I Was So Cute As A Kid...
I was so cute as a kid...
My very first day of teaching…
I taught paleontology.
I was six-years-old.
I had five students.
They were my Cabbage Patch Kids.
More Posts from Rengerain and Others
Contaminated Gifts...
Booger cookies are
A very thoughtful gift, dear
I think I’ll pass.
Physical Therapy...
Uneven ceiling
Wall colors strange holes in beds
Stretch, ow, strengthen, ow
Tree Genocide...
Shadows forest love.
Verdant protection from light.
Stop killing them please.
Eleventh Classroom...
It’s been a year…
Still AroAce…
Still a teacher…
Still barely sane…
I went from being a ‘traveling ESL teacher’ to a paraprofessional at a Montessori school. I am not impressed. Oh sure, Montessori is a wonderful learning philosophy but it is not for everyone. It is certainly not for a teacher with ADHD that struggles with hyperfocus. The individualized lessons given are often at the cost of classroom management or vice versa.
The parents who send their kids to a Montessori school do so in lieu of seeking out professional help for their unique or troubled child. I have TWELVE out of twenty-six students who are either obviously ADHD or obviously Autistic to some degree. Two have IEPs and the rest are ‘busy kids’ in their parents’ eyes.
This is a challenge that I have no problem with. I LOVE my students.
BUT I am not thrilled with their parents…
‘I want to focus on this pregnancy’…Yeah, but while you’re doing that you could LAY in bed and work with your son on his letter sounds.
‘My parents are in a motel getting their act together’…AKA, drug addicts.
‘My mom says that this rule is dumb’…Sorry, it’s a SCHOOL rule. No sweets.
The only thing worse than the parents is how this school is run…
The double standards and obvious favoritism is what REALLY pisses me off.
I do my job, I get yelled at by THREE different people.
Someone else DOESN’T do their job and they get praised…wonderful.
Oh yeah, and we have FOUR Montessori teachers out of FORTY.
Seventh Classroom…
It was mostly in the library at first…
A pull out situation for English Language Learners…
Three and a half weeks were spent on ACCESS testing…
Two weeks were spent in the classroom…
Then BOOM: Pandemic…
There was no reason for me to stay at the Grad House so I left…
Well, I picked up UDairy Ice Cream and Ramen from Kumamoto in Newark, DE…
THEN I left…
So really, my seventh classroom was mostly on Zoom…
I did not end up doing the edTPA…
But I have a lesson, materials, and assessments set up to do so…
Breaking News!
There is a young boy at my school. I have no idea what he has been through for the past several months. All I know is that his grandfather now has custody of a two-year-old, a four-year-old, and a six-year-old (my student). These kids haven’t been in school since it shut down back in March of 2020. Grandpa owns his own company…a small one-person kind of company. He can’t afford to feed and clothe these kids. Mercifully this little guy has a decent coat and sneakers.
My school provided a backpack.
His other teacher provided school supplies.
I bought him masks and hand sanitizer. His teacher showed me a picture of him with a messy faced grin as he ate his breakfast. One of the masks I got him hung just under his chin. It was dark blue with stars and rocket ships. I’m so happy I could put a smile on this boy’s face!
Now if only I could get him to like reading…
Chocolate
Chocolate is love.
A filling is optional.
Peanut butter though.
Tired...
No energy
Still rather depressed at times
Creativity.
Adventures in Spec Ed...
No, they’re my shinies!
Meow, meow nuzzle cat.
Yum tater tots, yum.
Sixth Classroom...
Three weeks just sitting in a library watching ELLs take the ACCESS test…
Oh great, Corona.
I’m banned from the school and go home.
Now, the school shuts down and the children seldom show.
I sit in my bedroom talking to the walls on Zoom.
YouTube stories…picture books and animations on environmental and wildlife conservation…
Stories lead to class discussions and simple assignments.
The edTPA is not going to happen.
Thankfully I don’t need it for institutional backing once I finally graduate.
Virtual classrooms where students are constantly interrupted by poor internet or having to watch younger siblings.
These kids are learning nothing yet being passed onto the next grade.
It’s such a disservice…
