Thursday's here -- and not a moment too soon. This first week of school is always a killer. Monday and Tuesday passed in the traditional whirl, but I was a little surprised by how easily everything was going for this first week.
However, by yesterday afternoon I finally began unravelling. I knew this because I lost my patience when giving out directions to my classes and then having to repeat them. And repeat them. And repeat them. The directions involved the complex task of writing their names on the upper right hand corner of their papers and placing the date underneath. I showed them exactly where their name goes on my own sample paper under the document camera. I explained how it was important that everyone's name be in the same place so that I didn't have to waste even a moment hunting for it. Then we got to work writing our names in that elusive upper, right hand corner while I patrolled the desks, checking to see that they were following directions. I saw a name in the middle of the top of a paper, with the date beside it. I smiled patiently and then held it up to show the class where not to put their names and dates. I demonstrated again where they were to place their names. The students nodded and looked intelligent. Then they looked down at their papers...and proceeded to scrawl their names in many, many other places...
OK, so I've been doing this for 30 years now and know that we will pass this huge bump in the road that we encounter (unfailingly) every single year in the first week of school. I know that my students are not stupid and that I'm not a horribly ineffective teacher. It's mostly just that after a summer of running around barefoot, my class of nine-year-olds is not in a place where such mundane directions as where to place their names matters or even registers in their brains. At least, not yet. It will -- and very, very soon. My mental survival depends on it.
This afternoon we have our first school lockdown drill. I'll be sure to let you know how that goes...
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