Weapons of Mass Instruction~

To my left you will see a nice picture of the book we are going to discuss, Weapons of Mass Instruction, by John Taylor Gatto. I usually take pictures of books against the tan carpet in my home office, but the blue color of the classroom mailbox was irresistible. I love color and contrast. If I wasn't a teacher or a veterinarian or a forensic psychiatrist, I would have been a designer. I love DIY Network, HGTV, and stores like Home Goods.

The classroom mailbox is in my home office because the kids were putting all kinds of things inside it. Play food, books, office supplies, bark and wood chips, socks, leftover snacks, and... themselves. They climbed on it, lounged across it, and occasionally drew on it. Since it was made for me by a parent over a decade ago, I opted to rescue it.

This entry will serve as an introduction. We have at least six confirmed members of our reading group and most of us haven't met each other. So, because I am the ringleader, I will start with a brief introduction of myself.

I am a teacher. I have been in the classroom since 1995. It is part of my identity and describes what it is I do. Teaching is a habit of heart, something that calls to you; it is more than a paycheck or a job: it is an adventure. People who teach and don't feel that way really shouldn't be in the classroom. It takes too much passion, dedication, and energy to do well if you don't feel called to it. The profession is filled with crappy teachers and most of them remain in the classroom because we are educators, not politicians. We are not good at policing ourselves. So we 'allow' politicians, bureaucrats, and control freaks with nothing better to do run things. Haven't they done a fantastic job so far? Don't get me started. I am going off on a tangent.

I have been married 33 years to Dan the Fishing Man (he bowls, too) and live in West Palmdale. We have two outstanding sons: Danny is married to Brandy, whom he met while attending Chico State. They have the most precious baby in the world, my granddaughter, Mable Kats. Danny is a Game Warden with the Dept of Fish and Game in Ventura County. My younger son is Dustin, the boy I could take anywhere, at any time, and he would make friends. After years of working in my classrooms and swearing he would NEVER ever (in a million years) be a teacher, he earned his teaching credentials last year and is now teaching 6th Grade at SCVi. How is THAT for an excellent situation? Word on the street is that he is pretty good at it. Yeah, I am proud.

I am a reader. I love books and always have a stack on my nightstand, on the coffee table, and in my home office. I have been a voracious reader for as long as I can remember. I recall being in first grade and being in love with Ricky Beasley (who never talked) but I don't remember learning to read. I remember flopping down anywhere and everywhere with a book. I hid from the world through books.

I hope this book study will encourage us to engage in the thoughtful dialogue that sparks change. I hope it allows us to find our collective voices and add them to the educational process that is our school - the one that is seeking to be different, better, a ripple in the education pond. The more we know, the better we can be.

How do you see yourself as a reader? How do you view public education? What are your goals for this book study?

I will state up front that I do not agree wholeheartedly with everything Gatto says in this book. But reading it energized me - I could not put it down. It stayed in my head for days.

Please introduce yourself. Then... let's read!

:-)Kim