State Testing Week!

Today is day one of the California Standardized Test for our middle school. I am so happy it is finally here. This year I tried so hard to not over saturate my students with testing information or statistics or anything of the sort. We are asked to talk about testing strategies, to review and hand out practice tests, to go over old test released questions, to motivate the kids about how they are going to do great on the test, and we are to remind them of academic testing vocabulary. This is a lot to do for all the kids and most feel overwhelmed about the test as it is, that doing all the " test prep" only gives more anxiety.

Last year I had a student tell me that she was feeling so anxious about the test because the school, teachers and students discuss it so much. She was not feeling confident in her ability because in her mind if we talk about the test so much it must be a really difficult test; hence she will do very poorly on it. This was a gifted student! Can you imagine how much inadequate most of the kids in the school would feel about it?

So this year I changed my strategy a little bit. I did go over test prep and review but I never mentioned that it was for the CST or for any test. I made all my warm-ups and most homework assignments in a CST fashion. I practiced testing strategies in all quizzes and test that my students had to take in class. I reminded them of how smart they are on a regular basis to boost their self-esteem so that when this test came, they knew it was just a test...not a definition of who they are.

My students this year are ESL students. There is so much more riding on this test for them. In order to exit ESL classes, not only do they need a C or better in their ESL class, but they need to score a proficient on the CST. This can be difficult because in order to pass a standardized test they must understand the language very well and comprehend vocabulary that they may not be familiar with.

I remember when i came to this country and I had to take the state test (back then called the CTBS test). I had to take it even if I was in this country for a short time. The results were that in Math I was in the equivalent of a 6th grader in 5th grade (pretty good..numbers are numbers in any language) BUT in English my results were "those of a second grader". I was so mad at this and I wanted to cry because if that test would have been in Spanish I would have done so much better. This was in 5th grade and I was determined to prove that I was not dumb. The next year I took the CTBS test again and I did GREAT!! I also had the example and support of my mom and my sisters. We were always doing homework together and we always had the example of our mom going to school and doing homework, even if she did not understand it.

Most of my students don't have that luck with their families or with their home environment. So many of my students have parents that have to work so much that they are not at home as much as they would like. this gives the kids a disadvantage that I did not have. I know that each of my students has so much potential and many express it on a daily basis, but there are also those that don't express it because it has been put down or it has been told it has no place in the classroom.

While my students are testing, I am to proctor and make sure they are on the right number and that they are on task. With only 10 minutes left on the test, I wonder how many of them actually did their best effort and how many of them just bubbled in anything? I want them to be successful and I know that most care but most don't see the big picture about their life. After all, they are in 6th grade. Most people don't see the big picture when they are 12.....Did you?

If you build it they will come!

Today I had my afterschool tutoring. I've had this tutoring time every Monday and Thursday since September. I stay afterschool to give extra help to my students in anything that they might need, but specially for math.
Well I usually have the same kids, and some finish their homework and some ask for help as they go along. This tutoring time has been created with the intention of helping the students that are in danger of failing or are actually failing. Of course, these kids don't necesarily come on a consistent basis, but the help is still there for them. Today though, one of my lowest performing students showed up today and he just sat there w/ his head down for about 20 minutes. I kept asking him if he was going to work and he responded w/ "I am I have my paper out." "Ok", i would respond "but if you need any help, I am here to help you." He sat there for a while longer and then I spoke to him again, "It doesnt look like you are working. If you dont need the help, then I am going to ask you to leave." He responded very rudly, "Well I DONT GET IT" (I hate this response) "Are you asking for help or are you just letting me know that you dont understand?" I said. "Ms. Torres could you please help me?" I said of course and sat down next to him.
We actually finished his math HW assignment and I am so pleased because he has not turned in HW for a few months now. He will ocme to class tomorrow and actually have his HW!!!
Iam hoping and praying that this does not become a one time thing, but that he will see how good it feels to have his HW and be ready for the next day.
Also... my little turtle (my slowest student in the history of slow) finished his HW during tutoring and he was so surprised when I told him that I was proud of him!

It is small moments like this that help me to continue giving to my students and my career. Now i am praying for more of these!

I love to see their faces when I tell them that I am proud of them and that I knew that they could do it!

I'll keep holding tutoring classes... we'll see if they continue to come!

Last Day of Spring Break!

Today is Friday and it is the last day of Spring Break! I woke up this morning thinking "Where did the week go?"
I am actually feeling rested and I also feel that I got lots done in my house and I also had a lot of fun!
I have not even opened any of my materials for planning or looked at any student work to grade. I love that! I am always thinking of the next thing that I will be doing in my classroom or with a specific student or with a great learning strategy that I will be using in the classroom.

This break I decided to make it more about me!!

I woke up without alarm clocks, I read, I watched tv (I acutally caught up with all the shows that have been recorded) and I went to universal studios with my sister.

I also experienced riding the red line metro going to Universal Studios. This was such a scary experience! I enjoyed it though because I knew there was someone waiting for me at the end of the trip.

I dont know if I will be thnking about my classroom until Sunday evening, but I know that I am happy with my amount of resting because after Spring Break it will be a long haul until June.

Yay for breaks and Holidays! I know that these days keep us from killing or seriously hurting a student or a co worker.

Tough week

It is amazing how a tough time can continue for a whole week.

This week has brought many sad and heartbreaking moments in my life and in the life of my family. It gets hard to find the focus when at work. It is hard to teach when you have so much on your mind and it is so hard to try to teach when all you want to do is cry or sleep or simply think. Regarless though, every moment is for the best of course. I know that I could spend the whole day thinking about whatever is going on.

Work can be such a wonderful place for me. I am truly grateful for my job. It gives me such a different perspective about life through the eyes of an 11-12 year old. I also get to see how children look at life and life's problems and they do what they know what to do best; enjoy life.

Yesterday was a particularly tough day for me. I had to push through a usual day of instruction. Throughout the day, though, I had so many wonderful moments that helped me to place a smile on my face and to keep it going.
Here are some of those moments:
1. One of my ESL students tested out of the ESL program. This is great for her, but it meant that she would be taken out of my class. When she went to get her schedule changed, she begged and cried for her to stay in my class. That was not an option, but seeing her love for me and my class, the counselor worked her magic and was able to do so. My student's actions completely made my heart melt.
2. My students can get pretty chatty and, let's face it, annoying at times, but they behaved and did all their work. I didn't have to ask them too many times to work or to do what they know what to do. This helped to bring peace to my heart.
3. Some of the girls in my class kept smiling at me all day and waving and telling me how they were doing all day. This reminded me of the joy of being a kid and that I must believe, like they do, that everything will be taken care of. NO WORRIES!
4. Last but not least, ALL my students did their homework. That rarely happens!!! That was a moment of proud joy from my babies.

Today, the great behavior continued and the great hearts and attitudes continued. I know that God shows me his love through my students. He knows when I need just a little bit of peace and love and he sends all of this through them. I love my babies. I fall in love with them every year. They remind me how to trust others and believe that everything will be taken care of an be ok!

Also, today, a new student of mine told me she has leukemia. She said it without reservation and without sadness. She truly believes that she will be ok and that the doctors are doing everything they know how and that she will be fine. She believes in bright futures! She doesnt know but she just taught me an invaluable lesson today.

Everyday and every moment can be a lesson, a sweet reminder and even a moral to learn. I am so blessed to know that God loves me so much as to give me all of these everyday, even when I don't realize it. :)

I just don't get it....

Today I gave the second math assessment for my 6th graders. It was all about proportions and finding out the missing part that would make the proportion equal. They have to use inverse operations and they have to divide.
We've been learning and practicing proportions for the last two weeks. Everything seems like the kids are getting it and that they are able to solve for a missing variable.

They seemed excited and they seemed to have lots of confidence as they turned in their short constructed response (in other words a math problem they have to explain). As I was going through their answers, I realized that some kids had the wrong answer, so when they came to the after school tutoring after school I asked them to give their paper a second look and to redo their multiplication and division at the end.

I WAS SHOCKED!!! I realized that these kids set up the proportion perfectly, but they got stuck multiplying by a two digit number and dividing!!! I was so surprised. How is it that a sixth grader cannot perform a simple multiplication and division problem? How is it that they are in 6th grade?

I was disappointed and felt so discouraged. I am happy to say that my discouragement didn't last long! As I was driving to my class, I decided that I had to do something for these kids. I will target those kids and help them with specific tutoring and will be calling on their parents for help. There is always something to do if I stay positive. I cannot give up on them or get frustrated. I just cant.

Well... I'll see how that works. I am pretty optimistic and I am hoping that I can count on parent support and I want to see all of my students go to seventh grade with at least the knowledge of basic math under their hats.

If you are reading this, did you ever have a hard time with some part of basic math and how did you get through it? Maybe I can get some of your ideas for my kids!!

Monday...again!!!

Mondays just come too soon! I know this is pretty much what all teachers and students feel every Sunday as soon as they realize that they need to go to bed in order to wake up the next morning.

This morning was the same as every Monday morning. I hear my alarm clock and i want to CRY :'(

But I managed to get to work and I am actually quite prepared. I have actually planned for this week. It definately pays off to be prepared. I knew what was going in my agenda and I was ready w/ power point presentations (these always make me feel so professional), and interactive notebook pages. It was a good day as a teacher.

What gets to me, most Mondays, is the kids that dont bring their homework. What? You may ask. Homework on a weekend? I say YES!!!! I am a firm believer in homework EVERYDAY!!! (We can discuss this later). Anyway, i check for HW and most kids have it ready and show it off as if it is their most prized posetions. "Teacher.... I brought mine!" "So did I!" With huge smiles on their faces...But, as we all know, the same repeat offenders...

"I don't have mine!"

"Why not?"

"I didn't have time to do it!"

"You had a whole weekend to finish one page. What did you do that didn't allow you to finish?"

"I went to my aunts house on Saturday."

"How long were you there?"

"I dont know. About 4 hours."

"So what did you do with the remainder 20 hours of that day or the 24 hours of sunday?"

"Well, I forgot!" or "My mom cleaned my room and I couldn't find my books from when I last left them!" or "My finger was bleeding from my nail, so I couldn't write ALL weekend."

It seems that 6th graders love to point fingers. It is never their fault. It is always an excuse!! Others say that I should be used to excuses by now, but I dont think that is right at all!! >:S

I can just see these kids in the real world:

"It will be $35.45 for your groceries sir."

"I only have $10.00. My mom forgot to give me money and I was doing laundry and the money in my pocket was washed and I forgot i had to have money to pay!"

"NEXT!!!"

What are we teaching kids when we give in to the excuses? In the real world, there are no excuses. You don't pay your bills, they get cancelled. You don't work out, you don't lose weight. You don't pick up after yourself, or do your dishes, the mess will still be there when you come back. Why do children think that they can get away with anything by saying "It wasn't me!?" Kids need to learn from their mistakes. It is not okay for a parent to handicap their child by allowing them to get away from responsibility.

Anyway.... parents that is a whole other topic for another day!!!! I could scream from the lack of parenting from some parents.

If you are reading this, what is the worst or best excuse you have heard a student say, or that you have used in your lifetime? Let me know!