Today's Agenda: FUN

Every day I write what we're going to do on the board so that the kids know what they're going to do that day.  Today, of course, I had classes planned, but I looked at the 9 of them that showed up, half asleep, I might add, and I looked at the story I had them doing and I thought "why don't I just do something I like with them."

It was a lot more laid back since there were fewer of them, and I feel I saw a little more of each individual's personality since they felt more comfortable so they weren't necessarily better behaved, but it felt a little more natural.  Natural... I could use as much more of that in the school as possible since the classroom, the structure, the environment, it doesn't feel natural to me.

So I erased what I had planned for the day and wrote "fun."  Luckily, I had some backup activities in my desk and I took those out and the kids got excited about the word cross, so I gave that to them.  Then the boys were looking at the globe, pointing to a few places and I said "where do you want to go?"  One of them said "Rio de Janeiro!"  I was surprised, since that's not a place I think many of them know much about and their reading is limited so this kid must have heard something about it from someone else.
I asked another kid and he pointed somewhere Spanish-speaking as well. 

So then, I said "do you guys want to learn some Spanish?"  "YEAH!"  they said.
I think they really just want to learn and anything different from every day stuff is good, really. 
I had them repeating after me how to say the numbers and by the end of the class, I think at least half of them could count to ten in Spanish on their own.

Then, I planned to go for a walk, but Mike suggested I do a fire drill with them and then his class would join mine for some outdoor games.  I was outside first with my class and I started playing games, but they seemed more interested in what the teenagers were doing nearby.  I didn't want to discourage them from talking to them, but I also wanted to get them running around a little.  So the teenagers ended up joining us, which made the games so much more fun.  When Mike came, we played a few more games and Mike took over in the end and it all turned out really well.  In the end, they had fun, and they ended up learning too!

I asked one little girl: is there anything you want to learn about?  And she says "I like learning." 
"But is there anything in particular you want to learn about?" I said.  I want to know what they're interested in, I want to incorporate what they like into the class. But apparently it's easier than I thought...
"Anything,"  she says, "I just like learning."

They really do put a smile on my face!  It's never them that could ever make me feel bad or give me negative feelings.  It's the unfair situation they've grown so used to, yet they continue to still have so much joy to share.

Learning, learning, learning....

Wisdom comes with age, effectiveness with time.

How much time?  When will I understand all the things that I need to know! 
Teaching for only a few days makes me take a step back and see at least this much: I'm young and I need some years before I'll be a good teacher.

"They kind of through you in the deep end", a friend said.  I didn't really know it then, but now I see that yes, they really did.  But the sad thing is that they had no choice.

I hate that these kids are the 'testers', they're the kids that have different teachers every year- they've had substitutes for THREE years, I've heard.  It's not fair.  It's not right, but that's how it has turned out.  And when they get a teacher, often the school has so little to choose from that they pick mediocre (if that) teachers, sometimes without qualifications like myself and sometimes without much competency at all.  Yet, when they get good teachers, they're so disorganized that it's hard to even keep them!  People get sick of having to fight for every little thing, for waiting for this and that, and they get tired because they have to cover everyone else's tracks.  Like mine, because I'm young, I'm learning.  I want to do the best I can for these kids.  Oh goodness, do they deserve it.  They're really sweet kids, and I think they respect me, for the most part.  As a newbie though, I'm realizing that there's so much they need to learn that, honestly, I had no idea they needed to learn.  Like strategies to help them teach themselves so that 1) they can do work more independently and 2) They are occupied and 3) I have time to see the kids that need me the most!
What I often don't realize is that once isn't enough- that I need to give the same instructions over and over again. 

And I want to have time with each child to talk to them, understand them and learn more about them, so recess is a good start.  Otherwise, I've been asking them questions one-on-one.  It's funny, they can talk in full sentences when it's just them and myself but when it's the whole class, suddenly they're afraid to be wrong.

That's the problem, I think.  They're afraid that they'll make mistakes.  They don't even know it, but it's true.

So I just need to start simple, like Mike said, and take it slow.  And learn not to yell if I can help it. 

"If you can hear me clap once," I say, "if you can hear me, sit in your desk and listen with your ears" Sometimes I even find myself having to tell the kids to get out their pencil and start by writing their name on the paper.  "In Cree and in English," I say sometimes.  "I want to learn too!"

And that's exactly what I'm doing. Today's word of the day: doodooschnabwei  (milk) And when I can say the word correctly, they said "Agoda!" and they smile, just as I do when they understand something.  Well there's a good start.