Through these last few years of BCIT and now UBC, every time something came up that I was a little uncertain about regarding teaching, it was deferred to the “I’ll have to address that in 2018” pile. Guess what?

So, practicum at the end of the month, I have all sorts of ideas, I have no idea if said ideas will work, and I’m on task to sort and prioritize. It’s a great group of people I’ll be working with at Lake Trail, good admin, an FA who I think knows a lot about classroom management and has offered up his assistance…What could possibly go wrong? Nothing, as long as I don’t get my overactive imagination in the way. Imagination is a great thing, and mine has stayed as strong as it was when I was a little ‘un, except it has that creeping dark side that holds the “what if…” category on the other side of the second class lever (that’s the teeter/totter style). For the most part I feel good, and the kids really seemed to like me, but I think they were in some sort of interview process once they got word I would be there again next year (from short practicum in November). What if I’m boring? What if they’re yawning during my lectures, how do I make the Canada Food Guide a “fun” lecture? I’m not as worried about the wood shop and electronics, lots of cutting, banging, and power tools to keep anyone engaged for a lifetime, but I’ve never actually “taught” home ec in the traditional sense, just years of nutrition to adults and youth on a one on one level. That is much different.

So I have my ideas, I have my imagination, I have an inkling I passed the kids interview, and I’m ready to dive in to the mix; I hope UBC has some good last words of wisdom before I hurl myself back in time to my grade 6 mindset to ask: “what exactly are these kids thinking right now….?

The inquiry proposal is going well, and I’m hoping to be somewhat ahead of the curve by the time I get to Comox. It’s been quite a vague are for most of us up till now, and I understand its going to get greyer until they figure out a standardized way to assess these kids right across the board, and explain to their parents that its not about ABCD and F anymore, but how deep you can question a concept in your mind, and how far can you go till you get a satisfactory answer to back fill the tunnel that led you there.

We shall see.