Except much, much better. Kids were calm today, almost kind of tired, but it was starting to wear off by the end of the day. I'm sure they'll be wired again tomorrow.
It's amazing how different I feel, even though I did NOTHING teaching-related over break. I did nothing life-related actually, because it seems like I'm returning from some horribly distant planet. Summing up my vacation in a few words is easy- Jack, family, cards, bacon. Notice that "yoga" and "working out" are not in there. That's probably why a slightly chubbier (five pounds to be exact) Miss Fiorillo was calmly escorting her class around school. I'm trying this thing where I talk quieter so they have to be quieter to hear me. The only problem is that I have to be saying something interesting at least 75% of the time or else they don't really care. Sometimes if they're really not paying attention I'll mix in some of those key words that make their eyes shoot back up at me- words like "sticker", "surprise", and "special treat." Usually I just mean I'll give them a high five or let them sit next to me at lunch, but they haven't caught on yet. Or maybe they really think I'm that cool...
Little kids amaze me in that way. The littlest things matter so much to them- things like a smile (I'm not saying that to be cheesy, I literally have had students look like they won the lottery after I smiled at them while addressing the whole class). Plus you can just tell them to do something and they do it. Clearly I'm not talking about basic directions here because that's a different story. But the moment you get a new student and you tell one of your kids to be a good friend and talk to the newbie (except I don't actually use the word newbie), they just bounce off without any reservations. A minute later and they're talking about Nintendo or trampolines or something and then before you know it they're inseparable, giggling and pinching each other in line. At that point you wonder why in the world you would ever want all your students to be friends in the first place.
Most adults don't think that way, probably because over the years we've become cynical about the idea of instant connections. It makes me change my mind, though, seeing them do that. It makes me want to befriend some stranger on the street, although the possibility of identity theft and swine flu still holds me back.
Just some random thoughts before bed. I'm sure I won't be quite so serene after tomorrow, when those cutie pies are whistling and farting and poking each other just like they did in 2009. Why can't first graders make New Years resolutions to do EXACTLY what their teacher tells them?
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