Monday, May 16, 2011

Symmetry, Teeth and Crying

Have you noticed that lots of my titles for my posts this year have been a list of two or three things? I guess I'm running out of unique titles, so this helps!

This afternoon I worked in a first grade (different one from Friday) and it was just not easy.

Granted, it was better than last time I was there...and from what I hear, went better than the last time they had a sub (which wasn't me because I was in another room that day). I sent one girl to the office because she kept whining and crying and pitching a fit about everything and disrupting the whole class. Seriously, picture a cranky 2-3 year old throwing a tantrum and that's what she's like. Not even kidding.

Another boy I sent to the hall a couple times because he was giving me 'tude. Once I sent him out and said he could come back when he was ready to be polite. So he walked out of the room and then turned right around and came back in. I stopped him and said, "Oh, no. Not yet. I'm not ready for you to come back yet. You sit out there and think about it for a while."

So, not flawless, but ok.

We talked about lines of symmetry after doing this complicated math project that I already did with another first grade this year. I'd sort of spontaneously thrown in the symmetry part with the previous class because it fit in and they'd been talking about symmetry in their class previously. Well, today's teacher saw what I'd done with that class so wanted me to do that with hers. The chart, the symmetry, all of it. So I get to the symmetry part and ask if anyone can tell me what that is and none of them know! Apparently they'd not talked about it before. I almost didn't do it, but decided to try. So I taught them shortly what a line of symmetry is and we did a bunch of examples on our chart. They seemed to get it pretty quickly....I guess their teacher will see how much they remember tomorrow.

Lastly, and read (well, sort of skimmed) a book about teeth to the class (it was too long!). Then they colored this 3-d model of teeth, and cut it out and assembled it.

All that took up the whole day. And once again I was happy to send the couple little stinkers home!

2 comments:

Betty said...

That's pretty neat that your work in another class was noticed by this teacher and she wanted you to repeat it. Too bad the prep work hadn't been done already. That little crying girl must get some good results from her act at home. Be glad you can watch her walk away at the end of the day!
Love you!!! MOM

Anonymous said...

He walked out and came right back in, that's funny. Crossing the portal of the doorway magically transformed him into a well behaved young boy, no thinking necessary.
I'm sure the kids will remember your lesson and this teacher will be even more impressed.
Hugs, Rhonda