What a week, what a week. My students have been nutso this week. Let's start at the beginning...MONDAY: I woke up on Monday with a wicked bad head cold. I could barely breathe and felt awful. (Puffs Plus with Vicks tissues are AMAZING!) I managed to make it through the day, but the kids could tell I didn't feel well no matter how hard I tried.
TUESDAY: Things started to loosen up on Tuesday, but I still wasn't 100 percent. This was the day that my students forgot how to listen. (They totally reverted back to first graders.) I had to take a time out and repeat "If you cry in front of them you will never live it down." I was thisclose to having a freak-out on my class. I managed to make it through, but it wasn't pretty. I told my boyfriend about my day and he said, "Well, your 13th day can't be any worse than MY 13th day. 9/11 was my 13th day during my first year." That helped.
WEDNESDAY: I felt better this day, but my students were even MORE rowdy. Ugh! I had to make them back up and said "You're popping my bubble." They LOVE to be at my elbow all day and I know that I have to get used to it at this point in the year. We are beginning a chess program this year for our second and third graders and all the classroom teachers had to attend a webinar for 2 hours. Yeeeeeaaaaahhhhh...I'm keeping it mum. I made a really good to-do list, though!
THURSDAY: I sent my first student to the office today. He has been hitting other students at least once a day. I sat down with him to discuss it and gave him two options. Either he could fill out a social contract with me or he could go to the office and discuss what was happening because this was happening every day. Well, he rolled his eyes at me and said "Whatever", which was when I told him that he just made his decision and he was going to the office. I kept my cool with him, but was ready to flip my lid. I feel like the most awful and incapable teacher in the world because I couldn't deal with it in my own room. Tomorrow is a brand-new day and I make it positive or negative.
Jordan, You will be fine! We all have the honeymoon period - even those of us on year 32!!! Yikes - I must be getting old! Just remember this one word -CONSISTENCY!!! It is what they crave, and if they know you will have the same response EVERY time, they will "shape up" and truly love you like the rest of us do!!! :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lorrie! That is my cooperative learning goal for myself this year. I want them to know what is expected as a consequence and what happens as a positive one as well.
ReplyDelete