KidzBlog!
04 December 2005
Victory Over Babies
Five days of my week are spent with public school kids between the ages of four and 14. Fully half of the classes are either Kindergarten or Pre-Kindergarten classes. I've had a special affinity for the K's ever since I began teaching and, five years on, I've sharpened my instincts to an almost preternatural keen. Classroom teachers who have two decades of experience over me often remark at my ability to manage their classes' focus and behavior. While it's tempting to leap into an extended explanation of what makes me so amazing, it's really just a result of watching for the fissures in the group concentration and always having something NEXT.
So the thesis of my teaching career has been: the younger they are, the better I am. Of course, this can only be proven down to age four in a public school setting, but I assumed it would hold up with toddlers as well. Nope.
I have two classes with children under four on Saturday mornings. The three- and four-year-olds' class is not so bad; it's the 18-month to three class that is proving a stretch.
There's a pretty standard shape that most toddler music classes take: the kids come in, everybody sings a "hello" song, then there's an active song/dance thing, then a story and/or puppet show, some kind of quiet exploratory game or activity, another active/"up" song, a chill-out song with bubbles or maybe a parachute, and a goodbye.
If one of these chapters doesn't work, I just have to junk it. I can't really finesse it the way I would with a kindergarten class. Similarly, if one thing takes more time than I anticipate, I could be stuck with amped-up two-year-olds and no time to chill them out. The parents are in the session as well, adding to the pressure.
Establishing a common vibe is very tough with toddlers as well. My class this morning was a case in point. I had only three kids today, Alex (2), Max (20 mos.) and Brittany (19 mos.). Max and Brittany are married. I know this because they are always either making out or beating the tar out of each other. Today was particularly amorous/contentious, and I think Alex felt left out. He mostly kept his face buried in his mother's thigh while the other two took turns grabbing musical instruments to hit each other with. I tried to draw Alex out as much as I could, but the other two simply demanded the lion's share of my focus. The class went well, but I never hit the groove that I so often find with older kids.
Working with the little ones offers other compensations, though. They are almost always bursting with fun and curiousity, and they're like human Prozac when they curl up in your lap at story time.
¶ 12:13 AM 0 comments
Five days of my week are spent with public school kids between the ages of four and 14. Fully half of the classes are either Kindergarten or Pre-Kindergarten classes. I've had a special affinity for the K's ever since I began teaching and, five years on, I've sharpened my instincts to an almost preternatural keen. Classroom teachers who have two decades of experience over me often remark at my ability to manage their classes' focus and behavior. While it's tempting to leap into an extended explanation of what makes me so amazing, it's really just a result of watching for the fissures in the group concentration and always having something NEXT.
So the thesis of my teaching career has been: the younger they are, the better I am. Of course, this can only be proven down to age four in a public school setting, but I assumed it would hold up with toddlers as well. Nope.
I have two classes with children under four on Saturday mornings. The three- and four-year-olds' class is not so bad; it's the 18-month to three class that is proving a stretch.
There's a pretty standard shape that most toddler music classes take: the kids come in, everybody sings a "hello" song, then there's an active song/dance thing, then a story and/or puppet show, some kind of quiet exploratory game or activity, another active/"up" song, a chill-out song with bubbles or maybe a parachute, and a goodbye.
If one of these chapters doesn't work, I just have to junk it. I can't really finesse it the way I would with a kindergarten class. Similarly, if one thing takes more time than I anticipate, I could be stuck with amped-up two-year-olds and no time to chill them out. The parents are in the session as well, adding to the pressure.
Establishing a common vibe is very tough with toddlers as well. My class this morning was a case in point. I had only three kids today, Alex (2), Max (20 mos.) and Brittany (19 mos.). Max and Brittany are married. I know this because they are always either making out or beating the tar out of each other. Today was particularly amorous/contentious, and I think Alex felt left out. He mostly kept his face buried in his mother's thigh while the other two took turns grabbing musical instruments to hit each other with. I tried to draw Alex out as much as I could, but the other two simply demanded the lion's share of my focus. The class went well, but I never hit the groove that I so often find with older kids.
Working with the little ones offers other compensations, though. They are almost always bursting with fun and curiousity, and they're like human Prozac when they curl up in your lap at story time.
¶ 12:13 AM 0 comments
