9th Grade Health

Most recently, I covered for Emily, our 9^th grade health teacher.  Emily teaches a few classes for us at Mendocino High School, Mendocino Community High School, and Mendocino Alternative School (our independent study program).  You might be noticing a theme here – that we have many staff members who “do it all”.  Maybe it is because of the small size of our district or the fact that we have such talented staff members, but either way, the fact that we are lucky to have them is not lost on me.

The current class of 9^th graders were 4^th graders when I started in Mendocino Unified as the K-8 School principal, so except for a couple of new students, I knew them all very well.  I took role and we started off with an alias worksheet – a fun worksheet that we all did together simply to get to know each other a little better and to open the class with some fun.  I appreciated Emily’s idea to break the ice a bit.

The bulk of the lesson was a discussion of nutrition labels on foods.  We looked at a variety of labels and talked about serving sizes and hidden dangers in some foods that are hidden quite well within the nutrition label.  Kamala, the MCHS admin assistant, was kind enough to print out a few examples of the new nutrition labels that are scheduled to be in place soon.

Overall, the students enjoyed the discussion and they were engaged.  There were two boys however, that were not engaged and still not engaged after I used all of my tricks of the trade to try to engage them.  Later, as the class was working, I pulled one of them aside and simply talked with him.  I asked him what was going on, why he was disinterested, and what our school and district could do differently to better engage him.  He said he was having a bad day; that his day was already shot based on an incident earlier in the day when he was disciplined.  I encouraged him to start over and to treat each class period as a fresh start to the day, but I know that’s easier said than done.

Very generally, the struggle with engaging our male students is real in our district.  We have made it a goal to look at ways to increase student engagement.  We believe that academic and social development and success is a direct product of the level of student engagement.  I believe that we can’t force our students into a box, and that we need to continuously be searching for strategies that work on an individual basis.  At Mendocino High School, our staff and administration take a lot of pride in truly getting to know our students and offering those individual supports.  We are a small enough school district to make that a reality, and we are well on our way.

District Business Manager

My most recent assignment was covering for Cynthia, our district business manager.  It would typically be a difficult position to cover for, but she had a good idea.  She asked if I could do the annual Albion School lunch monitoring and inspection.  I accompanied our food service director, Diane, on monitoring trips to Albion and Comptche last year so I already knew how to do it.  We are required to complete this annual inspection of the storage of food and whether we have required public notices and policies posted.  In addition, the lunch service is monitored to insure students are getting the correct servings.

I made the winding fifteen minute drive south along the coast and then headed inland for about three miles.  I arrived a little early, during math instruction.  I spent about five minutes at each table (students were separated into grade levels).  I introduced myself to the students and got to know them a bit, connecting many dots to older siblings in the district.  After math the students had about ten minutes of choice time and I talked my way into a game of Candyland with three students.  I would like to say I showed them a thing or two, but in fact I was losing when time was up.

After recess the students filed in for lunch and I took my spot with my clipboard.  Chicken, watermelon, salad, and rice were on the menu.  I am pleased to report the Albion School passed the inspection and monitoring with zero findings.  Before I left, the students quizzed me one last time on all of their names and I also passed with a 100%.

School of Natural Resources Teacher

I covered for Doug, our “do it all” teacher at Mendocino High School.  He teaches in our continuation high school, runs the improv club, teaches theater tech and literature, and perhaps most importantly is the head of our staff Star Trek Club.  I can’t do it all, and I definitely can’t make that Star Trek sign with my fingers, so he asked me to just do one of his jobs – School of Natural Resources (SONAR) teacher.  Doug teaches SONAR with another science teacher, Tyler.

Although the website is a bit outdated, I thought the MHS Student Council website entry from 2009 described the SONAR class very well – Sonar is a school-within-a-school concept which incorporates scientific and artistic inquiry into our local ecosystems: coastal marine, redwood, and riparian. Working with natural resource agencies, such as Fish and Game, local watershed awareness groups, and Parks and Recreation, students will be trained to collect and present information in a scientific way about the conditions of local streams and marine habitat.

The plan for the day was to head to the Mendocino Woodlands and my assignment was to help measure trees and shrubs along a section of Big River (where Big River is a small stream).  This was a “mock final” for the students – one last opportunity to practice the protocols before they are assessed.  I met Tyler and the students at MHS and they gathered the waders and other tools for collection and measurement.

After a 30-minute drive we arrived at our site deep in the redwoods.  It was a cold, rainy day but I was prepared for the weather.  We headed to the stream and split into two groups.  Without much direction at all, students began setting up equipment and measuring boundaries for the section to sample.  The two students I worked with were also great teachers.  They took their time to explain how, what, and why they were doing what they were doing.  Essentially our job was to identify trees and shrubs, measure the diameter of the trunk at chest height, note the location of the tree as compared to the center of the section of stream we had identified, and to use a compass to note the direction as compared to the center of the stream.  I measured, recorded, and did everything I was told to do.  These students were good teachers and even better at delegating!

As I drove the van back to the school with the students, I thought about the field work and the unique experiences our students are getting in the SONAR program.  My first degree out of college was a wildlife biology degree so this assignment was right up my alley.  Our students are fortunate to have this opportunity.  I would have loved this class when I was in high school.  I know that the SONAR class has sparked an interest in many students going on to major in forestry or environmental science.

Two things really stood out to me.  First, as I mentioned, it was a cold, rainy day.  I was impressed with our students – they didn’t complain and they took the time to make detailed measurements and observations.  It would have been easy to have the urge to get the job done quickly in order to get back to the warm van, but that was not the case.  Second, I was impressed with Tyler and his questioning of the students.  Naturally, the students had questions and they would ask Tyler.  He always answered their questions with a prompting question, forcing them to determine the answer on their own.

I will be keeping a close eye and ear on the SONAR plans for the rest of the year.  Maybe I can get in on some snorkeling or a boat trip up Big River!