Teacher

At 1:30 AM, I told Adam that one of my students needs touch dots.  She has been using tally marks to add and it is slowing her down.

Adam said, "Well...good."

I don't just think about school when I'm awake.  I dream about it all night too.

Nights are pretty exhausting.

But then, so are the days.  Every day we have tears from someone.  Someone has a head-ache.  Someone has the most exciting thing to tell me at the least opportune time.  Someone needs to use the bathroom "and it's an emergency" right when I am in the middle of a lesson.  There are always scrapes and slivers and mosquito bites (I have a drawer full of bandaids and I rub lotion on every mosquito bite. The slivers just get a little sympathy).

Yesterday there was a significant enough behavior problem that I had to speak with the school psychologist about the student during recess (my one chance to use the bathroom!).

They are as tired of my bandaged wrist as I am.  A student asked, "When is your wrist going to be better?"

I told them I was getting the stitches out on Thursday and I was hoping that would help.

"No!" a girl wailed.  "Stitches?!?  Getting out stitches pulls.  That will not be better."

A different girl is trying to talk me into a classroom pet.  Not.  Even.  Tempted.  I pointed out our plant and said that could be a pet.  I offered that we could name it.  She gave me a sideways look that clearly was a mix of pity and contempt.

They make me laugh too though.  And occasionally they throw their arms around my waist in a big hug.  They smile when I open the door in the morning to greet them and they tell me about the important things in their lives.

Whenever possible, I try to point out on the map a place we are reading or talking about.  Their geography skills are shaky.  One student asked me what was on the other side of the map, because wasn't the world round?

I explained that it was round but that the map was flat sort of like if you took the label off a can and laid it flat.

One of them said, "Did you know that there is such a thing as a round map?"

That was the moment I decided to take in my globe from home.

I took it in on Saturday and put it on a high shelf (because I don't need them spinning it).  We hadn't talked about anything geographical since then but yesterday one of the students noticed it.

"Teacher!" he said in wonder, pointing to the globe. "Remember how you said we need a globe in our classroom?  I found one!"

When I taught school before, I would correct them when they called me teacher and tell them to call me Mrs. Davis.

I let them call me Teacher now.  I like being teacher.