First Day Follies

I found out yesterday that I was going to be teaching a straight Grade 1 class this year.  To say the least, this class is…challenging.  However, I went in with an optimistic attitude and gave them aa clean slate.

The little darlings were golden up to recess. I thought that I had hit the jackpot and all the little cherubs had grown up over the summer.  I was very abruptly made aware of my mistake after recess. One little fellow who comes from an environment where structure is in short supply started flopping and rolling around on the carpet.  After repeated warnings he acted up further.  I put on my serious teacher face and asked him if he would like to remain with his friends in the classroom.  Children always answer yes because they don’t like to be singled out.  This little fella just smiled, SMILED and said “No”.  Damn!  What was I supposed to do?  I couldn’t be thwarted by a six year old on the  first day of class.  I quickly turned it around and told him “Too bad.  Sit still and be quiet!”

Then, just before lunch I heard a wailing from the far side of the classroom.  I walk over to see two students standing beside the pencil sharpener.  The little girl  is sobbing like her dog died and the little boy (the same one from the last paragraph) is looking pretty unconcerned.  I asked what happened and the little girl said “He hurt my hand with the pencil sharpener!”  Seriously?  In five years of teaching, I’ve never had anyone hurt by the pencil sharpener.  I looked at the boy and he explains that he said sorry like that should resolve the whole matter.  Upon further questioning it seems that the girl had stuck her finger into the pencil sharpener and the little boy decided he’d give it a few cranks to see what would happen.  I had to give them both what for.  One for the bone head move of sticking her finger in a pencil sharpener and the other for trying to sharpen her finger.

The afternoon was much calmer.  I only had to make a couple of kids sit out of gym for being little turds. 

I told Jen that she had better take a good look at my hair, because its going to be a lot greyer by the end of this year.

Thank God its Friday!