Last year I had a class of 18, while I did have kids in RTI, I did not have any children that qualified for services. So it was all 18 of us, 5 days a week together...no pull out, no picks up, no schedules to combine, no para...me and the kids.
That.was.it
This year the pendulum has swung. Without getting into too much detail, I have 18 kids this year and have the following adults in and out of my room on a daily/weekly/hourly basis...
Para
Special Ed teacher
Speech/Language teacher
Nurse
OT/PT teacher
ELL teacher
Remedial Reading teacher
And....my student teacher (and me too!) At one point today there were 5 adults in my room. A total of 23 people, it was starting to feel crowded!
Obviously children need their services. Obviously we all work hard to cut down on overlaps in the schedule. But how do you manage the adults?
I know that by the 100th the door has opened this week, my student will stop turning around to see who it is. We did make a chart of who is who in our room and why they are here because it really is a steady stream of adults in and out.
However, call me crazy, I feel like I need to have some adult rules. Like if you're going to discuss schedule conflicts about another room- go outside. If you can't find a piece of equipment, can you whisper when you come in to find it?
I suppose as the year goes on the kids will get to know who's leaving when and just go with it, but it still feels like we are jump starting the mower some days.
So my question to you is--how do you manage the adults/schedules that come through your classroom everyday?
(Side note: I have dealt with the schedule circus 7 years ago during my student teaching. I had 27 5th grade student. 5 of them special ed. with 2 full time paras plus other services. That seemed easier to deal with than the parade now. Also, I'm SUPER happy I have so much help in my room. SO THANKFUL....just looking for a better and more efficient way get from 9:00 to 3:25 from my students and myself)
3 comments:
I totally understand what you are talking about! Although I love a good pop in from people sometimes, it seems like at others times some people pop in just to see how cute the kids can be. Ummm well, teaching here...
I think teachers forget the basic rules politeness. Do you think you could post a sign outside the door, where the glass is that says something... PLEASE remember learning is happening here, quiet voices only? Of course do teachers read that?
Is there really a solution to this problem?
Oh my, I feel your pain! I have a revolving door too and I feel like my teaching is compromised sometimes. The amount of planning is overwhelming and rarely enough when you are working with other service providers. Plus, the kids are trying so hard to follow the rules, but having adults in talking to kids or other adults can negate those rules. For me, it is a self-consciousness thing as well. Last year was the first year I was on my own in 6 years and I felt like I was such a better teacher. I know everyone is there to help the kids, but I think adults sometimes complicate things way too much.
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