This week I’ve only made it in to sub today and yesterday. I skipped Monday because I stayed up late watching the Oscars on Sunday night. I got up early and awaited a call on Tuesday morning, but I didn’t accept any of the jobs. Why, you might ask? Well, they didn’t appeal to me. One was for a TA in an autistic classroom. Another was for a Pre-K TA. I talked to my mother on the phone, and of course, mothers are always right. She said, “Don’t turn down any jobs. Just GO. You will learn so much. This is your time to soak everything in.” So I will take her advice next week and accept as many different jobs as possible.
Both of my placements this week offered me a chance to see what it’s like in a few of the older schools in the district. In fact, today I was at C. Elementary, where I attended 4th and 5th grade! It was crazy to be back as a teacher. But more on that later. I’ll start with Wednesday. I did another half day at F. Elementary in 3rd grade, except this time I didn’t have to be there until 11 (how nice to sleep in). The teacher, Ms. L, was there–she had to be in a meeting next door for the whole afternoon. I liked Ms. L’s laid back style and attitude. She also had a slight midwestern twang when saying certain words. Anyway, this particular school is interesting because its campus is very spread out and there are a lot of outdoor walkways. It almost feels more like a high school. Many of my good friends attended this school, and I looked around the classroom thinking, “I wonder which of my friends sat in this same classroom 15 years ago?” There wasn’t anything in this classroom that blew me away. The kids were sweet and nothing too exciting happened. There was a kid named Camp. That is all.
Today I subbed in a 2nd grade dual language classroom (the kids are taught half the day in English and the other half in Spanish) at C. Elementary. O.M.G. What an experience! This program wasn’t around when I was in school, and I really wish it was. These kids enter into the dual language program in kindergarten and stay in it through 5th grade. They are essentially fluent Spanish speakers by the time they enter middle school. I was a bit intimidated going into this job and I wasn’t sure what to expect. There are two dual language teachers. One was there (she is American), but she had to be in a meeting all day (these meetings, I swear!) and the Spanish speaking teacher wasn’t there at all. Ms. B. was really sweet and young. I didn’t actually get to stay in her room–I spent the day in the Spanish teacher’s room. Ms. B’s room looked really awesome and I wish I could have looked around in there. Alas, I was in one of the most disorganized, ugliest rooms I’ve ever seen! Talk about learning what I DON’T want my room to look like. Here are some things to remember:
1. Organize your classroom library. Don’t just have random baskets of books all over the place, making it more difficult for students to pick something to read.
2. Have a place where students can put finished work.
3. PENCILS! EVER HEARD OF ‘EM?!
4. Put cute stuff on the walls! This classroom was basically bare aside from a few corny posters, the calendar, and a tiny math bulletin board. Fail.
OK, done ranting. Well, almost. I thought I would be teaching the class in English all day (given the fact that I don’t know Spanish), but during math Senora C, the TA, interrupted me and began teaching in Spanish. So I was kind of miffed at first, but I got over it. Senora C. was challenging to work with. She didn’t know English very well, so there was that barrier. We also just didn’t click very well (Ms. B. assured me that Senora C. is difficult to work with and it’s not just me). But by the end of the day, it was all right. We were able to smile and laugh about little things that had happened during the day.
Let me get to my point about the dual language program. It is AMAZING! It was pretty crazy being in there as a sub (two different groups of kids rotated through the classroom throughout the day, and the second group was definitely NUTS) but ultimately, these kids are amazing. There are many Latino students in the class. But there are also many white students, and one African American. I was blown AWAY by their level of Spanish proficiency. Senora C. would yammer away at them in Spanish and they could respond instantly. They read in Spanish. They wrote Spanish. They spoke Spanish beautifully. They are in 2nd grade. Wow. I felt so inferior! It was an eye-opening experience, and though it was overwhelming and frustrating at times, I’m really glad I got the chance to see what it’s like.
Tomorrow I won’t be subbing because I’m going to be the “mystery reader” in my old classroom at M.G. Elementary. I can’t wait to see my students! More next week.
Have a great weekend! 
Posted by Ellie on March 13, 2010 at 4:36 pm
YES! I’m all for bilingual education…And starting it as early as possible. There are so many advantages to this- both culturally and professionally later on. Good advice from mom, too! They say most of life is just showing up….Or something like that. Anyways, “Just go” is a smart tip.:)