the past two days have been long. busy. tiring. hilarious. and cute.
2nd grade. the grade i most desire to teach. children with a curiosity about life and learning. many questions to be asked and stories to be told.
the classroom i'm in this week is beginning a unit on 'the earth'. yesterday the students took a 'pretest' involving their own illustration of what they think the earth looks like. they were to label the continents - oceans - and provide as much detail as possible.
walking around the room i saw much. every earth was round. some contained a huge island in the center labeled 'Iowa' and another large island near the bottom labeled 'Texas'. of course. the state you're from and the other biggest state they know. that was their perception of the earth. others were filled with many specific cities, rivers, and towns. each unique. each a reflection of places traveled and known.
by the way:
Asha = Asia
Yorup = Europe
why wouldn't we spell them like that?
this morning as i stood in the hallway greeting kids as they walked in - i had one dad come up to me and say, "my daughter couldn't stop talking about you last night. 'she's just so pretty. and so nice. and dad, she's just so pretty!' i had to come in and meet you."
Jose came up to me today and said, "Miss Conlee, you're going to be a really great teacher. you could teach any grade. can you stay for the rest of the year?"
Dameon has told me several stories. about the spy gadget he created last night. and how sometimes people call him the 'icky boy' because he REALLY likes mustard!' he also drew me a picture. the first of many.
nine out of twenty-five students in my classroom this week are English language learners. many are from Africa and Vietnam. by the end of today Charls and Harun were both frustrated - brought to tears - and laid their heads down on an uncompleted assignment. their teacher proceeded to tell me that some days they reach a point where they can't listen to, comprehend, or speak English any longer.
adorable children come each morning from multiple homes and places in life. all colliding in one room that they might learn. and from them i continue to learn much as i begin to appreciate my role as a teacher.
1 comment:
That was so awesome to read buddy.
I'm so glad you're learning so much while you're there, and I'm really really glad you're having a good time. I'm sure it's a long day for you, but man...you are going to be a fantastic teacher!
Keep taking it all in buddy. Use that amazing memory for good! Ha! Thanks for sharing.
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