Happy Mardi Gras!
In the midst of the craziness that defines New Orleans over the month long celebrations leading up to Mardi Gras, I feel compelled to take a break and share with the online world the happenings in my classroom and to a smaller extent, my life. First of all, it is 9:17am on a Monday morning and I am blogging. NOTHING is better than time off work, case in point. In a few hours I go to pick up my brother and his girlfriend from the airport to end the Mardi Gras celebrations in the coming days and just yesterday, six visitors left our then overcrowded, but obviously rambunctious house. Not to mention I have seen Will Ferrill three times in the past two weeks from up close and afar and have about 2 giant grocery bags full of beads, cups, shot glasses, stuffed animals and glow in the dark junk people throw off of parade floats. But somehow, I am always thinking about my kids even in the midst of my week long vacation from the reality of the classroom.
So after a prolonged and lets face it, bragging lead up about Mardi Gras from me, let me get to the point. My wonderful, brainaic, perfect children! I have never been so proud of them as I am right this instant. At the beginning of the year, I was handed 20 blank slate children who did not know right from wrong, letters from numbers or pink from blue. This year I have had the privilege to watch them become socially conscious, problem solving, geniuses. Okay, obviously I exaggerate, as always, but seriously, they are so smart. I always joke with my kids when they are getting all the answers right during lessons, saying, "Are you guys secretly sneaking into Kindergarten classes without me? How did you get so smart?" This of course, they find hilarious, but lately, it is getting to the point where I think they might be. We had our second wave of STEP testing this past week and my kids NAILED it. Our end of the year goal is for all our kids in Pre-K to end the year having "achieved Pre" on this test. To put things into perspective, last year, the Kinder class started with only 5% starting the year at the "achieved Pre" stage. AKA, 95% of our kids started Kinder below grade level. Therefore, we want to change that number to 100% starting the year at "achieved Pre", which would entirely eliminate the literacy gap for our kids before they even start Kinder, with 0% starting below grade level in reading.
Without getting too technical, it sounds relatively easy right. Teach kids one year of material in Pre-K, they are on grade level for K. But, the depth and vastness of the literacy gap begins so much earlier than people realize. My kids started off so low. In fact, in their beginning of the year comprehensive assessment, they scored in the 15th percentile of all children in Louisiana in Pre-K. So, in other words, 85% of other kids in Pre-K knew more than them at the beginning of the year. And, let me remind you, Louisiana is NOT known for our quality education or high achieving students. At all. It is not like the other 85% of students are at Harvard nursery schools. We can speculate why, how and possible biases in this data, but the truth is, the gap affected my kids before they ever stepped into my door.
Flash forward to today. 50% of my kids are now at their end of the year goal, "Achieved Pre". Even better, I still have the months of March-July to get the last ten to that goal. Most encouraging, the test assesses four things: name, alphabet names, rhyming and concepts of print. 95% of my class passed alphabet, 95% passed name, 75% passed rhyming and 60% passed concepts of print. The only one who did not pass name and alpha was my new student. Even more encouraging, only 3 of the 10 who did not pass failed in more than one area. And at least 4, including T, were literally one right answer away from passing. So basically, with a lot of intervention with my new student (who knows nothing, but oh my goodness is picking up FAST), and a focused small group with the other 9 based on either rhyming or concepts of print once or twice a week, I can get them there. The hard part is over. They can write their names. They know the alphabet. They are GREAT at letter sounds (averaging about 12-15 letter sounds already). And most importantly, they are hungry to learn and eager to get to Kinder and strut their stuff.
Obviously, there is so much more to teaching than just literacy scores. Math, science, social studies, fine and gross motor skills, social development, etc. is just as big of a part of my job. However, none of these subjects are as easy to communicate and quantify, and therefore, I am left with anecdotal notes and likely flawed data to show that my kids are geniuses in basically every field. But even if their success is not as prevalent and gratifying as it is in reading, I am okay with that fact at the moment. All research points to the achievement gap starting in literacy, and if I can teach my kids success in reading, success in all subjects will come naturally. How can a student excel in any other subject without a reading foundation? How can they read the word problems in math, read the experiment instructions in science or read the historical textbooks without an ability and passion to read? Reading is the foundation and I have never been more proud to watch 20 little ones take ownership or their learning and development and get motivated to read.
Obviously, I have played a part in their learning. I have made the lesson plans, set up the centers, lead the small groups in order to get my kids to their tremendous gains in literacy. But the real credit is due to my kids and their families. I have been awed and amazed at how well my students understand the connection between learning letter sounds and realizing that is the key to reading, forming their tiny hands into a sign language "b" and saying quietly "/b/ /b/ bat the ball" when asked the sound B makes. I have been amazed at how seriously my students frow their eyebrows and repeat words under their breath, trying to determine with precision whether mouse and house rhyme. And perhaps most importantly, I have been amazed at parents. I sent home progress reports about three weeks ago and for the 10 of my students who still could not rhyme, I wrote a long note about how that was holding them back from achieving Pre and needed serious intervention. Fast forwarde less than three weeks later, and five more of my students pass the rhyming section with flying colors (10 out of 10, 9 out of 10) and four of the other five were literally one or two short from passing.
Student success is dependent on so many things. Teachers, families and most importantly the students themselves. I am so proud of my kids for the ownership and joy they are taking in learning. Even if they do not achieve Pre at the end of the year (which they will and likely more), they are working harder than any other 4 year olds I have ever met and I could not be prouder of their commitment to learning. For the first time since I started teaching, I am beginning to feel like my kids have advanced so far, and that they will be okay without me. Maybe I am wrong, but I think they are beginning to take ownership in their own learning enough, that in any teachers hands, they will be set up to succeed. And god, is that feeling gratifying as the end of the year and big changes approach rapidly. My kids are going to be okay.
So I am awed and amazed. Not at the data (although I am proud of that), not at myself (I have so much to improve on), not at my school (don't even get me started on its problems), but with my kids. They are passionate to learn and learning quickly. I sometimes sit around while they nap putting together their homework and think about what they are going to be when they grow up. You get to know their little personalities so well, you cannot help but assign them the roles you know they would excel in. I think about CH becoming president, CW becoming a pediatrician. I think about JW becoming a college professor. I think about T becoming an inventor and M becoming a computer programmer. I think of R becoming a journalist, K an astronaut, TL an artist, TM a famous comedian or actress of some sort, obviously. JWa a math genius and J an author. E a doctor, SB a teacher, SD a fire fighter, I a counselor and MB a scientist. I could go on forever, so I will force myself to stop. At the beginning of the year, almost half my class said they wanted to be a doctor. I looked at the educational levels of their parents (usually middle or high school drop outs), their test scores, their family income levels (most below 10k a year) and their social skills and worried. Now, when they tell me they want to be a garbage can man, spongebob or a power ranger, I think, you are going to be so much more.
"You cannot open a book without learning something." -Confucius
Monday, February 20, 2012
Monday, February 6, 2012
Flashbacks and Beliefs
At the more than halfway point through quite possibly the most tumultuous series of events in my life, I pause from looking forward to the finish line to reminisce on the starting point in July.
Last Monday, my reflection on the "back when" of July was sparked by at long last receiving a new student to replace S who I was never able to win back in November. Z is not particularly a misbehaved student or a behind student, although he certainly did not come in at an above average behavioral and academic level. In fact, he is exactly on par with where all my other students were in July. Which is not saying much. He solves his conflicts with a swift punch, he writes his name with a quick scribble motion and a finite "I'm done" throwing down the pencil he holds incorrectly and yells out at several points in the day, "I wanna go home" "What that is?" or my personal favorite, "I get centers now?" freqently. Most humbling perhaps, was h is complete lack of knowledge of not only the vocab "criss cross applesauce" but the actual process of flexibility entailed in getting into said position.
At first, I was quite frankly alarmed at his conduct and knowledge. Considering my lowest student in the class does not even scribble anymore and writes 8-9 letters out of her 10 letter name and my worst behaved students do not even punch for something as small as a cut in line, I wondered where in the world this kid came from.
However, looking back to July, I remembered the days of Ms. Knipp's class that I tried to block out. I remembered C bleeding from a self inflicted punch to the nose. I remember 3/4 of the class scribbling while incorrectly gripping the pencil. I remember most students unable to repeat "C" after pointing to the letter C and saying "C" aloud literally 5 seconds earlier and worst of all, T not even knowing yellow from blue. I remembered the lifelong battle of teaching students how to raise their hand and not just blurt out whatever the heck came in their mind. I remembered the horror of 3-4 accidents a day in class, 5-6 crying kids over missing home, someone failing to share or worst of all, a sentence to a 2 minute time out (the horror!). Now accidents, tears and blurt outs are not extinct, but largely diminished within the walls of the Pre-K class.
While I often find my self esteem bloated when I look at test scores, old work samples or just anecdotal observations of improvement, nothing could have been as rewarding as seeing a ripe never been to school 4 year old thrown into the mix of my superstars. I hate to say it, but I honestly did not believe in July they could get to where they are now. Today, I awarded C the coveted "Principal's Breakfast Award" (only one other student has received it this year) for demonstrating respect. The student who used to call me the ugly mother effer, now the most respectful student in class, well I must admit, I did not think I would see the day.
So I have a LONG way to go with Z. It is hard right now to stay positive about the situation, as I worry about only having half a year to get Z where his peers have had an entire year to get. The material I am teaching has gotten very rigorous (sounding out words, cause and effect, basic word problems in math, counting to 50+), yet Z lacks all the basics (any knowledge of letters, words vs. pictures, counting to ten) and will still be held to the same standards. Also, due to his arrival, some of the kids have decided to re-test the cardinal rules of the classroom (pushing in line, yelling out on the rug, etc) and I have had to quickly dispell the myths that I have gone soft-which is anything but the truth. But, just like my doubt in my abilities to get my kids into the calm, well behaved, little geniuses they have become, I will just have to prove myself wrong with Z.
This whole TFA experience has taught me a lot, about what I know, what I believe and what I wish for our country and our children. I believe that I have done nothing in my life as important as what I am doing now. I believe in the importance of early childhood education and want it mandated. I believe in happy hours after long weeks with coworkers. I believe that unfortunately, TFA is not the be all end all of educational inequality, although I wish it were. I believe that TFA is mostly effective, although some serious changes probably need to occur. I believe that children are capable of more than we can imagine and I believe that I am capable of more than I can imagine. I believe in sink or swim. I believe in great parents in all communities and that most parents are better than people give them credit for. I also believe parents are blamed for too much, often not warranted. However, I also believe bad parenting (not necessarily bad parents) can have dire consequences. I believe in educating the family, not just the student. And I believe in celebrating the small things and small victories, and on the flip side, taking time to grief the small pains and cuts of life. I believe in a social life, but I also believe in being a workaholic sometimes. I believe in giving people the benefit of the doubt, but I also believe in standing up strong when you know you are right. On that note, I believe in picking your battles. I believe in tough love, but most importantly, love in any form. I believe in hugs and high fives and jumping up and down with four year old kids when things are tough. I believe that my students are the future.
"If our American way of life fails the child, it fails us all." -Pearl S. Buck
Last Monday, my reflection on the "back when" of July was sparked by at long last receiving a new student to replace S who I was never able to win back in November. Z is not particularly a misbehaved student or a behind student, although he certainly did not come in at an above average behavioral and academic level. In fact, he is exactly on par with where all my other students were in July. Which is not saying much. He solves his conflicts with a swift punch, he writes his name with a quick scribble motion and a finite "I'm done" throwing down the pencil he holds incorrectly and yells out at several points in the day, "I wanna go home" "What that is?" or my personal favorite, "I get centers now?" freqently. Most humbling perhaps, was h is complete lack of knowledge of not only the vocab "criss cross applesauce" but the actual process of flexibility entailed in getting into said position.
At first, I was quite frankly alarmed at his conduct and knowledge. Considering my lowest student in the class does not even scribble anymore and writes 8-9 letters out of her 10 letter name and my worst behaved students do not even punch for something as small as a cut in line, I wondered where in the world this kid came from.
However, looking back to July, I remembered the days of Ms. Knipp's class that I tried to block out. I remembered C bleeding from a self inflicted punch to the nose. I remember 3/4 of the class scribbling while incorrectly gripping the pencil. I remember most students unable to repeat "C" after pointing to the letter C and saying "C" aloud literally 5 seconds earlier and worst of all, T not even knowing yellow from blue. I remembered the lifelong battle of teaching students how to raise their hand and not just blurt out whatever the heck came in their mind. I remembered the horror of 3-4 accidents a day in class, 5-6 crying kids over missing home, someone failing to share or worst of all, a sentence to a 2 minute time out (the horror!). Now accidents, tears and blurt outs are not extinct, but largely diminished within the walls of the Pre-K class.
While I often find my self esteem bloated when I look at test scores, old work samples or just anecdotal observations of improvement, nothing could have been as rewarding as seeing a ripe never been to school 4 year old thrown into the mix of my superstars. I hate to say it, but I honestly did not believe in July they could get to where they are now. Today, I awarded C the coveted "Principal's Breakfast Award" (only one other student has received it this year) for demonstrating respect. The student who used to call me the ugly mother effer, now the most respectful student in class, well I must admit, I did not think I would see the day.
So I have a LONG way to go with Z. It is hard right now to stay positive about the situation, as I worry about only having half a year to get Z where his peers have had an entire year to get. The material I am teaching has gotten very rigorous (sounding out words, cause and effect, basic word problems in math, counting to 50+), yet Z lacks all the basics (any knowledge of letters, words vs. pictures, counting to ten) and will still be held to the same standards. Also, due to his arrival, some of the kids have decided to re-test the cardinal rules of the classroom (pushing in line, yelling out on the rug, etc) and I have had to quickly dispell the myths that I have gone soft-which is anything but the truth. But, just like my doubt in my abilities to get my kids into the calm, well behaved, little geniuses they have become, I will just have to prove myself wrong with Z.
This whole TFA experience has taught me a lot, about what I know, what I believe and what I wish for our country and our children. I believe that I have done nothing in my life as important as what I am doing now. I believe in the importance of early childhood education and want it mandated. I believe in happy hours after long weeks with coworkers. I believe that unfortunately, TFA is not the be all end all of educational inequality, although I wish it were. I believe that TFA is mostly effective, although some serious changes probably need to occur. I believe that children are capable of more than we can imagine and I believe that I am capable of more than I can imagine. I believe in sink or swim. I believe in great parents in all communities and that most parents are better than people give them credit for. I also believe parents are blamed for too much, often not warranted. However, I also believe bad parenting (not necessarily bad parents) can have dire consequences. I believe in educating the family, not just the student. And I believe in celebrating the small things and small victories, and on the flip side, taking time to grief the small pains and cuts of life. I believe in a social life, but I also believe in being a workaholic sometimes. I believe in giving people the benefit of the doubt, but I also believe in standing up strong when you know you are right. On that note, I believe in picking your battles. I believe in tough love, but most importantly, love in any form. I believe in hugs and high fives and jumping up and down with four year old kids when things are tough. I believe that my students are the future.
"If our American way of life fails the child, it fails us all." -Pearl S. Buck
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