Day 27: I'm very excited (and my hubby has nothing to do with it...)
My old life (at work) revolved around organizing, planning, defining, and scheduling every little thing about entire projects, from beginning to end, and including team members' bathroom breaks. Contingency plans, risk analysis, budget considerations, looming deadlines. Everything about project management excites me.
And I miss it dearly.
Teaching also requires some planning, but because I'm constantly chasing after my tail, often preparing the next day's lecture the night before (and by that I mean making mental notes as I lay in bed) or simply improvising on the spot, planning ahead with a goal, a stepwise approach and a real timeline is more appealing to me right now than a 1/2 day at the spa. (having never spent a 1/2 day at the spa, this is perhaps an unfair comparison, but you get my drift: I MISS BEING IN CONTROL !!!).
So I've been consumed with this idea for the past 24 hours - a special technology project that would combine PROJECT MANAGEMENT and technology.
I can teach the girls the basics of project management, divide the class into 3 or 4 groups, have them choose a project manager who will have to coordinate all these groups and put together a project plan... BUILDING A CITY!!!
I haven't lost my mind - we're not heading south to help with the re-construction of New Orleans (but how cool would that be???) - I'm talking a small-scale city which would include things from each module we'll be studying. It would be made piece by piece over the year of course, and assembled at the end.
It may sound crazy, nonsensical, unrelated or even lame - but I'm excited about my idea, my hubby was NOT laughing at me when I told him about it (perhaps he didn't laugh because the twins were screaming in the background and he didn't hear properly?), and it feels nice to be excited about school because the last couple of days were a bit of a bummer.
The downside is that I need to prepare some hand-outs on project management, what the steps are, etc. But I'm on a green tea and Fiorinal with Codeine high right now, and I feel invincible.
I still look back on those teachers in High School who varied from the curriculum a little, but taught us some "real life skills" in the process.
I'm sure your students won't even realize it while they're doing it -- but I'm sure 10 years down the road they'll look back and thank you for laying the groundwork.
Posted by
Amanda |
12:09 p.m.
Oooo - another project manager, eh? I was an HR project manager for many years. Your first paragraph got me excited again - I miss the thrill of it sometimes. Not enough, however, to ever go back.
I enjoy the way classes change moment-by-moment; things are always in flux. That keeps me on my toes.
Posted by
Fred |
7:53 p.m.