I had a looooong day. Classes were good except my second period class was simply dreadful. There is a large group of boys in there that can be very loud and immature. They are seniors and they would not stop arguing over whether or not to have the window open and having pen mark wars (You must know what this is--trying to mark on each other with a pen? Oh, don't you? Yeah, I never saw such a thing in my life until I came here.) This was while the rest of the class was trying to read the play aloud. I was ready to kill them. I kept one boy after and spoke with him (I spoke to a few others the day before). They will be sitting apart from now on. This is the huge class that I have that will get like five to ten more next semester. GREEEEEEAT.
We had an early staff meeting this morning so I was at school from 7:30 AM to 9:30 PM. SO healthy, I know. I had to do grades for four classes because our end-of-semester is rapidly approaching and I said everything is due after this weekend. Anyway, I'm done with all except for one class, the last period that I have lunch and my prep before. So I should be fine. I wanted to just finish it all, but somehow I just couldn't. I did take a break to go to the wrestling match. I went to one when my high school boyfriend had one, but I couldn't remember it. That is one weird sport. I saw some of my kids wrestle, which was cool. Two won and one lost. I wouldn't mind going again, but I really didn't understand it too well. Tomorrow is the girls' basketball game, so I would love to go, but it's always hard convincing Justin to go to these games. I think he feels weird when the kids stare at him when I take him places! :) I think it's really cute how they are so into finding out about him and meeting him.
All I want to do is lay around and watch TV lately. I think it's part of being exhausted. Unfortunately I am a multi-tasker, so I get bored JUST watching TV. I can't wait until American Idol starts back up on January 21st! Mark your calendar, if you haven't already.
The advanced sophomores seemed pretty into their lesson today. Not that they ever complain, because they are my "good" kids who believe that I am torturing them for their own good or something, but they seemed extra excited. Whoever said that advanced kids were a dream was lying, though. They are super noisy kids, although quite lovable.
My newest freshman boy finally opened up today. Up until this point he has been super quiet in there. Today he kept asking me questions about the book and how it is possible that people could have let the holocaust happen. I reminded him that only 5% (or was it 10%) of the people took action against it...it is always interesting when the new kids start becoming themselves. He is also quite popular with the ladies, which is pretty amusing.
My other new girl got a referral from me for skipping today. She left my class with twenty-seven minutes to go, with the intention of returning right away, but never came back. I had to write her up. She really set herself up with me because we could have been okay, but she forced me to write her up, which in turn forces her to hate me (at least for now). So...that really sucks, because it always sucks having a kid that hates you in your class. She supposedly wanted to go talk to the principal, but she never went to the office. I was secretly hoping that she was going to ask if she could get out of my class and into another English class because she hates me. She has been having problems with all of her teachers. With one teacher she raised her hand and asked if there were any other teachers that taught that class because she did not like him. How rude!
I talked to Skater Boy #1 today (I had to kick him out yesterday due to inappropriate language) and he shattered all illusions I had of being the young cool teacher. I told him how much I like him but that he has been so negative lately and it's been really hard. I asked him if there was anything going on and he said scathingly, "You wouldn't understand." Well. Here I thought that I could still relate to the kids and what they are going through, but apparently I am now viewed as "other"--the adult who doesn't understand those crazy teenagers. Maybe he'll tell me about it in his journal, or maybe he won't. In any case he agreed that the inappropriate language would stop, and that's what's IMPORTANT right? HA.
Actually they are looking at reversing mainstreaming with some certain kids at our school, including Skater #1 and Skater #3. Quite a few kids are basically failing their classes, even with an aide in there to help and so they want to do the class with those kids grouped together. My biggest fear is that it will end up how it usually seems to--with the special ed. classes taught by the aides, who are not trained as teachers and are not licensed as teachers, rather than the teachers who are (I guess because special ed. teachers have so much paperwork, so they never have time to teach). I believe in mainstreaming, on the one hand, because I think that kids in special ed. get a really shitty education in special ed. But I don't believe in mainstreaming, on the other hand, because in my experience the kids don't get what they need since the teacher can't possibly give them what they need when they have thirty others to deal with at the same time. The special ed. aides have been completely unhelpful and even distracting for me. Does anyone else have aides in their classes? How does it work? What do they do? I thought it might be helpful, and am used to having them there now, but it's not working very well at all. Part of the problem is that they only show up about half the time, or they show up late so they cause the distraction of the door opening and everyone looks over and I lose my train of thought. Whenever I plan a lesson that could utilize them, they don't show up. I can't count on them, so how am I supposed to use them? I know that I should say something but I can't seem to do it. It pisses me off because I think it is unprofessional and because they put them in my room, so they should not make things MORE difficult for me, you know? Anyway, enough about that. Hopefully it is just at my school. I really do think that the state of special ed. in this nation is a complete and total disgrace. I hope it's not like this all over, but it sounds even worse where my mom works.
George Bush needs to be electricuted, and I don't even believe in capital punishment. Take a wild guess why I saying this.
