Thursday, October 27, 2011

Scarred for Life

I think, fellow readers, that I have scarred a group of kindergarten students for life (for those that don't know, I'm studying to be a teacher)!

As of late, I've been giving a weekly lesson to a kinder class.  This was my second lesson, to be exact.  Today I showed flashcards of coins after reading a story.  The first story didn't go so well; I skipped a paragraph.  I couldn't keep them focused, and they all spoke out at once.  Today, I mastered. the. story.  They all sat quietly.  They raised their hands.  They were able to answer questions.  Correctly.  I was feeling quite proud of this feat.  Undoubtedly, the teacher gave them a big talk before I arrived about behavior, etc., but I felt great.  Still nervous, but great.

I pulled out the penny flashcard.  All was going well.  "Notice the color," I said.  "Notice Abraham Lincoln, a president, on the coin," I said.  Then came the nickle, "Notice the silver color...notice Washington-

I moved right along with the dime and the quarter.  The quarter.  With Washington on it.  "Two Washingtons?" inquires one boy.  In my mind his inquiry felt more like the picture below.  "Hey lady, who's on  this bill?! HAA HAAA HAAAAA!.  WASHINGTON!"
source



Crap.  What have I done?  I realize, at this point, the err of my ways.  Two Washingtons!  Why did I say it?  What will they grow up believing?  How can I ever repair their impressionable, fragile minds?

Arghhh.  I hope I get better from here.  I blame it on the nerves.  All the classes and preparation in the world doesn't seem to top good old hands on experience in the classroom.

2 comments:

Lynn said...

Gotta chuckle... I think they'll be ok! And I think the one that commented will be president of a bank one day:@)

Mrs BC said...

I think the best teachers show their students that it is OK to be human & make mistakes, the real lesson is in how you manage the mistake :)
I think you will be an amazing teacher!
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