Where has November gone?

I just realized that I haven't posted for almost a month! A lot has happened this month and it has been very busy. Our class spent most of the month with very few privileges from their grades and behavior. However, they made a complete 180!! Several students brought up their grades. Most students are working very hard and take pride in their work. More importantly, I am so amazed at the school family they have become. Here are a few examples:

* We had a student move to another school within the district. I was out at a conference the first day he was gone. After the conference, I went by the school to check the sub's note. I was impressed because I had the first positive note all year from a sub. Then, I had a piece of paper that said, "Mrs. Edugator, can you please give this to our friend?" Under the note was a bag made out of notebook paper, yes notebook paper. Inside the bag were notes for our friend that moved encouraging him and telling him how much they miss him. I have to admit, I cried.

* We have a friend in our class that gets frustrated with work and walks out of the room to "take a break" when he can't handle it. I don't have a problem with this because it is an appropriate way to handle his anger and after a few minutes he comes in and gets back to work. I usually give him 5 minutes and then talk to him and encourage him to go back inside. Lately, members of our school family have asked if they can go out and encourage him instead. I usually stand by the door and hear things that I wouldn't think of saying. Kids can be the best encourager and teachers for each other.

* My kiddos are not the best test takers. My class gets easily frustrated when they don't know something and even more frustrated when I can't help them. The benchmarks we have taken so far (state formatted tests) have resulted in very low grades. I know my students can do better than this but I need for them to believe that. I have been working hard to build their confidence. This past week I showed them a graph of all our benchmark scores to this point. I pointed out the growth they made between the first and second math benchmark. Well, my students decided that having a smaller class will give them the power to become better learners. They asked if they could write our principal a letter to convince her to keep our class small (we are at 15 right now). Yes, I will always take advantage of a teachable moment! :) The writing assignment for the week in writing went from what I had planned to writing a persuasive letter to our principal. It is amazing what is important to them.

Okay, now that I have written a novel I will let your brain rest! I am very proud of my students and how much they have grown. I am excited to watch their progress throughout the year and proud to have the opportunity to teach this group of kids. They are great kids with huge hearts.