Can I go potty?

Sometimes I forget that these giant, half-grown people in front of me are still little kids. I was reminded of that today when one 7th grade boy who is taller than me raised his hand and asked sweetly (and rather loudly)  “Can I go potty?”

Oh my kiddos.. They’re the best!

It smells like a skunk in here...

So, each day I greet my kids with a handshake and smile at the door and allow them to walk in and get settled. After I've shaken the last hand and said my last good morning or good afternoon, I follow my kids inside the room. As I walked in today, the stench hit me lull force and made my eyes water. At that same exsct moment, one of my sweet, innocent kiddos said "ewwwww. Ms. N, it smells like a skunk in here.". Of course, some of my kids who are a little more worldly started snickering loudly at the comment.

It seriously smelled like a student had just lit up in the classroom or had come from smoking in the bathroom (which is right next to my room). A quick phone call to our campus muscle and students were questioned, backpacks were searched and my suspicions were confirmed. Sure enough, first drug bust of the year was in my little ol' classroom. Ain't middle school grand?

Rolling with the punches: new schedules and no books, etc., ASB meeting, btsn, etc.

Sure, I can totally pull two – two and a half weeks of lesson plans out of thin air in the next 48 hours. Cause that’s what I do. I’m a teacher, yo, and I got mad skillz… I spent the better part of my summer researching methods to improve my classroom performance and planning explicit lessons and activities for the first three weeks of school, thereafter I would switch to our district approved ELD curriculum that I have already become familiar with and outlined for the first trimester. I started the year feeling so completely prepared, knowing exactly how the first part of my year would go. I feel like the universe just pulled the rug out from under me and said, “haha, just kidding”.

He’s baaaa-aaaaaaak

In your mind, imagine the iconic music from Jaws or Pyscho and the feeling of dread those sounds bring to mind. That’s how I felt when a young man named C. strode right into the middle of my 6^th period class and announced loudly, “Hey Ms. N – I’m back! Aren’t you glad to see me?” Now, this kid is adorable; he’s tiny and got dimples.  He looks like a cherub, but his behavior is anything but cherubic. He is henceforth known as Streakerboy – due to an unfortunate incident last year where he was caught streaking in his underclothes across campus after school. He actually made it across the field and over the fence and they didn’t catch him then, but they catch up with all of his “friends” who had caught it all on their cell phone video cameras. Gotta love technology! He was promptly disciplined by admin, and I heard about it a few days later.

His behavior issues are a significant problem in class. He is a class clown, loves attention, talks back at every opportunity and rarely completes work. Working his way up through numerous levels of behavior contracts and SSTs with parents didn’t help last year. I certainly hope he has matured some this year.

You were cooler last year

Yep, sure, I was cooler last year. I let you get away with talking, being goofy, and not buckling down on your work because I was using every ounce of my teaching prowess to try and break the bad habits you picked up with three months of subs and keep you and several other kids from fighting, throwing things and otherwise mauling each other during class. So yeah, I guess I was cooler last year, but I wasn’t the teacher I normally am, I was the best teacher I could be under the circumstances.

One of my kiddos, a 6 foot tall 8^th grade boy who reminds me so much of my goofy best friend in elementary school raised his hand so politely and asked “so, like, Ms. N. – are you trying to be more professional or something?” I was caught so off guard that I wasn’t sure whether to laugh, cry or reprimand his impertinence!

When I finally got my wits about me, I explained to him and the rest of the class what my teaching style is really like and how last year wasn’t the best example… LOL

The Honeymoon is Over – or Aaarrrrrhhhhhhh!!!!! Week 2 and Already a Rule Broken

Let me preface this by saying that I’m really pleased with my classes this year. My challenging kids from last year are nicely distributed amongst all of my periods and the mix of 7^th and 8^th graders is fantastic! The ideas and techniques I gleaned from my Pinterest and YouTube explorations have proven to be very effective.

But… It seems that the honeymoon period is truly over and the kids are starting to test boundaries. Today the several classes were overly talkative and I had to raise my voice to talk over them and quiet them down… L  I’m feeling a little discouraged about this, but I think that if I stay strong and tough now, it’ll set us up for a good year. Here’s hoping!

The 7th graders are so cute and tiny and other things I never thought I’d say about teaching middle school…

Well, first week is down, and I couldn’t be more pleased. I was tough, but kind and utilized all the strategies I picked up over the summer. As expected, the first day was blissfully perfect - the kids all bright and shiny, sitting in their new seats, in their new uniforms with their new supplies, all acting like model students. Ahhhh – if only that were reality the rest of the year.