February 13, 2007

• Topic: Edwize.com

  Hey, I hope I have some new readers who saw my post over on edwize.com  Glad to have you!  I haven’t been blogging too consistantly, although I’ve been keeping a daily journal of my teaching experiences.  It’s late now, and my eyes are burning, but I want to make a quick post before going to bed.

  Yesterday, I wanted to quit.  My idealism was shattered, for a day at least.  My 5-students made me lose my cool, and since I’m not a yeller, it meant a lot of hopeless please for my students to stay in the room, stay in their seats, and keep their mouths closed.  I didn’t even want to wake up this morning, I was not prepared for another beating.  But, kids will be kids, and this morning started fresh, with bright, smiley, faces running to say good morning and give me a hug.

  Today went smoother, in part because I introduced a “student of the day” reward system as an external motivator for behavior and focus, but also because it was Tues, and perhaps my students were wild on Monday simply because it was Monday.  Also, throw in the fact that I’m starting a new class in February, and most classes spend almost 2 months just trying to get students to become familiar with the routines of the classroom.

  I fully appreciate the many challenges of this job, and how those challenges only distract from our students learning.  In a calm environment, children can thrive, but that’s not what I’m dealing with.  I have students who want to “duff” (punch) each other over a game of Connect 4, or simply brushing into someone by mistake.  It’s like a class of pit-bulls sometimes, and you can see the little ones trying to imitate the big dogs.  You could laugh at the randomness of these fights, except for the fact that my students can’t read even these words that I’m writing!

  But…tom is another day.  It can be easy or hard, but I will learn something and surely so will my kids.

  • 10:50 pm
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