Pages

Friday, September 24, 2010

Fall Semester: Week Six: No Drafting Today

77º ~ sun still rising, a front is on the northwestern horizon, promising more seasonable temps, still not much hope of rain, a deficit of 10 inches for the year so far...last year we were +24 inches by the end of the year, so I guess looking at the bigger picture matters

Today is Friday, dear readers, and that usually means drafting; however, today I must attend to student papers.  I know this is bound to happen each semester, but it still makes me grouchy.  To be clear, the being out of balance makes me grouchy, not the student papers.
I love that this image comes from a website called Survive Teaching.  Sometimes it does feel like a matter of survival!

To help make the gouchies go away, I took a look at my progress folder, and I have five new drafts to show for the semester.  This is week six, so I'm right on track for a draft a week as a goal, knowing that every once in a while the grading will take precedence. 

Onward to the grading pile!

4 comments:

Jessie Carty said...

I know I am new to teaching at the college level, but it seems to me that you have the right notion of balance between teaching and writing.

I'm striving to revise or start something new roughly each day which has been going pretty well. Granted, I've completed more revisions than I have drafts but I'm ok with that. Very ok.

And love that picture to!

Sandy Longhorn said...

Thanks for the support, Jessie! Teacher-poets unite!

Kevin said...

Save yourself. Assign concise, short assignments. Make them write great sentences, terrific paragraphs--always keep it under two pages. Teach them to edit others' papers. Save your sanity. I am completing my 39th year in public education. You must protect yourself. It will serve your students. Of course teaching poetry writing is better still. You students will always be better off if you are able to do your writing. kjm

Sandy Longhorn said...

Kevin, thanks for the advice. I teach at the college level, and we have department-wide requirements for longer papers as our focus is on extended critical thinking & persuasive argument; however, each year I find more ways to be efficient with my grading.