Jumpin' Off the Edge

My bulletin board is being transformed right in front of my eyes. Each day I, along with all of my students, am watching a work of art being created.  Rising from the smoke a question is asked: “Where is the Love?” It is amazing to realize how one small song used in class over a month ago in one class has spread throughout the school. Since that time, it has become the ringtone for countless students; a feature on the school news pointing out positive behavior; and now, it is the focus of a mural in my classroom.  Like the mural, my relationships with students are slowly being developed. The hugs continue on a daily basis. No longer am I just ‘Miss.’ They have learned my name and use it. (Although, many refer to me as ‘Mom’ instead.) Several students have decided it is okay to ‘snitch’ and seek me out to guide them through whatever is going on – fights, family issues, celebrations, etc. The list goes on. Yesterday, one of my students brought up that he almost punched someone.

The school day is not yet over and I feel the need to write.   Unfortunately, I am having difficulty finding the words. I do not know how to describe the turmoil I feel inside that four more of my students have been suspended. Two for fighting, one for instigating, and one for swearing at a teacher. It seems as if some of these students have been out of class more than they have been in it. Two of the suspended students recently came back to school from another suspension. I understand the need to come down hard on kids for fighting and to send a message. However, I question the effectiveness of it. The behavior is not stopping. As I was heading into third period today, I overhead another student saying, “Don’t do it. It’s not worth it.” Her response, “Nobody talks about me that way. I am going to f@$*ing kill her.” I immediately followed the student down the hall. In the past, she has taken the time to talk to me when in this state. Not today. Looking back, I should have walked

How can I stop them from making stupid choices? Today two students, one I teach and one I coached, were taken out of school and sent to a ‘save’ school for the rest of the year. I assume the goal is to save the students. I have been wondering if there was a way they could have been saved before they got to the point of needing a ‘save’ school. After the scandal of the pills in school yesterday – who was dealing; who was taking, but not swallowing; who was accused; and who knew anything, I started asking my students about when they would go to an adult with information that might harm somebody else. The majority of students were quite vocal about NEVER! Block 1      “We don’t snitch, Miss.”      “Even when somebody might get hurt?”      “Nope.”      “What about if a friend told you they were going to kill themselves?”      “Maybe then.”      “Couldn’t somebody getting hurt lead to death?”      “Maybe, but we could get hurt if we tell.” Block 2      “My buddy was sent to ‘save’

REPORT CARD Name:  Mandie Robertson-Victor Marking Period: First Quarter Subject Grade Comments Science 75 Mandie tries hard in this area even though it is not a strength. Rather than joining in the obnoxious behavior, Mandie tries to help the first-year teacher with suggestions about how to have better classroom management. Unfortunately, Mandie continues to question things that are none of her business such as why so many students failed the class. Social Studies 98 It is no surprise that Mandie is doing well in this class after all it is SOCIAL studies. If Mandie does anything well, it is being social. Every morning she stands in the hallway greeting everyone with a “Good Morning” and a smile. Other students have started to pick up on this and have begun to mimic her.  If she were a little less social, she might be able to get a bit of her own work done. Math 86 Mandie knows how to play the numbe

I can’t stop thinking about him.   He has a reputation as a gang-banger, yet I see something different in his eyes. I see a young man caught in a difficult situation. At school, I couldn’t stop thinking about the boy with so much potential in spite of his reputation. I had to do something. I wrote him a card expressing my belief in him. Shortly after giving it to him, he came to me upset because he had lost it without reading it. After a search, it was found and returned to him. Due to a poor choice on his part, he found himself in In School Suspension today. I went to check on him during my prep period. After I helped him with a Social Studies assignment, he told me he was working on a writing assignment that I would not want to read. The piece came about after an activity in LA class that I had taught with Mr. Wilson. A drawing his neighborhood meant to get him thinking about possible stories. I assured him that I wanted to read it.   After reading it, I wanted to pull him int

Gay Fag Queer Homosexual Nothing more than words. Words that made it on my board during second period today after hearing a student call something gay . I question how a homework assignment can be gay. I don’t believe they think homework is carefree or happy. A few years ago, fag was the word used to describe things they did not like. A few years before that, queer. I used the opportunity to talk about the origins of words. Looking back on it, talking about the origins of the words listed above in the Bible Belt might not have been my best choice. However, I did it. The conversation focused not only on how the words have changed over the years, but also on the connotations that come along with them. My primary lesson, “It is not okay to name call – even in fun.”  The students kept the focus on the word gay and all it implied. When a student asked me, “But Mrs. Victor, what do you think of two men being married?” I took some time to think before responding that it was not up

YIKES! I am living life and not taking the time to write. It has been over a week and so much has happened. I have been working with one of my colleagues, a first year teacher. Mr. Wilson. A man who shares the same teaching philosophy that I do. We discuss the students and what is happening in our classrooms. We plan together. And, most importantly, we have fun together. It is hard to believe he is Sean’s age and has begun his professional career. Sean continues his journey through college. I think we make other teachers nervous. Take that back, I am pretty sure we do. We are teaching literary concepts through music, poetry, videos, hands-on activities, cooperative learning, and a variety of other ways that are not typically seen in a North Carolina school preparing students for the EOG. We are showing them concepts in ways students can relate to them in their world. Mostly through music. Slowly, we will move on to short stories and novels. However, until we do, I think there ar