"Jack Woodson has forty children, and all of them have different mothers..."
Jack was a thermal design engineer for four years until he was laid off from his job. Now, as a teacher, he faces new challenges. Conference calls have been replaced with parent conferences. Product testing has given way to standardized testing. Instead of business cards, Jack now passes out report cards. The only thing that hasn't changed noticeably is the maturity level of the people surrounding him all day.
Learn Me Good is Jack's hilarious retelling of his harrowing rookie year, written as a series of emails to Fred Bommerson, his former engineering coworker. Inspired by real-life experiences of rambunctious and precocious children, lesson plans gone awry, and incredibly outrageous quotes, this laugh a minute page turner will give you a new appreciation for educators. Jack holds a March Mathness tournament, he faces a child's urgent declaration of "My bowels be runnin'!", and he mistakenly asks one girl's mother if she is her brother.
With subject lines such as "Irritable Vowel Syndrome," "In math class, no one can hear you scream," and "I love the smell of Lysol in the morning," Jack fills each email with sarcastic (yet loving) humor, insightful observations, and plenty of irreverent wit. If you've ever taught, you will undoubtedly recognize aspects of your own students in Jack's classroom. If you've never set foot in a classroom, you will still appreciate the funny quirks, behaviors, and quotes from the kids and adults alike.
"I teach, therefore I am... poor!"
John Pearson was born just outside of Washington, DC, but moved to Texas as quickly as he could. Growing up with a passion for math, science,and calculator watches, he obtained engineering degrees and basketball(watching) accolades from Duke University and Texas A&M. His first job out of college was designing small solid-state heat pumps, where his cubicle simply was not big enough to contain him. When the engineering market went sour, he decided to try his hand as a teacher, and he educated one diverse group of kids after another, mostly in math and science, but also in Star Wars quotes, bad puns, and life in general.Those students (the Good, the Bad, and the Apathetic) provided the material for Learn Me Good and its sequels. He now uses his mad math skills as an analyst in a really tall building downtown.
John Pearson won the Jeopardy! Teachers Tournament in 2013 and lost to the eventual grand winner in the Tournament of Champions in 2014. He was an alternate in the 2019 All-Stars Tournament and fulfilled that role admirably.
Pearson enjoys reading, watching movies, and playing games in his free time, and he has made several videos with his son Andrew, including the Pearson Olympics and the May Gladness series, all available on YouTube. He also updates the Learn Me Good page on Facebook with funny memes, anecdotes, and observations. All educators,teachers, and people who love humor are welcome.
