Teacher's Notebook- Update
Today wasn’t bad.
I felt good when I woke up. I don’t know why. Maybe it was because I had a plan and I was going to stick with it. I had no reason to feel so good.
I woke up at 3:30 in the morning, tossing and turning. I went for a 4 mile bike ride at 4:30. Then, I left the keys to my classroom (with my thumb drive containing my lesson presentation for the day) in my office at home and almost drove off without it. That would’ve sucked! On top of it, I still drove off without getting a cup of coffee.
Still I went in feeling positive. I’m focused on shaping my classroom’s culture. My challenging class was much better today. A SPED teacher helped facilitate ten students sitting in new seats while I stalled the rest of the class in the hallway. The class was instructed to enter the classroom quietly. They were noisy. After all were in their seats I had them line back up and do it again silently.
They sat quietly for the most part and then I isolated. This one kid wanted to throw a bunch of attitude and talk while I was talking. I gave him two quick warnings and then a third. You’ve got lunch detention. He kept it up. I grabbed a reflection paper off the wall and put it in front of him.
“That’s next.”
Very calm and very in control. He tossed it on the ground, but he was quiet.
“Pick it up please.”
He moved and picked it up quietly.
“Thank you.”
The SPED teacher moved in and pulled him out into the hall. I’m not sure whether that played to my benefit or not. He was challenging my authority in the classroom. I suppose it is something of a right to test and challenge. I won the challenge because he picked up the paper. I’m still in control of my classroom and maybe I’ve gained a little more in the process.
At the end of class I called him back and talked to him alone. I don’t really remember what I said to him, but it was something like “did I do something to make you mad today?” I’m sure I sprinkled it with: I need him to follow the classroom expectations. I let him off with a warning this time, but it will not happen again. I shook his hand. It was a weak handshake, but it was a handshake.
This first week has been nothing but introducing procedures and establishing routine. We’ve gone over how to enter the classroom. We’ve talked about the consequence system and the classroom expectations. We’ve begun to experience the consequences. We’ve begun to build a classroom community.
We’ve all said our names.
We’ve told each other something about us.
We’ve begun to reveal who we are and I think that is necessary to really learn how to read.
Next week we begin word study and elements of fiction. They’ll want to be not interested. But I think it’s a matter of not connecting with literature. If you don’t experience the literature as something apart of you, then there is no interest. If the words are a chore, I’ll make them something lighter. Literature is a joy if they see themselves in the story. So I’ll use Slick Rick’s “Children’s Story” to get them to read and then have them identify the parts of plot.
Something like that.
Third period went well as did my other periods except 7th hour. I haven’t prepared for 7th hour yet. I need to schedule 7th hour. And I’ve volunteered to represent a charity at the school. Data needs to be analyzed. Tests need to be graded. We must focus on the numbers. And I’m still trying to learn their names. I’ve got probably 40 to 50 percent of them down but that is still a sea of nameless faces. I’ve got to put a name to the face.
It is my creditability with the kids.
They will always get a good morning from me even when they don’t return it.
Teacher out!
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