The Mad Chatters thread Part 2

[EEYOREMAMA]

Hi Tricia. Wow nobody's been on since you or me. No wonder I started talking to myself, there's no one out here listening to me. I'm LONELY!!!! I'll check back later.

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Hi Karen, sorry I missed you. Now I'm on and your light is out. I guess summer is officially over. Everyone has there own schedules to deal with and the chatting is slowing down.

 

[Bbgrizzle]

Helloooo!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Hi Bonnie. How's the new job going?

 

[Bbgrizzle]

Hi Tricia! I'm not enjoying it very much. The kids are wild animals and it is gonna take a LOT to get them trained. Maybe when the assistant gets back from vacation and we get a routine down it will be better. As it is, my favorite time of day is NAP time!

What's new with you? My stripey siggy disappeared the day after I got it! I don't know why. How come you still have yours?

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

I don't know about the signature. Just lucky I guess.

It's hard to believe that the school would allow a vacation the first week .It seems like that's when you need to set the rules and work closely together with your assistant. I hope it gets better once she's back.

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

You got a new signature. It's cute.

 

[paigevz]

Hi cousins!

Jay, I am soooo jealous! Great itinerary, AND a cruise, AND MNSSHP! The boys are doing very well, much better than I'd hoped, which helps me relax and focus on my job. Nick is in the honors literature he thought he wasn't in (along with Pre-AP math), he was just coded as Gifted rather than Pre-AP. PE every day for him which makes me happy. Luke's school uses High/Scope curriculum, which I love. My class is fabulous, though very low academically.........can't have everything, though! I'd way rather have good behavior and poor academics as it'll be easier to pull them up. Last year's group came in high, but didn't grow much due to the behavior issues.

I am sitting here grading my Social Studies assignment for this week for all the 2nd graders (well, except the one teacher who doesn't want to rotate with us). I also have the week's Science to grade, then my class' language papers and math assessment. I brought home their I Am Special packets to peruse for favorites and such in my "spare" time.

I'm not visiting any more threads but this one tonight, as some of the ones last night riled me up and I am tired of that.

 

[Bbgrizzle]

Howdy, Paige! Glad to see you! How is your mom doing?

I'm actually off to pick up DH from the train station. The girls are going with me and we have to stop at Barnes and Noble on the way home to get a children's book I need for a lesson plan.

I'll try to sign on later tonight. Hopefully someone will be here!

Bye Tricia! Bye Paige!

 

[paigevz]

Oops, if I'd read your post first Bonnie, I wouldn't have mentioned my class' good behavior...........I hate it when that happens!

I'm sure when she gets back you guys can get it all worked out and settle them down. How many do you have?

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Bye Bonnie. Hi Paige.

 

[Bbgrizzle]

Paige, I have 16. Bye for real now!

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Paige do you like teaching 2nd grade? My youngest is in first grade. I just remember that being a really hard year for the kids to adjust to. Second grade they just seemed to breeze through. My son isn't liking first grade at all. We are only in week two so I know it will get better. He just keeps comparing it to Kindergarten.

 

[paigevz]

Bye Bonnie.

Well, just got a call from my mom and she's home. New problem, though, her good leg is cramping/spasming a lot now and when it does that she cannot use her walker. The good news is they are going to give her a home health aide to help, and right now her two brothers and her mom are there with her. The good/bad news is that she has to go back tomorrow to get a pin put in, as the bones will not stay like they hoped they would........the bad is obvious, but the good is that it will actually be better for her ankle and the pain may not last as long.............

Everyone pray for her during surgery tomorrow..............

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

Everyone pray for her during surgery tomorrow..............

I'll definitely put her on my list.

 

[paigevz]

I love second, Tricia, but I haven't taught K or 1st, so I don't know how to compare it.

They come in knowing the basics (hopefully) and then we just build from there. It's still hard for them though because we don't have as much downtime as 1st did, do more seatwork, don't give as much time for assignments, and there are no longer any guaranteed "fun" times as we hardly have centers at all and recess is used for make-up time if work isn't done.

I strive to make the lessons exciting, hands-on, movement-oriented and lots of read aloud, though, so I think they still enjoy themselves.

They do get a 50 minute period of PE, Computers or half music and half theater every day, though. But for us it's the last period.

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

I strive to make the lessons exciting, hands-on, movement-oriented and lots of read aloud, though, so I think they still enjoy themselves.

You sound like a great teacher Paige.

 

[paigevz]

Thanks, I do try. I get frustrated with those who don't seem to try very hard............get out the book turn to page 23, read Chapter 4 and do the questions. I get angry at the grouchy ones. I wonder why they are there in the first place.

 

[paigevz]

How should I grade this, do you think? We did a paper with a T chart.........which is basically a cause/effect chart about community places. I provided for them on the board and we discussed:
What? How helps?
hospital helps heal
school helps us learn
library
fire station
police station
city hall

We also discussed a possible answer for library and what city hall is and an answer for that.

19 of them turned in exactly what I wrote on the board without the other answers.
9 what I wrote on the board plus 1 more answer.
7 what I wrote plus 2 or 3.
17 completed the assignment...............100 for those, I guess, but what for the rest? I had thought 90, 80, 70 but that seems awfully generous for not doing it. Or I could go 80, 70, 60........but that's a lot of Fs for the first full week of 2nd grade.

 

[TheDisneyTraveler06]

Good Evening, Mad Chatters!

Roll call! Who's here?