Where's the Honeymoon???

Three weeks of school is over. I am shocked I have made it this far. The first couple of weeks are usually very long but the kids usually give you a "honeymoon" phase before they start showing you what they are really made of. After the first two weeks, I thought I was ready for a divorce since I was just going through the honeymoon and things weren't looking pleasant.

Where's the Honeymoon Incident #1:

My first incident was the 3rd day of school. I had one boy who stole something from another student and the playground teacher caught him and instead of listening to her, he ran to the edge of the school property, by the woods, behind the baseball diamond. I went to pick up my kids and asked where he was...the kids pointed to the bright orange figure far, far away. I soon realized our principal was on her way to go get him so I went back to class and continued teaching. After talking to this boy and succeeding in not having him leave the school property he was sent back to class to only cause more issues. He was so defiant and wouldn't listen to a word I said. In the lunch line, I nicely mentioned to him that we were going to have to chat for a few minutes during recess to figure out what was going on. He gave me the look of death, turned his back on me, folded his arms and said, "TRY ME!" I was on fire and said, "Oh, I will try you. You won't even know what happened to you when I'm done with you. I'm taking you down, down to China Town! You just messed with the wrong person, kid!" Ok, so I didn't actually say that out loud but I did let him know he wasn't coming back to my class until he calmed down. Lesson Learned: Even though this boy got under my skin, I was reminded how amazing it is to work for someone who handles these situations in the right way. My principal was 100% supportive!

Where's the Honeymoon Incident #2:

That afternoon, Jose's mother came to me and said that Carlos was not going to be at school on Friday. I thought to myself...whatever! He's not in my class, but thanks for letting me know. When "Jose" wasn't at school on Friday, I realized I had been calling this boy the wrong name this whole time. His name tag was wrong, all his beginning of the year bookmark and art stuff was wrong, all his folders were wrong, all my class lists were wrong, everything that had been laminated and made so carefully were wrong. "Jose" was a new student who moved from Arizona and doesn't speak very much English. He was too shy to say anything or didn't know how to say something in English. I get a gold star for making him feel welcome, huh! It took forever to change his name on everything!! I am really sorry, Carlos! Lesson Learned: When someone on your class list has six names, don't assume they go by the first one.

Where's the Honeymoon Incident #3:

The following Monday (day 5) I had a parent waiting at my classroom door to speak with me. She told me about an incident that happened with her son and another girl in my class. She said some pretty inappropriate things to her son and he came home confused and shocked. I was shocked myself which started the process of contacting Child Protective Services. The nurse gave me a pep talk before I called since I had never done this before. I have wanted to but I was "recommended" not to. To this day, I regret that. Anyways, I was ready to go in and tell them my situation and ask to "speak to a supervisor" if I needed to. I was freaked but I did it and it went very well...no supervisors needed. Lesson Learned: More lessons than I can get into but there are some really broken children out there and it will break your heart to hear their stories. Even though I was nervous to call CPS, I was so proud of myself for doing it and will never hesitate to call again if I feel the need. Even if someone tells you they don't think CPS will do anything about it so there's no need to call...you owe it to the child to have an expert figure out what to do.

Where's the Honeymoon Incident #4:

That Thursday (Day 8) my little "try me" friend came to school already in a defiant mood. Long story short...he was showing his anger and throwing things in his desk. I called the office to help me remove him from the classroom. I mentioned quietly that the principal was coming to get him and he said, "She will never be able to get me out of here!!" It did take her a good 10-15 minutes but succeeded in removing him until the end of the day. Lesson Learned: If something like this happens in the first 20 minutes of the day...it is ok to drink 5 Diet Pepsi's and eat chocolate all day long to help you make it through.

Where's the Honeymoon Incident #5-500

The incidents above were the most challenging or memorable but the first two weeks were the hardest out of the five years I have been teaching. On top of all the child issues, I had to teach and plan lessons and figure out how to teach 2nd and 3rd graders. I have some kids who don't know all their letters and some kids who are reading well above a 5th grade reading level. I have been exhausted. I have been working all day dealing with issues and working all night planning lessons, leaving little time for sleep or sanity. My class as a whole started out very rocky. They had a HARD time listening, following directions, remembering directions, etc. It was painful! After several prayers and trying new things, the start to the third week seemed to change direction. The kids were slowly picking up on how to behave and were easier to manage. I have two kids who don't speak English but they are the sweetest kids. I am also pretty sure I will have to sit down and have a hard talk with a couple parents about seeing a doctor for a few behavior issues. I've got some tough kids and tough situations but these kids are mine and I have already seen small progress which makes me keep going. Lesson Learned: Even though the Honeymoon hasn't been great, it doesn't mean things won't work out. Here's to a great week #4!

Thanks for listening to my first few weeks of school. It may help you know how the Life of Fife has been, but it helps me get out what has built up inside and allows me to start a new day with a positive outlook. And if you have something to say about how long this post is...."TRY ME!!!"