And then my 3rd hour College Prep Lit class walked in the door.
And I was reminded that teaching is not always perfect and inspiring. Sometimes it resembles a Welcome Back, Kotter episode....
In the space of ten minutes today, I:
- Listened to complaints about how hot my room is and explained they could sit in the hall and work
- Repeated the directions for the day 19 times (Once for each student. Because you know it only counts if you say it directly to them)
- Explained 19 times that the assignment for the day was also on Schoology---our LMS (This is besides the fact that I also handed out a a calendar with the work for each day)
- Reminded one he needs this class to graduate and to get to work
- Again, listened to complaints about the heat. Again, suggested the hallway
- Explained that the work for this assignment needed to be worthy of the 20 points (a point for each word, right?)
- Regretted telling a student she could use the "B" word in her letter when describing a character. That opened the door for negotiations with the others.
- Again, reminded senior he needed to get some work done
- More complaints about the heat
- Told students I was rewriting my blog post.
- Explained that John Travolta was hot--- in 1975---when I was 18. They just shook their heads and had no clue who I was talking about until a bright girl in the corner reminded us he was in the movie Old Dogs.
Finally, class ended. 15 of 19 turned in their work.
Here comes 4th hour...
"Geez. It's like a sauna in here."
The lesson? Some days--heck, most days--are more like Kotter than any of us want to admit. This group I have 3rd hour are smart, they discuss and argue and back themselves up with facts. Most of them read a lot.
And somedays, they like to push my buttons.
Oh, the every day life of a teacher. But then, as I remind Michelle each day - Be Positive, spread positive, encourage positive - not always easy, but a good way to change our attitude. Good luck tomorrow. It will be a better day!
ReplyDeleteI love that "B word" and how the negotiations followed! It's that the way it always is: you open the door a crack, they kicking it the rest of the way in! Tomorrow will be a better day.
ReplyDeleteMaybe your room won't be so warm as well! :)
It actually wasn't a bad day---kind of funny---it just wasn't the tranquil learning environment I was going to write about :)
DeleteOMG! This is such an accurate description of my day, and I teach 7 and 8 year olds. It's funny how some things stay the same through the grades.
ReplyDeleteI have a former student who teaches kindergarten. When she posts things on Facebook that kids have said or done in her room, they actually could have happened in mine. Kids are kids, no matter how old :)
DeleteWhat a great post! I love that you made the change and told your students about it.
ReplyDeleteLove this realistic view of one period in your day. Some days you wonder why you do it, and then along comes the perfect day (once in a blue moon) that allows you to wax poetic about this chosen career.
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ReplyDeleteGreat Blog..!Thanks for sharing this blog,it was very helpful.
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