The first week of school was a little rough for me trying to get used to such young students. I had visited with my fellow second grade teachers and they informed me that the students don't read yet when they come into second grade, they are very clingy, and they only know how to add in math. (I teach high school Algebra during summer school!)
Just as I anticipated, it seemed like all I did the first week was tie shoes, hold hands with everyone, break up arguments over who got to hold my hand, and go through a whole bottle of hand sanitizer. I'm not a touchy feely kind of person and I couldn't imagine how I was going to get through the year. Everytime I tied a shoe I wondered where those shoelaces had been dragged through...most of my students live on farms and everytime I held a hand I tried to remember if that was the hand I saw Johnny picking his nose with earlier.
Over the weekend, I did a lot of self talk and decided I needed to do whatever it took to make it a great year and refocus my views of 2nd grade. In short, I needed to take charge. On Monday my students received a very important homework assignment. They had to go home and learn how to tie their shoes by the next day. They next morning they each lined up and one by one untied their shoes and then retied them perfectly! I then informed them that I would no longer be tying shoes. They could all do it and if they had trouble with their shoes they each had 21 other people in class who I'm sure would be more than willing to help them tie their shoes. I haven't tied a pair of shoes since!!
Just as I anticipated, it seemed like all I did the first week was tie shoes, hold hands with everyone, break up arguments over who got to hold my hand, and go through a whole bottle of hand sanitizer. I'm not a touchy feely kind of person and I couldn't imagine how I was going to get through the year. Everytime I tied a shoe I wondered where those shoelaces had been dragged through...most of my students live on farms and everytime I held a hand I tried to remember if that was the hand I saw Johnny picking his nose with earlier.
Over the weekend, I did a lot of self talk and decided I needed to do whatever it took to make it a great year and refocus my views of 2nd grade. In short, I needed to take charge. On Monday my students received a very important homework assignment. They had to go home and learn how to tie their shoes by the next day. They next morning they each lined up and one by one untied their shoes and then retied them perfectly! I then informed them that I would no longer be tying shoes. They could all do it and if they had trouble with their shoes they each had 21 other people in class who I'm sure would be more than willing to help them tie their shoes. I haven't tied a pair of shoes since!!
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