Chapter 6: Tough Week

I have heard from veteran teachers that there will always be tough days and weeks, and now I actually believe and understand those words.  I have been challenged a great deal this week.  My students are getting comfortable with me and how I teach, and have decided to see how far they can push me.  Well, let's just say, even though I'm in a first grade classroom, my fuse is short.  I am working hard on my patience and understanding traits, but when I pray for those things God does not hand them to me on a silver platter.  Instead, he puts me in situations where I have to use patience and understanding.  It has been tough, but I know I will thank Him in the end for the lessons I've learned from Him, my teacher.

This week in 1st Grade we learned:
-Nouns (person, place, or thing)
-Verbs (a word that shows action)
-how to count and represent 100 using base 10 blocks
-how to plant seeds
-how to care for our teeth
-how to follow directions............(this will take a while)

Here are a few scenarios from my week for you to picture:
Me: "Friends, a verb is a word that shows or tells an action.  Run. Walk. Sing. Dance. Shake. Jump. Those are examples of verbs.  Things that you can actually do."
I then read some sentences and had the students tell me the verbs in the sentence.
Next, I had students tell examples of verbs.
Student: "Lamp."
Me: "Please stand up.  Ok, show me how to lamp."
The student stood there, blank-faced, and very confused.
Me: "Ok, lamp is a noun because it is a thing, right?!  Show me how to jump."
After a few practice words, she understood why 'lamp' was not a verb.
Verbs can be difficult to understand...

We have Creative Writing journal entries two days a week.  This week our journal topics were "Me as a Sandwich" and "Me on Television."  The sandwich journals were entertaining, but he television journals topped the cake.  I will try to upload some pictures of some student work so you can enjoy!
My favorite journal article of the week:
Me on Television - "I would be a single lady."

I had 2 students miss their bus on Thursday....I was not a happy camper.  A teacher stands in the hallway and calls the bus number, then I repeat it so my kids can hear, and then it is announced on the intercom.  The 2 kids that ride that bus number decided to just sit in my room and not move.  So, they missed the bus.  I had to call 18 different phone numbers to contact people to come pick them up from school - and it took quite a while for this process to play out.  Needless to say, I won't have any more students miss their buses - that's for sure!

I have a picture of me and Josh as the background on my phone.  One student (my little sweetheart that I call 'grandpa') saw my phone and said, "Who that is?"
Me: "That's a picture of me and Mr. Murphy."
Student: "Who Mr. Murphy is?"
Me: "He's the man I am going to marry, silly."
Student: "Oh, well I have the Smurf's movie at home!"
Me: "Not Smurfy....MURphy!"
Student: "Oooh, my bad, Mih Lemon."

The good far outweighs the bad, that's for sure.  I really am happy with where I am and what I'm doing.  I love my school, and I love my kids.  I am praying for patience and understanding, especially for those few students in my room that smirk and grin when I reprimand them.....That's what I mean by needing patience.

But, Monday starts a new week, and I am determined to make every new week better than the last.

Please pray for my patience and understanding, my students and their home environments, and my classroom to be an inviting and exciting place to learn and to love.