12-Year Olds

12-year olds baffle me. Even after 1.1 school years, I'm still confused. Today, the two girls who caused so much trouble last week were angels. They participated in class, and were generally above average in behavior. This, combined with their above-average intelligence, makes for a good classroom environment. Since they are a couple of the strongest personalities in the class, it really brought the class together.

And then, after school, during homework center, Girl Who Said Something that Ended in -itch Under Her Breath asked if she could sit next to me. She did, and showed off all her homework. She even showed me a paragraph she had to write for history class about her life goal of becoming a criminal lawyer (and she'd be great at it). She also mentioned how much she loved science.

I don't understand these kids.

I later spoke to the dean about it, and she pointed out the obvious explanation: she loves attention. Unsurprisingly. As long as I continue to provide constant positive reinforcement, she'll continue to be my BFF.

My first class didn't run so smoothly, because I was not thoroughly an expert on the content (borrowed the lesson plan from a colleague) and it was a little disorganized. However, I used my morning prep to reorganize the lesson and print out new worksheets. The later 2 classes went swimmingly.

I had another behavior experience in the afternoon. One student, who has a permanent case of the giggles and a C- average, was being his giggly off-task self, especially after being told he couldn't use the bathroom. He's one of those kids who has to use the bathroom during science class every day. So, I asked him to stand outside for a moment, and I would give him a pep talk during the next 2-minute independent work time, which was soon. It's something I know I need to do more often. However, during this time, my IL walked by and gave him a talking to, and took him to the dean. It was in the hallway, but the other kids noticed. Without the class clown, the class gelled and we got to some serious talking about different types of volcanoes. I think I need to use the dean more. I hate to send kids away from class, but if it helps 25 other kids learn better, sometimes it has to be done.

Even with the sniffles (bound to happen eventually), I fit in a jog and weight workout. I'm proud.