1st week of school

I hate the first week of school.

There. I’ve said it.

While all my other teacher friends are writing sentimental statements about how excited they are about students coming back and how fresh and eager their darlings are, I’m spending the day crying and wondering why I didn’t look for a new job over the summer.

It’s not that I don’t like my students. I really do. I love to give them a big (sideways) hug and see their shining faces again.

It’s just that my job has become increasingly behavior management and (not surprisingly) the kids on my caseload with behavior issues (about 20%) are wigging out during the first week of school. So I often spend the first week “rescuing” teachers by becoming a one-on-one aide to these students. I develop behavior point cards for kids I haven’t even met before but have a speech IEP. I pull students out of class to give them a break. I schedule emergency behavior meetings, and try to coordinate the schedules of 5-8 people so that we can support these students. I endanger re-injuring my foot as I run after kids and tend to wounds of students that scratch me on their first day of school.

As much as I want to scream, “This isn’t supposed to be my job!”, I can also appreciate how strapped for adults the school is. The truth of the matter is that there is no one who is trained and has the time to deal with these behaviors. And if the student has articulation or language issues, the job falls on me.

Please tell me one day it will get better!?!

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6 Comments

  1. hello, new to following c: thank you for the visuals! can’t wait to hear how the behavior points work for your students, good luck with the next few weeks c:

  2. I just discovered your blog…great job! I’m especially excited about your weekly homework sheets, REALLY hoping you continue these for the months you haven’t gotten to yet!

  3. I am a brand new reader of your blog. Hope behavior points improve behavior for your kiddos–stat. I also read about your broken foot. Hope it doesn’t get reinjured. When I was in UT this summer. . . I saw this guy with a broken leg in a museum using one of these:

    http://www.rolleraid.com

    I swore up and down that if I ever broke my leg/foot/whatever below the knee I’d keep it on my list of “crap I need”.

    Kate

  4. Hello! I’m your newest follower on your TPT store. Thanks for sharing these visuals. Unfortunately, you are right…the job of kids with behaviors often falls to us because staff is so short. I think (or like to think), it’s also because speech therapists have training to make things visual to kids in a way others do not. I’m constantly creating visual schedules, if…thens, and social stories all in the name of communication. I hope your next few weeks are better-know that you’re not alone! Feel free to stop by my blog as well: http://www.allisonspeechpeeps.blogspot.com

  5. Oh, you mean teachers and speech paths WORK? I thought you were just showing up for 6 hours a day and collecting a big ol’ paycheck. My bad.

    You are wonderful.

  6. I feel your pain! If I can just get everyone scheduled it will be good1

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