I have the weirded thing going on with my class this year. You know how you usually have one or two kids that just seem like they don't understand anything, no matter how many times you explain it? I have about 6 of those kids, and they're driving me bananas. For example, I do not allow kids to use the hand-crank pencil sharpener in our classroom. It doesn't work well, and it's just a pain. Instead, I sharpen their tables' pencil at the end of every day. They have about 20 sharp pencils at each table. Today I had THREE kids try to use the pencil sharpener in the middle of writer's workshop time. I constantly have kids coming up to me and asking if I can sharpen their pencils (if they break they just put them in their tables' basket for me to sharpen later). Eery other year, I explained the expectations, reviewed them a few times, and the kids got it. This year it isn't working. Daily 5 has always been a "magical" time of independence and uninterrupted time for me to work with students. Lately the same kids keep coming up to me. One of them had a broken pencil, another one wanted help spelling a word, and another one ripped a book on accident. These are all scenarios we have talked about OVER and OVER and OVER. This just hasn't been an issue in previous years. I will give directions as simple as "Go to your table spot and take out your math book." Three kids will ask me, "What are we doing?" It's not the type of directions that I can write on the board, because i give them so many times every day, and they're so simple. I even have the class repeat the directions, either chorally, or I will call on a handful of kids to repeat them back. It's just exhausting, and I'm running out of ideas. I have posters and reminders, I model, model, model, and they're still not following our routines. Maybe it's like this every year, and I'm just more irritated because I'm pregnant? :lol:
Ugh, at the start of the next Daily 5 round, one of them asked me if they could book shop. Seriously, this is so frustrating.
One of them just got up in the middle of read to self to ask me when the book orders were coming it. This is one that I kept in for recess too many times to count to go over expectations.
This post makes me laugh. lol I feel you. I have 6 kids who are 8yrs old and in 1st grade. ALL 6 are like this. I have no idea what to do about it.
I have several kids like this. The pencil sharpener thing made me laugh, because that's exactly how it goes in my classroom too. UGH.
Are you speaking of my class???? I swear, you just described a normal day for me....Some of them must live in lala land...It´s sooooo taxing on me.
I have 13 boys exactly like this! They are six and in a transitional first class. I feel like screaming!
Two years ago, we ALL had this cohort of second graders who we had been hearing about in Kinder and in first...they arrived in second grade and I seriously almost lost my mind that year. Up until that year, I thought I had this second grade thing down...worked hard, had a good reputation, tried to make learning fun... THEN, the class from h*ll arrived. That year, I spent $100 at Amazon purchasing books on behaviour management because nothing seemed to work with them. I stopped doing "centers" because they could not transition between activities without lots of commotion and time wasting. I spent the most amount of time working on basic routines OVER and OVER and OVER. I seriously questioned my ability to continue teaching. I was EXHAUSTED every day. I likened my days to one continuous cycle of Groundhog Day because we had to go over the SAME rules and routines every day. Then they went to third grade and I got a new batch of second graders and my blissful world returned Hang in there...I know how you feel!!!
Oh, yes. I have a small group but I would say 1/2 my class is totally out in left field as you said. Whenever we do reading quizzes, it's completely obvious which kids actually put in some kind of effort and attention. My favorite is one kid who spends the whole class talking, making music with his pencils and rulers, asking off-topic questions and trying to start an argument and then blows up every time he gets a 40 on a quiz. Cause and effect. I know he has a short attention span but he also puts about 30% of effort into school work so what do you expect?
My middle son lives in la-la land most of the time. I'd never blame you for being frustrated with lack of ability to follow directions, but maybe to manage your irritation you should keep their good traits in mind as well. Also keep in mind that many kids are VERY sensitive and will interpret irritation as "My teacher hates me". It becomes very difficult as a parent to convince a child that's not really the case.
My kiddos lose their ever-loving MINDS during transitions. I honestly want to pull my hair out. I have about eight students that just can't handle it. Even the simple task of taking out their reading anthology is enough to lose it. That simple task can turn into a ten minute production, complete with tears and accusations of general naughtiness. Misery really does love company. It makes me feel good to know that there are other teachers out there with the same problem! Sheilah
That is my class, too!!! Transitions are a complete disaster. Calling 4 or 5 kids at a time is just too much for them. I have to call 1 or 2 at a time, or everything falls apart. "Throw your snack garbage away and come to the carpet" translates as "Run to the garbage can, make weird noises in your friend's face, slide as you sit on the carpet, and repeat strange, high-pitch noises until I tell you to stop."
Can you appoint some of your higher students as "peer helpers" or something along those lines. The kids can go to them when you're working with a group and if they're able to follow the routines they should be able to tell your left field kids what to do in most situations.
