I think I can, I think I can, I think I can!

I haven't posted anything about teaching in awhile mostly due to the fact that things have been stressful. I needed time to cool off so I wouldn't post an extremely long blog full of complaints. Now that I feel a little better about life, I will update you a little.

My "hard" school has made me second guess my decision to be a teacher countless times this past month. The children are very difficult to teach and sometimes we spend 30 out of their 45 minutes just sitting because they will not be quiet long enough for me to talk or explain a game. It gets really frustrating. Many students do not speak English and many are from low-income families. This often means they are not very disciplined. Teaching 50-60 of these students at once, seven times a day, pays its toll on me. Every morning would be spent with many silent prayers asking Heavenly Father to help me make it through the day. I'd sit there and tell myself "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can" but having a sense of dread in my stomach. After being like this for far too long, I decided a change needed to take place. These past couple of weeks I have enforced new policies and been more strict about following my rules. I've spent quite a bit of money on candy and prizes as incentives. The reason I'm mentioning this is because THINGS ARE FINALLY GETTING BETTER!!! I have gone home the last two weeks from this school and didn't cry! This was almost a daily ritual after leaving this school before. The students are understanding that they must be quiet in order to play and that I don't let anything slip by me. I know there are still some things I can work on and I still have trouble with a few classes but all in all, I'm starting to like my job :) The other school I'm at is great and the students are easier to manage so if all else fails, I enjoy going to work every other day. The teachers at both schools though, have been wonderful and I'm so glad I have their support!

On a more positive note, the individual students are awesome (they just have trouble when they are all together!) We have been playing some fun games and I love seeing them come up with strategies, helping their teammates, and the looks on their faces when they accomplish something they haven't before.

I also decided to compile a little list of things that make me love being a PE teacher. I often have to be reminded of these things since I tend to dwell on the bad. Here they are:

I love getting hugs from the little Kinders and Hi Fives from the older kids

I love that even though I sometimes yell, they still think I'm the coolest teacher ever

I love getting compliments on my cool shoes or awesome athletic attire

I love their reaction when I actually do my hair and it's not in a pony tail

I love seeing their sweaty faces when they leave the gym

I love hearing them breath hard because I know they are getting a workout

I love when I hear them say, "That was fun!"

I love when they call me "Coach" instead of Miss Miller

and...

I love payday!

Here's a funny story to end this long post. One thing I implimented this past week was a "Stop and Think" card. When they get 3 strikes, they have to fill out a card explaining what they did wrong and how they will be better. I then sign it, give it to their teacher to sign, and it goes home to the parents. When explaining this to Kindergarteners, a little girl said that if a note like that goes home, her mom would get mad, she would have to do all her homework, then go to her room for the rest of the night without doing anything fun, and would have to eat grits for dinner. After the grits part, I couldn't help but laugh. She then looked at me with a stern eye and said, "it's not funny!" I quickly replied that it was not and she would have to work really hard to make sure that didn't happen. She then said, "Oh, I will!" I laughed again but this time I turned around so she didn't know :)