You may ... or may not have noticed that I haven't written much about my job.  That's because I was well trained!  My mommy taught me ... "If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all!"  or was that Thumper's mom?  ;)

I started working with delightful 2 yr olds in October of last year.  By state regulation, I can only have a class of 6   2yr olds per adult.  Now ... one would think that a reasonably intelligent, rational adult could manage a handful +1 of kids.  One would think ...  

WRONG !!!!!

In February, I changed facilities, primarily for better compensation, but it is also a much different clientele.  I remain optomistic, that at some point, we will take a turn for the better.  We are still trying to establish "routine" so the children have some idea what to expect.  We do lesson plans 2 weeks in advance, again, so the children & parents have some idea what the children will be doing during any given week.  But still ... Mondays suck!

This is a new generation, ya know?  These kids ... their language ... is built on words my generation consumed soap for even thinking!  My own children never really went through the "terrible two's", so all this is totally foreign to me!  My children knew better than to say "NO" to me or my Ex.  We never "beat" them, but we also did more than use a "thinking place."

This is very, very hard for me, I must confess.  Days like today, I did not successfully "manage" the classroom.  They were in control, and I'm exhausted & frustrated.  I am out of my element (trained for secondary students), but ... for whatever reasons, this is where I am right now, and I really want to "get a handle" on it, if possible. 

I chatted with a few of the other teachers on lunch break, and asked them if they enjoy their work ... honestly.  I mean, who deliberately chooses to come to a place to be tormented by two year olds for the day ... then go home?  We all said about the same thing.  We love the kids, but ... maintaining control of the classroom is ... well, that is the challenge!  And ... this is DINOSAUR WEEK!  I thought that would interest them ... get them engaged. 

Maybe tomorrow ...

~ B

Drawing up lesson plans for a "young" 2's class is a bit different than for a high school lit class.  (I know ... that 's a big surprise, hmmm?)  In a high school classroom, the lesson plan, at least for me, helped me to stay on track, focused, and organized.  Although it wasn't exactly chiseled in stone as unalterable, it was not often we strayed far from it.  In the classroom of 2 yr olds, the lesson plan is simply a general guideline ... almost a "wish list" or prophetic vision of where I think the various questions or stories might take us.  We do have some structure so the children know generally what to expect, although it will change now that the class is smaller and more intimate.  With only 6 students at the most, I should have more time to observe and work with each child individually ... at least that is my expectation.  Free play is the best way to assess and observe their development, so that will continue to be a big part of the day.  These students all love story-time, though, too, and are used to having several small books read to them at one time.  Many of the books we have are nursery rhymes or finger play songs like "Eansy-Weansy Spider", "Baa Baa Black Sheep,"  “5 Little Monkeys,” "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" etc ... a cool thing because they then can look at the books later and sing along to themselves in individual play.  (The books really take a beating, too!) 

Our Spring theme is "Our Bloomin' Garden," and the plan is to build a garden-esque bulletin board with the daily art projects of the students that demonstrates, at least to some degree, their personal growth.  One of the books I will be using is called, “I Am a Seed.” It's a cute little book about how different seeds grow up differently depending on what kind of seed they are.” Fun, concepts, hmmm?  

There is a marked difference, though, between this class and the class I left behind at my former center ... a huge difference!  In the old center, out of the 8 students I had, only one could really carry on a conversation.  It made her stand out miles above the others, but in reality, she is normal.  In this center, every one of them has enough language to have a simple conversation or repeat sentences and phrases that they hear.  It's an interesting comparison because it is not just an economic issue, but that's for another post ... :)