Diary of a Kindergarten Teacher: 10

It was the first official day of school for grades 1-8 today at Adams Elementary. I spent the first part of the morning helping students find their new class line in the schoolyard. After that, I spoke with Ramona Johnson's former Pre-K teacher, Miss Maureen. Miss Maureen confirmed that Ramona is challenging and so is her mother. Apparently, Ramona's mom can be argumentative. I've dealt with parents like that before. They can be difficult and scary sometimes.

I told Miss Maureen that since Ramona's mom didn't complete the Kindergarten transition meeting, I didn't have a copy of Ramona's Individualized Education Plan (IEP). In order to meet Ramona's educational and behavioral needs, it is essential that I have a copy of this document. Miss Maureen no longer had her copy of Ramona's IEP, so she couldn't provide me with one. She also told me that unfortunately she couldn't give me any advice on how to deal with Ramona's negative behaviors, because the strategies she used didn't work.

After that, I called Devon Wilson's old preschool. His former teacher was unavailable to speak with me. I was hoping to find out what anger management techniques she used to diffuse Devon's anger. I left a message for her to call me back.

Following all of this, I conducted thirteen interviews. Five of my originally scheduled parents came, as well as eight brand new registrations which were done today. I wasn't told that these parents had arrived. They were simply told to go to my classroom and I would speak with them. It was overwhelming and exhausting.

This puts me at 21 students total that I have met with. Once again, I called the four parents that didn't show today, inviting them to come tomorrow. I hope they show up. Tomorrow is the last day in the schedule to do parent interviews. Any additional interviews will have to be completed during my prep time or before and after school.

It seems that I have a couple more students with IEPs for behavioral and educational needs. Those with educational needs are supposed to meet twice a week with our Special Education teacher, Mrs. Thomas. I know there are no additional personnel for behavior problems that arise on a daily basis, but it's comforting to know that the students' educational needs will be met.

There is a program in the school called Student Support Services. They have a Shadow Program, where workers are assigned to a behaviorally challenged student for a portion of the school day. The Student Support room is directly across from my classroom. This afternoon, I spoke with the supervisor, Mrs. Miller. She said that for students with behavior problems, I'd have to complete paperwork with anecdotes. Once I've accumulated enough data, I can submit it. Then it will be reviewed by their agency. If the students meet certain criteria, they will be assigned a Student Shadow. Mrs. Miller did say that it's difficult for kindergartners to get a Student Shadow. It can take months to have the paperwork reviewed.

In order to prepare for all of my students, I've made a list of children who require educational support and behavioral support.
Educational: Ramona Johnson
Rafael Cruz
John Monroe

Behavioral: Ramona Johnson
Rafael Cruz
Devon Wilson

In Pre-K, I used to make individualized baskets, for specific children to use, while I instructed the rest of the class. I would put paper, crayons, lace-up cards and other items that interested them in the baskets. I'm going to make one for Ramona and Rafael. I'm also going to introduce a Quiet Space for students to utilize when they're sad or angry. I also did this in Pre-K. I'll add pillows and a box filled with books, paper, and crayons.

Of course I'll do lessons on appropriate behavior and consistently follow the daily schedule. These techniques are also supposed to help with students misbehaving.

These are the only strategies I've come up with so far.