so, yesterday was the first day of school and i greeted 27 new faces. so, i fell short of the 31 on my list. despite the large number, we had a great day. granted, i was exhausted at the end of the day. i came home, talked to my aunt about the day, and then went right to bed. i got up later, ate, and tweaked my lesson plans for today, and then got in the bed.
i hadn't gotten much sleep, so i was dead tired. but, then i thought about one of my students and knew i had to get up and get ready for a new day with them. it's funny, because last year, my students didn't motivate me to get up in the morning. i see my students now and i just wave at them and ease on down the road. it's probably a blessing i'm not teaching 2nd grade, as i'd be ultra strict. but, don't get it twisted, i'm strict with my students now. if something's not done correctly the first time, they will do it over and over again until it's right. hopefully they're getting it. one thing i'm struggling with is making sure they understand how why they're doing something. that's one thing i've noted that's lacking in the lower grades--- kids are just told to do things with no explanation of why.
anyway, today, i gained 5 new students and have been brought up to 32. (the other 1st grade teacher has 31 students.) when we walk down the halls, my kids follow behind me like a train. the thing that's so interesting is that they don't seem to know or understand that their class is oversized. they just continue with the status quo. thankfully, i also have a sweet class. most of them are first time 1st graders and that makes all the difference. they seem to truly love learning and being at school. their desire to please me is readily apparent. i told them they would learn to count to 100 by the end of the year, and some of them actually cheered. lol... last year, that would not have been the case as a 1/3 of my students were retained and the thrill of being in the 1st grade was over for them. so, as they say, every year is totally different.
there's no word yet on when (or if) another teacher will be hired. until then, i'm just doing the best i can. i'm still trying to figure out how i'm going to work with them in small groups and meet our goal. i just can't give up this early in the game.
until next time...
9 comments:
Seems like T.F.A. should have some young and eager fresh meat to step in and take up the slack. That's a lot of kids. I hope something is worked out soon.
LOL @ the kids cheering at learning how to count to 100 by the end of the year. You're going to put them to work counting and wrapping pennies aren't you?
Sounds like this year is off to a good start! I hope it stays that way.
freaky:
the thing is that tfa places all of their teachers by the start of the school year. so, the 2008 corps already has jobs. anyway, it is a lot. i got my 33rd student this morning. the entire school has oversized classes, but 1st grade has it the worst.
d-place:
despite the class size, things are going well. they are at the very least better than last year.
Dang that's a lot of kids...I tell ya
I know you will do great :)
When I first read, that hey were first ime first grsders, I instantly thought, well aren't most kids first imers on the first day of school?..thenI read how your previous year over 1 third of the class was repeaters.. all I have to say is ....Dayum... The first grade?
I know this is going to sound bad of me, but is this a inner city school? Because that's what it sounds like
ANyway, I'm glad to hear that a teacher's students is what motivates them to get up out of bed in the morning!
With 33 kids, do you at least have a teacher aid in the room too?
honey:
yes, it is a lot of children! it's only by the grace of God i've managed to come each and every day w/ a smile on my face.
yb&dl:
yes, it was shameful the number of students who were retained that year. HISD has district wide promotion standards, and if the students don't meet them, the only choice is to retain them.
yep, my school is a poor, urban area. it's not bad to ask that. sadly, the norm is for schools in this area to be a mess.
last year was my first year and it was rough. to be honest, each and every morning i wasn't able to say my students motivated me to go to work.
no aide. it's just me!
See! Things looking better already for this school year! Do you or the school do something special for the 100th day of school?
i'm praying that things stay that way!
my school doesn't do anything for the 100th day of school, but i'm planning to do something since i didn't do it last year. it'll probably be something centered around Dr. Seuss, since his b-day usually falls around the 100th day.
i'm praying that things stay that way!
my school doesn't do anything for the 100th day of school, but i'm planning to do something since i didn't do it last year. it'll probably be something centered around Dr. Seuss, since his b-day usually falls around the 100th day.
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