Mrs. B’s Corner

Holidays are the worst for me when it comes to just about any work or productivity. A week off from scheduled (paid) work has now meant nearly two weeks off from my more personal pursuits. One year, when I took a single online class, there was a holiday late in the semester. The holiday happened to fall on the day I would normally do my school work. Because of this, I actually forgot to go back and finish the class! Luckily, I still got a grade (and a B at that). This was a while ago so I obviously still need to work on it. After a conversation I had with my husband the other day, it’s also obvious that I need to stick with my writing and reflecting. So instead of kicking myself for not doing so, I’ll just jump right back in. I mean, that’s how it happened in the first place, right? Anyway, moving on.

A couple of weeks ago, I got my feet wet in running my own camp. I went in as prepared as I could be but still ran into a few issues. I wrote about that other places. This post is about this past week.

Jurassic Bricks

Luckily for me, it was the same theme as my solo-run class so I already had some neat things prepared. I had the “Who am I” riddles ready to go, which was nice since I could show my boss some of my own style. I also had the dinosaur word puzzles for kiddos to do during the station play. There were a few more takers this camp but only a few. The puzzles were still nice to have handy.

The hugely different thing about this class was the size. We’ve had 21 kids to work with this week (three times the amount I had before)! There are things that I would do differently if I were the lead teacher or working alone. There are things that I should have done, which I forgot to do. And, there are things I wish I didn’t do that I’m unsure how to fix.

Procedures?

Because I’ve been studying, I understand how important it is to practice procedures and do them again and again until they become routines. The routines for this past week have been Mr. K saying the same things over and over again with very few kids listening at all or for very long. This total repetition of instructions and disregard for the teacher(s) has led to the thing I wish I didn’t do. There were several times where I had to yell to be heard and snapped at students because they were not following directions. I mean, their behavior has been mostly allowed so it’s not like it’s totally their fault, right? That’s what I’m unsure how to fix. I don’t want to snap at students, and I definitely don’t want to yell, but if the volume keeps rising and no one is listening, what else can I do?

Another thing that should be a proper procedure to routine is the rhythm clam many teachers/schools use. Mr. K usess it to call attention and for transitions both. He doesn’t wait until people are listening before he starts talking. Students are allowed to continue with their own thing or not listen because he doesn’t insist on their part of the procedure. Because of this, they waste their own free time. However, it becomes our problem when transitions are slow, or we’re running behind. It is highly frustrating.

I already know what I would do to fix these things mostly, but that is only if I can take the lead or am working alone. How do I adjust and adapt when someone else is in charge? I need to support the lead teacher, but I don’t want to spend all day repeating myself. I think that may be what I’m stuck with for now.

Things Forgotten

I got so distracted in how things were going that were out of my control, I forgot about the things I can control. What I can control is myself. I can control how I act, how I feel, and how I handle situations. I already mentioned snapping and yelling. I also need to remember the idea of “praise, prompt, leave” when it comes to helping builders. There were many kids who were those helpless handraisers, and I did more to reinforce that behavior than change it. Next time, I need to work the crowd a bit more and remember to prompt and leave a little more as well. It’s not always possible when builds get tricky, but I need to remember to use it as much as I can.

Feedback

Have you been in a situation similar to mine? How did you deal with it? I’d love to hear any advice, tips, or feedback you might have. Please, leave a comment below.