bad words

Did you ever hear a teacher drop a bad word on a class or a kid? Was it an accident or on purpose? Is the teacher angry a lot or does he just have a problem with potty mouth?
See if you can tell the difference.
examples:
a. Hey everyone, clean up your sh.... I mean clean up your papers because this class period is almost over.
b, Hey everyone, clean up your sh.... sheets of paper because this class period is almost over.
c. Hey everyone, clean up your shit and get out of my room right now!
d. Hey (insert name of naughty kid), take your shit and get out of my room right now!

let's discuss.
a. I think this was an accident. Teacher might have a slightly red face and really doesn't mean to curse at the class.
b. I think this was also a slip of the tongue but the teacher smoothly covered it up with another SH word. Clever.
c. This looks like an angry moment. Teachers can sometimes be pushed over the politeness and patience edge. Can't get in trouble for this one. Not the best choice of words though.
d. A teacher has lost professional control here. Cursing directly at one student is not acceptable behavior for teachers. They are human and do occasionally make mistakes. They don't take guns to clubs and shoot themselves in the leg and have to miss the rest of the school year!
So what should you do if your teacher drops a bad word? It's up to you. If it happens often (and it should not) you can talk to your parents about it. You could also talk to a guidance counselor or another teacher you trust and tell them that the cursing is starting to bother you. It's ok to talk about it. The teacher might not realize that the bad words are getting out of control. You deserve to have happy school days, not stressful ones.

stop making stuff up

Really. don't live in imaginaryville. That's when you do something that you probably shouldn't have done. You get caught. You claim you didn't do anything. Let's picture this scene, played hundreds of times in middle schools around the country...
teacher: ok class, take out your book and turn to page 95.
you: take brand new yellow pencil and karate chop it into bits.
teacher: what was that?
you: nothing.
teacher: I see broken pencil bits all over your desk and the floor.
you: I didnt do it. that was here before.
teacher: Are you kidding me? I just heard the pencil get karate chopped. It was your hand chopping. Look, there are bits on your leg.
you: no, they must have fallen off the desk because I didn't do anything.
teacher: Stop acting like you didn't break that brand new pencil because you did it!!
you: what pencil?
other kids: ha ha ha ha
teacher: GGGRRRR I'm getting really upset with your behavior. clean up that mess and turn to page 95 right now.
you: I don't want to get splinters.
This scene can go on and on for a long time.
I call it living in imaginaryville. You know that you chopped the pencil. Everyone in the room knows you chopped the pencil. It takes a lot of patience for a teacher to listen to your LIES without wanting to put you in a sleeper hold so you stop talking and interrupting the lesson on page 95. Part of growing up is telling the truth about stupid stuff you did. Accept the consequences. Clean up the pencil bits. Turn to the page in your book and stop torturing the teacher.

Monday morning issues

You know, teachers are only human. They can help you with a lot of stuff but they can't do everything. Picture this scene...
Let's say you went out on Halloween night. You and your friends were having fun. It was nice weather. Everyone was outside and happy and eating candy. Then some rowdy kids came around. They started throwing candy. at you. at your friends. somehow hard things, maybe rocks, got mixed in with the candy. It hit you and it hurt. You yell something at the mean kids then you and your friends go somewhere else. Mean kids left. You came back out to have fun.
ff to Monday morning. School. Those mean kids go to your school. One of them is in your science class. Mean kid is such a jerk and brings up hitting you and your friends with soft candy corn. Mean kid says you acted like a baby because candy can't hurt anyone. You are big and smart so you ignore the mean kid. but meany won't let it go. Meany keeps saying stuff about Friday night. Finally you want to punch that kid. You don't of course, but you DO start to YELL at meany to SHUT UP and GET AWAY FROM ME! Now, Mr. Science teacher hears this commotion while you're supposed to be learning about cell structure but there is clearly something else going on.

Let's consider that scene from the teacher's point of view: mean kid won't give up on saying stupid stuff. You're getting madder by the moment and louder, too. Teacher is just trying to help you learn but now he has to hear all about the candy corn and the rocks and the stupid stuff that mean kid said and did. Keep in mind this is all during science class. on Monday. He's not in the mood for drama. He wants you to learn the science lesson. You and meany have made a big scene and now he has to deal with a problem that has nothing to do with school or him or science.

pop quiz today

It's October. There's a pop quiz today. It's about school and you can grade yourself. I hope you're feeling comfortable in your classes and around the school.
How can you tell? Try this false / true quiz!
1. I know my schedule without checking it very much. F or T
2. Teachers smile at me and know my name. F or T
3. My lunch table is fun. I usually like going to lunch. F or T
4. I have not missed any homework assignments. Well, maybe one. F or T
5. I could show a new student how to get to the nurse or library. F or T
6. My locker is pretty clean and I can find stuff in there. F or T
7. School starts early but I'm getting there on time every day. F or T
8. There are nice kids in the hallways. F or T

Add up your results. False____ True ____

0-2 false. You're off to a very good start. You have adjusted well to life in middle school. Keep making new friends. Invite a quiet kid to join your lunch table.
3-5 false. You're doing pretty well but there is some room for improvement. Are you looking at the floor or daydreaming? Sit up straight in class. Pick one thing that was false and see if you can change it to true this month. Is there a club or activity you could join to make some new friends?
6-8 false. Life in middle school can be stressful. Lots of things can distract us from having a good day at school. If you're having trouble finding anything good about your school then you should probably talk to someone about it. Parents, teachers, guidance counselor, gym teachers.. just pick someone nice and start talking about why school days are dragging you down.

We all have good days and boring days and fun days and terrible days. The secret is to learn from the bad and enjoy the good. Have a happy day tomorrow.

investigate the desk

What's on your favorite teacher's desk? What's on that scary teacher's desk?

What can you tell about your teacher by looking at that desk?

a. she's disorganized

b. she really likes to collect cat statues

c. she went sailing during summer vacation

d. she has cute kids of her own

e. she has cool stuff that you could talk to her about

The answer is ????

Go ahead. Investigate your teacher's desk. Don't be rude about it. Just casually look around at the stuff on there. It's not a good idea to start picking things up or rearranging those cat satues. Teachers decorate their classrooms and desks with things they like. They bring in things from home. Things from trips. Artwork their kids made. Things their friends gave them. I bet there are even decorations students made or gave them.

Are there things on the desk that you have in common? Maybe you like bendy action figures. Check the desk for action figures. Teachers are interesting people who have lots of experiences to share with you. Your teacher would love to talk about the personal things on her desk. but not during math class. Wait for the right time and ask a nice question. Get to know your teacher better. You'll enjoy being in the classroom even more when you have good relationship with the person in charge. happy students + happy teachers = happy school days

Who doesn't like happy school days?

move it, kid!

What I mean is, move your body. Exercise. Run around. Chase your pet. Ride a bike. It feels great. It's good for your muscles and blood and brain and even your mood. It's good for your bones and digestive system, too.

When do you get any exercise? You go to school all day. Most middle schools don't allow recess. gym time is really short. Are you required to sit in your seat and not even wiggle around? The day is not very active.

After school, time on the computer is sitting again. So is watching tv. That's not enough movement for your growing body. Experts would like young people to get about an hour of movement each day. Back in the day, kids had to chop wood and harvest crops and do tons of heavy chores. they hardly ever got to sit around. Ask your grandparents about it!

Check out this site for more info about more good reasons to move it, kid!

http://kidshealth.org/teen/your_body/take_care/exercise_wise.html

The site also has good ideas about how you can move your body.

check your behavior

Um, about your behavior in school... how's it going?
1. Are you bringing all materials to class? You always have to bring something to write with, notebooks, and textbooks. Teachers get really irritated with students who come to class without the basic stuff. Keep some extra pencils in your locker. Have at least one with you at all times. It shows that you are ready to get work done, even if you really dont feel like it. fake it. Let's say you got to class without your book and your teacher starts getting mad at you and you hold up your pencil and say, "I'm partly prepared." then show your best puppy dog smile. I think you'll just get a warning and you might even be allowed to go to your locker and get the book you need.
2. Are you concentrating on the lesson? Hey, see that teacher standing in front of your class talking? Look. The teacher is talking to you. Yes. YOU. Of course, she is talking to some other kids at the same time, but you are being given information that you need to learn. Pay attention. Oh, I know it's hard. There are cute kids in your class who you need to watch. There are silly kids who might do something really funny and you could miss it if you concentrate on the teacher. There are juicy notes to write. Concentrate now. Play later. Concentrate now. Daydream later.
3. Are you talking out of turn? Put 28 people in one room. They all have stuff to say. About different things. At the same time. The word for that scene is chaos. Complete confusion. You know classrooms can't operate like that. That's why there's one person in charge. The teacher. He will allow others to speak but they must do it in an organized manner. Are you being cooperative with the system of taking turns when talking in class? If not, it's time to start. It's part of growing up.
4. One more thing to check today. Are you acting goofy behind the teacher's back? You know exactly what I mean. He turns to write on the board. You make monkey faces. He turns to get something out of the bookcase. You act like an octopus. He helps another kid and isn't looking at you. You put a Kick Me sign on someone's back. While this behavior is funny, it's not allowed in middle school. Maybe it was ok in 3rd or 4th grade but now we all need to get work done and we don't really have time for your silly stuff. It's immature. It's time to stop doing that.

teacher terrors

Yeah, some teachers can be scary. Have you ever heard that teachers should be really mean and strict in the beginning of the year to keep the kids on their best behavior? We know it's a terrible idea but some teachers think it works.
If your teacher seems too demanding, try not to panic. Don't take it personally. The scariness is not just meant for you. Remember, the teacher is trying to make the class behave.
Can you find any good things? Is the classroom decorated nicely? Are there pencils and paper and supplies for kids to use? Did the teacher explain classroom rules that are easy to understand? Well, all these things are signs of a teacher who loves middle school kids.
Check the lessons next. Do you understand the goal of a lesson? Can you get your homework finished in a reasonable time because you know what to do? Are there clear directions or steps to follow for projects?
Lots of us learn to love teachers who are demanding and push us to do our best even when we don't think we can. One more thing you could do is look for a student who had "scary teacher" last year. Ask what you can do to stay on the happy side, not the dark side.
Try to let yourself get adjusted to the teacher's style. See how you feel in 2 weeks. After that if you still feel scared then it might be time for your parents to have a little talk with the teacher.

aunt jen, i dropped my books in the hall

Dropping your books is really embarrassing. It's frustrating too because all those folders that you have been organizing could get messed up or wrecked. Tons of middle school kids drop stuff every day. Sometimes best freinds slam eachother's books to the floor just to be funny. Yeah, real funny. It's even worse if mean kids "accidentally" kick a notebook. This is not the time to get angry. Even if you hear kids saying stupid stuff to you, let it go for now. Concentrate on getting your materials off the floor and getting to class. Try to gather everything into your arms. Watch out for your fingers when you're down on the floor because they could easily get stepped on. If the hall is very full, just wait a few seconds for kids to clear out.
When you get to class take a deep breath. ask to go to the bathroom. Why the bathroom, you say? That gives you a chance to walk off your feelings, get a drink and have a little bit of quiet time. By the time you get back to the classroom you'll probably feel (almost) back to normal. Later you'll have to find time to check your stuff for damage or footprints.
Hey, book slamming is very common. Once or twice it is meant as a joke. Try not to take it personally. You know how some kids will do anything for attention. Resist the temptation to become a slammer yourself.
If your stuff keeps getting pushed out of your arms time after time then you are being bullied. It could be a different kid each time or it could be the same kid or maybe you don't even know who is doing it. Tell your teacher about the problem. Middle school teachers are great at dealing with bullies. The book slammer may even have to carry his books AND yours as punishment.

lost does not = loser

What if you get lost at school?
a. run out the back door and never come back
b. ask an 8th grader for help
c. drop to the floor and cry
d. ask a teacher for help
e. get out your cell phone and call 911

Asking the nearest teacher is the best choice. Be clear about where you're going like this...
you: " Could you please help me get to Miss Keller's math class?"
teacher: "Sure! Go down the hall to the blah blah blah directions done...
you: "Thank you!" then walk to the class. not lost any more.

Let me break this scene down for you.
1. You say please, the magic word.
teacher thinks: what a polite kid. I'll help.

2. You say the name of the teacher you need to find and the subject she teaches.
teacher thinks: yeah, I know where Miss Keller's room is. she's my friend.
IF you had just said how do I get to math or math in room 217, it would be a little harder for the teacher to picture the room number and get you there. You know there are lots of math rooms in the school.

3. You say Thank you!
teacher thinks: what a polite kid. I'm glad I helped. Maybe I'll walk over to Miss Keller's room to make sure the nice kid got there ok.

next blog: scene 2: getting to class late