David and Kindergarten Kraziness

So....in the last month I have had the opportunity to substitute teach in 2 different kindergarten classes. Yes...I did say substitute teach. Since I am working for the Franco-Catholic school division (part of the Catholic school division...yes funded by the Ontario government...but that is a whole other post) they allow people i.e. me to sub even if you don't have a teaching degree. For me this is great because it gives me the opportunity to 1) do what I love to do and 2) gain experience in teaching and classroom management.

Now, when I think about kindergarten kids usually the image of oompa loopas or monkeys comes to mind. In fact, this image is not too far from the truth...except, of course, for the singing of enjoyably "you should have listened" songs in unison. Actually, I think it might be a little scary if that happened every time something occured a kindergarten class.

Kid knocks over milk.

oo-mpa loom-pa doopedie do

You get the idea...a little unnerving isn't it.

This brings me to my second image, monkeys. First off, not every kid behaves in this way. Generally, it is the boys. For some reason boys tend to find farting, playing in the bathroom, and smashing toys together incredibley enjoyable and amusing. When I am watching these events unfold before my eyes I think back to when I was that young. Did I too find eating things off of the ground great even if the snow was a little discoloured? Did I also whine when I didn't get the toy I wanted? Did I call the teacher over just to tell him/her that I have 3 cats and that my dogs name is Sparkles? Thinking about it...I probably did. I was one of the little monkeys jumping on the bed and now it is time for me to pay my dues.

Sometimes the kindergarten classroom does resemble that of a zoo exhibit but I certainly do tip my hat to those brave men and...well, let's face it mainly women who do this day in and day out. I knew before hand that I didn't ever want to teach kindergarten and that thought has most certainly not disapeared. On the other hand, I have gotten better at managing the class and better yet, I got through the morning routine and even got them to do an activity. While this may seem like a very insignificant accomplishment, it is one I am quite proud of. On the last day that I subbed I had a parent in the room whom was helping with a toffee making activity later on in the morning. I mention this because at the end of the day this woman came up to me and said "I was thinking I should get you a hard drink after the morning you had." To which I responded "Well, that wasn't even that bad if you can believe it. The first time....," and I briefly recounted my first experience with the same group. Next, she made my day by saying, "Well obviously you are good at what you do. The way you just kept repeating and explaining to the kids...I certainly couldn't have done it. You have an amazing amount of patience." This made me feel like I must be doing something right. Having had no training and, like at the start of all of my educational endevours, feeling completley untrained and underprepared, I really had no idea whether I was even halfway decent at what I was doing. I guess you either sink or swim and since I am not very good at real swimming I am glad I am okay at "swimming" in the educational environment.

One kindergarten kid = really easy
Three kindergarten kids = easy
Five kindergarten kids = getting harder
Sixteen kindergarten kids and one monsieur = panadmonium