The "Bad Kids"
I'm coming to realize that I really hate being "warned" about "the bad kids" in classes that I teach.
There are a couple of reasons for this. First, I figure I'm intelligent enough to notice if a student is giving me trouble. Second, and far more important, is the fact that every now and then, when you don't TREAT a "bad kid" like a "bad kid" they stop ACTING like one!
Take, for example, one boy in a 4/5 split class I've been teaching French as a second language. The first time I taught them, the Educational Assistant who works with the class informed me that there were two students in the class that she was not allowed to talk to (this screams parental interference to me; probably she had disciplined them for something and they had complained to their parents, resulting in that arrangement) and that those two were the students in the class who would "give me a run for [my] money." In essence, these were the "bad kids."
I have noticed no particular problems with these two. Sure, they're chatty. What ten-year-old isn't? They can be smart-alecks. Again, that's pretty normal. Don't get me wrong, I can come down hard on a kid, if I need to, but being TOLD that kid is trouble is not enough reason for me to treat them any differently from anyone else in the class. Anyway, one of these two "bad kids" is no more nor less troublesome than anybody else, but the second one has apparently decided he really likes me.
The other day, I had this class for the last block of the day, and so there was quite a bit of chaos between the first and second bell for dismissal. The boy in question called my name and I went over to see what he wanted. He didn't say anything right away, and his facial expression went from an impish grin to uncertainty, until he was kind of staring at me blankly. I interpreted this to mean that he had had a smart remark to made, but thought better of actually saying it to me.
After a moment's silence, he blurted out "You're pretty!" I replied lightly: "Thanks, you're not so bad yourself." And he BLUSHED! Then he actually said "You made me blush!" and I said "I know, and is SOOooo CUTE!" Does this sound like the kind of conversation that a "bad kid" has with a substitute teacher? Seriously?
Today, I was teaching music to a 1/2 class that I know the regular music teacher had been having trouble with recently. Their EA came in right at the beginning of the class and quietly asked me if I knew who the ones to watch out for were. I told her yes, because although not true, it was more polite than telling her "No, and I don't care to." Sure enough, in that class I detected one difficult student. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I would surmise that EA was planning to tell me more than one name....
There are a couple of reasons for this. First, I figure I'm intelligent enough to notice if a student is giving me trouble. Second, and far more important, is the fact that every now and then, when you don't TREAT a "bad kid" like a "bad kid" they stop ACTING like one!
Take, for example, one boy in a 4/5 split class I've been teaching French as a second language. The first time I taught them, the Educational Assistant who works with the class informed me that there were two students in the class that she was not allowed to talk to (this screams parental interference to me; probably she had disciplined them for something and they had complained to their parents, resulting in that arrangement) and that those two were the students in the class who would "give me a run for [my] money." In essence, these were the "bad kids."
I have noticed no particular problems with these two. Sure, they're chatty. What ten-year-old isn't? They can be smart-alecks. Again, that's pretty normal. Don't get me wrong, I can come down hard on a kid, if I need to, but being TOLD that kid is trouble is not enough reason for me to treat them any differently from anyone else in the class. Anyway, one of these two "bad kids" is no more nor less troublesome than anybody else, but the second one has apparently decided he really likes me.
The other day, I had this class for the last block of the day, and so there was quite a bit of chaos between the first and second bell for dismissal. The boy in question called my name and I went over to see what he wanted. He didn't say anything right away, and his facial expression went from an impish grin to uncertainty, until he was kind of staring at me blankly. I interpreted this to mean that he had had a smart remark to made, but thought better of actually saying it to me.
After a moment's silence, he blurted out "You're pretty!" I replied lightly: "Thanks, you're not so bad yourself." And he BLUSHED! Then he actually said "You made me blush!" and I said "I know, and is SOOooo CUTE!" Does this sound like the kind of conversation that a "bad kid" has with a substitute teacher? Seriously?
Today, I was teaching music to a 1/2 class that I know the regular music teacher had been having trouble with recently. Their EA came in right at the beginning of the class and quietly asked me if I knew who the ones to watch out for were. I told her yes, because although not true, it was more polite than telling her "No, and I don't care to." Sure enough, in that class I detected one difficult student. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I would surmise that EA was planning to tell me more than one name....