Your Report Cards Are Done

What are you gonna do now?

I’m gonna blog and blog and blog! 

Each Class is a New Relationship

So, I just finished my first week of the year and it was WONDERFUL.  The kids were so sweet, so well-behaved.  I’m marveling at them.  I said to one of my mentors (who watched me stuggle last year and helped me navigate through the pitfalls of a rough and tumble class), “It wasn’t me, it was THEM!”  But I’m also wondering if maybe it IS me.  At least a little?  I read the blog entries from last year and the year before that.  I was NOT a happy camper at the end of the first week.  I loved the kids, that is true, but I felt so exhausted, so overwhelmed.  I’m tired today, but NOT exhausted.  It’s a really good thing.  I guess it’s true, experience helps, huh? 

First Day of School OR Small Moments of Serendipity

I wish I could say that last part very VERY quietly.  I’m superstitious and I don’t want to “jinx” anything, but OMG MY KIDS WERE PERFECT TODAY!!!  How is it possible to fall in love with another group of kids and so quickly?  This day just FLEW by!

I can’t write much, since they all wrote letters to me and I have to answer them, but I did want to tell one thing that was SO different from last year.  It’s called “Name Juggling” and I learned it from a FABULOUS teacher friend of mine who works with kids with disabilities.  Basically, you stand in a circle and throw a beanie baby (or bean bag) to the kids.  Each person throws it to one other person until everyone has had it and then the last person throws it to the first and you start over.  After you’ve established the pattern, you add more beanie babies and continue working through the pattern.  It is a great team-building activity and it also is great if there are newcomers to the class.

Last year, I tried to do this with my class and we could NOT even get through the first pattern.  One girl just could NOT keep it together (she was eventually moved out of my class, there were SO many issues).  I was really nervous about doing it with this class, but they handled it beautifully.  There were times when they got a bit squirrely, but I pulled them back immediately and reminded them that we are a team and they have to focus.  (There are specific rules about TOSSING [not throwing] it underhand and WATCHING to make SURE your partner is paying attention.)  At one point, we had to stop because a boy lobbed it and a girl missed it.  He said, “She wasn’t paying attention!”  I said, well, what could you do to help solve that problem.  And he answered, “Make sure there is eye contact or say her name louder?”  And then another girl said, “Well, yes, except that when we’re adding beanies, everyone gets louder.”  There was LOTS of great processing and discussion and PROBLEM SOLVING. 

I almost started to cry.  It was such a beautiful moment!!!  They were so awesome.  They made me feel like a teacher!  (Oh, and they got up to FOUR beanies…that’s as many as my class last year got to at the END of the year…)

We’ll see how it goes tomorrow.  Not all of my students entered today and I’m getting another student from one of my colleagues tomorrow.  He’s obviously a Spanish speaker and is struggling in her class.  She SWORE he’s NOT a discipline problem.  I pray he’s not!!!  Otherwise, I guess it was nice while it lasted.  I’ll take the happiness I’m given!

Moving On

Thursday was our last day.  On Wednesday, we had our moving up ceremony.  It was nice, but I was surprised because I wasn’t emotional about the kids leaving.  It’s surprising to me because I’ve loved them so much.  I guess I figure, we’ve had a good year, but it’s time for them to go.  We’re all ready.

I wondered who would show up for class on Thursday since they had all “moved up” the day before.  I was surprised when about three quarters of the kids showed up.  One of them was Sparky, the kid who was suspended for throwing a chair across the room.  Because he’d been suspended, he was not allowed to participate in the moving up ceremony.  We all felt really bad about this.  He’s a great kid, just VERY angry.  Until he gets that under control…I dunno what’s going to happen to him.

In any case, Sparky showed up with the other kids.  They were happy to be there, to help clean the classroom and to say goodbye.  It was a pretty laid-back day.  Sparky handed me a card and said, “Don’t open it here.  Open it at home.”  So I did.  I’m glad he warned me.  Here’s what he said:

Dear Ms. Maestra,  Your the only teacher who actually cared.  I’ll miss you.  I know I’ll look back and thank you for not giving up on me.  I’ll never forget you Ms. Maestra.  Love, Sparky.

I couldn’t stop crying.  He made my life hell many times this year.  I sure hope this year did him some good.  I really really do.

New Instincts

Have I mentioned that I love my job?  I do.  For so many reasons.  One is that this job really pushes my growing edges.  I have learned and changed so much this year.  Sometimes, though, change can be uncomfortable.  This came home to me the other night when something strange happened.

I took my son to a store to get a birthday card for his sister.  The store is a few miles from our house, on a very busy road.  On the way, I caught site of what I thought was a woman struggling to push a shopping cart along the road.  When we got closer, I realized it wasn’t a woman, but a girl.  I thought this was odd, but that’s about it.  Onward we went.

When we left the store, about half an hour later, it was getting dark.  We drove back toward home and I noticed the shopping cart a little way down the road, abandoned.  A little way further, I spied the girl again, still walking.  I passed her and a red flag went up.  HEY!  IT’S DARK AND SHE’S YOUNG!  THIS ISN’T RIGHT!!!  I said to my son, we’re turning around to get her.  “Oh geez,” he said, while slumping way down in his seat.

I turned around and went back, hoping she wouldn’t freak out/be crazy/be armed.  I pulled up to her and noticed she was carrying a stuffed toy and crying.  I said, Would you like a ride?  She said nothing, just got in the car.  We drove a bit and I started trying to chit chat.  So…are you ok?  What happened?  “Oh,” she said, “My dad left me at the store by accident.”

Right.  And I’m the Queen Mother.

Ah.  So…how old are you?  “13.”  (I was shocked.  She looked a LOT younger.)  Wow.  I have a daughter that age.  What’s your name?  “Fabulousa.”  Nice name.  Where do you go to school?  “Main School #13.”  Really?  Do you know Ms. So-and-so there?  “Yes, I know her.”

This continued in a light and fairly easy manner.  I asked her where she wanted to go and she told me a local park.  She said there was a family birthday party there.  So, that’s where we went.  When we got there, the place was deserted.  I let her go, even though I didn’t want to.  I didn’t know what to do.  I drove straight home and called Ms. So-and-so, who is my friend and one of the social workers at the school.  I told her the story and before I was even finished, she said, “OH MY GOSH.  Is her name Fabulosa???”  I said yes and she said, “Oh!  She ran away from school today.  She’s got mental health issues and stopped taking her meds.  Said she was going to go to the city to get a bus ticket!!!  I’m going to go look for her!”

Thankfully, she found her.  I hope she’ll be ok, but based on what she told me about this poor kid’s life, I dunno.

It’s just so weird.  On the one hand, I am grateful for my new job because before it, this little girl wouldn’t have even registered on my radar.  And I am grateful *I* am the one who picked her up and not some person with nefarious intentions.  But, after seeing this underbelly, I am beginning to wonder, is ignorance bliss?

Meriwether Lewis rushes for 497 yards and other little known facts…

Here are some other things you may (or may NOT) have known about Lewis and Clark, coming to you directly from my fifth graders and their reports, “Meriwether Lewis and William Clark: EXPLORERS!”

In 1959, William Clark records “My Conception” for Blue Note Records.

May 14, 1804, Clark leads his men in three boats, the 55-foot keel boat and…

June 23, 1804, Clark camped on shore after rounding Jackass Bend in Ray County Missouri.

December 1803, Lewis and Clark decide to stay in the vicinity of St. Louis through the winter and stock up on supplies.

Meriwether Lewis was born on August 18, 1774 near Charlottesville, Virginia.  In December, 1997, he finished his first college season for Tennessee with 1,364 yards.  (Not bad for a 223 year-old freshman.)

After rushing for 497 yards in October 1998, Lewis suffered a torn lateral collateral ligament.  (Understandable, at his age.)

April, 2000 — Lewis enters the NFL draft after his junior season and is selected by the Ravens with fifth pick overall.  In July 2000, on the eve of training camp, Meriwether Lewis signs a six-year, $35.3 million contract.  (Bet you didn’t know, didja?)

Lewis and Clark died of their appendex.

So.  Sign me up for teacher of the year now, huh?

R-E-E-N-T-E-R

Well, we’re back to school.  It’s a happy thing.  Remember all that procrastinating I did?  I got lucky!  Yesterday we had an “ice” delay.  The students came two hours later than usual.    I went in around my normal time and was able to spend a leisurely morning getting ready for the next quarter.  A very happy thing, indeed!

Then, when my kids DID come in, only six (count ‘em) SIX came!  Wow.  Teaching the way it was MEANT to be.  We had SUCH a lovely day.  I was able to give TONS of individual attention to all of them and I taught a LOT.  At the end of it, they all said, “Gee, Mrs. W., this was the best day EVER.”   And of course, I’m thinking, “Hmm…start two hours late and only teach a THIRD of my class?  Yeah, I’d say it was a good day!!!” 

Today only two were out.  We had another great day.  I’m planning a great deal to teach them, but I’ve focused it and so I don’t try to cram so much down their throats.  It makes me more relaxed, and them as well, I think.

My favorite part of today was our spelling bee (mandated by the district reading teachers so we can send someone to the City bee).  Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t do a bee, because I’m generally opposed to the format (the worst spellers, those who need it the most, are out first…it doesn’t make sense…).  But I have to say, the kids loved it and so did I.  I messed with the rules so that if a person missed a word, the next person had to spell it right or it went back to the last kid who missed.  In this way, surprisingly, a lot of the “worst” spellers got a lot of practice.  They still lost, but at least they got a chance to TRY.  And that, truly, was wonderful.  But THE BEST part was when Maria tried to spell.

Maria is pretty new to us.  She can BARELY speak any English at all and to make her do a spelling bee is almost masochistic.  Still, she tried.  And tried.  And tried.  Thankfully, she was seated behind someone who, although she is an English speaker, is almost as bad a speller as Maria is.  That worked well, because Maria would miss, but then so would the next girl, so, back to Maria it’d go.  I think at one point, they were in a five word streak.  I thought the class would get frustrated and lose patience and get rowdy, but not so.  They were SO into it.  And when Maria FINALLY got a word RIGHT, they ALL broke into spontaneous applause.  They were genuinely happy for her because they KNEW it was hard and they KNOW how shy she is.  They saw how much she was trying and they gave her props for that.  I can’t even begin to describe how wonderful that was to experience.  And it didn’t just happen once.  There’s another boy, Spanish-speaker, who has terrible hygiene.  He’s pretty low, as skills go and the kids are wont to make fun of him.  When I got to him, he refused to take part, at first.  But I told him participation wasn’t optional.  So, he tried.  Repeat the Maria situation, complete with spontaneous applause. 

Truly, the moments were magical.  To see these kids, who have to work so hard and who don’t have a lot of success have some and feel the genuine congratulations of their classmates, well, you can’t plan that, you can’t buy it and you can’t make it happen.  You just have to be grateful when it does.  And I am. 

Oh, the kid who won was the one we expected.  He’s the son of a family who has lots of resources.  He won on a flub from another kid (who I hoped would win, but figured wouldn’t).  The word?  Reenter.  Somehow it seems an appropriate word for the theme of the week…

Teacher Gifts

Ok, so this is my first year teaching and there are lots of new things to learn.  Some of these little surprises are a pain in the butt (what do you mean I “have to be on a special events committee?”), some of them are funny (you say some of the boys are swinging on the bathroom door like it’s a piece of playground equipment, huh?  Well, let’s go check that out…) and some of them are heartbreaking (yes, I know it’s no big deal that this is the third day you don’t have any lunch, but you can still eat mine). 

I forgot about  wintertime and that annual ritual: giving the teacher a gift before break.    This year I received my first “official” teacher gifts.  I didn’t expect it, so it made it double the fun.  There were some interesting and wonderful things: a way cool felted purse, a goodie basket filled with gourmet items (vanilla from Indonesia, chichi hot chocolate and grapeseed oil), chocolate covered oreos, a beautiful beaded necklace and earrings and then one of my favorite students came in with THIS:

 

I didn’t quite know what to make of it.  I mean, a coffee cup?  But this is no ordinary student.  She is extremely dyslexic, extremely bright AND extremely clever.  She’s also really talented with fabrics, as I was about to find out…

Remember, now, I had these students do a choral presentation a few weeks back.  They all wore black clothing and black berets.  And how did the poem begin?  Let’s review: “I think I could be a poet because I like to wear a lot of black and I drink a lot of expensive coffee…”

How unbelievably clever is THAT?  She made a MINI-ME!  She even knitted the little tiny beret and FELTED IT!!!  One of my friends said, “Did you cry?”  Um, HECK YEAH!!!

This is why I teach

           This week has been tough.  I think the kids are getting itchy because we’re so close to the break.  It doesn’t help that I’ve been out of the classroom two days this week as well, doing professional development.  (The classroom will not fall down if I’m not there, but the kids DO depend on me.  I am THEIR TEACHER.)  So, the days I have been there, the kids have been a mess.  Instead of the loving, joyful children I normally see, they have been grumpy and pugnacious.  They tussle over the smallest thing, including who gets what color of snap cubes for math!  They are interrupting each other and fighting over chairs at lunch.  I barked at them twice this week, which is two times more than I have all year! 

            So, is it any wonder then, that I’ve been feeling tired and asking myself, “Why am I doing this???”  Yesterday I got an answer.

             There is a boy in my class who has a lot of issues.  He has some trouble dealing with his strong emotions and is often times very angry–so angry, as a matter of fact, he can’t funtion.  He has trouble with the physical act of writing (although he loves to draw–more than anything else in the world).  He is pulled out of the classroom 5 times a week to have special services, including help with academics and occupational therapy.  His reading skills are well below grade-level.  He struggles mightily to read.  This can be a real issue, since we spend at least 30 minutes every single day doing silent, independent reading.  He LOATHES the reading time and is always asking to draw.  To get him to do ANY reading, I have to bargain with him, “If you read 15 pages, I’ll let you draw.”  He’ll say, “Ten.”  I’ll say “13.”  He’ll say, “12.”  And it’ll be a go.  But ay yi yi.  I love this kid.  He’s awesome.  He’s also a handful.  Dealing with him is like being on an emotional rollercoaster and it’s exhausting for me.  I can only imagine what it must be like for him!

He greeted me at the beginning of the day and proudly said, “I finished my book and have almost finished another.”  I gave him huge high-fives, I was so proud of him.  He grinned and said, “You know, if I read just a little more, I’ll finish this book.  Then maybe I could go to the library and get another one.  Could I do that?” 

And I did an inward dance of joy.  I replied, nonchalantly, “Uh, sure, that’d be great.”  J J J 

Then, we did a TON of writing in the afternoon.  He was struggling not to struggle.  I could see him getting frustrated, but he held it together.  I helped him get through the assignments.  (There were about five to do.)  When we got to number 4, he looked up to the sky and said, exasperated, “Arrgh!  I just can’t DO this anymore.  Can I please…” 

At this point, I was ready for him to say what he usually says: draw.  But he didn’t.  He said, “Can I please READ?” 

Oh yeah.  I’m tellin’ ya.  I was SO EXCITED.  I said to him, “Yes, Johnny, you can read.”  And he did.  He was sitting in that classroom that afternoon, reading, reading, READING.  For the first time EVER, I saw him EXCITED about reading.  

He made my week.  This is why I do this.  Turning kids on to books, helping them grow, giving them the tools they need for tomorrow, THAT is what I do.  And I do it one kid at a time.  Sometimes it’s easy to lose sight of that, like when I’m in the middle of the rollercoaster ride, but today Johnny reminded me of my focus.  Who knows what next week will bring, but today, TODAY was a GOOD day!  J