Don't ask why I'm behind schedule already

According to the calendar, we've had 15 days of school. Growing up that would mean 15 days of class in each class. Maybe 13 for some assembly or other.

My seventh period has had 10 days of class. For those of you who don't remember your math, that means they've missed 33 percent of possible class days. Never mind that because the first two weeks were spent figuring out schedules only one of my students has been in that period since the first day of class. (Granted, there are only three students in the class. That's a post for a different day.) Never mind that attendance is enough of a problem that every student has been absent at one point or another.

I'd still be disturbed by this thought, but what makes it most maddening is how often I'm not told that we're going to be missing class until the day of. Yesterday there was an announcement right before lunch that instead of seventh period we would be having class meetings. Instead of teaching my geometry class, trying to catch them up with my other section, I would be coleading a meeting of all the sophomores in the school. I'd planned for class. I didn't know what I was supposed to do at the meeting.

When did this make sense?

The outlook for next week doesn't look good. My aide warns me that I shouldn't expect anything from students next week. We'll be missing seventh period at least another thee days. At the end of the week, I'll get to submit grades for progress reports.