Any teaching horror stories?

Greco1014 · October 2013

I posted a few weeks ago about how I'm not really liking my new teaching job. I've been teaching high school English for about 7 years and I've had a decent amount of success, but right now I'm working with seventh graders for the first time. It's a very religious school where boys and girls are separate, so I have two classes of all seventh grade boys. They are extremely challenging; basically, they won't sit still or stay quiet for more than a few seconds. My last school was in a really high performing district, so I didn't have these kinds of problems there. Right now, I'm really feeling like a bit of a failure as a teacher.

So do any current or former teachers have any stories of tough classrooms they'd like to share? Anyone going through something similar right now? It might make me feel better if we could all commiserate a little...

tbmadeamistake · October 2013

I'm not currently teaching, but what you're going through sounds a lot like my first teaching job. I found that being really, brutally honest with the kids helped a lot. They weren't used to it and they responded really well to it. For example, "I know that you don't want to learn xyz, and I also realize that you may not end up using it in real life, but you need to learn this in order to pass seventh grade, so you can pass eighth, so you can go on and learn the skills that you DO want to use in your futures." "Yes, that's funny, and I'm not going to pretend it's not, but it's also not appropriate for the classroom. Next time, save it for the playground/home."

If you need a good read to make you feel better, read "Losing my Faculties" by Brendan Halpin. It basically covers his first four or so teaching jobs, in all different settings. He's hysterical, and he has lots of stories like yours. My favorite line is as follows: The administration wasn't mean, they were just really, really stupid.

GL! Teaching is hard, and I personally couldn't stick with it. It sounds like with the right approach, you could do these kids a LOT of good!

Greco1014 · October 2013

Lilygrace48 said:

I'm not currently teaching, but what you're going through sounds a lot like my first teaching job. I found that being really, brutally honest with the kids helped a lot. They weren't used to it and they responded really well to it. For example, "I know that you don't want to learn xyz, and I also realize that you may not end up using it in real life, but you need to learn this in order to pass seventh grade, so you can pass eighth, so you can go on and learn the skills that you DO want to use in your futures." "Yes, that's funny, and I'm not going to pretend it's not, but it's also not appropriate for the classroom. Next time, save it for the playground/home."

If you need a good read to make you feel better, read "Losing my Faculties" by Brendan Halpin. It basically covers his first four or so teaching jobs, in all different settings. He's hysterical, and he has lots of stories like yours. My favorite line is as follows: The administration wasn't mean, they were just really, really stupid.

GL! Teaching is hard, and I personally couldn't stick with it. It sounds like with the right approach, you could do these kids a LOT of good!

Thanks! I'll definitely look up that book...

If you don't mind me asking, what kind of job do you have now?

lgutwig · October 2013

Sounds like my current life! I taught high school for 6 years (English) and left the district because it was a mess. I am currently teaching 6th grade and it is a complete nightmare! I have kids running around stapling each other, crawling on the floor, talking/yelling/singing non stop, on and on. I hate it!! Middle school is not for me. I swear I am going to lose my mind daily at this point. I feel your pain, and I just tell myself to make it through the day and not think about the next one until it arrives!! GL!

Greco1014 · October 2013

lgutwig said:

Sounds like my current life! I taught high school for 6 years (English) and left the district because it was a mess. I am currently teaching 6th grade and it is a complete nightmare! I have kids running around stapling each other, crawling on the floor, talking/yelling/singing non stop, on and on. I hate it!! Middle school is not for me. I swear I am going to lose my mind daily at this point. I feel your pain, and I just tell myself to make it through the day and not think about the next one until it arrives!! GL!

Yeah, that sounds a lot like what I'm going through. I took this job thinking maybe I would like the younger kids...but yeah, that's not the case so far. GL to you, too!

Kewii · October 2013

What kind of classroom management plan are you using?

MamaAllison · October 2013

I know you didn't ask for advice - but as a middle school teacher who LOVES the crazy middle schoolers I feel compelled to offer some! Feel free to ignore.

One thing that totally changed the attitudes towards learning in my classroom is tickets. At Staples you can purchase a roll of tickets for a few dollars. When students ask and answer questions in my classroom I give them a ticket. We then have a drawing every Friday for a prize - the prizes are candy, homework passes, pens and pencils. Nothing super exciting. The kids LIVE for it. Every single student in all of my classes participates. I don't have half as many behavior problems, and it really even helps focus some of the kids that struggle with ADD. I swear it is super simple and the best thing I've ever done as a teacher. I've worked in super poor public schools as well as one of the fanciest day schools in the country. It works great at both places.

groovygrl · October 2013

I teach in higher ed and cannot really imagine teaching middle schoolers but that ticket/raffle idea sounds like a great approach, at least to get them on board to begin with.... Have you researched anything about different strategies for teaching boys? Even though it is controversial as far as pros/cons I think there is a decent amt of info out there about gender segregated learning & teaching strategies for boys as far as having really active learning, moving around, etc etc. I would try some googling, maybe you can find some good resources...if you have access to databases through your job or a local university, maybe you can find some journal articles about it....??? Perhaps include gaming/ gamification in your search terms (I don't mean video games, but using games to teach & engage ppl).... sounds sort of nerdy & dull but just trying to think of ways to come up w/ creative ways to get a group of preteen boys involved....! (Not sure if the issue is just that it is a slew of 12 yr old boys or if there are other issues at hand...)

tbmadeamistake · October 2013

@Greco1014, now I work in the operations department of a worldwide company that sells printed circuit board machinery. I deal with our sales team, our customer support team, and our customers. I actually find myself using my teaching training every day! It's amazing how much a cranky customer is like a cranky parent, and how similar the administration is to a school admin system. It's sort of nuts. It was actually really easy to tailor my resume to make this change, as a lot of what you do as a teach is stuff that pertains to any office job (time management, budgeting, communication, etc).

skibunny59 · October 2013

Middle school is really hard. I teach grades 1-5 so I can't really help you but good luck. Middle school kids are the worst in my opinion.

teach1008 · October 2013

I teach elementary, but taught 6th for a few years. I think with middle schoolers and especially boys you have to get creative. I like the above idea of a ticket system. Definitely try to incorporate more movement into the classroom and give time for on-task classroom talk. In my school we talk about the 10:2 rule (no more than 10 minutes straight of the teacher talking and then give the students at least 2 min to talk). I don't know what kind of flexibility you have with the curriculum, but try to find reading that really appeals to your students. Even if it's an article in a gaming magazine, you can use that as a way to teach non-fiction strategies. Also, look into GLAD strategies and TPR (total physical response) as a way of engaging them.

northtamarack · October 2013

Hang in there! Middle school can be tough, but also very rewarding.

I teach 7th grade and LOVE it.

You are probably doing some of this .... these are things that I think work really well with middle schoolers.

- Make it all about them. Have kids bring in the articles or look up the article or pick their own articles. Don't have to do it all the time, but show them that you value their interests/opinions. Have them write about themselves. Do think/pair/share where they get to talk about themselves/their ideas.

-Get them up and out of their seats at least once. I so agree with teach 1008 - limit teacher talk time and get the kids to interact, but hold them accountable for the information. Or even if it is for them to go and get paper or hand in an assignment. They need the movement.

-Have FUN. I have connect the dots for kids to do when they finish their work. They love it. There is the Sir Issac Asmov quiz in the paper during week days. I clip the ones that relate to my subject matter and do them every so often. Prizes are pencils, candy or extra credit. Kids love this.

-Display student work so that they can feel proud of good work, but also it shows the class what kind of work that you are expecting. I don't include names on any of the work that I post. Other times I only post half of the work .... for example, if you have a student who doesn't do well overall, but gives one really good answer, I just post that one answer. It is amazing how it boosts their self confidence.

One book that I would recommend is the Minds Of Boys. It gave me some good insight to help out those busy boys in my classroom.

I hope that things get better for you!

nosoup4u · October 2013

Middle school drives me nuts. I've switched my classroom so it is much more student-driven, and the middle schoolers have really responded to it. I've had nightmare 7th grades in the past, but switching to choice (I show them materials and processes, they supply the ideas) has helped a ton. I teach art, so don't know how choice/flipped classrooms translate to other subjects, but it may be worth looking into. Having them be in charge and/or work with friends seems to avoid power struggles I've had in the past.

Shelly038 · October 2013

I teach 2nd grade in an inner city school (for 9 years now). I absolutely love teaching, however, there are some years in which I could not wait for summer to come because of the crew I had. With Elementary school, they are with me all day so when I have a rough class, it can be very tough! My first year I had a student who would hide in empty cabinets (I was a first year teacher, didn't have enough stuff for all the cabinets) and choke himself with headphone cords. Last year was also a rough year (I was out for 8 weeks on maternity leave). I could not imagine teaching middle school. I love little ones but I think I'd prefer high school over MS. Good luck!

erbear · October 2013

I have taught 7th and 8th grade for 14 years, many years in inner city schools with a squirrely boy population. I think you have to roll with it. I actually prefer teaching boys to girls. Yes, they are energetic and squirrely, but it makes them fun to teach.

you can't lecture, you can't just do quiet activities. You have to do active things - role plays, discussions, debates. They can sit still; you just have to train, them, but they don't need to. Boys (and girls) need a variety of activities to succeed. Good luck! Enjoy them

erbear · October 2013

Also, read Raising Cain (great about boys)

I'll be honest. I love teaching middle school and it hurts a little that people hate it. But you have to kind of change your mindset. They are not mini high schoolers and you can't treat them like they are.

amaseya · October 2013

I love teaching middle school! One of my first years of teaching English was at a small school. Because of a lot of factors, it was really challenging, but poor administrative support made classroom management really difficult. I had one student who, after being reprimanded for something, said he was going to bring a gun the following Monday and made a shooting motion toward my face. As this was a pretty high crime area, I was noticeably shaken and sent him to the office. They sent him back to my room by the end of the hour.

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Any teaching horror stories?

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Married DH 7/30/11

CSC arrived 5/7/12

CHC arrived 6/2/14

Married DH 7/30/11

CSC arrived 5/7/12

CHC arrived 6/2/14

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