They have an attention span of... about 30 seconds. They get all upset when I do not let them go crazy in my class. They get all upset when they do not get to do what they want to do. It seems an impossibility for them to keep their mouths shut for anything. They simply will not stop talking and it is driving me crazy. I mean I understand that kids in choir talk. I do. But this is unbelievable. I know my inconsistent discipline is not helping. I think I need to come up with something more effective than what the school offers because I do not want to forever be sending students out of my class. I have already rearranged the seating chart a few times and it will work for a while then stop working. Anyway, now I am just talking to myself. I will sign off now.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
The Class From...
I have been told by veteran teachers that there is always one class every year that is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad class... usually called something else, but I don't think that is appropriate to say here. Well in year two that has proven to be true. I had one very, very difficult class last year. And I have one very, VERY difficult class this year. And they were difficult for different reasons! Grrr!!! I think the reason I do not have the difficulties I had last year is because after last year I figured out how to deal with them. But this class brings a whole new goodie bag of difficulties to the table and I have no tools in my tool kit to deal with these kids. They are driving me crazy!
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Managing groups that large is so hard, but I know you'll find a solution! One thing that has helped me with my large classes (I've got a few that are close to 40 this year - not as large as you're working with, I'm sure, but if you're desperate it might be worth a try): is being open with students about the energy of the room. Do it briefly, but openly. "Do you feel that? That is what it feels like when class is going really well." or "Do you see how the energy is being sucked out of the room? Side comments make it really hard for us." I think sometimes acknowledging the problem openly and quickly and then moving on helps students see that they are part of the team. Be really quick to acknowledge when something goes well so that they get an idea of what that actually means. Then there's always the old "stare at the clock" standby - more juvenile, but usually effective. I don't know if you've tried these or not, but if you haven't, it's always worth a shot, right?
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