Everyday with these kids, I'm learning. I'm learning more about myself as a teacher, and I'm learning how fragile these kids are.
Fifth grade is all about being cool. If you dare to ask a question, you dare to look dumb. If you dare to read a book instead of writing a note to your neighbor, you dare to look like a nerd. Most kids just stay somewhere in the middle. They don't ask many questions, they make fun of others to look cool, and do a little work (but not too much) to avoid being the nerd. That's fifth grade in a nutshell.
But these kids? Not so easy to put them into a box. I am learning that, everyday. Last week was pretty eye-opening for me.
One day I called the girl-with-attitude's mom to tell her about the attitude issues, and was told that the girl had been with her biological mom the previous weekend. When she visits her mom, she comes back with an attitude problem. Apparently I wasn't the only receiver of the attitude. And apparently this wasn't the first time this has happened. The girl-with-attitude is living with her biological dad and his girlfriend for the past two years. Soon the dad's girlfriend will be his wife.
Another day I found gang-graffiti on one of my rough boy's folder. When I looked inside, I saw some gang-related artwork that he printed off the internet. I immediately told the Principal, and he was called into her office. As she talked to him about the artwork and what it all meant, she also asked him if he knew why people joined gangs. When she emphasized the need to belong, he burst into tears. His father left last year. He misses him. He doesn't have any male figures in his life.
Another one of my rough boys, the not-so-nice one, doesn't have it any easier. He lives in a homeless shelter. Each day he doesn't know if they'll sleep at the shelter, or if they'll be somewhere else. He and his brother take a cab to and from school, because this is what's provided by the shelter. His mom is a drug addict. He has seen more wrong things in his ten-year-old life than most adults have in a lifetime.
That is just three of nineteen kids in my class, but every other kid has challenges too. It makes a lot of sense then, that their behavior is so atrocious. They obviously are acting up for a reason. And I think the main reason is that they just want to be wanted. Want to be loved. I hope I can give them at least a little of what they want.
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5 comments:
Nothing like starting the morning on a high note, Kel! :)
Just kidding...it is horrible what some of these kids have to deal with. They don't get the chance to just be kids.
Wow, just yesterday in my class, we discussed the genre of films in which heroic teachers take jobs at inner-city schools. After numerous struggles, they overcome all sorts of problems and find a way to reach their troubled students. In the end, all the students come to love and respect the teachers.
Here's hoping that you're the next Mr. Dadier/Sr. Escalante/Principal Clark/Ms. Johnson/Ms. Gruwell!
Kelly, I'm crying over here. This is why you NEED to be in a class room. Kids need people like you, someone who cares and looks beyond the graffiti to see the art.
Courage.
Does your school have a counselor for the kids?
Yes, we have a social worker and a school psychologist, but only those who "qualify" are able to see them. (I'm not sure what the parameters are for qualification). I'm going to talk to them to see what can be done.
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