for. It is a great dish to just place in the staffroom unannounced when everyone is stressed & cold. It goes down a treat.

Enjoy!

Adrian

Oh… the comic… On the day I was preparing the food I overheard an elderly teacher say, ‘Oh I do so love to see a man do women’s work’. I rose above it then and continue to do so despite the double standard being very much alive & well. Many people can follow a recipe

When going through tough times in schools over the years, friends & I developed a protocol whereby we were only allowed one really big ’spit’/whinge first thing in the morning and that was it for the day.

We allowed each other ‘One Dummy Spit’ as a form of catharsis. Anything beyond the first spit was considered self-indulgent and verging on self pity – We encouraged each other to point this out to anyone who wished to take it further.

In the end it was how we stayed sane in a world filled with petty staffroom politics.  A world that resembled an extension of the high school playground pecking order. A place filled with over inflated egos and people who ‘just didn’t get it’.

That said though, negativity only breeds more of the same. Talking behind backs breeds more of the same. Bitching about people = more of the same… rah, rah, rah.

There comes a time when you either decide to seek solutions, make a stand and fight for what you believe in or just sit back and project incompetence.

Just remember that what is best for your students is ALWAYS paramount in informing the decisions you make!!!

Show  some LEADERSHIP people and not just droll management!!!

cheers

Adrian