Diary of a First Year Kindergarten Teacher: 12th Entry

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Wednesday, September 10

Dear Diary,

My class started today. It was extremely hectic but we survived.

The four students whose parents didn't show up for conferences started today also, in addition to four more who enrolled this morning. That puts me at 25 students.

            
Miss Mary stayed with me for the first hour of school, which was extremely helpful. I only wish she could have stayed longer, but she was called to another classroom for an emergency.

One of the second graders isn't potty trained yet, so the teacher, Miss Murray, needed assistance when the child had an accident.
        
Miss Mary was supposed to come back to help with my class' procession to the lunch room, but she was caught up assisting the break up of a fist fight in Miss Murray's classroom.

It's rumored that Miss Murray has the roughest class in the school. Every time I see her she looks worn out.

            
Many of the Kindergartners cried and ran around the room. Despite the chaos, Miss Mary and I were able to show the students their chairs and cubbies.

I was also able to read a story and complete a simple related activity, as well as, leading the class in some music and movement.
        
There wasn't enough time to do a thorough introduction of our classroom norms and expectations, so I touched on them briefly.

            
Tomorrow we will create an anchor chart outlining our rules and work on lining up and walking in a straight line.

I've never had to teach so many children to walk in a line without an assistant before. We also need to work on safety procedures for going up and down the stairs. Some of the children were a little wild on the steps.

           
Another important skill the children need to learn is sitting quietly on the carpet while I speak. I've got my work cut out for me but as long as I'm consistent and firm, things should eventually fall into place.

            
Miss Mary is supposed to help me with arrival tomorrow. During her time with me, I'll be sure to work on walking safely in the school.

I've found a song to sing while we walk and I've made a "walk" and "stop" sign as a visual aid for the children. In addition to walking, they'll be learning environmental print.
         
 Of course as time goes on, I'll give each student a turn to hold the sign as an incentive to behave in the halls and stairwells.

            
I need to get to bed. Tomorrow is going to be another busy day.

Diary of a First Year Kindergarten Teacher: 11th Entry

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Tuesday, September 9

Dear Diary,

The four parents who were supposed to attend a conference today didn't show up.

I tried to contact them, but two of the parents' numbers were disconnected and I left messages for the other two.

           
My class starts tomorrow. I am really nervous. 21 students shouldn't be too bad. Miss Mary is supposed to help me with the students' arrival.

I've got my lessons and my supplies ready. All I can do now is get a good night's sleep.

10 Reasons Why Teachers Shouldn't Carry Guns In Schools

            

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 As a teacher, I must weigh in on the gun debate gripping our nation. I believe in the Second Amendment to our Constitution.

I agree that people should be able to protect themselves and their families from predators, however, I also believe we need to set limitations on the caliber of weapons that end up on our streets. 

            
Like all Americans, teachers want children to be safe. Our profession demands it and we demand it of ourselves.

Teachers spend hours training, collaborating, and soul-searching the best practices for student safety everyday.

At my former school, we conducted fire drills, lock downs, and shelter in place drills every month.

Prior to employment, every teacher must pass a Child Abuse Clearance, a Criminal Background Check, and an FBI Clearance.

Every year, countless teachers must contact social services to remove students from abusive and neglectful homes.

            
I do not believe that teachers should bear the responsibility of carrying guns to school. 

  
Here's why:

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1.  Workload    

Teachers are already overworked. Due to poor parenting, teachers bear a heavy burden disciplining students. (Discipline means to teach.)

Not only do they have to instruct students on the basic subjects, many students have to be taught how to behave properly in public, how to use their manners, how tocontrol their anger and aggression, and how to achieve basic human interaction.

2. Scrutiny

Teachers are under a microscope. Everyone has an opinion on teachers.

Politicians are constantly blaming teachers and teacher's unions for the state of education in our country. Placing guns in our hands would only make the pressure on us worse. 
          
The public, the politicians MUST listen to what educators are saying.

We haven't received smaller classroom sizes or more funding and the consequences have been devastating.

If we say it's not a good idea to arm teachers with guns, people should listen.

3. Student Voice   

Students all across the country are crying out for change. We must listen to them!

If the passed two weeks are any indication, the students want gun reform, and that does not include teachers carrying guns to school.

4. Funding    

 Let's be real! How is the government going to fund a program to arm teachers? The cost would be astronomical. 

Many public schools already go without essential supplies like paper, textbooks, computers, and teachers.

What else will need to be cut to achieve arming teachers? What will happen if politicians choose to raise taxes to fund this program?

            
There are approximately 3.1 million teachers in the United States. President Trump has suggested arming the elite 10-20% of this population with guns.

Let's break this down. It's about $400.00 for a low-end handgun, times that by roughly 700,000 educators, and you get $280,000,000.00--and that's without proper training.

5. Expectations

Do we require bank tellers to protect a bank, in addition to their regular duties? Do we expect regular airport personnel to be armed for our safety? 

No, we hire trained security guards to do this because it is a difficult and demanding job.

6.  Overpowering

I hate to break it to you America, but there are many more Nicholas Cruz's sitting in our classrooms right now. 

What would happen if one of these students overpowered a teacher armed with a gun? It could easily happen.

Remember, a teacher is alone, in the classroom, with at least 30 students, in some cases.

A student like Nicholas Cruz would delight in knowing teachers were carrying weapons. It might be seen as a game or a challenge to disarm one of these teachers.

7.  Teacher Error

Teaching is a highly stressful job. So stressful in fact, that the life expectancy rate for teachers has dropped.

What happens when a teacher, who has spent at least one school year in a volatile classroom without support, misinterprets a student's body language and shoots the way police officers have done over the years?

8. Disgruntled

What if another educator, teaching under the same circumstances, is having a mental breakdown?

9. Mission Statement

Teachers are public servants not body guards. Like doctors, a teacher's mission is to nurture and support. 

Drawing a gun, under chaos, and shooting a moving target accurately, is not in our nature, let alone our job description.

10. Other Options

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One of the most important lessons learned in school is to compromise.

The politicians, the NRA, and the citizens of this country need to stop ripping each other apart and engage in meaningful dialogue that focuses on long-term solutions, not belittling a different point of view.

How do you feel about teachers carrying guns in schools?

Diary of a Kindergarten Teacher: 10th Entry

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Wednesday, September 3

Dear Diary,

It was the first official day of school for grades 1-8 today at Adams Elementary. I spent the first part of the morning helping students find their new class line in the schoolyard.
        
After that, I spoke with Ramona Johnson's former Pre-K teacher, Miss Maureen. Miss Maureen confirmed that Ramona is challenging and so is her mother.

Apparently, Ramona's mom can be argumentative. I've dealt with parents like that before. They can be difficult and scary sometimes. 

            
I told Miss Maureen that since Ramona's mom didn't complete the Kindergarten transition meeting, I didn't have a copy of Ramona's Individualized Education Plan (IEP).
        
In order to meet Ramona's educational and behavioral needs, it is essential that I have a copy of this document. 

Miss Maureen no longer had her copy of Ramona's IEP, so she couldn't provide me with one. She also told me that unfortunately she couldn't give me any advice on how to deal with Ramona's negative behaviors, because the strategies she used didn't work.     

            
After that, I called Devon Wilson's old preschool. His former teacher was unavailable to speak with me.

I was hoping to find out what anger management techniques she used to diffuse Devon's anger. I left a message for her to call me back.

            
Following all of this, I conducted thirteen interviews. Five of my originally scheduled parents came, as well as eight brand new registrations which were done today. 

I wasn't told that these parents had arrived. They were simply told to go to my classroom and I would speak with them. It was overwhelming and exhausting.

            
This puts me at 21 students total that I have met with. Once again, I called the four parents that didn't show today, inviting them to come tomorrow. I hope they show up.
       
Tomorrow is the last day in the schedule to do parent interviews. Any additional interviews will have to be completed during my prep time or before and after school.

            
It seems that I have a couple more students with IEPs for behavioral and educational needs. 

Those with educational needs are supposed to meet twice a week with our Special Education teacher, Mrs. Thomas.

I know there are no additional personnel for behavior problems that arise on a daily basis, but it's comforting to know that the students' educational needs will be met.

            
There is a program in the school called Student Support Services. They have a Shadow Program, where workers are assigned to a behaviorally challenged student for a portion of the school day. 
        
The Student Support room is directly across from my classroom. 

This afternoon, I spoke with the supervisor, Mrs. Miller. She said that for students with behavior problems, I'd have to complete paperwork with anecdotes.
         
Once I've accumulated enough data, I can submit it. Then it will be reviewed by their agency. If the students meet certain criteria, they will be assigned a Student Shadow. 

Mrs. Miller did say that it's difficult for kindergartners to get a Student Shadow. It can take months to have the paperwork reviewed. 

            
In order to prepare for all of my students, I've made a list of children who require educational support and behavioral support.

  
          Educational:      Ramona Johnson

                                       Rafael Cruz

                                      John Monroe

           

            Behavioral:     Ramona Johnson

                                    Rafael Cruz

                                    Devon Wilson

                                                                  

In Pre-K, I used to make individualized baskets, for specific children to use, while I instructed the rest of the class. 

I would put paper, crayons, lace-up cards and other items that interested them in the baskets. I'm going to make one for Ramona and Rafael.

I'm also going to introduce a Quiet Space for students to utilize when they're sad or angry. 

I also did this in Pre-K. I'll add pillows and a box filled with books, paper, and crayons.  

            
Of course I'll do lessons on appropriate behavior and consistently follow the daily schedule.These techniques are also supposed to help with students misbehaving.

            
These are the only strategies I've come up with so far.

Diary of a First Year Kindergarten Teacher: 9th Entry

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Saturday, September 6

Dear Diary,

I spent the night thinking of strategies to help the students in my class and the positives of my situation. Positives first:

1. I still have a job. When the district cut my position in June, I wasn't sure if I'd have a job in September. I spent the entire summer stressing about that. 

Now I can continue to pay for my son's college tuition and my daughter's high school tuition.

2. I have help in my classroom for an hour-and-a-half everyday. Many kindergarten teachers in the district don't have that.

3.  I'm able to teach kindergarten. I was very concerned that I'd end up in a higher grade. 

After teaching 2 - 4 year olds for my entire career, being thrown into a second or third grade class would have been difficult.

Strategies:

1. I know that Ramona Johnson had an IEP in Pre-K because the special needs coordinator told me. 

I am going to call Ramona's former teacher, and ask which behavioral and instructional strategies were used for her when she was in Pre-K. 

I am also going to do the same for Devon Wilson. Collaboration is key to help these children succeed.

2. I'm outlining my daily schedule and making an anchor chart with pictures for the children to read. Consistency is important for children.

3. I'll incorporate lots of music and movement into the schedule. That should help relieve the stress and anger of the students.

            
That's all I have for now.  I think I'm off to a good start.   

Diary of a First Year Kindergarten Teacher: 8th Entry

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Friday, September 5

Dear Diary,

Okay, so six parents showed up for interviews, which puts me four behind. I tried to reschedule them for Monday. 

I was only able to get in touch with one of them. I left messages for the other three.

They'll probably show up on Monday unannounced and I'll have to squeeze them in. 

I now have nine interviews scheduled on Monday. I've completed eight.

            
The students I've met so far are a mixed lot in terms of skill. Luckily as I had requested, all eight children attended the meetings with their parents.

I was able to complete the battery of required assessments. These tests will help me prepare future small group lessons. It seems I have my work cut out for me.

            
Three of the students have attended some sort of day care or preschool program. The other five have not. 

These five children didn't know how to open a book correctly or differentiate between words and pictures. 

They also couldn't identify any letters from their first name, basic shapes, numbers from 1-5, or the primary colors.

            
One of the students has a severe behavior problem and is learning disabled. Her name is Ramona Johnson. I was told that Ramona belongs in a special program.
         
She received services in Pre-K, but her mother never attended the Kindergarten transition meeting in the Spring. 

Ramona will be expected to learn in a classroom with 29 other students in my regular education setting with no extra support.
          
How do I know she won't receive any additional support, because I asked. Due to a lack of funding there are no extra personnel. 

Isn't that just wonderful?!!!!

            
There is also a little boy named Devon Wilson with anger management problems. Mom is trying to get him into therapy but has been unsuccessful due to long patient waiting lists.

Devon is extremely bright. He knows every letter in the alphabet including their sounds and he asks intelligent questions.

            
The other four were quiet at the meeting. Let's hope they stay that way when school starts.

            
I have to input some of the information from the interviews on a statewide database. Since I haven't received a school district laptop, I'll have to do it from home over the weekend.

Apparently, due to a shortage, the kindergarten teachers at Adams Elementary were excluded from getting laptops. 

            
I'm trying to stay positive but it's getting really hard.

           

Diary Of A First Year Kindergarten Teacher: 7th Entry

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Thursday, September 4

Dear Diary,

I spent the entire morning in meetings. First we met as a staff and then we broke down into smaller groups to discuss best instruction practices for our age groups. 

Will I ever get a full day to do parent interviews?
       
After that, I got a prep and lunch, which is about an hour-and-a-half total. 

During that time, I conducted two interviews. I learned shortly after from Mrs. Staltz, that she disapproved of my meetings.

She doesn't want to do parent meetings on her lunch break. If I do them during this time slot and she doesn't, it sets a bad precedent. Parents will complain. 

Really?

            
I really miss Head Start. I could do interviews whenever I wanted. Of course there were other issues, but that is another story.

            
The afternoon was as exciting as the morning, more and more meetings. 

Mrs. Bernard took us on a tour of the school to discuss student traffic, during middle school class changes. 

I've never worked in a main school building with middle school kids. I hope they don't run over the kindergartners.

            
Mrs. Bernard also went over the standardized tests scores from last school year, and how we can improve as a school this year. 

There was a power point with flow charts, pie charts, and bar graphs explaining student achievement and the next steps to help students achieve higher.

            
I kept thinking about all the parents I could have been meeting with, and the lessons I could have been preparing for the first day of school. 

Flow charts are not going to help me get any of that done.

            
Tomorrow I'll have the entire day to conduct my parent meetings. I have ten parents scheduled. Let's hope all ten show up.

Interview With A Kindergarten Teacher

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I recently had the pleasure of interviewing a former teacher named, Anne. Anne has a Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education and a Master's Degree in Education.

She taught for 25 years. My conversation with Anne was informative and shed light on the experiences many teachers go through everyday.

Although only in her late forties, Anne has left the teaching profession for good. She currently works in a supermarket and is quite content to keep doing so.

1. Why did you become a teacher?

I've always enjoyed working with young children. It seemed natural for me to pursue a career, where I could use my talents to educate them.

Also, when I finally decided to go to school to become a teacher, my daughter was just a baby.

I wanted a job where I could spend the most time with her. Since public school teachers get the summers off, I knew that was the best option for me.

2. What grade did you teach?

I taught Kindergarten.

3. What was your favorite thing about teaching?

            
When I first started, I loved the creativity Early Childhood Education allowed. It was so much fun designing lessons and watching the children learn from them.

4. You said, "When you first started". What changed after you started?

            
Everything. Play was taken out of the Kindergarten classroom and replaced with the more standard instruction you find in the upper grades.

Naps were eliminated from the full-day program. Young children get tired and need to rest during the day. It helps them reorganize their brains and process what they've learned.

            
The amount of paperwork I was required to complete grew worse every year. I found some of the student expectations outrageous.

Some Kindergartners just aren't ready to start reading and writing, especially if they've never been to school before.

Often, when these particular students don't accomplish these goals, the teacher is penalized. 

It doesn't matter that the students have made progress in accordance with their own development, or that there aren't enough resources to support them. 

If it's not measurable on a report card the district will hold the teacher accountable. 

5. What was your least favorite thing about teaching?

            
The lack of support I received when students in my classroom acted out.

6. Can you elaborate on the behaviors you mentioned?

            
Some of the children would get very violent, throwing chairs at other students or me. Sometimes they would run out of the classroom or leave the school building. 
One year my entire classroom had been remodeled.
Within six weeks of school starting, the classroom was ruined. 

Many of the students had written on the floors, walls, tables and chairs. They had poked holes in the library furniture, torn up a lot of the books, and stolen a fair amount of the math manipulatives I had on the shelves.

7. Why didn't you receive the support you needed?

            
Lack of funding. The monetary cuts made to the public schools have caused a lot of these behaviors to flourish. 

There just aren't enough personnel anymore to deal with the overcrowding in classrooms and the social/emotional needs of many students.

8. Can you think of any solutions to solve this problem?

            
Yes. Politicians need to let teachers teach. They also need to stop attacking teacher unions and value the teaching profession.

Did you know that teaching is one of the only professions, where furthering your education has little benefits? 

When I earned my Master's Degree I didn't get a raise like professionals in other careers do.

            
We also need to focus our resources on the mental health of our students. Many children have experienced horrible trauma that needs to be addressed. 

If we could pursue mental health in the schools with as much vigor as literacy and math we may be able to cut down on school violence.

9. That sounds like a daunting task. How would we even begin to accomplish such a goal?

            
Well it won't be easy, but if we all worked together, I really believe we could do it. I once suggested to my principal, that we should partner up with college students who were going to school to become psychotherapists.

There has to be a way to allow college students to complete their internships by working with school age children.

10. Do you have any you suggestions for new teachers just starting out?

            
Don't teach to the standardized test; teach to the students.

Be an advocate for your students.

Document everything. You never know when an incident may turn against you. If you have a paper trail, you have leverage and protection.

I would like to thank Anne for her time and insight. I hope this interview helps people understand the challenges public school teachers and their students face everyday. 

In order to change the state of public education in our country, we must listen to those people on the frontlines, the teachers.     

What are your thoughts on how to address mental health problems with students?

Diary Of A First Year Kindergarten Teacher: 6th Entry

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Wednesday, September 3

Dear Diary,

I was exhausted the entire day. After all the nonsense yesterday, I had trouble settling down enough to sleep last night. 

When I finally did doze off, it was time to get up. 

Typical.

            
I spent part of the morning in my classroom scheduling parent conferences and the afternoon in meetings with the staff at Adams Elementary. 

Yes, I finally got my class list, but as per usual, there's a slight snag.
          
Only 18 out of 30 students were listed, which delays scheduling parents and labeling cubbies, journals, folders, etc. I hope that I'll have a full list by the end of the week. 

Mrs. Staltz said that's highly unlikely. We may have most of our students registered by then, but it may take a few weeks to get a full class.

            
After thinking about it I realized beginning with a partial class might actually be a good thing. A small class size is always best, especially with the little ones. 

I'll be able to teach this smaller group of students the class rules without an abundance of distractions, and they in turn can help me teach the new arrivals.

            
I also met one of my classroom aides this morning. Her name is Miss Mary, and she and another woman named Miss Betty, will alternate their time in my classroom on a bi-weekly basis, for an hour-and-a-half each day. 

45 minutes in the morning during the phonics block and another 45 minutes in the afternoon. I hope to do the Learning Centers during their afternoon slot. It's much easier to monitor centers with two adults in the room.

            
Miss Mary is kind and open to new things. She has been a Kindergarten aide for fifteen years. That is awesome.
         
She thinks the Learning Centers are a great idea and never understood why they took play out of Kindergarten in the first place. 

She seems very knowledgeable about how a Kindergarten class should run.

I will definitely utilize her knowledge, especially since I don't think I'll be receiving much support from my grade partner. 

Mrs. Staltz told me to ask her for help whenever I needed it, but I get the feeling she doesn't want to be bothered.

            
When I asked her for a copy of the information I missed yesterday at the phonics training, she made me one without complaint, but I it seemed that she just wanted to be left alone. 

She kept saying she had a thousand things to do before our meetings started.
         
In spite of her protestations, I also asked her for the email address for the woman in charge of sending out emails to the Kindergarten teachers. 

She was nice enough to give me that, too.  

            
I spent the remainder of the day in meetings.
        
During the first session, Mrs. Bernard welcomed us to a new school year and spoke about the promise of a fresh start for our students. 

She explained her arrival and dismissal expectations for the year, as well as deadlines for lesson plans, lunch schedules and routines, and other general housekeeping information.
         
The second session was about the needs of Second Language Learners and students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).

We also spent time signing up for school committees and had our lunch break.

            
At the end of the day, I was given a few reams of copy paper with the promise of more to come. Apparently, the Phonics program requires a lot of worksheets to be completed by the students. 

I think that's ridiculous. Where's the fun in doing gobs of worksheets in Kindergarten? Quality over quantity, I say.
        
Mrs. Staltz got a larger amount of copy paper than I. I learned shortly after why this was so. 

As the grade group leader, she is in charge of deciding what homework the Kindergartners receive each week as well as making the appropriate copies.
       
I was also informed that we will alternate doing a math and literacy lesson plan each week, according to a format designed by her, and approved of by Mrs. Bernard; that I am responsible for purchasing sand and containers for the Phonics program; and that I must focus on journals for my Teacher Improvement Plan (TIP) this year.

            
I told Mrs. Staltz I thought that I could choose what I wanted to work on for my TIP. 

I was hoping to work on a behavior program I had learned about while I was in Head Start. It's supposed to be very beneficial in helping students make good decisions.
        
Mrs. Staltz said I could do whatever I wanted but Mrs. Bernard preferred that Kindergarten and First Grade focus on journals. 

Since everyone else has agreed to journals, I consented to do it also. I don't want to draw negative attention to myself my first year here.