The Time Has Come

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."- The Walrus and The Carpenter, L. Carroll

The book of Ecclesiastes says "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens." Then gives a list of the kinds of activities that qualify as those having a season. While there is no mention of retirement anywhere in that list, it has come to be in our society that if you live and work long enough, retirement usually becomes an option. And so it is with me. Today, May 29, 2015 was my last day in the classroom with students. It's true I have 2 more days in my contract next week, but teaching is about the students, so that is what I count.
This was exam week for the high school. That means less than it used to. Advanced Placement courses had their national exam 3 or 4 weeks ago. Several science and social studies courses have state administered End Of Course (EOC) exams 2 and 3 weeks ago. In both those cases, the student has no school/teacher administered final exam this week. Astronomy is neither of those so I gave my exam yesterday, Thursday, May 28. For many, it was their last final exam of the year and for seniors, their high school career. It was my final final exam to give.
This week was a roller coaster of emotions for me. There was excitement at the impending conclusion of my teaching career and the prospects of freedom of schedule and opportunity to travel, alternating with regret that I would be losing the opportunity to teach any more students. A chapter in the story of my life was definitely reaching a conclusion. 
There was a study done several decades ago seeking a correlation between certain life events and illness. The interesting thing I took from the study was the ranking of life change events and their stress. The most stressful is the death of a spouse. Retirement ranked tenth behind marital reconciliation and ahead of pregnancy/gaining a new family member. The take away is that retirement is not necessarily free of stress, both for the retired worker and the (in my case) wife.
Regardless, I determined that I was going to make this week worth remembering. I gave more handshakes and hugs than I can remember. I used more than my usual amount of tissue wiping my eyes. There is no doubt, I am going to miss this.
Wednesday, the day before the astronomy final exam, my last period astronomy class pulled a fast one on my. They got me good. As students were coming in to class, a campus aide came up to me and told me the principal wanted to see me. This has not happened to me since I was a student. I told her that I had a class to teach and she said she would watch them, after taking me to the office in her golf cart. So I went and told the students I would be back as soon as I could.

We drove to the admin building and went to the principal's office. His secretary said that he had not called for me and he was busy. I was a little confused and chalked it up to miscommunication. We drove back to my classroom and as I approached, I noticed that the small window in the door was covered with a cardboard insert that I use when showing video clips or slides. I thought the students were playing around and as I opened the door, heard a shout "Surprise. Happy Retirement!" or something similar. They got me. I had not a clue. (And, yes, the aide and secretary were in on it.) They posted a sign at the front of the room, festooned the room with balloons and had cake and soft drinks. (A student posted pictures on facebook. Here's one of them.) Thank you, guys.

 In the photo I am holding a wooden box. That was a gift from another student. He had heard me make reference, from time to time, to getting on and off my soap box, so he made me an actual soap box, sturdy enough that I can really stand on. That was a terrific present. Thank you Peter.


 I have told you that I have great students. And these things serve as evidence.

Thank you for reading this. I will make one more post here before I transition to a blog at my goseetheeclipse.com site.

The End is Nigh

I've got to say it right up front. As of this moment there are 9 more days of school, so the countdown has begun. This thing is really going to happen.

This was a busy week. Last Saturday was Cobalt (if you don't know, don't ask). The students cleaned up extremely well and the outfits were very nice. I must say that this type of event is where the ladies certainly shine. I mean the boys (young men) showered, cleaned up nice, wore tuxes, some came in limousines, and were quite dapper. But the ladies really had the stage. I mean bright color dresses, dramatic designs, terrific coiffures, and high heels made for one great visual impression. And a very memorable evening. Oh, and the dance floor: so cozy, so warm, so active. I actually stepped onto it for 5 minutes or so and pretended to have a sense of rhythm.

This was held at a new venue, The Devyn. Trying to find a place to comfortably hold the 300 or so (I don't really know how many) students for dinner and a dance is difficult in Sarasota. But this place worked reasonable well. I would come back.

Then we had the second of the two AP Exam weeks. Students who took multiple AP courses this year were very busy. Once again my classes were affected, but it worked out alright. Friday I gave the last of my weekly constellation quizzes. There is a final test on these this coming Thursday. This is the one thing that sets my astronomy class apart from every other that I know of in the country. I make the students learn all the constellations that can be seen from Sarasota. There are 66 of them. I am so pleased with the progress they have made and I know that many of them will actually remember these for many years, and if they practice just a bit, for a life.

This afternoon the Pine View Foundation and PVA hosted a get together for the retiring teachers. It was very nice to see some retired teachers who came back and visited. The time was very rewarding for me. My family was there and as long as there were cookies and soda, my grand-daughter was happy. There is no question that it is the people that make the institution. I have truly enjoyed my time teaching at Pine View. I'll say more about that in a later post.

Each of the retirees got an opportunity to say something. So naturally I mentioned that I am going to be busy promoting the total solar eclipse of 2017 and my book about it. If you haven't already, like my facebook page, Go See The Eclipse, or my website goseetheeclipse.com . Either has all the information you need about the eclipse.

May the fourth be with you

This week saw May the fourth, a pseudo-holiday for Star Wars aficionados, Cinco de Mayo, an actual holiday in some locations, and May the seventh, the day the AP Computer Science Exam was given, the final one of my teaching career. In an interesting side note, I was not anywhere near the exam room when it was given. The College Board does not want teachers of a given subject anywhere near the testing room, lest they see some of the questions or help a student, I guess. So during AP Exam weeks (there are 2) we hire exam proctors whose sole job it is to deal with handling, supervising, and collecting all the AP exams we give (which is a LOT). In addition to AP testing we have FSA (Florida Standards Assessment) and EOCs (end of course) exams, so we (at least the high school) are up to our eyeballs in testing. Since I knew this was coming I had my astronomy students working on presentations for their 4th quarter astronomer biographies.

This has also been Teacher Appreciation Week (my last) and our parents have shown once again that they are the best. No really. At least when it comes to food and feeding us. We have enjoyed daily repasts of breakfast, lunches and dessert (ice cream). They have been doing this for years now and it never gets old for us teachers. The food is wonderful and the chance to sit and talk with others that I don't normally get to, is also appreciated.

I went to see a 5th grade class do water rocket launches today. The students, in teams, had designed, one per team, and built a rocket using a 2 liter bottle as the fuselage. They then launched the rocket using a special launcher that controls the process and is safe to use when used properly. I enjoyed seeing them liftoff in a rush, only to spend their fuel and drift slowly back to earth.

I have noticed that the closer we get to the end of the year, the more comments I get from others about my impending retirement. I don't bring it up. They do. The cutest is the office assistant who reminds me, "Your days are numbered." Many people ask me "How many days?" I reply with "June 2nd. All I know is June 2nd." A few tell me that they are envious of me and my retirement. I must admit I have mixed emotions. I am having a terrific year. Great kids, classes I enjoy, and a full paycheck ;-) Although I do have the eclipse to look forward to in retirement.It will be BIG!

So remember, Go See The Eclipse And Take a Kid with You.