#killinitink

I have 25 kids.

25 5 and 6 year olds. And a half time aide I share with a teammate of mine. Within my 25 students:

9 of my students have been written up and sent to the office. For all different things but basically the same thing-being disrespectful and continually disruptive.

I have tried telling my admin, my teacher BFF/teammate has tried telling admin, our math curriculum writer (who has taught in urban Washington D.C public schools) tried to tell them, and no one would listen. They all brushed it off “You’ll make it work, you’re a great teacher, I believe in you.” Until yesterday.

I got my first formal observation of the year (2 per year for contract teachers) and at one point-as I had one child shrieking and wailing on the carpet because she and another boy at her table grabbed the same paper and both pulled on it and her paper ended up ripping at the top, a whole other table (of 5 children) talking over me and ignoring any attempt of mine to get their attention, and a different child decide he didn’t want to do the independent practice activity just get up and help himself to the LEGO table-I made direct eye contact with my principal, with my hands at my sides and shrugged.

Now she had made a comment earlier in the year about never being able to hear me teach out in the hallway before and this year she could and was I okay? I simply explained to her that I have a consistent group of about 6 kids that just never ever ever shut up so I have to teach over them. They don’t stop, they don’t care if you take iPad time, computer time, recess, buddy, or free choice time. They tell me “I have candy at home-idc if I don’t get a sucker/M&M/Skittle etc.” “I have a tablet at home, idc if I can’t play on it now-I’ll just do it when I go home” and no matter how often I communicate with the parents that we are struggling-the behavior all happens the same.

After a few tears and “I know it’s bad I just don’t know what to do’s...” she looked me straight in the eyes and said “I don’t know what to do either.” She told me she’d seen me have rough classes before and still have a functional classroom. She said in all her years as an educator and an admin she had never seen a teacher be so thorough and explicit in their expectations and procedures and have the kids simply not follow them. She asked if I had missed a procedure or anything I normally do with other classes and I said no-and in fact-I’ve done everything I normally do and more and NONE of it has worked.

I have lots of thoughts.

First. The district told us our cap would be 22 for Kindergarten. I’m currently sitting at 24 anticipating the 25th on Monday. 1 is in foster care and had a visit yesterday with bio parents. Foster Mom told me after every visit there’s a behavior regression. As someone who worked in a DHS shelter as a college kid it’s something I’m familiar with first hand. This student told me yesterday he was excited to go home because we was going to get to see his Mom and Dad. Today there was a definite regression. I also had a brother of a student I had last year (who is diagnosed with having RAD) sneakily added to my class. These 2 alone take a lot of resources and now I’m loaded up with even more kids. Not to mention my 2 kids that act like they’re being brought to school to be murdered or my other 2 who cry on and off all day...

It’s just made for a very long week. Plus my own little munchkin has his first daycare cold and he’s transitioning from a 2 nap schedule to a 1 nap schedule since he’s in the 1 year old room despite only being just over 11 months. The teacher mama in me asked for him to start in the 1 year old room so when he turns 1 he won’t have to move rooms. However-because of this he’s been coming home exhausted in the evenings which has brought about early bedtimes.

Also-our district has this policy called “equalization” where supposedly it’s implemented to ensure that all of the classes across the grade levels and home districts have the same amount of students in each class or close to it. However, my elementary school is the largest so we become the overflow school. There is a way we can see if the student truly belongs to our school home district or if they’ve been “equalized” from another district. 5 of my 25 have been equalized from other schools. 7 of my co-teachers kids belong to other districts. These schools do not necessarily have the same numbers we do. We know because we’ve checked. It’s just frustrating to be in this situation and to know that it’s not developmentally appropriate and that if anything it’s increasingly detrimental to ALL of my students foundational education.

Anyway. The week is over. I’m exhausted. I’m glad I get to recharge prior to next week.

You want to build a tower taller than me with the wooden blocks and kill someone when it falls? Cool! 👌🏻

You’re playing with shaving cream and decided to cover your face to look like Santa? Whatevs. 🤷🏼‍♀️

Here-have a donut and go crazy! Just let me finish sorting this stuff and shutting my room down! 🤦🏼‍♀️

Youre playing with tinker toys and decided to make spiky bomb ninja stars to throw at each other? I don’t care, just don’t poke an eyeball out.

At recess-you wanna climb up to the top of the jungle gym and attempt to be King Kong-sure!Just make sure you tuck and roll on your way down!

Welcome to the jungle ladies and gentlemen. #36hoursandcounting

It’s not even 10am and I had to send a student to the office for flashing/exposing himself to 2 other girls and then one got picked up for suspected pink eye so I had to tell Mom when she came to get her that her kid had seen a penis today.

Brings another round through Gilmore Girls ❤️

And standing on my head there is literally nothing else I can do to connect with these families.

I have a class insta, Facebook group, Seesaw AND Remind and I have 1 follower on the Insta, 4 on the Remind (2 of which are the same person 🙄) and no one on the Facebook group or Seesaw.

Oh I also do daily folders and have had 2 communicate back with it.

HELLO! CONNECT WITH YOUR CHILD’S TEACHER!!