13-ish weeks into the year...

Well, I guess if you looked at the date of my last post, that could be SOME indication of how my year is going.

I feel stressed and cut as thin as I absolutely could be, and I love every single second of it. Teaching has been nothing at all like I thought it would be. I learn something new, and I am surprised at my students and my self every single day.

I wanted to keep this blog as a regular log of the trials and triumphs of a first year teacher- and I have not been successful with this goal.

The good news: I have only had one major "trial" and it didn't involve any students.

I have really great students. They are funny and keep me on my toes. I feel like I have a great relationship with them, and I feel like they are getting a fair amount out of my class. We are currently reading The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton and they are hungry for that book. I always teach a lesson before we get to reading the novel, and they are so eager to read that they want to rush me through the lesson. As a lover of literature, that makes my heart flip with joy.

I also go my dream wish, and I am the new Drama Club sponsor for the school. I am currently working on a play which I put together (just 4 children's books about school) and my kids are amazing actors- I just wish I could get ALL of them to show up to rehearsal all at once.

I hope to do a better job of frequently updating on what's going on in school- mostly what I have learned...so to satisfy your visit, here is a list of things I have learned about middle schoolers:

1. They are mature one minute where you feel you are talking to an adult, and complete babies the next. Sometimes, this can happen in the same sentence.

2. If they EVER misplace something such as a pencil or classwork, someone stole it. Then, when they find where they put it, someone still stole it and put it there.

3. They have bladders worse than an old person. Somehow they have to go to the bathroom once a class period. After several weeks of falling for this one, I became wise and the jig was up.

4. They want to be treated with respect and like individuals. I try my hardest to do this- but I'm not always capable of the second part.

5. They have a price- and it is usually a silly band. If I need one of them to study harder or complete an assignment, the promise of silly bands is the trick.

6. They enjoy responsibility. I have created a million little jobs around my classroom, and they fight for them- even to sweep the classroom. They want to feel important.

7. No matter what you think, yelling will never give you results.

8. If anything is broken or different, they have to tell you about it. All of them. I was doing hall duty in between classes, and 20 kids had to let me know a poster fell off the wall.

9. So far, the male students need more affection than the females. I have a handful of male students who constantly want hugs. After dodging their hugs for several weeks, we have started high-fiving.

10. Anyone out of high school is old. My kids get a kick out of anything "young" I know about because I am too old in their eyes. I have a really bad habit of talking in internet speak to them- and they think I am trying "to be hip to their generation." Although, several times they have mentioned music and stuff on tv that I don't know about and they can't believe I haven't heard of things like Wacka Flocka and how to dougie. Although, I did get a dougie lesson one day. I looked like a moron.

It's been special experience so far.