Ashley L., Brendan, Sona, Katrina, Joey, Bobby, and Danny are now all shunned as well.
They're acting like cootie carriers, too, and I feel so damn ridiculous that I'm considering cooties as a real thing.
The students are acting nervous, too. At recess, they've starting forming traps. Trying to box in children. I've broken them up before anything's happened, but I'm positive, that Sona managed to get a girl from the other first grade.
Get. Is that how I'm thinking, now?
They're just kids.
Friday, August 31, 2012
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Ninth Day
I've been informed that Felix will be going to another school from now on. I wasn't told why.
Ashley R. came back to school, today. The other students are giving her a wide berth, but not as strictly as they do for "confirmed" or "suspected" Cootie carriers.
Thhe worst part is, Ashley seems to understand completely. She's almost dutifully enduring her exile, while they try to figure out whether or not she's "infected".
This would be fascinating, if they weren't my students. If this was in just another behavioral textbook on children, I'd be chomping at the bit to write my thesis on the phenomima.
But these are my kids. And this is wrong.
I don't really know how, though. I hope...it's just some behavior, they'll grow out of.
But I keep getting this sinking feeling, in the pit of my stomach.
Jan's of the opinion it's just a phase, too. She's also of the opinion I should talk about it less and kiss her more.
Sigh.
I feel paranoid.
I feel very, very paranoid.
Ashley R. came back to school, today. The other students are giving her a wide berth, but not as strictly as they do for "confirmed" or "suspected" Cootie carriers.
Thhe worst part is, Ashley seems to understand completely. She's almost dutifully enduring her exile, while they try to figure out whether or not she's "infected".
This would be fascinating, if they weren't my students. If this was in just another behavioral textbook on children, I'd be chomping at the bit to write my thesis on the phenomima.
But these are my kids. And this is wrong.
I don't really know how, though. I hope...it's just some behavior, they'll grow out of.
But I keep getting this sinking feeling, in the pit of my stomach.
Jan's of the opinion it's just a phase, too. She's also of the opinion I should talk about it less and kiss her more.
Sigh.
I feel paranoid.
I feel very, very paranoid.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Eighth Day
Both of the Ashleys (I've been referring to Ashley R., in the posts so far), Brendan, and Sona are absent today, as well as Felix, Katrina, and Joey.
This caused no small amount of rumbling, in the class. The general belief seems to be that some sort of covert, cootie-spreading operation is going on.
I've been laughing, and trying to distract them from thoughts like that.
But, honestly...a part of me wonders if that's not the case.
This caused no small amount of rumbling, in the class. The general belief seems to be that some sort of covert, cootie-spreading operation is going on.
I've been laughing, and trying to distract them from thoughts like that.
But, honestly...a part of me wonders if that's not the case.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Monday, August 27, 2012
Sixth Day
All things considered, I had a very relaxing, long weekend with Jan.
Of course, I'm especially glad for it, as, when I came to school, I was greeted by the sight of two of my students pulling a third violently into the girls' washroom.
I interrupted them, and found Katrina and Joey, standing over Felix, blood trickling down their noses. Felix was struggling to crawl away from them.
"You have to stay still. It's the rules." I heard Katrina say softly, before I interrupted them.
Once I had the Nurse take a look at them, I made sure they were taken to the Principal.
As expected, though, they weren't punished, beyond a calm and slightly amused lecture that had more to do with boys being in the girls' room than anything else.
The children are shunning Felix, now.
He's begging them not to. He's not sitting with Joey and Katrina, but the others are giving him just as wide a berth. He claims to not have cooties. But they're not believing him. At Recess, as I'd feared, they're fleeing from Joey and Katrina...but they're fleeing from Felix, too.
The poor kid looks miserable. I wish there was something I could do about it, but the other teachers are almost as bad as the principal.
Of course, I'm especially glad for it, as, when I came to school, I was greeted by the sight of two of my students pulling a third violently into the girls' washroom.
I interrupted them, and found Katrina and Joey, standing over Felix, blood trickling down their noses. Felix was struggling to crawl away from them.
"You have to stay still. It's the rules." I heard Katrina say softly, before I interrupted them.
Once I had the Nurse take a look at them, I made sure they were taken to the Principal.
As expected, though, they weren't punished, beyond a calm and slightly amused lecture that had more to do with boys being in the girls' room than anything else.
The children are shunning Felix, now.
He's begging them not to. He's not sitting with Joey and Katrina, but the others are giving him just as wide a berth. He claims to not have cooties. But they're not believing him. At Recess, as I'd feared, they're fleeing from Joey and Katrina...but they're fleeing from Felix, too.
The poor kid looks miserable. I wish there was something I could do about it, but the other teachers are almost as bad as the principal.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
First Weekend
It's my first weekend, as a teacher.
It's hard for me to do anything but think about my students now, though.
Maybe I'll call up Jan, see if she has a free night.
It's hard for me to do anything but think about my students now, though.
Maybe I'll call up Jan, see if she has a free night.
Friday, August 24, 2012
Fifth Day
The children are definitely shunning Joey, now, too. Ashley helpfully comfirmed that, yes, he has cooties and, yes, they were given to him by Katrina.
I asked if she could tell me more about cooties, and a few of the children--Ashley and Felix, for the most part, told me that people with cooties act like big kids, and do what big kids do, including dressing like them. They told me they like to play big kid games, because the Cootie Monster likes big kid games.
I asked them where they heard this. There were various sources, but the most common one seemed to be older siblings, older cousins, and the like.
Though, to be honest, the most common reaction was that disbelief that I didn't already know these things.
Other than that, the day was mostly uneventful. I didn't watch recess, today. I wonder if the children fled from both Joey and Katrina today,
I asked if she could tell me more about cooties, and a few of the children--Ashley and Felix, for the most part, told me that people with cooties act like big kids, and do what big kids do, including dressing like them. They told me they like to play big kid games, because the Cootie Monster likes big kid games.
I asked them where they heard this. There were various sources, but the most common one seemed to be older siblings, older cousins, and the like.
Though, to be honest, the most common reaction was that disbelief that I didn't already know these things.
Other than that, the day was mostly uneventful. I didn't watch recess, today. I wonder if the children fled from both Joey and Katrina today,
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Fourth Day Addendum
I almost forgot to say it, but after Recess, when Joey and Katrina came back from the Nurse's office, The children gave Joey just as wide a berth as they've been giving Katrina.
I guess he has cooties now, too?
I guess he has cooties now, too?
Fourth Day
Something a little disturbing happened, today.
The kids played at recess, as per normal--and by that, I mean, they spent the whole time slowly walking away from Katrina, while she chased them with open arms.
Then Joey fell.
I've never seen it in person, but the reaction was almost akin to a gunshot going off in a crowded room. The children scattered away from Joey, none of them staying to help him up.
I started to step forward, to see if he was alright, when Katrina caught up with him. He looked up at her, clearly panicked, as she reached down and held out her hand.
He then took her hand, and she lead him behind a row of trees, at the edge of the playground. Obviously, I wasn't going to let the kids out of my sight, so I followed them.
I got beyond the trees, and had them in my line of sight, only moments after they'd gotten there. Katrina was staring right at me, the same smile on her face, and Joey was once again on the ground. Blood trickled down her nose, and dripped down her chin. Joey stood a moment later, rubbing his mouth absent-mindedly.
Then he turned, and smiled at me in turn.
I took them to the nurse immediately after, and immediately went to the Principal to tell him about what I saw.
Nothing really came of it, though. He just said that "kids will be kids". I asked him about Katrina and he just shrugged and told me I was reading into normal, if precocious, child behavior.
It's like I'm the only one who cares about these kids. This is not normal behavior. I'm not sure what it is.
If incidents like this continue, I'm going to have to call her parents.
The kids played at recess, as per normal--and by that, I mean, they spent the whole time slowly walking away from Katrina, while she chased them with open arms.
Then Joey fell.
I've never seen it in person, but the reaction was almost akin to a gunshot going off in a crowded room. The children scattered away from Joey, none of them staying to help him up.
I started to step forward, to see if he was alright, when Katrina caught up with him. He looked up at her, clearly panicked, as she reached down and held out her hand.
He then took her hand, and she lead him behind a row of trees, at the edge of the playground. Obviously, I wasn't going to let the kids out of my sight, so I followed them.
I got beyond the trees, and had them in my line of sight, only moments after they'd gotten there. Katrina was staring right at me, the same smile on her face, and Joey was once again on the ground. Blood trickled down her nose, and dripped down her chin. Joey stood a moment later, rubbing his mouth absent-mindedly.
Then he turned, and smiled at me in turn.
I took them to the nurse immediately after, and immediately went to the Principal to tell him about what I saw.
Nothing really came of it, though. He just said that "kids will be kids". I asked him about Katrina and he just shrugged and told me I was reading into normal, if precocious, child behavior.
It's like I'm the only one who cares about these kids. This is not normal behavior. I'm not sure what it is.
If incidents like this continue, I'm going to have to call her parents.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Third Day
Katrina wasn't in class today. When I asked the other students if they knew why, Danny said that she had come to school dressed like "someone with cooties", and that she had been sent home.
I asked the Principal about this, and he just shook his head and said, "They grow up faster every year."
Other than that, the day went pretty much like normal. Better, actually. My kids were a little bit livelier, today.
I really need to ask the Principal if there's something about Katrina's home life I need to be made aware of.
I asked the Principal about this, and he just shook his head and said, "They grow up faster every year."
Other than that, the day went pretty much like normal. Better, actually. My kids were a little bit livelier, today.
I really need to ask the Principal if there's something about Katrina's home life I need to be made aware of.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Second Day
Class continues as normal! The children are still the most well-behaved I've ever met. They've also continued their practice of shunning Katrina, which is what I want to talk about in a bit more detail today.
The first grade teachers trade off overseeing recess, and today was my turn.
The kids played like normal, for the most part. It was kind of a relief, honestly. I was worried that their good behavior was masking some sort of major problem, possibly some sort of abuse by the staff.
Nothing was odd about their play, though, until I noticed Katrina.
I saw her participating in what I had assumed was just a normal game of tag. The more I watched, though, the more...unsettling, it became.
The game consisted of the students, most of which from my class, keeping themselves at least a dozen yards Katrina. Katrina, meanwhile, just slowly walked after them, her arms out wide, and a big, serene smile on her face.
She never ran after them, though, occasionally, they ran briefly away from her.
This lasted the entire half hour.
Other than that, today went as normal. I might have to do something else for the infectious disease course, though, because the "cooties" don't really seem to be spreading.
..and honestly, I'm not sure I want to see them spread. If this continues, I'll try talking to some of the other teachers about it.
The first grade teachers trade off overseeing recess, and today was my turn.
The kids played like normal, for the most part. It was kind of a relief, honestly. I was worried that their good behavior was masking some sort of major problem, possibly some sort of abuse by the staff.
Nothing was odd about their play, though, until I noticed Katrina.
I saw her participating in what I had assumed was just a normal game of tag. The more I watched, though, the more...unsettling, it became.
The game consisted of the students, most of which from my class, keeping themselves at least a dozen yards Katrina. Katrina, meanwhile, just slowly walked after them, her arms out wide, and a big, serene smile on her face.
She never ran after them, though, occasionally, they ran briefly away from her.
This lasted the entire half hour.
Other than that, today went as normal. I might have to do something else for the infectious disease course, though, because the "cooties" don't really seem to be spreading.
..and honestly, I'm not sure I want to see them spread. If this continues, I'll try talking to some of the other teachers about it.
Monday, August 20, 2012
First Day
Well, on the plus side, they did part of the work for me.
To preface, I was sort of prepared for the worst. My time as a TA and a Student Teacher and a Substitute had me kind of expecting a pack of barely-contained hellions. Really, though, they were all very quiet and very polite. It's a small class, a bit smaller than I'm used to, really, but what else can you expect from these tiny country schools?
Anyway, getting off track.
I introduced myself to the students and told them that, as a class project, we'd be tracking the spread of cooties through the students. I was about to mention the "Cootie Monster" when one of the students, a girl named Ashley, raised her hand.
She told me that there was one person in the class with cooties. She said that Katrina had cooties.
That's when I noticed the girl in question. She's a perfectly normal girl, as far as I can tell, butt she was sitting in the corner, away from the other children. When I saw away from the other children, I mean, there was a deliberate barrier of two empty seats on all sides of her, keeping her literally as separate from the others as possible.
When I looked up at her, she smiled up at me, as if there was nothing in the world wrong.
I asked her where she caught her cooties, and she said that the Cootie Monster had given them to her.
Huh. Well, at least it's convenient. It's a little troubling, though, that they've isolated the poor girl. I'd be a bit more worried, though, if Katrina showed any signs of being distressed.
At any rate, nothing really to be done but keep a close eye on it, and hope nothing more troubling occurs.
To preface, I was sort of prepared for the worst. My time as a TA and a Student Teacher and a Substitute had me kind of expecting a pack of barely-contained hellions. Really, though, they were all very quiet and very polite. It's a small class, a bit smaller than I'm used to, really, but what else can you expect from these tiny country schools?
Anyway, getting off track.
I introduced myself to the students and told them that, as a class project, we'd be tracking the spread of cooties through the students. I was about to mention the "Cootie Monster" when one of the students, a girl named Ashley, raised her hand.
She told me that there was one person in the class with cooties. She said that Katrina had cooties.
That's when I noticed the girl in question. She's a perfectly normal girl, as far as I can tell, butt she was sitting in the corner, away from the other children. When I saw away from the other children, I mean, there was a deliberate barrier of two empty seats on all sides of her, keeping her literally as separate from the others as possible.
When I looked up at her, she smiled up at me, as if there was nothing in the world wrong.
I asked her where she caught her cooties, and she said that the Cootie Monster had given them to her.
Huh. Well, at least it's convenient. It's a little troubling, though, that they've isolated the poor girl. I'd be a bit more worried, though, if Katrina showed any signs of being distressed.
At any rate, nothing really to be done but keep a close eye on it, and hope nothing more troubling occurs.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
The Cootie Monster Project
Hello internet! My name's Conley Desmond, and starting tomorrow, I'll be teaching first grade at my local grade school. It's my first actual teaching job since getting my degree, so I'm pretty excited about it!
I have some ideas on what I want to do, too. There's been a flu going around, in town, and the Principal has said that I need to give the kids a course on communicable disease. I've been thinking about the best way for me to teach it to the kids, and I think I've found a way. You've probably figured out how by the title of this blog.
I'm going to follow the spread of cooties in a classroom. I was thinking of using the "Cootie Monster", something that, I've been told, is a local variation on the Cootie "myth" and having it arbitrarily "infect" one of the classmates, which is a little less cruel than the usual method.
Hopefully, this'll put disease in a framework they understand. I mean, I know kids aren't dumb, but, sometimes it helps to put things in terms of childhood superstition.
Wow, I'm starting to sound like some of my more condescending professors. Alright, that's probably a sign that this entry's coming to a close. I'll be in with a first-day progress report tomorrow.
I have some ideas on what I want to do, too. There's been a flu going around, in town, and the Principal has said that I need to give the kids a course on communicable disease. I've been thinking about the best way for me to teach it to the kids, and I think I've found a way. You've probably figured out how by the title of this blog.
I'm going to follow the spread of cooties in a classroom. I was thinking of using the "Cootie Monster", something that, I've been told, is a local variation on the Cootie "myth" and having it arbitrarily "infect" one of the classmates, which is a little less cruel than the usual method.
Hopefully, this'll put disease in a framework they understand. I mean, I know kids aren't dumb, but, sometimes it helps to put things in terms of childhood superstition.
Wow, I'm starting to sound like some of my more condescending professors. Alright, that's probably a sign that this entry's coming to a close. I'll be in with a first-day progress report tomorrow.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)