The Curse of the Bleeding 8th Graders
My classroom was cursed, and then the curse returned. Read on for the full story.
I have been teaching 8th grade for almost 11 whole years now. In this column, I share my thoughts on teaching itself, the 13-year-old semi-human lifeforms I work with, and public schools. I will probably tell some funny stories. I may occasionally get emotional. And you will get a behind-the-scenes look into my classroom. No, teachers do not get plugged into a charging port in the school basement each night after the kids leave. They do get to come home to their families, and sometimes they write about the adventures they have and the shenanigans they witness during their long, tiring days in the classroom.
My classroom was cursed, and then the curse returned. Read on for the full story.
Middle school students say some… amazing… things.
April was National Poetry Month, but in 8th grade Language Arts, mastering the use of poetic devices isn’t necessarily the most important thing about the poetry unit.
A teacher’s-eye-view of standardized testing in 8th grade.
A young dancer becomes a legal genius in this fun and fast musical comedy.
Forgotten ’70s action film Fear Is the Key is as gritty as the faces of the men who populate it. Phil Bailey reviews the splashy new Blu-ray.
Coffin Joe returns in a comprehensive Blu-ray collection from Arrow Video, Inside the Mind of Coffin Joe.
Bob’s been looking for a replacement copy of the rare John Cale release Sabotage/Live (1979, Spy Records) since 1991. He still hasn’t found a copy at a reasonable price, but a random YouTube video allowed him to listen and reminisce.
Hidden gem and hallmark of second-generation martial arts film, 1978’s The Shaolin Plot manages to provide a glimpse of things to come. Charles DJ Deppner reviews Arrow Video’s pristine Blu-ray release, which gives this watershed masterpiece the prestige and polish it richly deserves.
The HawtThorns invite you to soar, with the premiere of “Zero Gravity.”
There’s nothing as humiliating as a cattle call. Unless it’s a cattle call in your undies.