My Watch List

Yesterday was my last day with the 8th grade math class. Next week they get a long-term sub. But I'm sure I'll see them again. I work at that school so frequently that it's a near certainty.

The best part? I've already learned the names of some of the troublemakers.

3rd period was showing signs of becoming difficult. On Wednesday there was a knot of girls in the back who I had to keep bringing back to the class discussion. As it was the first day, this was not a good sign. Luckily, when I revamped the seating chart, they ended up right in the front.

On Thursday, I started giving them notes on the first section of the book. The leader of that pack of girls (Paige) started sighing loudly. I ignored her. But I could feel her losing focus. When she asked for a nurse pass, I let her go, hoping the time out of class would help her attitude. It didn't.

On Friday, Paige was a lot more vocal about her dissatisfaction. She asked if we could do nothing in class. Then when I started the lesson, she complained about how easy it all was and how bored she was. With Kayla and Justin also complaining, I had a mutiny on my hands.

I finished the lesson (on the number line and absolute values) and passed out the assignment. And I made sure to give the long-term sub a heads-up about that trio. I'm sure they can be reined in. They just need to be dealt with early.

So, in future I know Paige, Kayla, Justin, and in 6th period I had a Luke. Maybe this familiarity will help me deal with them in the future. I'll keep you posted.

And as an aside, I just looked up the top baby names for 1996 (the year they were born). For the girls I had like 30 of those names. For the boys I had like 35. And some of those names were repeated.