Koozie
Today is the first day of our Technology Advanced Institute–kind of a camp for teachers focused upon the use of Technology in the classroom and for teaching, especially teaching writing. As one of the facilitators I provided a writing prompt for the group. Today’s prompt was the koozie–with a couple suggestions, one being where you live now.
Since I began this blog I have been living in Bear Lake. In 2000 I began teaching at Bear Lake and during the summer of 2001 I moved there from Manistee, where I had lived for the first school year. Then in 2004 I purchased my house. Not only did I find my teaching home I began to make Bear Lake my home.
It was a weird thing reallly, this coming home to Bear Lake. Before I moved here, I had moved over 20 times and most of those moves were not short acrooss town to a new house moves. Before living in the house I purchased five years ago, I had never lived anywhere for more than two and a half years. Before working at Bear Lake my longest time of employ was 5 years and that was a record just made at Three Rivers School when I moved to Bear Lake. So, this coming home to a Bear Lake was quite an experience for me.
It started with a practice interview. That was what I thought when I traveled from southwest Michigan up to northwest Michigan. I thought having a little practice would be good since I had been employed for five years and might be rusty. I topped the little knoll on Bear Lake Road about half a mile east of the main street, US 31, and saw the lake. I thought, what nice scenery and about how close it was to my aging mother. After I found the school and met the interview team, I realized I felt completely at ease in the building and with the team. When I drove away from the school I thought…hmmmm, I could work with these people. When the principal called me the next day, I asked for twenty-four hourse to think it over. It was not my plan; I hadn’t even applied there.
The next day I called and accepted the job. Shortly after that the suburban school near Detroit that I had applied to called to schedule an interview. Feeling slightly guilty I scheduled the interview and traveled to Livonia. That interview also went well and within a few days I was offered a position there. Once again I asked for twenty-four hours. Then, I truly had to make a choice.
For the next day I made lists, called friends and family and agonized over what was the right choice. When the deadline came and the principal called to get my response, I said…thank you, but I am going to Bear Lake. The next day the Livonia principal called again and offered me a little sweeter teaching schedule. Again, I said no. A couple days after that he called once more and asked if I would be interested if he could get me in at the Math magnet school, Churchill. Once again…I said no. I think I knew then I had found my teaching home.
