Employed But Can't Spell

No, I haven't discovered a way to circumvent the academic job market. And no, I haven't created my mentors' worst nightmares of my attempting to teach full-time and write the dissertation. Starting Friday, I will be driving Little Miss Daisy, and possibly her older sister Little Ms. Violet. A friend of my mom's needs help getting her kids from their new school WAY across town (from her, but closer to me), and she's willing to toss a little cash my way. So I figure why not?! When has a grad student ever turned down a free meal or easy money? And to think my mom almost didn't tell me because she thought I was too busy! Technically, I guess that's true. BUT If you knew how much cash was on the table--you'd find this absolutely astonishing. There may be some additional financial support if I assist Little Miss Daisy with her reading comprehension.

Now I'm a smart woman, but it's been a long time since I've tutored anyone who wasn't in college. If I had to guess, I would say I was in eighth or ninth grade the last time I tutored a "kid." Apparently, Little Miss Daisy previously attended (not sure about her new school), one of these new-fangled institutions where you get to spell words any way that you please. Ok, I'm not that old--I can barely lay claim to being born in the 70s, but back when I was a kid, we didn't get to choose how to spell a word. I'm not sure how I feel about this. Now, I study and use African-American rhetorical forms, and although I do not do it with the skillz of some (you know who you are--AB), it is very easy for me to slide into a rhythmic blend of standardized English, hip hop slang, and AAE. (Earlier today I had an old friend from high school crackin up because I managed to use "hot mess" and "superfluous" in the same sentence--clearly he hasn't talked to me in a long time). With me, it all depends on the audience, depends on the mood, depends on the medium. But in each case it is a personal choice. So on some level, I reckon I'm supposed to support a child's ability to chose her language, and the appropriate spellings thereof. BUT in this time, in this country, a child--especially a child of color--should have access to all of the choices. In this case, the choice seems to be made for her and it is a strategic choice that can later be used against her.

To make matters worse, I, again who loves the creativity of language, am being put into the position to "correct" Little Miss Daisy's spelling, and help her learn to read more effectively. This presents several concerns on my part. 1) I can't spell worth a lick. I'm that person in the grad lab that shouts out, "How do you spell..." And I am NOT ashamed to ask my students to spell something for me--I'm really lazy when it comes to spellin and can freely admit that spellcheck has ruined my life. 2) After reading all of this academic...stuff for the past X years, how does one go about teaching things like phonics? I also was terrible at phonics as a child. 3) How does one "correct" learning habits? Little Miss Daisy is not five. She is going to middle school. That is frightening to me. She's a cool little girl who I used to babysit when she was still in diapers (scary--I called her StringBean as a kid and now she's bigger than me), but she's already reached that "school is dumb" phase of being an almost teenager. So what exactly am I supposed to do in an hour or so a week??

I'm still scoping out this situation--I am hoping that tutoring will be like riding a bike. I am hoping that I can help her build some stronger study/reading habits--I already know that she does not read enough. I am hoping that I can influence her mother to perhaps tone down her extracurricular while she gets her academics together. I am hoping that if nothing else I can be an encouragement to her, because I know how frustrating it is to feel like you don't get it when the other kids do. I am hoping that this new school will be better for her. I am hoping that one day Southern State will have schooling that provides equal learning opportunities that are not determined by your parents' property taxes...... I'm feeling awfully optimistic for 230AM!!