Discipline, No Money, and a Job

So today has been a pretty crazy day for me, but hey I'm used to crazy so what's new right?!  Well today started like every other day, get to school chit chat, go do metal detector duty and head back to the classroom.  

Then we headed to the counselors room to get the names of a few students who need accomodations in the classroom.  Well apparently this lady has a staph infection and when I looked up on my phone what it was and everything about it, I got a little freaked out now and have now become a germ a phobe and I am completely paranoid about contracting this disease here.

So after that freaky little meeting my adviser from Aldine came to meet with my teacher and I about my student teaching experience.

Good News: I know all of the days she will be coming to observe me and know when I should be starting to take over the class and then observe other classes.

Bad News:  I still do not know who my St. Cloud State advisor is or what I need to be doing as far as handing in stuff and reporting to the advisor in which I do not know yet.  Also I was not given the correct amount of evaluation sheets for my teachers and advisors to complete.  Oh and my Aldine advisor gave me the name and e-mail of the only lady she is in contact with from St. Cloud State so I could ask her about all of these problems and guess what?!!  I get an instant e-mail saying she is gone until wednesday... Story of my life.

Well at least after that I was able to eat with the teachers and bs a bit.  But then came the day of classes and man today was a constant disciplining day.  Every class had quite a few students who were disruptive and were constantly having to be talked to in the hall or writing their names in the "Notebook."  I learned a lot about how to handle situations today for sure.  By the time I am done at this place I should be a pro at classroom management for intermediate and elementary school!

The awesome thing though, is that my teacher is a lot like me in wanting to be there for the kids.  She can read their needs just like I can do and knows exactly how to handle them.  She knows how to keep control and discipline in a loving way and all of the kids love her because of it.  I am so blessed to be able to have my student teaching experience with her, with someone who has the same views and values as I do in teaching.  I am so excited to learn from her!

One incident to day that I feel like I should share at least for all of you soon to be teachers is:

This boy kept acting up on class, talking out of turn, playing around with materials when told not too, and throwing things around the classroom.  Well Mrs. Quiroz sent him outside the door and then he continued being disruptive by making faces in the window and goofing off.  After Mrs. Q finished demonstrating the project for the students she went outside and laid into Pedro.

"Is this your classroom?!"
"No"
"No it's not your classroom.  This is my classroom and I can not have people disrupting my classroom while others are trying to participate and learn!"
"Why do you think you can disrupt my classroom?!"
"I don't know?"
"Yes you do. Why do you think you can disrupt my classroom?!"
"I don't know?"
"Are you disruptive in your other classes?"
"No... well just math... social studies... science and art."
"So four out of seven classes your disruptive in, why is that?"
"Because we don't do anything fun."
"Well if we will be doing more fun things but we can't if we get disrupted all of the time.  So tell me what I can do to help you not be disruptive in my class."
"I don't know."
"Do I need to give you a specific job for you to help me with, is that what you need to get the attention that you need?"
"No. I don't know"
"Well i will give you a few minutes to think about what you need so that this behavior can be changed."


And we left for about five minutes and came back.


"So what do we need to do fix this disrupting problem?"
"I don't know."
"Then why are you being disruptive?"
"I don't know... because I'm bad."
"You are not bad at all, you may make bad decisions but you are not bad.  Did someone tell you, you were bad?"


He nods his head


"Well you are not bad.  Do you want to have a job helping me?"
"Ya."
"What would you like to do?  Pick up the colored cards or attendence?"
"Attendance."
"Alright you are hired, even after making some bad decisions I am hiring you because I believe in second chances, but if you can't handle it you will be fired.  Got it?"
"Ya."  (a little smile comes across his face)
"Alright lets get back to class."

After that he was very good the rest of class.  Then after class in the courtyard some kids were not following directions and Mrs. Q yelled at to them to do what they were supposed to be doing.  One of the kids said something about her and guess who stepped in?!  The disruptive kid in Mrs. Q's class : )  He said to the kid "Hey don't say that thats my teacher."  It just shows how some loving discipline is a good thing.  These kids will respect you if you treat them like human beings with a heart, because everyone has a heart.

Even though it was a rowdy day I learned quite a bit and a little girl gave me a book today, because we had talked about how we liked reading on monday : )  Talk about melting my heart : ) I just love these kids so much!

As I was leaving the school another teacher pointed out a helicopter.
"What is it?" I asked my cooperating teacher.
"A police helicopter."
"Ah what are those for?"
"Well either they are looking for someone or for high speed chases, but she said she has heard the helicopter for a while so they are probably looking for someone.  Thats when we usually go in lock down mode and the helicopters will hover over the school."

I am definitely not in Minnesota anymore...

Well after a day like that I could have used some great news, but of course I should expect the least by now I don't know why I would ever think otherwise?!
I saw on the school website that my loans came in and my semester is paid for but I am not receiving as much as I had applied for?!  I am missing a whole entire loan, so now I am $500 short of making my full four months rent not to mention my cell phone bills for the four months that would have been covered, plus about 400 for gas and food.  Great!  So as of right now St. Cloud is on my ticked off list.

Thanks to Stephanie's cousin I was able to find Pier One.  I went there tonight to fill out my transfer paperwork.  I didn't really want to have to work a job since I am already gone from 7-5 everyday, but I know I wouldn't survive without one... Now I don't even know If I will be able to even survive with one...  I guess it will work itself out somehow.  It always does.  I made it this far on my own right?  What's another few bumps in the road?