Rebirth?

Today was tough. Incredibly tough. Surprisingly tough. But still, tough.

With it being my first day at a new school, a school in CPS at that, I expected things to be different. I knew that there would be some challenges, some rowdy students, some outright rudeness that would ebb in the face of my gentle heart and warm smile.

Wrong. Wrong wrong wrong. Psh.

Let me not diminish the day into a mere "bad day," because it was not. There were actually several highlights. I still need to get re-accustomed to the 8 period school day and 50 minute classes. That's a definitely. Galesburg spoiled(?) me with the 85 minute blocks and only 3 teaching periods a day. Now I'm teaching 5 classes out of an 8 period day. I have 100-105 minutes of prep time, collectively, but I teach 250 minutes spread out over the day. The numbers make it sound sweeter but the adjustment is still pretty real. Work in progress, for sure. 

I also have a class full of personality and character. I like that. While a quiet class can be a challenge, a rambunctious one is too much of a handful. But when the wild demeanor can transform into productive, engaging, passionate conversation, then it is certain worth some of the strife. With a few of the classes, I can see that it'll be something special and with others, I can see that I may be pulling teeth for the whole year.

Oh shit. I have all of these kids for the whole year. O_O That's gonna be interesting. The only real concern that I have is the 8th period class. They were painfully disrespectful and rude. They were also incredibly childish. Childish like... I found dripping hand sanitizer on my desk after school from them, presumably, playing in it. Childish like... took the pins out of my poster while I was introducing the course and syllabus but refused to admit "who did it" of course, thus causing me to take the entire thing down. There was plenty more where that came from and it ultimately caused me to lose my cool in front of the class. Something I try not to ever do. They got the best of me and I feel really badly about it. I intend to make it right tomorrow and come to a different understanding but I can just see that they have the potential to be a pain in my side. It's just too early to already be feeling that way. 

Anyway, I can here to try and get out my general feelings and frustrations and it's working for the most part. I'm no longer at the point of tears, though I can admit that they may return at any point. But I also recognize that I still have a bit more work to do.

Tomorrow is a new day. Admittedly. And I hope to go into it with the attitude that reflects that mentality. But I already know that I may be dreading my 8th period class and that has the potential to make the entire day a bummer. We shall see. I'll keep the faith!