Peek At The Week
May 13, 2019
Team,
What an amazing week of celebrating YOU! We couldn't do it without you and know how tired you are. You keep coming and we appreciate you! I found this little letter on We Are Teachers and I wanted to share it with you.
Dear Teacher,
I’m that kid. The kid who gets under your skin. The first grader who colors on your walls and spits on my table partners. The middle school kid who mouths off and smirks from the back row. The child who knows exactly how to push your buttons, and does. Regularly.
I taunt. I terrorize. Sometimes I hit. I destroy. I curse. Rolling my eyes often seems like my favorite thing to do. I talk back. Maybe I’ve even made you cry a few times.
Don’t take my behavior toward you personally.
I know that doesn’t make any sense, since it’s mostly directed at you. But you know that old saying about having a bad day at work and going home and kicking the dog? Well, you’re the dog.
(I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.)
I really am a good kid deep down. There are so many things I care about. I have skills and strengths that I want to use to help other people. In fact, I secretly want for you to know all these good things about me.
But unfortunately, you don’t get to see these good things.
I am afraid. I am in pain. You know how if you put oil and water in a container together, the oil will float to the top? It’s like my fear and pain are the oil, and all the good things about me are water. Every once in a while, you might shake me up and see just a glimpse of those good things on the surface, but no matter how hard I try, the fear and pain will bubble up and cover everything again. It’s easy to think that the way that I react to fear and pain—the anger, the defiance—is the real me. In fact, I’ve even started to believe it.
The fear and pain I feel is different than what you may think. It’s not always actual physical fear or pain (though sometimes it is). I might be afraid that I’m not worthy of love, since my dad left me and my mom after I was born. I might be afraid that I will grow up to be like my mom, who is an alcoholic and misses all my baseball games. Or I might be in pain because my family and culture say I’m not manly enough since I cry a lot and am not really into sports. I might be in pain because someone who is supposed to love and protect me said something deeply hurtful that I won’t ever forget.
Maybe you look at me and think there’s no excuse for the way I behave. You might think, “This child has a stable family, loving parents, and a secure environment. I know kids with a lot less who behave perfectly fine.”
But please remember that there is always more than what you see.
What you might not know is that the pressure to be perfect or different than who I am is so intense and crushing that I believe I’m a failure, and I’m too scared to tell anybody that.
Or maybe my home life is fine, but I’m learning a very dangerous message—that I’m inadequate, unlovable, or not worthy of belonging—in some situation outside of home, or inside my own head. Maybe something is going on, or has happened, that nobody, not even my parents, knows about but me, and I do a really good job of faking that I’m happy or that I don’t care.
I know that I’m making things hard for you. I know you don’t deserve it. But I feel like you should know this: Somewhere, on a level I’m not even aware of, I’ve chosen you to behave this way toward because I know you’re a person who can help me.
This is a cry for help.
I want the same things everybody else does, but I’m asking for it in the most confusing and unflattering of ways.
I don’t know how to fix all of this (or I would have already). And I don’t think it’s necessarily your responsibility to fix me. But here’s how you can help me.
Start small. I’m fragile, and I’ve been hurt. Because I’ve got so much junk at the surface, maybe don’t try to remove it all at once or ask me to open up right away about my fear and pain.
Show me that you notice me—not my behavior, but something about me.
Ask me questions.
Don’t give in when I try to rile you up.
Maybe, slowly, I will learn to trust you. Or maybe I will take a long time, and you won’t see any progress in our time together, but your patience and kindness toward me will plant a seed that will sprout many years later.
But please, please, please don’t give up on me.
Love,
That Kid
As we move in to our STAAR testing week, know that you have made a difference on this campus. You've made a difference for That Kid.
As always, Teach Happy!
-Denise
Reminders.....Non-Negotiables
- Hallway CHAMPS: 0-2 Voice Level, Walk on the Right, Hands and Feet to yourself; If you see it, handle it!
- Goal Setting Meetings are expected bi-weekly. This is part of our TIP.
- Give students a pass when they leave your room.
- No cell phone use in class that is non-instructional.
- Should a student not have your class during a specific time frame, they should not be in your classroom during class or on their way to another class to visit another student.
- Lesson Plans are to be entered 2 weeks in advance.
- No one is to leave class for the first 9 minutes.
Calendar: AOD Weatherford
Tuesday- Leadership Team Meeting, 4-4:30p; in the Conference Room.
Wednesday-6th grade Field Day Meeting, 4-4:40p
Thursday- 7th grade Day of Service- 7th graders remain in Gym for 1st period.
Friday- 8th grade to Splashtown; 8th grade Dance, 6:30p-10p; Middle School Band Spring Concert, SHS, 5:30p-7p
Logistics for the Week of Testing
- Monday: STAAR Re-testing from 8a-12p; 5th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th periods; passers to the gym with all 8th grade teachers not involved in testing.
- Tuesday: STAAR Re-testing from 8a-12p; 5th, 6th 7th and 8th periods; passers to the gym with all 8th grade teachers not involved in testing.
- Wednesday: STAAR Testing 8a-12p; 5th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th periods.
- Thursday: STAAR Testing 8a-12p; 5th, th, 7th and 8th periods.
- Friday: Splashtown- Leave from Gym after drop off.
7th and 6th Graders Schedule M-Th
- Monday: STAAR Testing from 8a-12p; 5th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th periods.
- Tuesday: STAAR Testing from 8a-12p; 5th, 6th 7th and 8th periods.
- Wednesday: 6th, 7th, 8th, 5th, 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th period, no bells..
- Thursday: (7th graders off campus unless inclement weather); Operate on Regular Schedule, no bells.
*Times for class periods to be sent out in another email.
May Happenings- Mark your Calendar!!
5/13-5/16: STAAR Testing...NO VISITORS on campus
- Monday, 5/13: STAAR 6th and 7th grade Math, 8th grade Math- retesters
- Tuesday, 5/14: STAAR 6th and 7th grade Reading, 8th grade Reading- retesters
- Wednesday, 5/15: STAAR Science, 8th grade
- Thursday, 5/16: STAAR Social Studies, 8th grade
5/15: ALL 6th grade Field Day Faculty to Meet After School for Debrief of the Day, 4p-4:45p in the Library
5/16: 7th g Day of Service
5/17: 8th g Day (Splashtown and Dance)
5/21: Badminton Incentive Tournament (Modified-SISD Early Release Schedule); Students will be called to the gym from their 5th period class after 1pm.
5/22: 6th g Field Day
5/23: Last Day of School! Awards Day, all grade levels; Receive Check Out List at 1pm.
5/24: Last Day for Teachers and Paras