Just Noticing

I've been teaching reading at the middle school level for the past six years. It's the first time I've taught a class that is grouped homogeneously. I have three different groupings: those reading above grade level, those reading at grade level and those reading below grade level. Those groupings are based on the results of state test scores and an assessment required by the county.

It is what it is...

Last night was Back-to-School night and for the seventh year in a row I've noticed that the classes with the largest parental attendance are also the classes with students reading above grade level.

Why? What can I do to change that? Does it matter?

Just wondering.

Getting it Together

Back-to-School Night, the one evening set aside for parents to meet all their child's teachers, is not my favorite event of the year. Speaking in front of a classroom of twelve year-olds is easy, standing in front of their parents is not.

Fortunately, the evening goes by quickly. Parents follow their child's schedule and visit each class. Teachers are given about ten minutes to go over their class objectives and expectations and to answer any questions about the class.

Tonight I survived my 17th Back-to-School night. It was, as usual, a blur of me talking and parents looking- with a few questions thrown in between. I don't remember many specifics, except for the father who came up to me at the end of class to report his son has been feeling like he got off on the wrong foot with me. He's been in some trouble in my class and feeling like I've been singling him out.

Yup, that kid has been driving me crazy, but tomorrow my goal is to find a way to for us to work together so that we both feel respected and valued.

A New School Year...Not Like Any Other

A young man in my sister's class pulled a gun out today and threatened to shoot a classmate. He added that he would shoot the substitute teacher as well. This was not the same young man that told another girl that he would stab her. Nor was it the same boy who stole from the classroom. It wasn't the same student who spit on the principal earlier in the year either.

The gun wasn't real, it was a toy. My sister teaches in a rural area twenty miles north of Baltimore. She teaches kindergarten.

It's been a helluva year.

Getting off the Curb

I learned to ride my bike while living in the house on Othoridge Rd. in Lutherville, MD. I was somewhere around 7 years old. One training wheel fell off my bike and instead of repairing it my mom just went ahead and took the other one off. After the training wheels came off I spent most of my time riding along the curb. It was easier to balance the big two-wheel machine knowing I had the curb as a safety net when I started to wobble. It didn't take too long, one day I pushed off the curb and kept going...no wobbling, curb no longer needed.

Getting Into the Zone

My employer requires that I come up with a Professional Development Plan (PDP) each year. It's a way for teachers to identify an area they'd like to work on, come up with a plan for the work and to carry out the plan. At the end of the year I'm asked to report on how it all went.

One of my struggles has always been the best way to reach the students I have that are reading below grade level. In my opinion they fell behind their classmates somewhere around second or third grade and never caught up. By the time they get to me in sixth grade they've had three or more years of reading frustration under their belts and for the most part they've started to see themselves as non-readers.

This year, I hope to get them to change that vision...I want them to see themselves as readers. A friend offered up a little Nancie Atwell theory and I'm eager to give it a go. I left work today with my copy of The Reading Zone tucked in my bag. I'll spend some time over the weekend rereading it and coming up with my plan.

For the first time in quite some time, I'm excited about my PDP.

Hello Friday

Thursday. In college it was known as the "gateway to the weekend." It was a day to go out with friends, have a few drinks (or more) and say a hearty hello to Friday.

Twenty-five years later Thursday is still the gateway to the weekend, but the revelry that went with the welcome isn't quite the same. Tonight I am excited about getting to bed early. My hello to Friday will have to wait until a bit after 5:00 AM when my cell phone alarm awakes me as it plays the theme song from "The Jetsons."

I can no longer schedule my classes for late Friday afternoon like I did in college. My students will begin wandering in to homeroom at about 7:40. They will bid me a good morning and we will be off and running for the rest of the day.

However, since it is Friday, maybe I'll bring in some donuts.

So Many Questions

Remember those questions I asked the students to respond to back on the first day of school? I shared their definition of reading as well as their thoughts on rules that would encourage a positive learning environment. The last question was sort of a free-for-all. I asked them to write down any questions they had about the class, middle school, 6th grade, or me.

I tried a similar exercise my first year as a third grade teacher. When in the process of learning about a new group of students I found that their questions reveal as much about them as the answers they give. This year's sixth graders disclosed a bit about themselves in their inquiries.

Do we get to blow stuff up in Science?
What time is it when you are late for class?
Will we read Moby Dick?
Are you allergic to anything?
Is it true that if you read more you become a better speller?
Why is there a squeaking noise by the sink?
What are three of your favorite songs?
Who inspired you to be a teacher?
Are you funny as a teacher?
Why do they call it Middle School?
Does anybody else feel the same way I do?
Will we have a lot of homework? Will it be hard?
Is 6th grade a repeat of 5th?

One thing I've learned from this activity is that even though it may look like every student is "with me" during class discussion, they aren't. Their brains are moving every which way. They are filled with questions, but they're not always the ones I'm trying to answer in class.