If I'm going to be completely honest in this blog I have to admit that I screamed at my class yesterday. Of course I'm embarrassed and ashamed. Part of it is due to how the classroom is structured with our ELMO (like an overhead projector). It's by the door, NOT in front of the class. I often work from the whiteboard with our worksheet or whatever displayed onto the board. However, when I want to show my class something and manipulate objects like I did during the math lesson I have to stand at the corner of the room which does not help at all. Mind you, math is at the END of the day, after lunch, specials, language and snack. AND yesterday was one of the first warm days in Oregon in a long time! All day long, and especially through math, kids just kept talking and talking and talking when I was talking.
During 1st recess at 9:30 I was cool, calm, and matter of fact about it. SEVEN of my 28 kids spent 2 - 3 minutes practicing a rule. I told them not to worry about it they would remember next time. I had SEVERAL of those same kids during different parts of the day who were reciting rules again...and again!
To make matters worse I have three kids with a communication disorder and the aid who is in charge of two of them was out sick and her position didn't fill! These kids are pulled out for about 75% of the day to have 1:2 instruction.
During a brief 'time out' while the kids had their heads down a LOT of the kids were playing with the velcro from their name tags. Next thing I know I'm taking all of their name tags off and throwing them in the garbage.
I just WISH I had started WBT so much earlier than the last week of March. I plan to use this summer to plan, prepare, and study WBT as much as I can!!!
Not ot mention, as the year closes, the kindergarten assessment packet is HUGE, so there are plenty of unstructured times while I'm trying to assess.
Will hope, pray, and PREPARE better for today.
Thanks for being honest, Megan! It is good to hear others' struggles. I had an awful day this week too and wrote about it in my blog: http://awholebrainteacher.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteNo matter what we do, we are still human and have bad days. I think that is important to remember. WBT is not a cure-all, but it definitely gives us the tools to manage our classes in more positive ways. While I still have bad days, I can also see how much things have improved in the past year. I can't wait to start fresh and try again next year!
Megan...first let me say...IT'S COOL!!!! Girl when I first started teaching in my current school, I was in a bit of culture shock! Here I was, former military, and used to kids just naturally listening to me...I am naturally loud, not necessarily yelling, and kids were just always intimidated by me...so classroom behavior had never been an issue for me...OH WAS I IN FOR A SHOCK! I remember after the first three weeks of school (in PRE-K mind you) I had been threatened with scissors, my TA had her hair cut, a chair was thrown at me and one kid even turned a round table over and broke a leg off during a tantrum! I was in tears! This is when I started browsing the internet for "classroom management" ideas. Oh there were a slue of them! I came across Andrea's videos...started digging into the website and just started implementing the procedures....not the teaching part...just the procedures! I was AMAZED! Because of my experience with the program I am a MAJOR ALL THE WAY BUY IN ADVOCATE for WBT! For me it was a cure all! I literally took each step and implemented it "exactly" the way it was described. For me, I am a believer in if it ain't broke don't fix it! So I figured...if this was working for Andrea...I would make it work for me! Now...over the past two years I have adapted things a bit...but not much...I pretty much stick to the program!
ReplyDeleteMy advice to you...first give yourself a break! It took me two years to get where I am with WBT and I am by no means "there"! But I will say that I enjoy teaching again and the results speak for themselves....and when I have a "bad" day it is so much better than any bad day I ever had before! You can do this girl! I believe in you and so do all the other WBTeers out there!
Power to the Teachers!
Farrah Shipley
Hey Megan - 28 smilies to you for teaching 28 Kindergarten kids!!!! You deserve a huge 10 finger WOO!! Hang in there! I've only been doing WBT a year and a half and my class still has its days - especially when the weather changes!
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