The First Week Back is Always the Longest

The first week back in school is always the longest. It seems like it will never end. Two of our juvenile delinquents got in a fight today, or so it seemed. I saw a big group of students crowding around in the hallway. That usually means a fight. I rushed down and saw an administrator holding Deon, who was flailing around wildly. Whatever had happened, it was now over. Deon got hauled off in one direction, Malcolm in the other. Class would be easier without Deon. I wouldn’t really miss him. I might miss Malcolm but class would be easier without him, too. Then, Deon came to class. It turns out that they weren’t really fighting after all. Deon was getting ready to fight some girl and Malcolm pushed him off her. They didn’t get suspended, but maybe a couple of days of In-School Suspension.
I’m looking forward to this weekend. I’m still nursing a cold. I haven’t been getting enough rest to shake it and I have to use my voice with the kids. Hopefully, I can get some rest. Every weekend I think I'm going to rest but I never do.

Never Heard the Word "No"

LJ has a five-day suspension. I guess he did something when he was skipping class yesterday. The principal was saying that he is a really spoiled kid and that he always gets what he wants. I think part of the problem is that he has never heard the word, “No.”
We followed up on the Malcolm story today. It turns out that his cousin was not killed yesterday. He just invented that as an excuse to get out of trouble. I have to admit that I had my suspicions but I didn’t think Malcolm would slip that low.

What is This World Coming To?

I’m still sick, maybe sicker. We had a team meeting this morning. The principal was there and he shared some news on some of our students. LJ finally went to court for stealing a bicycle. He got twenty-five hours of community service. He’s been asking loudly and proudly if he can do the service at school. Meanwhile, he was five minutes late to class today. I sent him to the office for a pass and never saw him again.
Our other little student who is in trouble is Deon. He was arrested for robbery over the winter break. A former student of our school pulled a knife on someone and stole his jacket. Deon was there, wearing a ski mask. Since he wasn’t the one with the knife he got off easy but he has a probation officer now. I guess Deon had a good scare. His older brother is locked up somewhere so he knows the routine.
Malcolm skipped math class this morning. He said his cousin was killed in Maryland. What is this world coming to?

Back in the Routine

It didn’t take long to get back into the routine. I had another long meeting about Rodney this morning. I’m getting tired of talking about him. By the time class started I was exhausted. Then, I had to deal with him in class.
I’m getting sick. I had to do a lot of talking in class today, too. I’m going to have to change my lesson plans around because I’m losing my voice. At least, the next semester of night school hasn’t started up yet. I’m not sure when it does start. I should probably check on that.
There was some big drama going on between some of the girls today. I had them in class and they were fine. After lunch there was almost a fight. The principal came around later and started taking people out of class. I guess they were trying to sort things out. Shauna was in the middle of things once again. It’d be nice if she got suspended again.

Teaching is an Addictive Cycle

It's a new year and a fresh start. I didn’t really want to be back but it wasn’t a bad day. A lot of the kids were out today. I guess they’re still recovering. It mad it a lot easier to teach the ones who were here.
Teaching is an addictive cycle. If it were all based on the middle of the third quarter then every teacher would quit. But it isn’t. You have summertime and winter break. Then you think, "Teaching isn’t so bad," and before you know it you’re back in the school year wondering, “Why am I doing this again?”
It was a little weird being back today. I was disoriented. I couldn’t remember which classes I had—-I even forgot a couple of students’ names. It’s like being in a different world. When I’m on break I don’t think about school at all. I think it’s a survival method. The kids don’t think about school when they’re on break either. In fact, they seem to unlearn everything they’re been taught the whole year. It took three and a half months for them to learn it and only a week and a half to forget it. Some of them just run wild all the way through the break. It’s going to be tough for them to get used to discipline and consequences again.