Staying Optimistic with Encouragement and Patience

I really hate to complain. My life is excellent right now. I am loving Madrid so much that I can't find the time to Blog about it!
I have a great living situation, I take care of phenomenal little girls, I have wonderful friends, and an enjoyable job... for the most part.

But I need to express my concern for my role at school. This year I have the opportunity to be very active, which I LOVE!!! However, a couple years back, I earned my degree in childhood education. I spent 8-10 weeks teaching 4th grade, and 8-10 weeks teaching 1st grade. I was the teacher. I planned lessons, themes, assessments, and I followed a method of classroom management. I arrived to school 1-2 hours early to prepare and plan, and I worked through breaks and even lunch. Then I took my work home with me and continued there.

I spent 3 years studying methods and putting them into action. How to teach children how to read, how to run a classroom, how to make your lessons work, how to help your students get something out of your lessons.

Preparedness was also very important. My lessons were always planned one day-one week ahead of the date I was planning to teach them. I also planned extra activities in case there was extra time or in case the lesson was a flop! Lastly, I was also prepared to alter my lessons for students who were above or below the target level. For instance, less work for those who tended to fall behind, and more challenging activities for those students who excelled.

This my loyal readers... does not exist in Spain.

Many days it hurts my soul and breaks my heart to see the public education system here: especially in one class in particular.

I try my best to stay optimistic and to continue to put my educational philosophy into action.  I always remind myself that my students are only 6 years old, and I am teaching them things in a foreign language. I try to give the students who tend to drift up into the clouds extra attention and proximity to help them stay focused. I speak to them in my caring teacher voice, and I try to have a very high level of patience. I try to differentiate on a verbal level and a written level. I try not to be too picky and too judgemental of their work, especially of their coloring and creativity.
When teaching I also try to speak very slow, using simple words to understand, and to repeat myself a lot. I ask them questions to check for understanding, and I do not use the most intelligent students as a crutch to get through my lessons I encourage all children to participate, and I love using words of encouragement.

The one thing I still have trouble with... is hugs and letting kids touch me... sooo Americana! (dont want to get sued!)

Next post is post 100!! Im hoping to make it a good one!!!