A's Progress

Today I met with A to her her study for her big test next week. She asked to have lunch with me and that I could help her so when I went upstairs to find her during lunch, I was walking around and it turned out that she found me! I feel a tap on my shoulder..."Ms. Serrano! Let's go!" She already had her lunch and was ready to go! I showed her how to make flashcards and how to study with them while we listened to our favorite music. On our way back upstairs from eating, she was feverishly studying the flashcards and while in class she was the only one answering the review questions and she was right on all of them! Then we had a reading quiz in class and came up to me to show me her score..."9 out of 10! That's great, A!" "Uh, I'm mad 'cause I wanted a 10 out of 10!"

It was a great day for her in school and it was easy to tell she was proud of herself... :)

Lunches with DA

Lunches with DA have been getting better! Last time I let him use my laptopand we looked up colleges he's interested in and baseball camps in the Chicago area that be might be able to go to. I really want to find some for him to go, I think it'll be good for him, expose him to other people, allow him to learn how to interact with other people outside of high school.

I talked to him mom too. He wasn't at school on Tuesday, so I called home to see where he was, if everything was okay. She asked me how he was doing and we talked about his progress and interests. I made sure I let her know about the colleges he's interested in and the ways that I want to help him. It was much better conversation than the last time I talked to her. Last time I caught her at work and I think it just caused her to stress out. But this time she sounded much calmer and much more receptive.

Overall I think DA is starting to see that I have the potential of helping him in some way. He's learning to trust me, slowly, very slowy, but surely. He keeps me on my toes challenging me to think of creative and interesting ways to get him engaged. I can't just do the simple things, the boring things, things that he's seen and isn't interested in , because he doesn't care about them, he'll get frustrated, and shut down. If the things I'm doing for him aren't helping or interesting, then why would he want to hear them?

He's teaching me to pay attention at a deeper level, teaching me how to push him without pushing him too far, teaching me how to fight without letting my emotions get in the way, he's teaching me how to teach him, he's teaching me how to teach myself.

Listening Quiz

We had a listening quiz in class today. My 5th period did well, most kids (the especially chatty ones) were gone on a field trip so the students were able to focus and actually listen without distractions. 7th period however was a differnt story. As I was looking around while my teacher was reading the article, only 5 kids out of 30 were doing what they were supposed to be doing. It made me think of how the very important skills in life of simply listening, taking in what you hear, taking notes...how they just don't take any interest in it, even though they knew they would have a listening quiz at the end. They don't understand the importance. If they don't practice these skills, how are they going to be out in the "real" world? What jobs are they going to be able to hold?
How can I get them to understand the importance? What can I do?

One step at a time...one student at a time...

One of my girls in 7th period though did a great job listening. I was so proud of her. A,  the girl from my latest joy, took great notes during the activitiy and got 100% on her quiz! 

It takes 60 days to break a habit...

Yesterday after school, Ms. Lewis and I had a great talk with DP. We talked about emotions, reactions, self control, treatment of others, etc...and by the end, we all wrote out habits that we can improve on. These are the things he's working on...
 

Things that DP Can Improve In:

1. Treat others as I would like to be treated.
2. Eat less junk food.
3. Anger management

We also talked about the importance of keeping each other accountable. So he's supposed to be asking us how our new habits are going and we'll be checking up on him too. It really felt like we were making a difference, he was thinking about what we were saying and taking things in...we just have to continue offering him that support and reminding him that he is the one with control of his actions and every action he takes has its consequences...

JOY:

"Ms. Serrano...can you please tell M to stop...he's really irritating me and my angry side is really close to coming out..."

"Yes, A, I can tell that he's bothering you and he's being disruptive and I'm trying my best to calm him down. Keep on trying you best too to stay focused and working...I really appreciate you telling me. I'm really proud of you and how you're taking control of your reactions and being responsible with them..."

A little background on A. One minute she can be the sweetest girl and absolutely love you, but if you say the wrong thing or give her a wrong answer on accident, she'll turn on you cold and refuse to talk to you, she won't even want you around her and will tell you to get away from her. That's what happened yesterday in class. She was also being bothered by M yesterday and didn't react in the most positive way. She got sent out into the hall way and actually received a detention for her actions. After school I talked to her about her behavior and just wanted to know what was going on. "I don't appreciate at all how you treated me in class today, A. It was really unlike you." She said she didn't do anything wrong and asked in what way did she treat me that I had a problem with. We had a conversation about it and in the end she was able to realize that I expected more from her because I know she can do better. She knows she can do better. She apologized for her actions and by the end of the conversation she saw her friends and was happy again, but leaving the room I was unsure if she actually took anything in, if she cared.

This morning I saw her in the hallway before class..."Ms. Serrano, I apologize again for yesterday. I'm really sorry." "Thank you, A. I accept your apology and I'm glad to see you today. Have a good day, okay? See you in class."

I was extremely proud of her for calling me over and letting me know that she needed help so that she wouldn't explode. It took a  lot of control for her to decide she wasn't going to let distractions get the best of her and it gives me hope that what we talk about during our 50 Acts of Leadership Lunches are paying off. She even said so herself in her Leadership Log:

"I am very proud of myself because I think that I am becoming a very nice young lady."

Happy Birthday, Ms. Serrano!

It was a great day at school this Wednesday. It made me happy hearing the chorus of "Happy Birthday, Ms. Serrano!" during the passing periods. My classes sang Happy Birthday and I can't even remember how many hugs and smiles I received. Even my leadership lunch with DA wasn't too bad. He still resisted during some parts, but I tried a different approach with him and he was at least responding - definitely a step forward. A nice little birthday present from him, even though he may not have been aware of it. And on top of it all, mother nature had a gift too - winter's first snow! Didn't stick around for long, but the park our school is in looked beautiful with the fresh layer of snow.