Making the Most of Each Situation

Have you ever been in the situation where you pack your bags to stay at a hotel for a few days and start getting used to sleeping in a new bed and then you have to pack up and leave so quickly? That is a little of how this week felt. I have been getting very comfortable and settled at my placement and all of a sudden things change and I have to readjust. What a whirlwind of a week! All of a sudden, I was full-time teaching and doing it all by myself (with a certified sub in the room) as my teacher has and will be out. If anyone can handle it, it is me and I have prepared for this day my whole life. Even so, it has been a new level of exhaustion. Sometimes I get home and cannot even think straight because my mind has been trying to remember so many important details throughout the day that only I can handle since my teacher is out. More than ever though, this week I have noticed how much I truly care for my students and how much they care for and respect me. The kindergarteners have done such a good job adjusting to so many changes throughout our classroom. With my cooperating teacher being gone, random subs and associates coming in and out, and testing going on, I am just so proud of the students' ability to just keep going on with everyday life. They have given me the strength to keep my head up some days.

I also love how much progress they are making with their letter names, sounds, and writing skills. During my reading workshop time this week, a specific student has been starting to cry because of anxiety and getting overwhelmed. The student’s academic performance is lower, and his comprehension is weak when given directions. In addition, the learner craves a lot of individual attention and prefers to work with a partner rather than alone or in a whole group setting. For this reason, after I explain each job and begin workshop, I ask the student what he/she is supposed to be doing and reassure they are correct to reassure confidence. Throughout workshop, I allowed the student to take a break after each completed job to read a book out of his/her book box (really enjoy reading). After that one book, he/she was to find their next workshop job to complete. I also paired him/her up with another student to work together to ease anxiety. In my opinion, this student needs his/her confidence to be built up and so by pairing him/her up with another student is helping build that up. In addition, I want to allow the learner to gain independence while managing academic anxiety, so taking a quick “book break” is helping but also keeping academics involved and staying on task.

Self-reflecting on the week, I guess I do not even know where to start. In the typical Mattie fashion, I wrote a list. First, I confidently kept my cool for lack of better words and offered as much normalcy as I could to my students. Learning continued and students thrived in their abilities to keep learning throughout change. Second, I saw student relationships that were struggling in my class and began to build a stronger build with those students. Third, I collaborated with my cooperating teacher from home through phone calls, emails, and text to make sure I was prepared, and she was on the same page. Communication is key. In addition to this, I communicated with the other kindergarten teacher to make sure we were on the same page to effectively transition to this change. I also worked with a few other teachers including both of the first-grade teachers about lunch duties, my associates, the Title I teachers to complete FAST assessments, the principal and secretary, as well as many of the special’s teachers. Later in the week, I had the added challenge of having a substitute in my room. I had just got used to being alone and then we added another new teacher into the mix, where we were not always on the same page about discipline, expectations, and our roles. My mind is racing thinking of all the things I could reflect on from this week. I could go on and on, but do not worry, I won’t. For now, I hope I have helped to paint a decently vivid picture of my student teaching experience during week 5.

All in all, I have learned so much this week. I have learned that this for sure is the job for me. Despite all the circumstances I have been given, at the end of the day I go home completely exhausted but with a full heart. I have started to keep a list of student quotes that are witty, bring my joy, or are just fun memories I want to remember about this learning experience in my life. I will include a couple of my favorites below. Here is to resting up and refreshing this weekend to begin another week of having my own kindergarten classroom.

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Keen Kindergarten Quotes

1. I asked a student what color his/her mom’s car was… he/she replies with, “It is black and veryyyy dusty.”

2. A student was telling an example and made it sound like he/she meant the person did not have an arm, so another student said… “Well, Ms. Barr if they didn’t have an arm, they would be dead.” (interesting what goes through their little minds, so we had to have a quick discussion how not to blurt, and that some people are different but can live without arms)

3. Thursday morning, I woke up to water everywhere due to the fridge in our apartment leaking… I was running late and had to throw my hair up… A student stood at the door waiting patiently for me to check his temperature and as I walk over, he sees me and his eyes get really big and say, “Wow, Ms. Barr you look really pretty today.” (I was totally expecting for him to say I looked really rough and tired, so I gave him a hug and thanked him for making me feel better.)

4. In science, we were talking about why we are all different colors, as well as animals being different colors. Specifically, we were talking about flamingos and I asked why flamingos are pink. Here’s what I got…. “Ms. Barr, flamingos are pink because that’s just the way God made them.”

Toodle-loo, Kangaroo!

Ms. Barr