Monday, 12 July 2010

another hiatus

I shall be glad when this week is over and I can finally take a breather from trying to keep my IWB lessons up to date and just in time for my class. Another teacher takes over my classes next week, which will seem wierd as I will still be at work, just not teaching. I'm hoping to use the time to prepare more lessons. Time is my biggest enemy.

Even the second time around takes time to prepare each lesson. Now that I am using a different technique for teaching (more of that later) I am finding that each lesson I had prepared for the September starters, is no longer suitable for the January starter class. Aargh! Why am I putting myself through these agonies? I've still to finish a lesson on electrical safety, though it is not far from completion now. I have just finished preparing a short lesson on using diodes to rectify a.c. to d.c. which I will use tomorrow. As I've prepared this one at the last minute, it isn't particularly exciting, no activities, though we will be using an oscilloscope in class, so I'm hoping that be enough to keep the students interested for now. They do enjoy practical work.

Another enemy of mine, well problem at least, is my ancient desk-top computer. I still have trouble accepting that computers are old after a few years - machines should last a good ten or so years. At least! (My washing machine is still going after nearly 20 years................... ) Until I can replace said creaky pc, I live in fear of losing all my work in one of the increasingly frequent crashes, so I have developed a habit of saving every IWB lesson in several places - at work, at home and on USB sticks - a different colour stick for each topic to make it quicker and easier to locate. I also tie the sticks to different larger objects too - keyrings, a tape rule and assorted ribbons for hanging around my neck or wrist. Most of these were freebies from the BETT exhibition - a great place to pick up all sorts of useful items as well as ideas. My USB sticks have to be tied to something highly visible, otherwise they are way too easy to lose inside a bag of books, homework, sandwiches etc.

Even so, I am going to have to develop a better way of organising the increasing number of lessons I have. I have folders with "old stuff" i.e. highly embarrassing early efforts at using the IWB; "modified stuff" - mostly not great but material I'm not yet ready to ditch "just in case";"ok stuff" - lessons I used last year but am not entirely happy with now and which need modifying; "good stuff" - the smallest category of all - the lessons I am presently happy with.

I hope to return to the tale of my journey soon, if grumpy old pc behaves long enough to allow coherent thought to take place!

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