It was snack time when a knock in the rhythm of "Shave and a Haircut" was tapped on the door. That's code. It means another teacher is seeking admittance, so I answered.
(Students pound. And kick. And we tend to ignore those knocks during our break times, especially if we just really don't want to deal with it.)
It was Ms. N. (I've subbed for her a few times, and I worked with her on various long terms I did at that school.) She was popping in as Ms. K (the teacher I was covering) had asked her to. The upcoming fourth period...
Uh oh. I was in for it.
Eighth grade history. Ms. K's classes are generally well-behaved. This class was not.
(The first clue was the assignment. They were to read a magazine and answer questions based on some of the articles. These magazines are written for classes, and they only come out on days when the teacher wants to keep the students busy.)
But, actually, things didn't go too terribly. It helps to be proactive. And it helps to have Ms. N threaten them at the beginning of the period, warning them that they didn't want to get out of line.
"It's never this quiet in here."
Considering that the room wasn't silent, I worried at how loud they usually were.
So, I focused on keeping them seated. And that took most of my attention. Seriously. Some of them were doing anything and everything to avoid the work and get out of their seats.
But when Ms. N called about midway through the period to ask if she needed to buzz back by and threaten them again, I said no. They weren't throwing things. Many were making progress on the busy work. And I was keeping after those that were just itching for an excuse to play around.
Not a bad day. It would have been so much worse if we hadn't started out as we did. (And the period after that was way better behaved.)
Oh, middle schoolers... I just can't imagine students getting out of their seats during class time. Like they don't know they need to stay seated? So different from how it used to be, not just my school years, but my children's. I love Scholastic magazines! If students could see how boring old history (and other subjects) books were they'd appreciate them. Maybe.
ReplyDeleteSome teachers enforce the being seated thing better than others. This particular teacher would, so the kiddos were the type that can't sit still.
DeleteI'm glad things went better than expected.
ReplyDeleteMe too :)
DeleteGood that they sort of behaved.
ReplyDeleteIt was.
DeleteI guess sometimes even the rowdy ones can be (relatively) calm.
ReplyDeleteIt's a good day when things go better than expected. Store the memories up for the next time it's the opposite, perhaps.
ReplyDeleteYeah, it is. On bad days, I always know they won't last long.
DeleteHi Liz - sounds wise to have a code ... but I'm happy to read the students were better behaved than might have been - cheers Hilary
ReplyDelete