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    More of Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W's Class
    More of Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W's Class
    More of Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W's Class
    Ebook179 pages1 hour

    More of Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W's Class

    By Mike Woodard

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    About this ebook

    The author of "Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W's Class" is back with more amazing stories and kids!
    • They called her a snob, but she wasn't a snob. Find out why she won't talk to anyone.
    • He was from another country, and they laughed at his broken English and attempts to fit in. Discover how he became one of the most popular students in his class.
    • The long-armed basketball player was the star of every game, but his ADD was spiraling out of control. Soon, he would have a very difficult decision to make.
    • She never missed a free throw. In fact, she was the best free throw shooter Coach had ever seen. Her legs were paralyzed, but she had a great attitude and a bright future.
    These are just a few of the students in Mr. W's class. Despite their challenges, they are amazing kids. Together, with their funny and caring teacher, they will make their way through everything the school year throws their way.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBookBaby
    Release dateAug 30, 2023
    ISBN9798350905106
    More of Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W's Class
    Author

    Mike Woodard

    Mike Woodard believes that learning should be fun, people should be treated with respect and kindness, and basketball is the ultimate team sport. Known as "Mr. W" to his students, he taught Career Exploration classes at a big city middle school and coached both the boys' and girls' basketball teams. His first book, "Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W's Class," was released in 2022 to critical acclaim. Woodard continues to coach basketball, coordinate online discussion groups, and provide teaching and consulting via Zoom meetings to teachers, schools, and students across the country.

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      Book preview

      More of Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W's Class - Mike Woodard

      BK90078272.jpg

      More of those Amazing Kids in Mr. W’s Class

      Copyright 2023 by Mike Woodard

      This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and events are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, institutions, or events is entirely coincidental.

      ISBN 979-8-35090-509-0

      ISBN eBook 979-8-35090-510-6

      Dedicated to those amazing, creative, funny, and complicated students who made it an honor and a privilege to teach them.

      Contents

      Career Exploration Class

      Ask Mr. W

      Laughing and Learning

      Those Amazing Kids

      Drama

      Taking The High Road

      When the Teacher Becomes the Student

      Appendix

      In Gratitude

      About The Author

      Career Exploration Class

      How do you know what type of job or career you might enjoy until you go through a long list of career activities in a safe and nonjudgmental environment?

      Mr. W

      Hey, everybody. My name is Mr. W. Over the next few pages, I am going to introduce myself and the amazing students that I have the privilege of teaching. Some of them have very real challenges to deal with, but that makes them no less amazing. They are clever, creative, and smart in a variety of ways. They also learn different ways. Some learn by having me talk to them, others by reading something, yet others by watching a video, a demonstration, or seeing pictures about how to do something.

      If you haven’t read Those Amazing Kids in Mr. W’s Class, you might want to do so. However, you don’t have to read it to enjoy this book. While the two go together, they can also work as standalone stories. If you like one, you’ll definitely like the other.

      So, let’s start with me and then we’ll get to some of those amazing kids. Almost everyone in school has a nickname. The teachers are called many things; many of them inappropriate. In class, though, the students need to call the teacher a name that everyone, the students, and the teacher, can agree upon.

      My first name is Mike. That won’t do. Too informal and too common. My last name is Woodard. That could be appropriate if they stuck with it, but they won’t. Of course, they’ll focus on the Wood part. Everyone does. Woodpecker. Nope, that won’t do.

      My friends in college called me Woody. Definitely not good for middle school students. Snickering young men and blushing young ladies every time your name is mentioned? Not conducive to a productive classroom atmosphere.

      The easiest and most practical solution is to use the first initial of the teacher’s last name. As one student walked into the classroom, he said, What up Mr. W? It caught on quickly with the other students. The seven letters of Woodard were replaced by the single letter of W. It was simple and friendly. Already, there is Mr. C and Mr. S and Mrs. G and so on. There is no other Mr. W in the school.

      So, there it was. From that point, I was known as Mr. W.

      Career Exploration Class

      I love teaching, but I particularly enjoy all of the activities in my Career Exploration class. My biggest joy in this class is seeing students who believe they are not good at anything discover they can excel in something they never knew existed and had never tried before.

      How do you know what you are good at unless you can try a wide variety of things in a safe and nonjudgmental environment? How do you know what type of job or career you might enjoy until you go through a long list of career activities and try them out?

      During seventh and eighth grade, we do all of the following (and more):

      Bake/frost a cake

      Fly a drone

      Conduct a fashion show

      Film a video

      Develop a product

      Balance a budget

      Build an engine

      Design a house

      Buy a car

      Rent an apartment

      Unclog a drain

      Cut and style hair

      Analyze a crime scene

      Meet with Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Marine veterans

      Program a computer

      Develop computer graphics

      Create a computer game

      Try a civil or criminal law case

      Take digital photographs

      Grow plants, fruits, and vegetables

      Develop an advertising campaign

      Practice first aid

      Apply movie makeup to create scary-looking characters

      Design a website

      It is exciting to teach a Career Exploration class. For each career and activity, we conduct basic research on the computer:

      What does the job or career entail?

      How much does it pay?

      Where are the jobs located?

      Then the students ask themselves a series of questions:

      Is it something I might want to do?

      Is it something I would like as a job or as a hobby?

      That is what a Career Exploration class is all about.

      The research part of the class provides context. The lab part of the class provides practice in actually doing the job.

      With both pieces of information, students can gain a pretty good idea of whether a specific career may be right for them.

      They Call Me Coach

      It was a dream come true. Not only was I teaching an exciting curriculum, but I was also asked to coach the boys’ and the girls’ basketball teams. My coaching philosophy was clear and may be best exemplified by the following story from one of our games:

      The other team had just come from behind to cut the lead to one. Our point guard had uncharacteristically missed four straight free throws and looked flustered. I called time out with 38 seconds to go in the game.

      Guys, we’ve got this, I said. They’ll foul him again and this time he’ll make the free throws. Then they will go to their big guy. We’ll play a man in front of him and a man behind him with a two-one-two zone. Our defense is just too good to let them wrap it up.

      So ... they fouled our guy. He made two free throws. They went to their big guy. We intercepted the pass. Game over.

      Whatever challenges you are facing today, call time out. Take a deep breath. Visualize what happens next. Play your game. Be confident. You got this.

      More Coach W basketball philosophies later.

      Fun Times in Career Exploration Class

      I’m having a wonderful time teaching a middle school Career Exploration class. I really love the projects and it’s important to give the students a glimpse of so many different careers.

      We recently completed a digital photography contest and are currently creating movie characters using cosmetology techniques and movie makeup.

      During the next few weeks, we will have the fire department visit. They will bring a fire truck to sit in, equipment to wear, and tools to learn about and practice using (like the jaws of life).

      We will fly a drone and create teams to write and record public service announcements. We are also planning a fashion show, will program robotic vehicles, will have a cake decorating contest, conduct a mock crime scene investigation, and design a new website.

      Sometimes we will have guest speakers. Other times, the students and I will coordinate the discussions based on the information we have gathered. Every lesson will discuss the actual career and conduct some activity related to it.

      Does that sound like fun?

      Business Ethics Discussions Bring Real-World Situations to Class

      Our discussion of business ethics in Career Exploration dealt with several hypothetical (though potentially real) situations:

      What do you do when your supervisor’s boss has a new project for you, but he doesn’t want your supervisor to know?

      What do you do when the company you are employed by is purposefully misleading customers in its advertising?

      What do you do when you have witnessed a case of bullying or sexual harassment at work? The victim does not want to complain but you think they should.

      What do you do when a fellow employee and friend has brought a weapon to work and you know this is against the rules?

      Your boss asks you to sign her name on a document and mail it out. What do you do?

      A boss gives you a bottle of wine as a Christmas gift while in his office. You know that having alcohol in the building (open or unopened) is against company policy. Do you accept the gift?

      These scenarios generated great discussion! Note: All of them have happened to me.

      Apocalypse

      Our word of the day was apocalypse. When one student was asked to spell the word, he said, C’mon, Mr. W. If I can’t spell apocalypse, it’s not the end of the world!

      No Shame in Fast Food

      There were times when the students in class did not want to listen to me. They just kept talking. I had a response for this. It was a Careers class, after all. So, I threatened them with a glimpse of their future. It wasn’t pretty.

      "Ok, you don’t want to listen to me? Let’s talk about what happens. You get a bad grade. You don’t get into a college or trade school. You struggle with a minimum wage job. You can’t afford your rent. You’ll never buy a home.

      I may see you again. I’ll walk into a fast-food restaurant. I may place my order with you. You’ll pretend you don’t know me. But you’ll know me, and I’ll know you. You’ll remember that I told you this day would come. And you’ll remember that I said, ‘Yes, I’ll have

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