Oh Betty!

Awesome Betty White video!

Watch the final video. It is great and worth the three and a half minutes. Trust me!

I hope to be as amazing as she is when I'm in my 80s.

Water and Words

I'm still not able to exercise, but that's okay! I can watch what I eat and drink a ton of water. It is really strange because I love Coke - the real deal. But lately, I haven't even wanted it. When I watch football, I always think I will drink a soda with the game, but I don't! For some reason, my body just wants delicious water.

The Help is amazing. I love the writing style. She has done a great job of transporting the reader into a totally different time and place. I'm about a third of the way done. It is one of those books I'm taking my time to read because it's so good I don't want it to end!

Maybe next time I will write about my video games...

Frustration

Things are not going as well as last time I wrote...which is why I have been a bit. Quiet.

I injured my back a few years ago. Unfortunately, it still has flare-ups that are incredibly painful. Like I can hardly move kind of painful. This past week my body has been hurting more and more each day - just walking from one room to the next is a challenge. This means no exercise. Even the exercises my physical therapist gave me are too difficult. So, I'm totally behind on all my physical goals.

The good news? Yesterday my husband and I went grocery shopping and we did not have one unhealthy item in our cart! Major success there! Even though I am discouraged, I am still eating healthy and guzzling water.

Today, rather than sit and feel bad, I read. I love to read! Right now I am reading The Help and absolutely loving it. I noticed after reading for an hour, resting my back, and taking my pills - my back is better than when I woke up.

I don't want to complain on my blog, but I felt the need to share. Thanks for reading!

Small Success

I weighed myself on Saturday and am a total of just over four pounds below where I started! This is a minor success, but I am so proud of myself.

In the past, I would exercise for a week or so - maybe diet too - and then I would just stop. Give up. This time is different. This time, I'm not doing it for a bikini bod (although how cool would that be?). I'm doing this to change my life. To better my life. The pounds shedding off are a side benefit.

Today marks the beginning of the second week of the hundred pushups challenge I am partaking in. It feels amazing to have my muscles get so much stronger. I've also started stretching way more. Back in the day, I was super flexible and I'd love to be able to say that again.

Life is challenging right now. It would be easy to give up on this lifestyle change. No one would even blame me. But I'm sticking with this - and I hope those of you who are in this with me, stick with it too. Let me know where your journey is taking you.

Calories In vs. Calories Out

Being healthy is my ultimate goal. I want to look in the mirror and be proud of how I take care of my whole self. You know what? I'm already getting there. It's not about looking in the mirror and feeling like a beauty queen, but just knowing that I'm doing what I can to make my life the very best it can be.

I've decided to add to my workout plan. I'm doing the hundred pushups challenge, walking, hiking, and playing Kinect. I'm going to add sitting on a wall as my own challenge! And once I get out of my own head, I will go back to the gym for water aerobics.

I have a friend who loses weight by eating less. It doesn't matter what she does for exercise, she just needs to cut back on her calorie intake and the pounds will come off. It seems like most people need to watch what they eat and also workout more to lose weight.

When I was in college, I could eat whatever I wanted so long as I exercised regularly. As I've gotten older, I'm in my early 30s now, my metabolism has definitely shifted and slowed way down. However, I have recently realized that exercise is still the most important factor on my weight loss journey. I can cut calories, but those stubborn pounds won't budge! When I move more and exercise more, that's when I see a change in my body. That's also when I see a change in my own positive outlook on life.

So, what have I learned? To meet my goal of being healthier mind, body, and soul, I must exercise more. In doing so, I hope to be a better wife, daughter, and friend.

Progress

I guess we all know that we are works in progress - we never really finish all the work it takes to be truly healthy and happy. It's exciting to have people who acknowledge they are working on the same journey. It's so easy to forget about the basics of contentment when going through the daily grind which makes these people even more meaningful.

I am actually stopping to smell the roses, literally, these days.

For the past week or two, I've been exercising and trying to eat healthier. The first week, I lost 2.5 pounds. This past time I weighed myself, I had gained it back. This blows my mind because I actually did more cardio, but didn't increase calories! How is this possible? And, to make this even nuttier, my clothes are starting to fit a little looser. What? I just don't get it. I will continue to work and hope the numbers do follow...

Oh! I am a part of this great challenge!

Wish me luck!

Life Now

Everything about my life today is different than it was last time I wrote. My posts will reflect this drastic life change. I'm not in a classroom right now, and my family needs me now more than ever.

My husband and I are doing the amazing hundredpushups challenge! We have completed Day One and it feels awesome. We are both also inspired to lose weight and live healthier in general.

Not only am I focused on my weight, but I want to eat healthier. Take better care of my skin (thank you Lush). Start journaling again. Reconnect with my higher power. Exercise regularly. Enjoy life with my friends and family. Live a life with gratitude.

Today, I need to clean clean clean!

Final Project

The kids are super excited about their final project. I take my cue from Improv Everywhere and have the kids plan their own event for a lunchtime at school. This year, two classes are combining to make an even greater scene. They have decided that they want to "argue" with the assistant principal. They are going to yell back at him, the rest of the classes will make a circle around the argument, some teacher will come in to break up the fight and more kids will start arguing with them. Then, at exactly the same time, all the students will collapse. It should be fun.
Honestly, I'm not a huge fan of the idea. This is going to be my last lunchtime event here, and I'd like to end on a more positive note. There's just no way to get the kids to change their minds without telling them this is my last year.

Excuses

I was actually feeling too tired today. Until I saw this:

Theater Education

I want to start by making one thing abundantly clear - I love my job. Not, my job is alright, but I could do better. No. I freaking love my job. I love the kids, the parents, the staff, the actual work I do each day. At least once a week I tell my students that I have the best job in the world, and I genuinely believe it.
Budget cuts in the arts combined with budget cuts in education make job security and stability as a drama teacher nonexistent.
Before I got my teaching credential, I wanted to work for an education component to a theater company. Then, I got my credential and decided I wanted to build a drama program at a school. I've met that challenge, conquered that goal. All along, I've known I want to do the same for a theater company. Not just work for the education branch, but start one. Now that my job is in jeopardy, I am excited to start reaching out to small theater companies in the area. I can't believe how truly pumped I am! Who knew looking for a job could be such a wonderful feeling?
Now I get to update my resume and get a solid cover letter going. That's right, I get to!
Wish me luck on this adventure. Don't worry. Just because I am looking forward to this new opportunity doesn't mean I will be putting any less into my current position. The school year is almost over, and there is still so much more I want to teach my students! I will make sure they get the best Mrs. Bizzle possible. In fact, I think the excitement I feel about this new chapter will only make me a more enthusiastic and passionate teacher.

Hugh

Today is the last day of Spring Break. It's so strange to think school starts again on Monday. On this lovely day, I'm thinking about Hugh Jackman...
Can't wait to see his one man show come May. Life is good. I will be sure to write a review. Although, how could he possibly disappoint?

Spring Break

It is Spring Break and I think about work a lot! More than I'd like to. I can't help but think about my classes and what we will be doing next. Or about my job standing for next year. Budget cuts are a remarkably scary thing for all teachers - especially those without tenure and who work in the arts.

Email

This is an email I received from a parent - one of the reasons I do this work.

"Hi Elle,

Cheers, cheers and more cheers to you for the extraordinary performance you spearheaded, cheerled, cajoled and masterfully executed last week.  It ignited in my own daughter a love for theatre that had not previously existed, and one that I truly believe will carry with her to high school where I expect she will stay involved in theatre.

Enjoy your much deserved break!"

What a wonderful note to kickoff my Spring Break. I love my job and the community I work in.

Great Activity

Today we took a break from the PSA Project. It was cute because one girl was so excited to get to work on the PSA, she asked if we could skip our routines and just get going. She didn't want to play a game or anything! I told her that I owed another student a new game, so introduced two new games to the class. It was a wonderful day.
Of the two games we played, the one they enjoyed the most was "Artist, Model, Clay." You may be familiar with it. Three students stand in a single file line all facing the same direction. Then have one of the kids at an end turn around. Now you have one kid facing two - all in a line. The one facing the two is the artist. The student closest to her is the clay, followed by the model. The model strikes a pose and the clay is not allowed to turn around and look at it. The artist then has to "mold" the clay without talking, touching, or demonstrating. My students, who are well-behaved, all called out, "What?! That's impossible." I told them to watch and did a demonstration with two girls. They faced me and I was the artist. The model struck a pose, the class laughed, so the clay turned around to see it. I reminded her she can't do that. So, the model struck a second pose and this time, the clay stayed facing me. I put my hands near her arm and kind of wiggled my fingers over the part of the body I wanted her to move - molding her like clay without touching, talking, or demonstrating. The class all gasped at how she immediately moved her arm the way I suggested. It was beautiful. It took maybe two minutes, and my clay looked just like my model. Then I had the clay turn (keeping her pose best she could) to see what the model was doing.
This game was so fun, they wanted to play it again even though school was almost over. I told them to just rotate through parts without me keeping track of time - I'm always trying to think of ways that will give them some ownership of the class. All groups but one just continued on through a second rotation without me having to ask. It's important that students know they need to choose poses they can comfortably hold for a few minutes. The kids then told me the exercise worked on team building, focus, precision, non-verbal communication, trust, and a few more I've forgotten now. I was so impressed with their work today.
If you teach drama, or just want to get kids working well together, I highly recommend this activity. It can take as much or as little time as you want. The students want to play again with new groups to see how it will be with different people. Next time, we are going to add the challenge of incorporating facial expressions.

PSA Project Part Two

The students, 8th graders, agreed with me that discrimination, racism, homophobia, etc. could all lead down a negative path where we inadvertently offend people. The class has decided to do gossip and divided into two groups - trash talk, and telephone rumor mill. Even still I had concerns. How could we possibly do anything relevant yet stay totally school appropriate? How can we honestly walk the line of being truthful and avoid all conflict?
Well. Yesterday we had a meeting and I mentioned this project and my concerns. The best idea one group has is to have a student act silly. Then another student jokingly says, " Are you high?" They would then show the progression from the joke to "Student A is addicted to drugs." I thought this was brilliant because it's so real, but not okay because it doesn't represent the school well. Plus, I don't allow drug talk in class because it is obviously not school appropriate. Surprisingly (at least to me), all my coworkers love the project and the principal gave me the green light! She said something like, "This is real to them." Love it!
Today, I started class with our usual check-in and a game. We then sat in a circle and I talked openly with them about the meeting yesterday and my concerns. The students were attentive, needed a little guidance, and did an impressive amount of work. They feel very much like I do. They are shown PSAs all the time that are created for kids by adults, but adults don't know how to communicate effectively with them. We all agree they may be able to get through to their peers in a way that all of us well-meaning adults just can't.

PSA Project

In my 8th grade drama class, we are creating public service announcements. Last year, I assigned the groups and told everyone that the topic was Going Green. This year, I decided the students should get to take more ownership of the project. We spent half a class period talking about what the kids see as problems at our site. Whatever the topic, it needs to be relevant to them. They are leaning towards discrimination because then they can combine some of their favorite prevalent ideas - racism, stereotypes, sexism. I love how passionate the class is about this new project, but I'm worried about the outcome. We are going to have to walk a fine line of being honest about the issues at school without being offensive to anyone.
Tomorrow we are finalizing the topic and then we can figure out what the PSAs will actually look like. I want them to be creative, to think outside of the box, and make a PSA unlike any we've seen before. We watched this one for inspiration:

Endings

The school play is over. This year was the most successful show yet. On Friday night we sold out! Well, we ran out of tickets and just tallied people as they came in. We did have more people in the audience than chairs, but luckily students decided to sit on the floor in the front.
The kids did an amazing job. I'm so proud of them and am actually going to miss the production...now that it's over!


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The Play

I have been working tirelessly on the school musical. Because I work at a middle school, every single thing involved in the play has to come from my head. It has been so much work.
Today, we did an assembly for the sixth graders. The kids were great! I never thought they would do so good! Yesterday was our first run-through which left my expectations rather low. The staff and students seemed to really enjoy it. We had rehearsal anyway after school because there was still so much to fix.
Coming up, I will be writing about different experiences with the play as well as my classes. I'm so excited to have a minutes to write again!

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5 Minute Musicals

My students (non-musical theater) do a project in the beginning drama class called "The 5 Minute Musical." These are exactly what the title implies, a musical that must be 5 minutes in length. I let them choose their groups because then they have more to go on when choosing songs. They can be about any school appropriate topic. This semester we have an American Idol spoof, the 2011 Worst Academy Awards, How to Train Your Dragon, Janitor Power, and a Happy Feet Spoof. Most of the groups are working really well together.
The assignment is basically this:

Every student must sing.
Every student must dance.
Every student must speak at least five times alone.

The show is done without music. I recommend that they use songs everyone already knows, and then change the lyrics to fit their situation.
As a class we decide how long they need for brainstorming, writing, staging, choreographing, and last rehearsing. We are inviting other classes to come in and see their work. It's a lot of fun - even for students who cringed when I said they had to sing and dance!
Next week, they will perform for each other to get more feedback so they can be proud in two weeks when we have an audience!

Rehearsal Reflection

Students were supposed to be off-book for the school musical on Monday. Unfortunately, by Act 2 they had no clue what was going on. The stage manager was not only giving lines, but she also had to tell people when they were supposed to enter. I decided to end rehearsal ten minutes early so they could use the time to make Tuesdays rehearsal be more successful. Yesterday, we started at the beginning of Act 2. By our break, I couldn't have been more frustrated. They weren't even close to memorized. The main male part knew most of his lines, one girl who has a big part, and one boy who only has a few lines are the only people who knew everything they needed to do. I thought we were having a discussion about what was going on. I mean, from my perspective it's time wasting. It's disrespectful to everyone else in the room when they come to rehearsal unprepared. I didn't raise my voice; I didn't even get angry! Honestly, I was just so disappointed. It felt like there were only a handful of us in the room who care about the show.
We ended with all of them promising to do better for tomorrow's rehearsal. I just don't know if I can trust them or if there will be a difference. Their lives are packed with stuff, but they have had weeks and weeks to memorize.
Now I'm worried I was too harsh. I have to see how they do tomorrow before I'll know if our two big discussions made an impact on any of the students.

Character Analysis

Today I gave my students Character Analysis Worksheets that were three pages long to analyze their characters in their scenes. It was an intimidating handout and I had some concern that my 8th grade students wouldn't be able to handle the high school level work.
This class is especially challenging for me because it is an advanced drama class, yet not all students have taken the class that leads into it. The students who did not take the beginning class are struggling. They don't have the background knowledge required to truly grasp what I'm asking of them. Because of that, I thought they wouldn't be able to even begin the analysis. I was wrong!
They are all doing the work to the level they are capable. It is great for me to see. The kids who have the background from the previous class are going more in-depth in their thoughts on the character. The kids who didn't have the class are just scratching the surface. Either way, all students are learning what it takes to truly take on a character. They are learning how to analyze scripts which will translate into analyzing literature. The performance they end up doing in a couple of weeks is going to be so much better due to this work.
I almost didn't give the worksheet to them. Thought it was just too hard. I'm so glad I remembered something I truly do believe - Students will rise to the expectations we give them.

Incorporating Videos

When I first began teaching, I knew I wanted to show Whose Line Is It Anyway to my intro classes as an example of quality improvisation. I used to think just showing the video was enough. That students would see the humor and understand what these professionals did that made it work so well. This year, I've realized that kids can totally check out while watching something and not analyze unless you ask them too. Not only that, before the video I need to tell them what they are looking for and then after the video discuss what we all saw. I've also changed when in the quarter we watch WLIIA. This has made a huge difference for the students. The show is no longer something funny that they feel wastes time, but it is a hugely enjoyable learning tool. What I wanted it to be all along, but wasn't clear on how to do.
Today, after we watched the episode, we had this incredible discussion where the students were telling me in academic theater vocabulary what they thought of the actors. Then we started a new improvisation game called "Freeze Tag Improv" that has never gone better. I need to remember to introduce it in this way in the future.

Next to Normal

Recently, the hubby and I saw the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning Next to Normal. I don't want to give away the plot, but this is a very heavy musical. To say it is about a dysfunctional family is quite the understatement. Some topics of the play are mental disorders, family, and drugs. They ask the very deep and provocative question Which is worse - the treatment or the disease?
Alice Ripley, who played the mom, must have been sick because her singing voice was very unpleasant - loud, scratchy, and almost hungover sounding. She won the Tony for this role, so I'm assuming something was dreadfully wrong with her throat that night. There were times I couldn't even understand her. Wow. I just looked her up on Youtube, and her voice is amazing. Here is a clip from their performance at the 2009 Tony Awards:



What I find fascinating is everything I see calls this an "up-lifting" show. That's the opposite of what I would say! It was so depressing and heavy that even now weeks later, I feel emotionally moved by it.
I really loved the daughter and the son in the cast we saw. This was one of my favorite songs in the show:




Not much else to say because I truly don't want to give the plot away, but they must do something right if it's still weighing on my mind.

Challenges

Teaching drama is challenging because creating a safe environment is even more important than in a core classroom. My 7th grade class did not start out feeling like a team. In fact, it was so bad I had to stop class multiple times for discussions about respect. Discussions that were productive, but definitely not fun.
Now, the class is one of the best I've ever had. The students are far more supportive of one another than any class I've had. They are genuine, funny, and kind.
It's so wonderful when the hard work and long discussions payoff. The results are a class we all look forward to each day. And hopefully, new solid friendships are being formed.

Scenes

Today I passed out scenes in my advanced drama class. I took into consideration what students told me they wanted to work on this semester when choosing their scenes and partners. Of course, some still complained! Like the girl who told me she wanted to work on memorizing a lot of lines complained that her scene "was too long!" What?! Why would she say that's what she wanted to work on, if then she actually didn't? Do students think teachers have them fill out getting to know you sheets for fun? Of course, I adjust and modify my class to make it work for them.
Most students were thrilled with their scenes and already looking into strong character choices. I was impressed with how one girl was reading between the lines on day one and already discovering what was truth about her character and what was false. Tomorrow we are going to start working on character study with a graphic organizer I found online and then changed to fit my students better. They seem excited to dig in and get to work!

Tough Talk 2

We had a super productive rehearsal today. Things went really well. The student I had a tough talk with last week did an amazing job. I told her so on the way out, and her smile stretched across her entire face. Her reaction? "Oh good!" I'm so glad I remembered to say something about her great job today...I almost missed that wonderful moment for both of us!

Arts Funding

This is a great video about arts funding from The California Alliance for Arts Education.

Walking Unit

This is a unit I created to help students develop character. One thing middle schoolers forget, is that they don't only need to think about how their character speaks, but also how the character moves.
The students have a full week (including a weekend) to find an interesting walk. They have to see the person in person and can't know him/her at all. That means even someone on campus wouldn't work because the kids will know something about the person. During the week, we do some strange walks in class (walk like you just won the lottery, walk like you saw your dog get hit by a car, etc. Then we transition to walk with your nose leading. Who would walk like this? How does it feel? Take on a character who would walk like this, etc.) for about ten minutes a day.
On the day everyone has their walk, we spend most of class writing about the character they are developing. I have them create everything possible about this person. Where they live, their hobbies, their friends/family, what they do for a living, age, etc. For the last ten minutes of class, they walk around the classroom and get about a minute to interact with someone. They must have a conversation as their character, and they need to change their voices! They get about 8 conversations by the end of the period and they love this part of it.
The next day, I have their character sheets and put a quick rubric on the top (character, walk, voice). We talk about what I'm looking for and why. They are graded on how well they know their character and their consistency with the walk/voice. They get on stage one at a time and walk the entire time. Basically, they pace as their character. The student introduces him/herself as the character and then takes 5-7 questions from the class.
This week we are starting the next portion of this Unit. The students will randomly be called onto the stage to do a partner improv. I'll call on 2 kids to get on stage and remind us of their character. Then, I'll ask the class for a location, relationship, and conflict. It should be a lot of fun! I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow.

The Patty Verse

My friend Patty Jean has the most amazing blog called Life in the Patty Verse. She supports all of her friends and their endeavors, as well as connects the Los Angeles artist world. Her writing style is enjoyable and her Twitterings always leave me waiting for more. She is dear to all who are lucky enough to know her, and I highly recommend following her Patty Verses.

Long Weekends

We have tomorrow off, of course, for Presidents Day. There are some districts that have the whole week off - they call it Ski Week. Is it wrong that instead of feeling grateful for my long weekend, I want a whole week off too? I think it is. I need to change this attitude of mine and buckle down and get to business. In the next two days I have some grading to do and still need to choreograph two numbers for the musical. Why is it so hard to get work done on a long weekend? Seems like we should just take the time for pampering and fun, rather than use the time for work. Somehow, regular weekends don't give me that same feeling.

Flash Mobs

Improv Everywhere is the best! They do all sorts of different things to cause scenes in major cities. To the right I have a video bar of the ImprovEverywhere Youtube channel. I think they are pure genius. Maybe you've seen this:




Each semester my students plan what we call their final, which is based on the Improv Everywhere idea. The kids create what they want to do and then we surprise the school at lunch in the quad. It has been a huge success and even made drama more popular of an elective at our school. The students have frozen, done a flash mob dance, had a dance off, done a soap opera, and more. I don't know what they will do this semester because we haven't begun talking about it yet, but I can't wait.
Here's our other favorite:

Motivation

This is a delightful four day weekend! I feel like I should be motivated to work and get some stuff checked off the to do list. Instead, I find myself curled up on the sofa enjoying an America's Next Top Model marathon on Bravo! This is not the way to get my work done! But, it is a lovely way to enjoy a rainy Saturday morning.

Tough Talks

As a drama teacher, I feel like I have many opportunities to have interactions with students that they will never forget. This is not a responsibility I take lightly, and sometimes it is not something I enjoy.
On Wednesday, I called a very talented student into my classroom to discuss her attitude during rehearsal. She is a bright kid who tends to have a negative demeanor. The musical we are doing is very upbeat and happy, but throughout rehearsals she always looks sullen and sometimes even angry. This means that I feel like I can't give her any major parts or even just a special moment in the show. When we had our conversation, I knew it would be difficult, but I had no idea she would cry! Luckily, her reaction was, "I had no idea. Now that I do, I can change it." I hope she does because after this talk I'd really like to give her a little more in the show.
When I was 12, a director yelled at me because I wouldn't stop fidgeting on stage when I was supposed to be still. I've never forgotten that moment. I know this was different because I had a private conversation with my student, but I still think this was one of those difficult moments that will stick with her forever.
Have you had any conversations with a teacher (or director) that have really stuck with you?

Inspiring Kid

Rehearsal

Rehearsal for the school play is three times a week after school. It's just me and about 30 students working as hard as we can to put on the cutest show ever. My goal is that all the students have a good time and try their best. This past week we finished blocking all of Act One (it's a two act show)! It's interesting to me that middle schoolers are old enough to be creative and have so many awesome ideas, yet they need me to tell them every move to make on stage. They'll even ask the most basic questions about their character and I can see the frustration on their faces when I tell them, "It's your character! These are decisions you get to make while developing who your character is."
My first year, I didn't know that I would need to tell them every cross to make. I thought they would feel when to move. They would sense that in life they would walk away at that point, or that they'd been in one place too long. I thought I could say "Your group of 6 needs to clump downstage left." They don't know how to clump or make stage pictures! Now, I work on stage pictures in class with this activity I got from a great book by James Thomas Bailey.  Even still, many students in the school play do not take drama as an elective during the day, so they don't know about stage picture.
This year, I am writing every single move they make in my script before rehearsal. Then I tell them to do what their gut says. If their gut says nothing, then we go with my notes. If their gut says something, but it doesn't work, we go with my notes. It's a much better system and I think the kids feel much more comfortable working this way.
Next week we start Act Two which means this weekend there will be a lot of prepping for rehearsal. I also need to begin choreography. My goal is get two songs completed this week - two of the big group numbers - the opening and the finale. Let's hope it all goes well.
Directing is fascinating. I used to think I hated it, but really, I didn't know what I was doing. Now that I'm getting the hang of it, it's not so bad after all!

Getting Tenure

This is my third year teaching in a truly wonderful district at a school that is an absolute perfect fit. My supervisor tells me that next year should be my tenure year. It's frustrating because another teacher who started at the same time as me and has the same credential as me was moved to the tenure track this year. When I asked questions at the district office as to why she was moved and I wasn't, I was told someone made a mistake. That's fine, but the security of tenure sure would be nice. Not only that, but I am constantly taking on more roles at school. I am on the RTI team, I do literacy, I've added some lunch time activities, and am even a presenter at our staff meetings. These are all things I want to do, so don't want to sound like I'm complaining. The problem is that I'm the only teacher being asked to jump through these extra hoops to receive tenure. I'm noticing other teachers get permanent status and they only teach. My supervisor has decided that I need to be a leader at my school, that I need to do all sorts of extra-curricular activities, and even be a leader in terms of drama teachers in the district! This feels overwhelming and strange. I would think my focus right now should be on being the very best drama teacher I can be, so that when I do get tenure they know they've made the right decision. Am I looking at this all wrong?

Welcome

This is not my first attempt at a blog. I decided to start a new one for many reasons. For one, I want to be able to be open and honest about my experiences in theater, as a teacher, and as a wife. It doesn't need to be followed by my school's community. I'll be creating a website for that!
Twitter really sparked my interest in creating a blog. There is such a strong community of arts educators and I feel like their blogs and sites are so helpful to me. Perhaps my experiences can benefit them too! Twitter is great, but sometimes I feel limited when trying to fit my thoughts into 140 characters. Here, I can write much more openly about what is going on.
I welcome comments. Feedback is a useful tool in life.
Welcome to Elle Bizzle's D-rama Blog! I hope you enjoy it!