today was day 1 of year 3 of teaching in the bronx. it went MUCH smoother than i thought it would!
the kiddos seemed ready to be back in school. they were compliant, respectful and excited. i only had an issue with two students. one was a HUGE problem last year. he, for whatever reason, makes nasty comments about other students he doesnt like or about the activity we are doing if he doesnt like it. however, he did stay in his spot (although not sitting the right way) and stayed next to me during the game we played. i tried not to let him get under my skin and would put my hand on his shoulder when he started to act up, which kinda stopped his bad behavior. i also ignored his comments when we were going over the rules. however, when we started discussing spirituals and listened to a spiritual, he answered all of my questions well and respectfully. so i pulled him aside when class ended and we talked about how he’s going to have a good year. i let him know that i loved how he answered my questions and i saw a young, respectful man by the end of class. i told him i saw his great potential for this year and im excited to see him work on being a great student. this kinda perked him up a little and i checked in with him at lunch and dismissal to talk about his day. im hoping i can really work with him so hes not such a problem. the other kid i had a serious problem with was one of my second graders. basically, she was talking while there was an announcement on with another kid that talks way too much (but really cant help…its just who he is and i try my best to reign him in. hes been doing the same thing for 3 years. hes just a chatty kid!) i told both of them to stand outside with me for a minute and she was off the wall for the rest of the class. i moved her seat closer to the para (she worked with her a bit last year and thought it would be a good idea to keep her close…i only found out today i had this para during their music class) and she still wouldnt sit down. she just wanted to sit in my bean bag chair in my cool down corner and walk around class and get in kids faces. SO! im going to speak with her teacher and the para tomorrow and see what we’re going to do about her behavior because i cannot do this every class for the rest of the year. kid even left my room…sigh i hate kids that think they can leave the room! i dont understand that…ive never seen kids leave a room. this became a huge thing last year and its gotta be squashed this year. so yeah…some things to work on!
but overall, i had a good day. most of my 5th grade orchestra kids want to re-join. i met a few new faces today, but mainly new every kid that came into my room. things went smoothly. hoping the rest of this week goes just as well! definitely an improvement from yesterday.
alright i gotta figure out dinner and start working on some things for tomorrow that i couldnt work on today because we currently have no internet at work. yeah…internet is down. same thing happened last year and i have no idea why. later!
~mana~
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