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#Post#: 8185--------------------------------------------------
15 - 17 August 2018: First Week
By: Jack Date: August 20, 2018, 4:06 am
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Things went really well with getting the new school year
started. Having only a half week to deal with helped, I think,
since everyone knew they wouldn't have to slog through an entire
five days.
Wednesday morning, we had orientation. I don't have a home
room, so I was roaming the halls and directing traffic, then I
did crowd supervision. There were no real problems, as the
teachers gathered up their students and herded them off to home
rooms, then made sure everyone had their lockers and their
schedules (high school is done differently, but I only have a
couple of HS students, so I wasn't affected by that difference).
Because of orientation, classes were shorter than normal, so I
spent the first day talking. I discussed what I see as the
goals of these classes, explaining why I think proper grammar is
important, why I love reading and want to share that love, and
how their diagnosis effects those things. I also talked about
our reading goals, and then we discussed classroom behavior.
Thursday, I cheated. Using pictures I'd taken and a projector
for my laptop, I was able to share the illustrations while I
read Orville, a Dog's Story.
If you're not familiar with this, I'm just going to share this
link, because I can't describe it any better:
HTML https://www.amazon.com/Orville-Story-Ribbon-Fiction-Awards/dp/061815955X
Go read it, I'll wait.
Back? Now, think about that description, and think about being
a 10 to 13 year old boy diagnosed with ADHD. The story isn't
that long, but there was a LOT of discussion (and more than a
few damp eyes). It probably wasn't nice of me to do that on the
second day of school, but I wanted the kids to understand how
writing can connect with you and have an emotional impact.
Friday, we took a quick quiz - no grade. I wanted to know how
well the kids knew the parts of speech. We have to cover all of
them, but I wanted an idea of if they knew anything yet, and how
well they could say it. We spent the rest of the period talking
about books, so I could finalize our reading lists, which was
more trouble for the advanced classes, since many of those kids
love to read, and I want to try to find new things for them.
Which brings us up to this morning.
So far, the classes have been interesting, and the kids have
been on pretty good behavior. The kids in my advanced classes
are pretty happy. All of them are above grade level, and many
of them already love books. My goals with them is to help aim
them a bit and help them learn how to find new things they like
(and how to expand their interests). While I'm not thinking
about next semester yet seriously, I am thinking about expanding
beyond fiction for these two classes.
My two challenged classes are more of a... well, more of a
challenge. Most of the students know they have to be in class,
so they don't make a huge deal about it, but these are the boys
who tend to have more trouble with their ADHD. The middle
school class isn't as bad, because nearly half the class are
kids I know outside of school. I do have a couple of boys in
each of those two classes who seem likely to be paddled in this
upcoming week - maybe just one, as that well send a message to
the others. On the other hand, this type of kid is usually the
type who has to learn things for himself.
I am trying hard to not overreact. I know these kids are ADHD,
but I also know they have some self-control, if not as much as
their nominal peers. What I'm trying to do is help them
understand what is and is not acceptable, and how to cope and
settle down while they're crossing the line. The trouble I'm
having with just a few boys is that they don't seem too
interested in learning where that line is the easy way.
#Post#: 8187--------------------------------------------------
Re: 15 - 17 August 2018: First Week
By: Zyngaru Date: August 20, 2018, 8:41 am
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You mentioned for your advanced classes you would like to move
beyond fiction for next semester. I have a suggestion. Think
about a few autobiographies. I'll suggest a series by Dave
Pelzer. "A Child Called It" "The Lost Boy" and "A Man Named
Dave" One or all three are inspirational. The books are
written from the child's perspective. So the first one is from
ages 4 to 12. The second is from 12 to 18. The third as a
young adult. If you haven't read these you might like them.
Definitely read them before adding them to your book list,
because they are intense. They might be too intense for your
class.
[quote]I am trying hard to not overreact. I know these kids are
ADHD, but I also know they have some self-control, if not as
much as their nominal peers. What I'm trying to do is help them
understand what is and is not acceptable, and how to cope and
settle down while they're crossing the line. The trouble I'm
having with just a few boys is that they don't seem too
interested in learning where that line is the easy way.[/quote]
Unfortunately. Some boys seem to need to learn things the hard
way. Let's hope they can come around, without becoming the
class example of how not to act in class.
#Post#: 8195--------------------------------------------------
Re: 15 - 17 August 2018: First Week
By: Jack Date: August 20, 2018, 3:36 pm
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Before I reached the end of your first paragraph, I was going to
say the same thing you said. I don't think I'd try to teach
those books at all, but if I did, it would only be to upper high
school kids. While some younger kids would be able to handle
it, I don't think they would be appropriate for the students I
have now for a number of reasons. I was thinking more along the
lines of Fermot's Theorem, maybe a biography of Wyatt Earp, or
maybe something on space exploration, then a book or two on
writing, like Eats Shoots and Leaves.
#Post#: 8197--------------------------------------------------
Re: 15 - 17 August 2018: First Week
By: Adric Date: August 20, 2018, 4:55 pm
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I'm quite surprised to see Fermat's Theorem
HTML https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiles%27s_proof_of_Fermat%27s_Last_Theorem<br
/>in the proposed reading list for your class. I'm wondering if
I
am missing some important detail.
#Post#: 9117--------------------------------------------------
Re: 15 - 17 August 2018: First Week
By: squarecutter Date: September 30, 2018, 4:19 pm
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"I'm quite surprised to see Fermat's Theorem in the proposed
reading list for your class. I'm wondering if I am missing some
important detail."
Thats when he needs to put them to sleep ;D
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