I have always dreamed of becoming a teacher, and I always knew that my career as a teacher would change my life. What I did not know is in addition to teaching, I would soon become a classroom counselor and psychologist, and I feel like a mother to my 5th-grade students as well.
Yes, in undergrad and graduate courses you take psychology and you hear about situations that you may come across. You get into groups and discuss how the teacher should and should not react to certain situations. Of course, it all sounds realistic and manageable in school, but the reality isn’t so easy.
I walked into my fifth-grade classroom the first week of school to teach a lesson on division and within minutes I realized that the students who were sitting in front of me had not yet mastered multiplication. I quickly re-evaluated and switched over to a multiplication mini-lesson. Two more minutes later, I realized some students had not yet mastered addition. Yes, everyone knows that teachers need to be flexible, but all that was going through my mind in that moment was, “How the heck did these students pass into fifth grade?”
Every single day when I go home, I re-evaluate the day and think about how I can make tomorrow better. How can I help these students? My goal is to bring the students as close to grade level as possible. (Out of 16 students, I have only three or four who are on grade level.)
I modify each lesson that I teach and differentiate to each child’s needs. This is one thing you always hear about that teachers should do, but sometimes no matter how much I modify the lesson, there are times when it doesn’t seem good enough.
On most days, I don’t make it through all of the lessons that I plan. It takes me so long to get through the directions, that sometimes the lesson only goes as far as the introduction. Sometimes, I cannot complete the lesson because of the difficult concepts. Other times I can’t complete it because of behavior issues:
- Who is tapping and humming on the desk to annoy the other students?
- Who is getting up to sharpen a pencil?
- Who is talking?
- Who is putting his/her head down?
- Who is calling out or yelling?
- Who is kicking a chair?
- Who is fighting?
It took me about two days in this classroom to recognize the fact that my students have many other challenges to deal with besides passing fifth grade. I am constantly resolving arguments, breaking up fights, and problem solving. As a result, I have incorporated conflict/resolution and anger-management lessons into the curriculum. These students face troubles, and when they come to school, learning is not the first thing on their mind. A good-hearted teacher will help the students make it through the school year, but a teacher that also acts as a mother, counselor, and psychologist will lead the students to a better life.
The students that I teach are fun to be around. I want them to be able to experience life the way many children do; go outside to play, go out to dinner, or go to an amusement park. For the holidays, I had each student make a wish list of three items that they need. The company that I am presently working for in addition to teaching adopted my class and granted each wish. The students opened jackets, sneakers, pants, shirts, and other winter apparel. Honestly, it was the best holiday that I have ever experienced, and I think that the students felt the same way.
I love to see my students happy and be able to succeed; it makes me so proud. I see the students who in the beginning of the year would punch another student are now beginning to walk away to gain self-control. I see students who could not spell Friday spelling words like knowledge and equipment. I see some students who did not speak or smile enjoying group work and playing with other students.
Are all of the problems solved? Of course not. I still have to interrupt my lessons to break up fights and repeat discussions about rules and respect. I feel like some of these problems will never vanish, however, I like to focus on the positive aspects in order to keep myself motivated to teach. Observing the progress is the part of teaching that makes me want to travel through the grades with these students. I know they can make it, and I want to be there when they do.
