Patriot Day

So today, September 11, is apparently now called Patriot Day. For someone who's not very patriotic, it's sometiems a hard pill to swallow. Oh, vell.

In the first three classes, I took a moment of silence for the victims of the attacks. The classes were fairly somber at first, and it was awkward transitioning from death to fractions. However, once we got back in "the flow," all was well. The principal again stopped in unexpectedly to observe, and it was again completely fine. (Thank God she doesn't come in 5th period!! That class is a nightmare.)

Anyway, the day was pretty quick, though I feel math is maybe starting to get a little boring for the kids. I still like it, but now that the newness of having books has worn off... I think the kids are getting a little restless. What to do, what to do...

Also, my 5th period class was pretty ugly again today. I made a 10-problem review for them, and asked that they work on it individually. (To me, this means quietly.) But no... they kept talking or messing with each other. Completely obnoxious. I haven't sent anyone to our "responsible thinking classroom" (like a time out in another room and parents are called), but I'm going to soon, I think. One of my troublemakers was out yesterday, and the class was nearly flawless. He was back today, though... uggggggggh. Anyway, after the work, I had the students do the following:

Write 5 sentences about thoughts you have about September 11th.

Write 5 things you’re thankful for in your life.

Write some things you DO and DO NOT like about our country.

Write 3 problems you’d like to fix in the world.


I wanted to somehow discuss the elephant in the room, so I thought it would be interesting to hear what the students had to say. What should've been a fairly smooth, brief activity was chaos instead. I cannot wait until this class is over (at the end of the quarter, I'm told). My suspision is that the kids can't wait, either.

Anyway, this was my first pseudo-rocky day in a while. It kinda sucked- I came in all chipper and ready for a good day... and now I've ended on a fairly negative note.

Luckily we have more conferences in about 15 minutes. That should help make today wrap up nicely.