outside the box

although my wife is in training to become a social worker/therapist, she still works days as a middle school pe/dance teacher in los angeles. obviously the job is thankless and i'd thought share a little bit of how she gets through her day.

Most Honorable Randy,

I spoke with Mr. Watson this morning about something and he suggested I talk about it with you instead. So here it goes...

Would it be possible to water the amphitheater area at night rather than in the morning? My concern is that it is extremely wet in that area, and subsequently I am unable to have my students run, or facilitate activities in that area for them. Mr. Watson shared that it is easier for them if they water in the morning, but that you might be comfortable with the change, if I presented it to you.

Since speaking with Mr. Watson, i have formulated another option, should changing the watering schedule be impossible. I would suggest creating an alternative space. Perhaps, we could lay the remaining artificial grass up on top of the gym, surround the perimeter with a chain link fence and put in a few umbrellas or trees for shade. Granted, activities involving balls could be complicated, particularly if one of the kids jumps the rooftop fence to get the ball (splat). However, i think we could come up with roof-top activities that do not require bouncing equipment. I know what you are thinking.

"Ridiculous idea. How are the kids even going to get on to the roof?" I've considered that too. We can adapt our outside gym walls to serve as climbing walls, so the kids can climb up the area, or we could have one of those platforms that hang on the sides of buildings for window washers, and the kids can work cooperatively to pull each other up to the roof.

One of the blessed things about teaching PE in such a big district is that sometimes when facilities seem unavailable or cursed, it causes us to think "outside of the box" for better solutions. This solution is just another example of LAUSD PE TEACHER desperate ingenuity. It's all about seeing the glass as half full, don't you think?

I appreciate your attention regarding this matter. If the sprinklers can be adjusted to accommodate the students who use the amphitheater as their classroom, that would be swell. If not, I'm sure my colleagues will be understanding during the renovation of the gym roof-top. Thank you for your assistance.

Sincerely,

Debbie Bailey

P.S. Did I mention that the PE department has voted on a name for the roof-top facility? It will be called the Randy Pearson On Top of the World Fitness Field.