It does not take long to fall in love with some really amazing kids. Leaving for just one day felt like an eternity. I really feel like I have settled into a great community. Eager to finish my week strong, I arrived early at school and began my routine morning preparations. The morning announcements started my day with a smile. Today was “Frazzling” Friday. Following the announcements, a young student waited in the office to do her morning assignments. Mrs. Theroux had some parent placement conferences, so I took the student into the library and helped her work diligently. I helped her with spelling and grammar, math, a survey, as well as reading and writing. When she finished all her work, we talked about things going on in her life. She came in upset that morning, but left happy as I dropped her off at her classroom. It felt amazing to help make someone’s day. A snack group shortly followed this one-on-one student aide session. We chatted and ate and played “Left, Right, Center.” Snack time was all about having fun.
After the children left, I was lucky enough to sit in on a parent placement conference. Mrs. Theroux helped place students she has seen grow up into a fitting class for next year. She talked about how she loves her job because she gets to see how much the students transform over their elementary school years. Mrs. Theroux finished some more parent conferences as I took over the beginning of her math discovery group. Five students came, each with their own worksheet packet and tile set. They were supposed to fit a certain amount of tiles into the blank outlined shapes on their pages. Most of the students did a good job with this task and whizzed right through the work packet. Others had trouble focusing and needed constant help. Mrs. Theroux came back for the end of the class and helped me enable the other students to focus on their tasks.
Following math class was lunch. Today we had three of the five grades because it is teacher appreciation month, and the parents put on a special lunch for the teachers and staff as they took over some of the afternoon activities for the teachers. Mrs. Theroux and I went to the faculty lunch, and I became further acquainted with the other teachers. It is exciting to feel like I am becoming part of this community, not only with the children, but also with the staff. The three student lunch groups came after the Fantastic Friday lunch for the teachers and staff. We played a trivia game, and again I had the chance to talk with some of the young students to get to know them better. The kids were very energetic today and quite the talkative crowd as well.
Today was an extra special day because while Mrs. Theroux had another meeting of her own to attend, I had the opportunity to help two girls. Before the two girls were left alone to talk, there were four students. I let these four students play their own games like Pictionary, and pass, with a ball, but I could tell that there was something wrong or bothering the two youngest girls. When two of the students left, these two troubled girls opened up to me, and I tried to deal with the problem as best as I could. I kept in mind the tone and the phrases Mrs. Theroux had used before when counseling other students. I coached them to make good decisions and gave them some ideas on how to solve their problem. Right after that session, I had to rush off to a guidance class, and the two little girls turned to Mrs. Theroux and acknowledged that I did a good job and were glad that I was staying for two more weeks! It really is crazy how close you can become with people in such a short time.
The girl, whom I mentioned in another blog as being an exact copy of myself, hugged me today in the hallway! I saw her later that day, and she called out my name as to show me off to her little friends! I am always keeping in mind my position as a role model, but these are the little things that make me so happy and excited to begin an education career.
The fifth grade guidance class was a short one for me as I had to run to another class to watch a play. In the beginning of the class, Mrs. Theroux had a student read the wellness tip of the week. “Let your ‘play time’ complement your ‘work time.’” She then asked the class, “What does this mean?” The class answered, “’Play time’ is just as important as ‘work time.’” Mrs. Theroux then discussed with the class how it is important to realize that you need balance in your life. She taught the class a little bit about making responsible choices with time management. She gave an example about having a lot of work for over the weekend, and how, if you organize your time wisely, you can finish your homework early so that you have more time for playing. She taught that you will find “wellness” in your life if you manage your time efficiently and productively. Their classroom definition of “wellness” was, “feeling good about myself; including my body, my emotional self, my school self, my environment, and my friends.” After discussing this further, Mrs. Theroux played a video called Unforgettable Pen Pal, presented by The Human Race Club, by Joy Barry. The movie was chosen to teach young students about people who are prejudiced. Unfortunately, I had to leave the class at this time to watch a kindergarten play production of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. I will be watching this movie later next week so that I can help teach this topic in the other fifth grade classes.
Today was simply wonderful because I had the opportunity to use some skills I read about yesterday and have watched Mrs. Theroux exercise on a daily basis. Three times today I was trusted to be on my own to help the students with their tasks. Today I proved to myself that I can be anything I want to be, and I can make a difference in people’s lives.
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