Behaviour problems

Today, there were lots of behavioural issues. (But at the beginning of class, 2 students gave me candies that their Chinese teacher gave them. =P They said they saved one for me hehe. ^^) At the end of class, I took 10 minutes to talk to them. I asked them to think silently and try to think about our lesson today -- Why are we so chatty? Why are we distracting others? Then I told them that if it's something that I did or didn't do that makes them difficult to concentrate and pay attention, they can let me know. Is it because they don't like to work in pairs? They don't like their partner? The format of our activity? A few hands raised up~ A girl said that some people might be slow and they might find the word problem activity difficult. So I told her that maybe next time I should explain more and give them more guidance before starting it. One boy said that the activity's different from what he's used to doing. I accepted his response, and said that maybe I should do some warm-up with them before doing the actual activity, so they're more comfortable about it. The "trouble-maker" of the class said that it's boring, so I asked him to tell me what's not boring for him. He pointed to the hands-on manipulatives that I made and played with them for a couple of classes. And some other boys said "Jeopardy!" So I told them that if they love to learn in those ways, I'll plan my lesson so we'll have more fun next week.

I thanked them for their suggestions, and let them know that I'm learning with them, and I might not always know what's best for them. They seem to understand. ^^ Then I added that we don't always get to do what we want to do, and sometimes it's hard to avoid doing something that we think is boring. But that doesn't give us the right to disrespect others and make the classroom disruptive, because other people are trying to learn too.

A boy said that he hopes class is over soon. I asked him if he's tired, and he said yes. So I started asking everyone about what classes are they taking other than Math. Lots of hands went up, and these kids are just tooooo busy. Swimming, skating, art, piano, Taekwondo, Urdu, Mandarin, etc. Some of them even have to go to classes on Sundays. I showed them that I understand how tired they must be. I hope that by doing so, they'll know that I do respect them as individuals, I know how many things they need to do, and that I trust them for behaving and learning in class if I do my part to make the classroom a more comfortable and fun learning environment.

I was hoping for a peaceful lesson this morning 'cause I was so tired. Although it didn't turn out that way, I wasn't feeling frustrated. I'm actually pretty happy and satisfied that I got to have that talk with my students, because it's a learning experience for both them and me. =)

Bonding

When it was 5 minutes until class ends, my student Rina said that she's going to watch < Twilight > tomorrow. I told her that I want to watch it too~ And then she started writing her address and phone number on a piece of paper, and said that I can call her and maybe we can go together haha~ Soooooo cute!! So I told her, I'm gonna read the book first, but she can let me know next week if it's a good movie or not. =P

When I was asking them what they're doing this weekend, Andrew was so excited that he kept grabbing my hands and telling me that he's going to his friend Alfred's house to play, and they have lots of toys, and he loves his Transformer hehe~ And his excited face looks soooooooo adorable~~

Nicholas is the "trouble maker" in the class. Every class, I had to call his name many many times to stop whatever he's doing that's disturbing to others. And I moved him to another seat last week. When he causes trouble, I'd ask him if he knows why I'm saying what I'm saying to him, if he understands why what he's doing is not acceptable. He'd nod most of the time. I believe that he really does know. But kids sometimes just can't control themselves, and we just need to give them reminders once in a while. ^^ Today, when I saw him after school, he came and said hi to me~ I was like...awwwww......

We did a hands-on activity today~ They worked in pairs and 3-somes, making pairs of numbers that add up to a bigger number. Then I'd ask them questions, using the work that they've done as a visual. I think it worked pretty well, but I wish we had more time!

Today, I just realized that L1B doesn't have to stack their chairs 'cause there's another class after them. But Ben is so used to helping me stack the chairs now, I couldn't stop him when he was helping me today hahahaha, he just kept stacking and stacking when I said he doesn't have to hahah~

I really love my 2 classes, but I only have 3 more weeks with them. I'm gonna miss them soooooo much!

Group work

I played Jeopardy with my Gr.1s again today. They like the game a lot! When I told them we're going to play, some kids were so excited, and they came up and screamed, "Yes! Yes! Yes! I love that game!!" So cute~~

There's only 5 students in my second class. The 2 boys are in a group, and last week they had trouble agreeing on what questions to pick and their answers, so I asked them to use Rock Paper Scissors to decide who gives me the answers. This week, they actually worked together! I said to them, "Wow! You're finally agreeing with each other. Good job!" And I find that in both classes, the groups worked better together this week~ I think that students need time to learn to work with and cooperate with each other, especially when they are young and still at their self-centered stage. I really believe that working in groups give them a chance to learn with and learn from each other, to respect each other, and to have fun at the same time. I'll give them more chances to work together for the next couple of weeks! =)

Agape Learning Center

I've been supplying for Gr.1 Math on Saturdays for a couple of weeks now, I like it so far! Getting to know my 2 classes of Gr.1s is very rewarding. They can be pretty loud at times, especially when we're playing Math-related games. Their excitement is understandable, and afterall, they're just kids who want to express their feelings as they feel it! But I let them know that there are other classes having their lessons, so we can't be too noisy. Last week, I took away points from the Boys' group when we played Jeopardy because they were screaming and some of them couldn't stay in their seats 'cause they were too excited. And then I started talking to them in whispers, and it worked~ If I yelled over them, they're just going to be louder and louder. But when I whispered, they actually did calm down a little, and we were able to go on with the game without disturbing other classes. =)

Today, I went to another location to supply for a Gr.3 class. When I took the attendance, I told them that although I'm only here for today, I might bump into them again later, so I want to get to know them. I told them a little about myself, and then asked each student to tell me one thing about themselves. I think I'm feeling more and more comfortable around children now, and it feels so natural to get to know them and make connections with them. After I reviewed a few questions with them, I handed out the test. While they were working on it, I marked their homework. After everybody was done, I took up a few more difficult questions with them. At the end, we still had 10 minutes left, so we played "2 Truths and a Lie"~ I'm glad that they enjoyed the game! Before I left, one student asked me if I'm going to be here next week. Awwww......^^