I Will Remember RR (Arr Arr)

It's been 4 long years and there are very few days that pass that I don't think about my buddy Rigo.  He was such a kind hearted individual.  He always went out of his way for his students.  At the end of every week, Rigo would invite me to join him on one of his weekend adventures.   Most of the invitations included beach volleyball, trips to the mountain, hiking and biking.  

I remember the excitement Rigo had when he purchased a really nice bicycle.  I didn't really understand all the hoopla surrounding a bike.  This bike was so light, you could lift it with a couple fingers.  I constantly toyed with purchasing a mountain bike to get some exercise with Rigo on the weekends.  Our plan never panned out especially once I transferred to another school.

Several years later I'm still thinking about buying that bike.  

Just got that bike.  Gone but never forgotten.  Miss you buddy.

5th Grade Can Be Tough, But I'm Tougher!

Last year while teaching 4th grade I could get really friendly with students that weren't mine.  I was able to laugh and joke with other students right away, I didn't need to set strict boundaries right away.  The relationship with your current students is different from the relationship you can have with non-students or former students.  For example, my other fourth grade colleague had a very small class.  About 17 kids I think.  When I received a special grant to take my students to Knott's Berry Farm, I invited them along as well.  I was able to have a great time with the kids and joke around, ultimately I knew they had to answer to their authority figure.

Fast forward to this year.  Those 17 fourth graders are now in my fifth grade class.  I think many of them were surprised to see Ms. Gibson with her serious face on.  It is so important to set high standards for achievement and behavior from day 1.  When I noticed one of the girls trying to run my classroom and make little jokes at my expense, I had to call her outside for a minute while the rest of the class was working.  Our conversation, or monologue, went something like this:
Ms. Gibson: "I know last year we were all cool and everything BUT your weren't my student.  This year I'm your teacher and this is my castle.  In this castle I am the Princess, do you understand?"
Girl: shakes head yes
This girl appeared a bit salty for a few minutes but like most kids, she quickly stopped showing the physical features of her emotions and proceeded to get back to business as usual.  In fact, this was the girl who spear headed my "Special Delivery" package from the previous week.  This further confirms what I've always believed, kids appreciate stability and rules.  No matter what other responsibilities they have outside of class they can still be a kid in my room.

This was the first year that I did not give homework for the first four days of school mostly because I was not prepared.  The last minute grade level change and vacation altered my schedule drastically. Now that we've all adjusted to returning to school I've gone back to my normal routine of daily homework.  I was pretty relaxed during the first official week of assigned homework so that the kids could get the hang of what how I expect homework to be completed and what types of assignments are given.  Our homework chart started 7 days ago.  Each empty spot represents no homework or some assignments are missing.  Most of my chart has empty spots.  As with every year there is always a group of students that will do their homework with fidelity and religiously regardless of my grading techniques.  The vast majority of my students were picking and choosing which assignments to complete.  As for the rest of the class I got nothing day after day.  I obviously don't have a super intrinsically motivated group (yet) so I knew I had to do something to increase my return of homework.

In previous years I have kept my students in during their recess time to complete their work.  This serves the purpose of getting the students to work but it takes away from my break time.  I like to take care of personal business, have a snack, and use the restroom during my breaks but the constant monitoring of kids does not allow for this.  I've even tried the rotating room where a group of teachers sacrifices one day a week to monitor all the children that have work to do.  This approach gives the teacher more freedom and I prefer it.  We try to present a united front and let the students know work is not an option.

This is the first year in my teaching history that the district is closely monitoring physical education in the elementary grades.  We are being held accountable for the 200 minutes of PE for every 10 days.  This is kind of funny since I have dusty old PE teacher books in my closet from 1981 that cite the education code requirement of 200 minutes of PE every 10 days.  But anyways, the point is that I feel conflicted when kids don't do their homework.  There must but consequences to teach responsibility.  This year I have really struggled with keeping kids in at their recess time.  Part of this struggle has been the sheer number of kids that I am monitoring (38 to be exact).  I really want my students to socialize and exercise, we all need that break away from the classroom.  

On the first school day of September the upper grade teachers decided to start the rotating lunch detention schedule.  On day 1 there were a lot of my students in detention.  On day 2 there were only half as many.  I'm glad they are quick studies but there are always a couple who still insist on doing nothing.  Two weeks in and I still had a couple of students that refused to do work.  I immediately began calling parents, writing notes home, and scheduling conferences.  There was one student that never returned notices sent home and was always after school really late.  I told him I would stay with him until his parents came to pick him up if he didn't do his work.  The very next day he learned that Ms. Gibson does not make threats, she makes promises.

All you have is your word, even in the classroom.

Farmer Nico

So...I know this farmer.  His name is Nico and he's pretty fly for a white guy!  He's also a Bruin!  Farmer Nico came to visit our school last year to teach the students about agriculture and healthy eating.  Farmer Nico returned this school year during this second week of school for another presentation.  I am the site coordinator for the Harvest of the Month/ Nutrition Education and Obesity Prevention Program so I plan and coordinate these kinds of events for the school.  Having Farmer Nico visit is definitely one of the high points in the day.

Before Farmer Nico left for the day, he came to my classroom to have a quick visit with my students.  He brought some seeds and cucumbers. Later on, a colleague, also a fan of Nico, came into my room.  I was boasting to her about how I was helping Farmer Nico and he shared some fruit with me.  I told her I would help him out anytime he needed assistance.  I also mentioned that he touched my shoulder several times, LOL.

Forgetting that I now teach 5th grade, some students started making that "ooooooh" sound and asked if I liked the Farmer.  I tried to keep a straight face and say that he is a very nice man.  They all started giggling and so did I.

I was caught!  Not only was I caught, I was caught by 10 year olds.  I sometimes forget how this is a grade were they really understand how to read between the lines and pay close attention to body language.

I have requested that the Farmer come back again to service the rest of the class. (--->insert dreamy sigh here)

My class is so cute!  I want to keep all 40 of them!

KNOCK, KNOCK! Special Delivery

Since I came back to work, every moment of every day has been busy.  It feels like I've been playing cla nonstop game of catch-up.  My lesson planning is on a day to day basis (Sometimes minute to minute).  I don't like being underprepared it's the magic recipe for misbehaving.  I'm so thankful to have a full day teacher assistant.  She is a great help when it comes to tackling my todo list.  Even with my assistant I spend every moment before school, during my breaks, and before leaving to get my classroom ready.  

My classroom has a small window on the door.  This window drives me nuts during break time.  I usually eat lunch in my room and get some kind of work done.  Sometimes I cover the window so that people won't bother me or I sit in a corner where I can't be seen. On most occasions I will ignore any knocking at my door. I do feel kind of bad about doing this but I usually get kids knocking on the door asking me some silly questions that could have waited until they came back to class.

Each day the school provides breakfast for the students in the classroom.  Today I invited them to fill a bucket after they ate their breakfast.  (I'm trying to build community and buy a few extra minutes to figure out this whole attendance fiasco--#misiscrisis).  I noticed some kids writing little notes and passing them but I let it slide, you have to pick your battles. Then I noticed a folded sheet of paper that read "To Ms. Gibson."  At this point I let them have their fun.  10 minutes later I forgot about the whole thing because I had so many things on my list to do.

A couple of hours later when it was time for recess, the kids were a bit noisy when it came time to line up.  I'm training my students to get ready in a decent amount of time or we can use their break time to make everything better.  Unfortunately their break time is also my break time and I was getting irritated.  I tried to hide my frustrations and start working on my todo list as the students watched.  Of course the kids got really quiet and fixed their lines so we could go outside. 

I walked my students outside to the yard.  When I dismissed them I thought I saw a couple of my students try to approach me.  I think they were nervous and hesitant.  I took advantage of this opportunity and retreated to my classroom.  As soon as I wash my hands and go for a snack I hear a knock at the door.  As I angrily walked over to open the door I was already practicing the scolding that I was about to give who ever it was for disturbing me during my very short break.  Before I had a chance to say a word, one girl places a handmade package into my face while saying, "Knock, knock.  Special delivery."

All of my annoyances quickly faded and I felt a sense of honor and joy.  These kids had coordinated a special little gift for me.  They had prepared an envelope with some goodies that included Hello Kitty sticker (I'm pretty sure I gave them that black pen and they just gave it back to me but that's ok, it's truly the thought that counts).  My bucket was overflowing with happiness.  

I had to remind myself that these are just sweet little kids. I can't take things out on them because I'm not prepared.  My plans and materials need to be in order so that I am not trying to use all my breaks to prepare for the next lesson.  It's not fair to me and it's not fair to them.  As my classroom is starting to fall in place and I am utilizing my TA more, I commit to doing better starting now.

#youcan'tsitwithus

It's been six years since the last time I taught fifth grade.  Fifth grade has always been my #1 grade to teach.  I love the independence and maturation this grade brings.  No two classes are ever the same, each class always has unique strengths and challenges.

The first day a school brought a plethora of personal challenges for me.  First of all, I was not able to get my classroom up to my standards.  There was not enough time for me to singlehandedly accomplish this.  In addition. the mountains of junk that I had requested to be removed from my room to storage was still there and it stayed there for several more days.  This junk was an eyesore.  I reluctantly threw some of it away even though I thought other teachers might want it.  The day before the kids were scheduled to come to school I received my roster of 38 students.  I immediately requested more desks to be placed in my classroom to accommodate each student.

On the very first day of school 43 kids showed.  For some reason all of these students received mailings from the school stating that they were in my room. I guess some changes occurred over the summer and parents were not notified.  5 of those kids were my students from last year but they were on my colleague's roster.  At least they are literally right next door and I still get to see them all the time.  Once two new students joined my class I had 40 kids!

On the first day of school, two of my new girls wore matching black t-shirts with large white text saying, "YOU CAN'T SIT WITH US."  I was kind of shocked by this but then I remembered my last visit to the mall.  The juniors section is loaded with shirts like this.  I will encourage them to save those shirts for the weekend, I really don't need a set of mean girls in my class.  That is not the type of community I am trying to create.

The following day I read the class "How Full is Your Bucket?"  They loved it and wanted to make their own buckets.  I purchased styrofoam cups for the kids to decorate and hang.  One student wrote "#youcan'tsitwithus" on her bucket.  Social media has changed a lot and these youngsters have access.  I think these girls and I need to have a private lunch session.

Gearing up for the 2014-2015 School Year!

Welcome back to school.  This years marks my 9th year teaching and the 12th time I've had to open a new classroom.  At the end of the last school year I was scheduled to teach second grade.  I was slightly disappointed that I would not be able to teach my same group of fourth graders as they moved on to fifth.  Technically, I had enough seniority to teach that class but our union contract states that new employees must stay in the same grade level for two consecutive years.  Being bumped out of that spot wasn't too bad since I'd still get to see the kids around campus, they could come tutor my youngsters, and their new teacher is pretty awesome.  My fourth graders even helped me move my belongings across the hall to my new second grade classroom.

During the summer I reconnected with my former second grade colleagues to begin planning for the new year.  Although I have taught second grade on several occasions, it's always nice to combine minds together and see what new ideas can evolve to create better teaching and learning experiences.  When we get together we seek each other's advice on certain subjects.  In the end, everyone wins, the teachers have something to take back to their students while friends are able to spend some time together.

With just over two weeks before the school year started, my colleague informed me that the teacher scheduled to teach 5th grade was leaving the district.  (I was sad to hear but happy that I could possible take over this class.) Since I am friends with this teacher who was allegedly leaving, I reached out to her and asked if this were true.  The teacher confirmed that information.  I contacted my principal immediately to see if I could move into that spot.  My principal had to verify that no one with higher seniority requested that class before she could make any changes.  This process took a couple of very long days.  I knew that if the switch happened I would not have much time to literally switch my belongings.

Final verification of my grade level switch was given the on first day of a highly anticipated science professional development for teachers (just three days before I set off for vacation). I'm no Superwoman but I always strive to get things done. I was determined to attend my conference, transfer my belongings to my new room in the other wing of the school, workout, and coordinate everything for my family vacation.  

I managed to successfully move all of my belonging into my new room by the leaving the conference one and a half hours early each day.  It was important for me to get everything out of that classroom before I left so the newly hired teacher could get in and set up.  That mission was accomplished but the mission of organizing and setting up my room was not.  I ran out of time and therefore I went on my fabulous vacation with my family.  I was secretly hoping some magic elves would come and fix everything up by the time I arrived.  At the very least I was hoping that the junk in my room had been removed as I requested.  Needless to say neither one of these things happened.  I was hoping for a mini miracle.

Orville Left & Wilbur Right

No matter how you are feeling, the innocence of a child can brighten your day. That moment when a child understands something new is pure magic.  I can't imagine myself in another profession.  In my opinion, teaching is the hardest and most rewarding thing to do.

Our current literature unit focuses on how people can work together as a team for different reasons.  This week we are looking at how teamwork has played a vital role in the evolution of flight.  The story we have been reading is called From Gliders to Rockets.  The Wright brothers are synonymous with flight and of course they were discussed in great detail.  

Here is the caption for one of the photos in the story "Orville, left, and Wilbur, right, almost always wore suits and ties.  The brothers even wore them while testing their designs in hot weather."

Student #1: "Why is he called Orville Left and he is called Wilbur Right?"
Me: (I had to process this question for a while because this is the first time I've ever been asked this.  So I went with my typical teacher response when I don't have an immediate answer.  This is the best tip that I can give any new teacher.) "That's a great question and I'm glad you asked it, but let's see what your classmates think."
Student #2: "Well, maybe one brother thought about the left side of the plane and the other brother thought about the right side?"
Student #3: "One brother probably built the left side of the plane and the other brother probably built the right side."
Student #4: (Clearly annoyed) "Or maybe that's just what their mom named them!"

This discussion was so intriguing to me!  After all the back and forth about why one guy is Left and the other one is Right, I was able to explain to them what it actually means.

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The Life and Times of Ants

So, the last few selections in our reading anthology focused on ants.  My students were so fascinated with the way ants are able to communicate and build a community without being about to speak.  Ants have very specific roles in the community.  There are foragers, nursery workers, soldiers, and more.  Ants use pheromones to communicate with each other much like humans.  My class was especially interested in how the women do all the work in the colony and there are no men.  Apparently male ants appear for a short amount of time to mate with the Queen.  After mating ends, the male disappears and/or dies.

Best Question from a student:

"Isn't this like our life?"

I literally Laughed Out Loud.  This student has a very good understanding of REAL life!

I think I have some budding myrmecologists in the class.  

Reunited and it feels so GOOD!

Hello!  Sorry for the delay in postings.  Teaching full time and going to school full time is exhausting.  Having this blog is very therapeutic, I enjoy sharing my joys.  This post will be a bit of catching up.  I would like to share some short vignettes that demonstrate some of the laughs I have with the kiddos!

The Fundraiser
Standing in line with the kids waiting to pick up the fundraiser items. 
Me: Who wants to let me cut?
Girl 1: What did you day?
Me: I said who wants to let me cut?
Girl 2: Well...I have a pissed off grandma waiting in the car.
Girl 1: And I don't want to get slapped.
Me: laughing out loud!

Allergy Season
Standing outside with my class and we walk to recess
Me: (Sneezing)
Girl: Are you sick?
Me: No. Allergies.
Girl: To kids?

Ghostbusters
Me: Who knows what movie this song is from?
Kids: (Look at each other in confusion)
Me: Come on, you mean you weren't around in the 80's?
Kid: Only old people were around then.
Me: I was around then, am I old?
Kid: (Looks confused) No?

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