David+Valliere

(XXXXXX Middle School Newspaper Article)
 * GENRE RESPONSE THREE**

Today marks the end of a five-week internship for student teacher David Valliere. Mr. Valliere has been teaching eighth grade Language Arts alongside Mrs. XXXXX. Wearing his usual button-down shirt and tie, Mr. Valliere sat down with the Middle School newspaper club for a brief interview.

STAFF: So what brought you here to XXXXXX Middle School?

MR. VALLIERE: As a secondary English education major at Kennesaw State University, the TOSS program requires me to complete this internship in order to graduate.

STAFF: Did you pick XXXXXX Middle School because of its incredible students?

MR. VALLIERE: (Laughs) No. I was assigned to the school after selecting four top choices in the area.

STAFF: But you’d pick us if you had the chance, right?

MR. VALLIERE: Of course!

STAFF: So what are you going to miss most when you leave this internship?

MR. VALLIERE: Oh, that’s a tough one. The students are great, and Mrs. XXXXXX has been a wonderful teacher to work with. Both parties have been extremely helpful to me, and I feel that I’ve grown a lot as an educator through this experience. I’m really going to miss the opportunity to put all the theory into practice, seeing how it all comes together to impact a real class of students.

STAFF: What are you looking forward to now that this is over?

MR. VALLIERE. Sleep! (Laughs) I’ll be student teaching full-time in the spring at a high school, and I am definitely looking forward to that. I’m looking forward to it much more now that this experience has turned out so well.

STAFF: What was the most difficult aspect of your internship?

MR. VALLIERE: Wow, they really taught you guys how to ask the tough ones! I think trying to figure out how to create a short unit that covered all of the aspects of expository writing was very difficult. I created some prompts that, in retrospect, weren’t all that suitable for expository writing. I wish I could go back and change that. Apart from that, everything really went better than expected?

STAFF: Is there anything else that you would have done differently?

MR. VALLIERE: I don’t think I included enough assessments - stuff to actually get in the grade book. If I did it all over again, I’d include some smaller, graded assignments. It was hard trying to do that alongside all the workshopping and essay grading. Now that I know how to work through the unit, I think I could embellish it a bit.

STAFF: Overall, are you happy with your experience at XXXXXX Middle School?

MR. VALLIERE: Absolutely. I’d gladly do it all over again. Like I said, everyone was really helpful, and I learned a lot. The $2.50 lunches really helped with my budget too! (Laughs) It was really nice getting to be in control of a classroom for an extended time. I’m now looking forward to teaching more than ever!

STAFF: Well we’re sad to see you go, but thank you for sitting down with us for this interview.

MR. VALLIERE: It was my pleasure. I’m sad to go too, but there are more students out there in need of Mr. V! (Laughs) I wish you all the best of luck on the writing test. I hope I’ve prepared you all well enough!

It may be the end of Mr. Valliere’s term here at XXXXX Middle, but we wish him the best of luck with all his future endeavors. I’m sure many more students will enjoy his unique handouts and interesting discussions, and we certainly extend our well-wishes to those he so often mentions: his sister, Mary; his girlfriend, Katherine; and his beloved cat, Ajamu. Thanks for all the good times, Mr. V!

(A Collection of Letters)
 * GENRE RESPONSE TWO**

Dear kid who stole my CT’s phone, I’m glad that when Mrs. XXXXXX told the class that she was in the middle of a family emergency and really needed her phone, you returned it to her desk. Or was it just the link that got sent to her phone about tracking it that scared you into returning it? Surely the threat of police reviewing the cameras didn’t inspire your change of heart; if they had caught you in the act, they’d catch you returning it too, right? Maybe you’re just clever enough to notice that the camera doesn’t even see into her room at all. Still, I’m glad you returned the phone - even if you deleted all her texts. I hope you enjoyed reading her private messages to her husband about her unborn child. Maybe if you befriended her instead of stealing from her, you could see the ultrasound video like I got to. I’m glad you do have a conscience after all, though. You could end up in serious trouble like the other kid who stole another teacher’s phone just last week.

Dear kid who is the most trouble of all the students, I’m not mad when you call me “valet” and tell me to go get your car. I know you don’t have one, and I’m impressed with your wordplay: it’s a take on my French last name that I haven’t heard before. Still, I just stared at you with legitimate French condescension when you dropped the handout I just gave you on the floor, asking me to pick it up. I told you that I don’t care if you get a zero or not. Eventually you realized that everyone around you thought it wasn’t very funny, and you picked it up. Good call.

I even think it’s funny that you try your best to show me your worst, telling me, “you won’t want to be a teacher if you have kids like me.” If you’re trying to show me “what it’s like being a teacher,” I can show you what it’s like to be in college: more homework than you could pick up off the floor with two hands, adult consequences of your actions, and the ability to just tell you to go home if you act like a jerk in class. After all, you’ve been in ISS three times during my internship - once a week. I could show you all my friends who are on probation, my friends who are awaiting court dates, and my dead friends’ tombstones. Consequences only get worse, so maybe I should show you what it’s like to be an adult while you’re showing me what it’s like to be a teacher.

You were in ISS today because you told another teacher that you wanted to punch Mrs. XXXXXX in the face. I bet you don’t. When you and XXXXXX were about to get in a fight in the lunchroom, Mrs. XXXXXX stopped you, giving you no more than an inconsequential mark on your conduct card. She later joked with me that she should have just let you two (the most troublesome students of all) fight it out so you could be expelled. But she didn’t. She even gives you opportunities to turn in homework that you “forgot”. You’ve gotten far fewer marks on that conduct card than you’ve deserved, not only because you erased them (and got caught doing it), but because she doesn’t want to keep throwing you in ISS. She just wants to teach you, man. She legitimately wants to see you succeed. Still want to punch her in the face?

You //have// shown me what it’s like to be a teacher. You’ve allowed me to see how a teacher will do almost anything to help out a student that doesn’t even deserve it. Learn to return the favor one day before //you’re// the one parking //my// car downtown.

Dear students who wrote me about your struggles and how I was able to help, I have never felt better about doing anything in my whole life. When I read how I helped some of you beat writer’s block by saying, “just keep writing - anything,” I realized the power that I have with a simple answer to a student question. When I read how my hand-drawn organizers and handouts are the most memorable things from the whole year, I realized that two hours of effort on my part can help so many students remember things much better. When I read how you all had trouble writing an essay instead of a narrative, it killed me to realize that my “fun” prompts were really a bad idea. I realized the responsibility that I had as a teacher, and I realized that what I think of as fun is not what everyone thinks of as fun. Overall, I realized what I had done: I had taught your class for two weeks by myself. I had done great things, and I had done regrettable things. But I have never felt better about doing anything in my whole life.

Be A Real Writer (A Song) {Link to recording}
 * GENRE RESPONSE ONE**

I know You’ve been taught A formula And that’s all you know.

But you really gotta give yourself some credit: Be a human, be yourself, embrace your creativity. It sets yourself apart from all the mediocre Robots taking jobs from you and me.

Yes I do Still stay organized, But I prioritize And live my life with spontaneity.

No one got remembered for just doing Something someone somewhere else could simply do, You’ve got to make your name a name you’re proud to have, So everything you do must really be a part of that.

You know, there’s no prescription for fame.

I know You’ve been taught A formula. So what?