Today was an interesting day. It was one that was difficult but I learned a great deal. The class was definitely not on their best behavior and showed a bad example to our new student. The day started out with our new student coming in. She is a unique individual. Right away she expressed her excitement to be there in a very loud way. She seemed to be very polite to Mrs. S and myself and was eager to see where she would be sitting and asked who would be sitting around her. It was exciting to see a student thrilled to be at school.
As the students arrived I noticed right away it was going to be a difficult day. I had to give lots of directions about using our manners, starting morning work, sitting in our own seats, and doing things that they should have been used to doing by this point. As morning work ended community circle began. Mrs S reminded the students that hey would be given an extra 11 minute recess. This was displayed on the board with the word "Hallway Lines." The students were given one minute for every letter and each time they were not using proper line procedures in the hall a letter would be erased. In order to show the students their lack of line behaviors I carried a camera with me during passing time and would randomly snap a picture of the line. These pictures will then tomorrow be shown in the IMC and we will talk about better line basics. I think a few of the students that were causing the most problems don't quite realize they are doing something wrong and are out of place. When I would ask them to stand properly in line I often got a strange look at first as if they thought they were doing the right thing. I believe it will help the students see what they are doing wrong in a visual way rather than always verbal.
After community circle was complete we began our daily lesson knowing that we would be interrupted by the Kernals players bringing in new binders for the students. These were donated by the team. It was a great idea and the kids were very excited to see the players themselves. One student even commented that it was his very first binder. The players were in the room for less than 5 minutes but the commotion created lasted for a lot longer. The excitement escalated into a chaotic class. Students were ripping the cellophane off of the binders and putting it on their heads or throwing it at each other. They were playing with the clamps by opening and closing them and students were loudly conversing about their new treasure. Mrs. S began by giving them instructions to put the binders on their desks when their name was called and then they were supposed to line up at the door. Not a single student noticed the first student (who was quiet and did what she was told) set a good example and lined up. The second student that was called didn't even hear their name called because of the lack of attention. They weren't even phased by the lights being turned off by Mrs. S. It took her raising her voice *which she never does* and a stern settle down in order for them to stop.
Normally a class will have issues with a few select students, but over half of the class had issues today. One student was sent to the 'thinking chair' after being warned multiple times to stop disrupting other students. For this student the day ended with being referred to the office and missing out in the majority of afternoon instruction. Whats strange about this student is that she is normally well behaved and is beyond level in her literacy. One comment that was made was that she hadn't taken her 'meds.' This was an interesting comment for me. First because it seemed like the first thing that was thought was wrong with the student where as before I wondered if something happened at home (she was discussing head lice with another student during morning work) or maybe she didn't feel well. The idea of a students 'meds' being the number one thing thought about took me off guard. Do students behaviors really change that dramatically because of a pill? OR are there underling issues that lead up to that point. I wanted to talk to the student one-on-one and only had a breif second. I got down to her level and just looked her in the eye (While on the thinking chair as everyone was getting a bathroom break) and asked 'how are we doing today _name__) She quietly in almost a teary eyed voice said 'good.' Then I waited a second to see if she would say anything else and then asked "are you not having a good day" in a sympathetic voice and she just told me no. By that time the class was returning so I was unable to talk more.
During lunch I sat in the teachers lounge while my cooperating teacher attended to some personal stuff. It was an interesting experience just listening to the conversations around me. Most of them talked about the picnic coming up, and one teacher had a husband bring lunch and flowers in. It was really pleasant. Then the mood changed when one particular teacher brought up a negative thing that happened in her classroom with one of her students. The faculty then started talking a bit with hear and acted (not sure if they really were) interested in her complaints. I found the change of tension in the room to be interesting. It was almost as if no one wanted to talk about class stuff but also didn't want to be rude and stop her. I think it would be insightful to see the difference between a classroom with a negative teacher such as this one an another teacher that is positive and leaves the comments to herself.
At the end of the day Mrs S and myself were exhausted and ready to sit down and listen to silence. One teacher whom the students had a special with apologized for their behavior to me and said that this group is a bit of a challenge this year. I thought that was kind of him to say that to me when it wasn't his own class. I think he also didn't want me to feel as if it was my fault.
One thing that I've had a hard time with in the last few days is not talking to the students in the hallways. The teachers are not allowed to talk to students while waiting in line and are only allowed to praise the students for being good, warn them when they are being bad or give them a ticket (PBIS). For other classes I have observed and helped with I've always found this time useful in bonding with the students. It was a gateway into what they like, what is happening with them and so on. I caught myself holding my hands behind my back a few times like a drill Sargent :(. I asked my cooperating teacher about whether she liked this policy or not and she also said that she didn't and misses talking to the kids. It's often hard to find time to talk in between instruction as well when there are 20 other students that have questions. It made me start thinking about how other teachers connect with their students and when. Or do they get a chance to either? I think my next quest will be to ask them how they manage bonding with the students and creating those personal connections.
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