Is today over yet?
I can’t wait until it’s time to go to bed and call it a day. Everything started out well, I got up at 4:20 and did day 3 of Chalean Extreme. Still loving it!! Then the trouble started. I spent most of the morning trying to figure out how to improve one of my classes. I had been warned all year about this group and for the most part they have lived up to their reputation. But there are glimpses of responsibility and maturity which is actually more frustrating. So I decided to devote today’s class to each child examining what they’re doing well, where they could improve and setting goals for the rest of the school year. About 1/3 of the kids took the activity to heart and so I’m going to focus my thoughts on those kids but several kids missed the point entirely. I’m going to sleep on it and re-read their sheets tomorrow so I’m fresh but I think I’m going to pull each kid in on their own and talk with them. A few of the “good” kids need to hear that I appreciate all that they do and some of the more challenging kids need a wake-up call.
Another issue was that I found out the place where we were ready to buy a lot has basically filled up some low spots with garbage and then covered the garbage w/dirt so it looks like it’s full. I don’t know how widespread it is but we will definitely be asking questions. My hubby has always said that the family who owns the land is short on morality and I guess he’s right.
Then my hubby’s sister called looking for her car title. For those of you who have been reading for a while this is the SIL who owes us about $6K and decided not to pay. We paid her car payment for the last few years (long story) and finally paid it off a few months ago. Now she wants the title, yet she can never call us back when our son calls her or even acknowledge that she owes us any money.
With all of that I lost it and yelled at a few kids in the hallway. I mean yelled. This only happens once or twice a year but it shouldn’t happen. I’m the adult, kids will be kids, and the only reason these kids are ALWAYS in the hallway is b/c their teacher doesn’t expect them to arrive on time. I would rather talk to my friends and jack around at my locker, too. I’m not saying the kids don’t share the responsibility but if the teacher doesn’t enforce the expectation it’s not realistic that the kids will comply.
Oh well, I’m home now and finally starting to decompress. After school I hit the gym and boy did the treadclimber and elliptical take a beating. My morning workout took 40 minutes and I got in the other 80 this afternoon for a total of 2 hrs. Yay!
Days on plan this month: 15
Progress toward workout goal: 232/250
Slumpbusters: water = good
Days on plan: 1/6
Workout minutes: 150/250
You sound like you had a rough day. Do not feel bad, you are human and we all have our moments.
I think it is wonderful that you are taking the time to meet with the students one on one. The kids who are working hard will love the praise. You need to know this. One of the side blessings of this site was my getting to know you and Sistah Pat to a degree. I pray and hope that my DS Jacob has teachers that are as wonderful as you both are when he goes into ‘building school’ next year.
Today is a new day, fresh and I hope it is wonderful for you!
Take care
PS
About the garbage dump??? Have the soil tested! You never know what chemicals they dumped that can harm you (car batteries, old paint, etc….) Very toxic to you even of taken out. (ESP. for Kyle)
Sorry do not mean to scare you, but you need to check it out.
wow. that’s a lot of working out. good job.
JOy is right about the soil. And if the hubby is right about their morals, I’m hoping there’s another choice somewhere. I feel bad for you with all these trials going on. Thanks for sharing, and very good job taking it out on the machines.
Sorry you had such a rough day, Brandi. The end is in sight as far as the school year goes. I finally got my wild bunch fairly manageable but they remain a challenge. Constantly testing me. I can’t help but wonder about their indecisive parents. They ask for something and I tell them “No”. Then they ask again, and again, and again. The only thing I can figure is that their parents crash and fold. I don’t understand why they haven’t figured out that I won’t. “Please..” “PLEASE” “Why not?” “How come he/she gets to?” “Why can’t I?” “Please?” If I ignore it, they just keep on. If I answer, they still keep on. (sigh) Sometimes I feel like screaming, “No means NO! What don’t you understand???”
I did an activity with them recently that went over pretty well. I gave them a sheet that said “Discuss one outstanding accomplishment from this year for each of the following: school, (room for a paragraph), your family (room for another paragragh), your friends, and yourself.
I put them in random groups of four and told them to choose a secretary/recorder who would report to the rest of the class. Then I gave them ten minutes to write and then another 15 minutes for discussion. At the end of the time, I had the secretary come up to the front of the class and list all the accomplishments from each group. The next day, I assigned each group one of the topics (family, school, personal, etc.) and had them make posters showing the impact of the accomplishments of the entire class in one of the areas. The result was a bunch of posters that really showed what an impact there was when you listed all the different things a group of thirty kids had accomplished. A couple of the groups decided that a single poster wouldn’t do them justice and elected to create two or three posters. The best part, however, was circulating around the room and hearing the different kids discussing how they had dealt with serious issues like divorce, conflict, and peer pressure and made good decisions that they were proud of.
This might be a good activity for your kids. If nothing else, it’ll keep them busy for a couple of days.