Monsters!

I am late in posting this - but I am going to vent about my awful Friday experience. I subbed for a 7th grade science teacher at the middle school that calls me directly (instead of using the sub service). I think I now know why they call directly - because not many people will babysit the little monsters all day, so they call the ones they know will come. My first period (which was actually 5th period - it was an afternoon job) was hellish. There were 4 boys who would not be quiet, and who gave me fake names. There was no attendance list or seating chart, so I could not verify names until there was enough snickering going on that I finally cornered a student who supplied with proper names. I separated the 4 boys, but they were still out of control. The rest of the class was beginning to join in, so I knew I had to put a stop to it. I raised my voice and said "Everyone needs to do their work and shut up! The next person to talk goes to the office" (Now, I fear that I will never be asked back to this school because I told them to "shut up" - I really wish I hadn't said that). Anyway, they were quiet for a while, until one of the boys made some comment. I turned to him and called his name. Unfortunately for me, I said his fake name first before I realized that I used the wrong name. Of course, laughter broke out. I finally shipped the boy off to the office, and the kids were great after that. The next 3 periods was just a movie. I wouldn't let the students do anything but watch the movie (they couldn't do other homework, or draw, or write notes). Luckily the teacher had left a pop quiz for the students to take if they didn't quietly watch the movie, so I had leverage to get them to be quiet and watch the movie. I had to stop several students from doing homework and drawing in their notebooks. I then caught one of the girls who I had stopped from drawing warning her friends in the hallway that I was really mean because I wouldn't let them draw. Ugh. I think part of the reason this day seemed to suck so much was that I had a killer headache all day.

The funny thing about the "mean" comment, though, is this: I ran into a teacher in the hallway and she asked me how things were going. I said fine, and then told her I overheard the student talking about how mean I am. She laughed and said "We'll have to have you back!"