baby boy
about a month ago, one of my 7th graders was sent back to the 6th grade.
for this student, being in the 6th grade is an incredible insult. however, the reason why he was sent there is because of his incessive immaturity. he was continuously rude, crude, and highly obnoxious.
his homeroom teacher, along with the principal and assistant principal, first tried giving this student - let's just call him Junior - his own section sheet. what that meant was that all of his actions would not negatively affect the progress and success of the rest of the class. Junior didn't know whether to be embarrassed or excited about his personalized section sheet, but he mostly didn't want to feel down, so he made a big deal of it when it happened. i made a big deal of it also. i made it a challenge for him. every day, he had the possibility of earning a bonus in my class. it was really quite simple. everybody else in the class was expected to do the same work. take notes. try the sample problems. answer questions when i ask them. participate. try. but for Junior, doing so meant he could possibly earn a bonus of 5 to 10 extra points, or dollars. and he reveled in it. one day, he earned himself a bonus of +5, but then i had to write him down for not doing his homework. not doing homework means an instant deduction of -30. even though he was excited about the bonus, i had to point out to him that it didn't make much of a difference since he hadn't done his homework. the next day? the homework was done.
the more i rewarded this student, the better he did in my class. we forged an instant bond. he absolutely *loved* doing work for me. the rewards were really tiny, in the grand scheme of things, but i think more than anything, Junior liked the feeling of being liked. he knew that he made me proud. he liked having me on his side.
in other classes, though, Junior kept acting out, kept messing up. and eventually, things escalated. a fight broke out with another student. he was vulgar with his classmates. he was sent (temporarily, at the time) to hang out with the 6th graders as a way of showing him where his immaturity would get him.
however, Junior wanted to push his limits. one day, instead of going to the 6th grade class as he was supposed to, he stayed with his normal 7th grade class. the principals found out, and Junior was suspended.
now, i don't have time to expound on how much i disagree with this decision, and besides, what's done is done. however, Junior is still, as of this point, spending his days with the 6th graders. last week was the suspension. as he was waiting one day outside of the office, i walked by and asked him what happened. he was sullen and sad. i told him i missed him in my class, that he was too bright to be making this poor choices, and that he should reflect on making better choices in the future.
the day after that, Junior was sitting on the couch near the main office, and a parental guardian figure was standing nearby. i was just walking by, on my way back to my room, but as i did, i reached out, and extended my fist towards Junior. his knuckles met mine, we "shook hands" or whatever it is that gesture is called, and the moment was over. but again, the connection was made.
on monday of this week, Junior ran up to me in between classes. "professor! i need to see you during lunch tomorrow for tutoring! i need to learn what everybody else is learning!"
"ok" i replied, "i agree. i don't want you to fall too behind. i'll sign you up. see you tomorrow."
yesterday, Junior came up during lunch, and it was just the two of us, and we sailed through concepts. he was full of "oh!"s and "i see!" - genuinely making connections and seeing how the pieces fit together. i gave him a list of problems to do, and sent him on with a textbook in tow. the other kids don't even take a textbook home, but Junior needs to catch up, and i both trust him, *and* i know that he can understand what's in the book.
today, he came up for lunch again. he checked his work to the answers in my teacher's edition, and then we covered a few more concepts. i gave him more problems to work on, but by the end of the day when i saw him, he told me he'd already finished. tomorrow, he has a pass so that as soon as he gets down to the lunchroom, he'll get his lunch first, and should be done eating by the time i come down to get him, about 15 minutes into the lunch period. then we'll cover even more material, and i just know he'll do great. in fact, he might even be able to take the same test that the rest of his class takes on monday.
tonight, i had to make a slew of calls to parents. i have kids who are copying each other's homework. one student was caught doing it 3 times, and is going to be suspended. i caught two more doing it today, and called home. other students are forging their parents' signatures on their quizzes and tests. others are not doing the homework assignments, or are coming to class without pencils. all small issues, but they'd built up and i had to call (even though i got only 3 hours of sleep last night and will pass out soon as i finish writing this)
i made one last phone call tonight, though. and it wasn't to complain. it wasn't negative. it wasn't about things that need to change. i called Junior's home. i spoke to his mom. i called to tell her how proud i was of Junior. that he'd taken initiative, that he was getting tutoring in order to catch up, that the principal knew about it and was going to rely on *my* judgment as to when Junior could be allowed back into the 7th grade.
i hope i can continue making a difference in this child's life. he is really so very bright, and i know that his behavior problems stem mostly from not being challenged *enough*. i'm excited about his progress, and by all his potential.
his mother was so grateful to hear from me. i'm sure she almost never gets phone calls that are with *good* news about her son. i even got all teary-eyed and stuffed up as i was talking to her. i'm such a goon.
for this student, being in the 6th grade is an incredible insult. however, the reason why he was sent there is because of his incessive immaturity. he was continuously rude, crude, and highly obnoxious.
his homeroom teacher, along with the principal and assistant principal, first tried giving this student - let's just call him Junior - his own section sheet. what that meant was that all of his actions would not negatively affect the progress and success of the rest of the class. Junior didn't know whether to be embarrassed or excited about his personalized section sheet, but he mostly didn't want to feel down, so he made a big deal of it when it happened. i made a big deal of it also. i made it a challenge for him. every day, he had the possibility of earning a bonus in my class. it was really quite simple. everybody else in the class was expected to do the same work. take notes. try the sample problems. answer questions when i ask them. participate. try. but for Junior, doing so meant he could possibly earn a bonus of 5 to 10 extra points, or dollars. and he reveled in it. one day, he earned himself a bonus of +5, but then i had to write him down for not doing his homework. not doing homework means an instant deduction of -30. even though he was excited about the bonus, i had to point out to him that it didn't make much of a difference since he hadn't done his homework. the next day? the homework was done.
the more i rewarded this student, the better he did in my class. we forged an instant bond. he absolutely *loved* doing work for me. the rewards were really tiny, in the grand scheme of things, but i think more than anything, Junior liked the feeling of being liked. he knew that he made me proud. he liked having me on his side.
in other classes, though, Junior kept acting out, kept messing up. and eventually, things escalated. a fight broke out with another student. he was vulgar with his classmates. he was sent (temporarily, at the time) to hang out with the 6th graders as a way of showing him where his immaturity would get him.
however, Junior wanted to push his limits. one day, instead of going to the 6th grade class as he was supposed to, he stayed with his normal 7th grade class. the principals found out, and Junior was suspended.
now, i don't have time to expound on how much i disagree with this decision, and besides, what's done is done. however, Junior is still, as of this point, spending his days with the 6th graders. last week was the suspension. as he was waiting one day outside of the office, i walked by and asked him what happened. he was sullen and sad. i told him i missed him in my class, that he was too bright to be making this poor choices, and that he should reflect on making better choices in the future.
the day after that, Junior was sitting on the couch near the main office, and a parental guardian figure was standing nearby. i was just walking by, on my way back to my room, but as i did, i reached out, and extended my fist towards Junior. his knuckles met mine, we "shook hands" or whatever it is that gesture is called, and the moment was over. but again, the connection was made.
on monday of this week, Junior ran up to me in between classes. "professor! i need to see you during lunch tomorrow for tutoring! i need to learn what everybody else is learning!"
"ok" i replied, "i agree. i don't want you to fall too behind. i'll sign you up. see you tomorrow."
yesterday, Junior came up during lunch, and it was just the two of us, and we sailed through concepts. he was full of "oh!"s and "i see!" - genuinely making connections and seeing how the pieces fit together. i gave him a list of problems to do, and sent him on with a textbook in tow. the other kids don't even take a textbook home, but Junior needs to catch up, and i both trust him, *and* i know that he can understand what's in the book.
today, he came up for lunch again. he checked his work to the answers in my teacher's edition, and then we covered a few more concepts. i gave him more problems to work on, but by the end of the day when i saw him, he told me he'd already finished. tomorrow, he has a pass so that as soon as he gets down to the lunchroom, he'll get his lunch first, and should be done eating by the time i come down to get him, about 15 minutes into the lunch period. then we'll cover even more material, and i just know he'll do great. in fact, he might even be able to take the same test that the rest of his class takes on monday.
tonight, i had to make a slew of calls to parents. i have kids who are copying each other's homework. one student was caught doing it 3 times, and is going to be suspended. i caught two more doing it today, and called home. other students are forging their parents' signatures on their quizzes and tests. others are not doing the homework assignments, or are coming to class without pencils. all small issues, but they'd built up and i had to call (even though i got only 3 hours of sleep last night and will pass out soon as i finish writing this)
i made one last phone call tonight, though. and it wasn't to complain. it wasn't negative. it wasn't about things that need to change. i called Junior's home. i spoke to his mom. i called to tell her how proud i was of Junior. that he'd taken initiative, that he was getting tutoring in order to catch up, that the principal knew about it and was going to rely on *my* judgment as to when Junior could be allowed back into the 7th grade.
i hope i can continue making a difference in this child's life. he is really so very bright, and i know that his behavior problems stem mostly from not being challenged *enough*. i'm excited about his progress, and by all his potential.
his mother was so grateful to hear from me. i'm sure she almost never gets phone calls that are with *good* news about her son. i even got all teary-eyed and stuffed up as i was talking to her. i'm such a goon.