field trips and management techniques
Yes, after nearly a month, I strike again. I am still not resigned to losing my high schoolers. But, I am willing to adapt. . .for now. . .as it seems I must.
On a lighter note, Friday I took the 5th/6th graders on a field trip. We went to the planetarium and saw a show. . .rather geared for slightly younger children, but it was fun. . .and then did a hands-on science class about plants. The lady who taught it was slightly mean. Rather than re-direct questions when they were answered wrongly, she would say, "NO! Anyone else?" Just like that. I was a little surprised by her grouchiness on one hand and then over enthusiasm on the other. Weird. It was fun, also, though. We ate lunch on the lawn of the Old State Capitol as it was gorgeous outside, and all the kids got to roll down the hill. That, apparently was the most fun! I really enjoyed myself. It's the first field trip I've been on this year. The 6th grade went to a cotton gin earlier in the year, but I stayed with the 5th grade that day, so this was a nice time for me. A little draining and stressful (after all, as their teacher I'm responsible for their behavior--and they're in public!), but very enjoyable.
That evening was the girls' first home game. That was much more stressful. They played very well--in fact in court presence and ball handling, they had the other team beat hands down. But, no matter how many shots we took, they just wouldn't go in. Well five of them went in, but the other team did much better at the shots attempted/shots made ratio! But the same thing happened to the boys. Wierd karma or something. But, I can tell the girls are improving. And I am learning. And we're all having fun. And that makes it worth every minute.
Okay, back to school. I will readily admit that my greatest weakness as a teacher comes in the class management arena. And that is closely followed by neatness/organization. So, I sat down with a fellow teacher last week--well, she sat down with me to see if I needed some tips/help--and we talked about it. One thing I hate--HATE--is when people come to me and say, for example: the girls need to be more aggressive on the court; or your students need to be neater. And that's all. no suggestions for how to do that, just a statement of the obvious. What I appreciate is the statement followed by an action that I can implement. My colleage fulfilled my need. We came up with a few things to implement to see how they help the general air of the classroom--and improve my management.
*First, we decided that the students need to remain in their desks more during class. ok. I should clarify--they aren't running around like wild creatures during class, but they have often sat on the floor or in our window seat during class. Mary thought that keeping them in their desks more would keep them neater and more attentively quiet. Also, it limits the priviledges of the window seat.
*Second, limit who can sit in the window seat. i decided that the new criteria for the window seat would be that a)the student's name isn't on the board (they get their name on the board when they break a rule, a circle for the second offense, and detention for the third--kind of a three strikes thing), and b)the student's desk is neat and was neat at the end of yesterday. And window seat priveledges are not to be asked for--I will grant them.
*Third, after every subject, everything at their desk needs to be put away. The only thing that may be at their desk other than current work is their pencil box (into which all pencils go at the end of the day) and one thing to work on (like cross-stitch or a book) after they are finished with their work. Everything else goes into their crate after each subject. That has helped amazingly to keep the room clean. I was waiting until the end of the day to straighten up, and that was just too long.
I really appreciated the help with finding specific things to work on, and those things are really helping. We're still struggling a bit with always raising our hands and wait to be called on before speaking, but we're getting there. This week may be the battle ground of proving since it is the last week before Christmas Break!