I'm Disappointed

Just as my title states, I'm disappointed. I am exhausted and disappointed, even though I have given myself two days to cool down and consider the situation from afar. What else could I have done, I am am left wondering.

On Friday, because Mrs. ----- was in a meeting all day, I was left in charge of our classes completely. This was something that I was not too worried about. When it is my time to teach, I am usually left alone with them anyway. This is not new ground for me. She left me with what she wanted us to do, as it was not my lesson day, and I was left to teach them, which, again, was not a huge deal.

The real trouble came from my 3B class.

3B is a bit of a problem class anyway. They are rowdy -- almost all of them are football boys, and seventh graders besides -- and, as they have just come in from lunch, they are full of energy too. Sometimes they're good, but they're often trouble for Mrs. -----.

We were supposed to be annotating a chapter from Booker T. Washington's Up From Slavery, which is not that difficult. We have annotated before, so they are used to it. The problem is that they simply could not keep their little mouths shut for more than three minutes at a time. They know that they're supposed to raise their hands to comment or ask a question, and yet they continued to speak out of turn. One of them kept shushing other students even after I told him that that was definitely not necessary.

I had to stop class several times, we only made it partially through the part that we were annotating as a class, and they thoroughly showed their butts in front of the substitute that was in the class with me. I let them know that I was very disappointed with them for how they acted, and they acted chastised. I have to admit that I felt rather pleased at the look of horror on their faces when I told them that I would be leaving Mrs. ----- a note about their behavior. I hope they stewed in that worry all weekend, as they are not going to be happy in class on Monday.

I will have to talk about their behavior with Mrs. ----- tomorrow. I wanted to assign what they were doing to be done on Monday, but I didn't want to circumvent her authority in doing so, even though I am fairly certain she wouldn't have minded.....

Self-Reflection

This blog post is just me reflected on the lesson (or lessons) that I taught in our methods class the last two weeks. I now know that my first lesson I taught on annotation was not the right kind of lesson for this particular assignment, but I must say, I thought it went very well. I thought this lesson was a good one because it contained authentic literacy. This is one of my favorite methods. I like how it eases students into accomplishing tasks on their own a little at a time. I also used modeling in this lesson when I annotated the monkey article for the class, and this is a wonderful thing to do. It shows the students EXACTLY what you want them to do. So yes. This lesson was not fit for the assignment, but the methods that I used were good ones.

The last lesson I taught on Step Up To Writing went really well too. I LOVE Step Up To Writing. That's probably an understatement, actually. I've seen it work with my 9th graders, and it made me so happy, especially since I was beginning to lose hope for them. I thought this lesson went so well because of how wonderfully it breaks up students' writing. It gives them a framework to stay in when they write, and students that are new to writing really need this to help them format their work. I also used modeling with this lesson when I taught it in methods and when I actually taught it to my 9th grade students, and that worked wonderfully. I think it worked so well because students saw that I am willing to do what I ask them to do, and to be honest, I felt like it put us all on the same level for a moment. I think this help motivate my students.

Both of the lessons I taught in methods were lessons that I actually taught to my 9th graders. I saw them work in the classroom. Sure, I had some students struggle. That's reality. But I am very happy to see that both of these lessons gave my students a boost in the way they read and write, and with a class as behind as this one is, I need all of the boosts I can get.

Ain't Nobody Got Time for That...And That...And That....

To be honest, I’m not entirely sure what to say in this particular blog post. We are supposed to reflect on the lesson we did for our methods class. I think it went alright too, I suppose. Both of the lessons I did…because I did not look closely enough at the prompt. The lesson was supposed to be a writing lesson. I (and Haley) did a reading lesson. Well, technically it was an annotating lesson, but the point was that it was supposed to be teaching a way to write an informational or argumentative essay. And I definitely did not do that the first time around.

The second try was better, and, honestly, it was actually easier too. That’s strange to say, but I really only had to go over what you have to do for each section, make sure everyone had a handout and paper to work on, and model it. It was way easier. I guess that is why my original lesson was so much harder to plan. I thought that I had to put a lot into each lesson.

And that is not true at all.

I have learned over the last few months that a lesson does not need to contain a PowerPoint and a huge activity and everything under the sun. You can be just as effective (perhaps even more so) with just the minimal amount of things passed out to students and a bit of creative work. And I know that I am so much less stressed that way.

And that’s a good thing, as I feel so much better when I am not worrying about every time, little thing. Nobody has time for so much worrying, especially not me.

Flipping the Script

Up until this point, my two 7th grade classes have been the ones I have looked forward to the most. They usually participate, and I am usually impressed by their performance My 9th grade class has been my greatest challenge, and they usually drain me of most of my energy. Lately, this has not been the case. What's happening....

Allow me to explain exactly what has been going on. My 9th graders have been surprisingly pleasant. I usually struggle with getting them to care about the lessons I teach, and I usually have to spend 90% of my energy trying to keep this class quiet and on task. For the past few days, something has changed. They seem to be paying attention better than before. Of course this is leading to their understanding the material better. I am no longer having to slow down as much as I was having to before. We are staying on schedule due to their effort and understanding. As far as their behavior is concerned, I am pleasantly surprised. Actually, I would say I am thrilled. They seem to have realized that I am going to be around awhile and that they are better off to do as I say. I finally feel respected. This class is still a challenge of course, but I can't believe the progress they have made in both their performance and behavior.

My 7th graders? I'm not sure what's happening there. They seem to be the bigger challenge right now. Their behavior isn't the issue. So far, I have found that 7th graders behave better than a lot of other grades. So then what is the issue with my 7th graders? I'll tell you...lack of effort. I'm currently struggling with getting my students to understand the importance of what I'm teaching them. There has recently been a lack of interest during my lessons and activities. I am trying to find new ways to interest them and fun ways to help them learn, but it's not helping much. I believe part of the problem is the thinking that I'm asking them to do. These students have not been asked to think this critically until now, and I get the feeling they are just giving up on me...

So I clearly titled this entry "Flipping the Script" because it's almost like my two grade levels have switched places. My 9th graders are making so much progress, and my 7th graders are sitting still. One thing is for sure...I need to keep it up with my 9th graders. I need to keep challenging them and keep them heading in the right direction. With my 7th graders, I have no idea what I'm going to do. I do know that I need to just keep my head above water. I can't give up on them, and I have to keep looking for new ways to get these students to care about the material. I hope the script won't be flipped for too much longer and both of my classes will be where they NEED to be. I prefer not to have one grade level that is the "problem" class.