Today I was able to go to art with the students. I was extremely happy about this. There is student artwork up on the walls all over the school! (p.s. the physical layout of the school is weird. really weird.) She had them finish up a project they were working on last time and then doing upside down drawings. I liked the way she ran class. She gave clear and concise directions at the beginning. Continually checked to see if the students were still on task. And constantly gave praise and recognition to all of the students. I loved it!
So today was the last day. I am a little sad about this. The kids were starting to let me in. I am really interested as to the reasoning for this. Why did the urban kids let me in so early? Because of their upbringing and life or because they were in kindergarten and were 5 years old? I wish we could have done both ages in both settings. It would make interpreting all of this, hopefully, some what easier. When I left today, one of the girls that gave me the most trouble gave me a hug. This really surprised me. I was not expecting this by any means at all. It feels good that she felt a connection to me. I know that she learned many things through me. I do hope that at some point I can go back and see those kids again.
The teacher went over her evaluation of me time in her classroom with me. I was extremely surprised at the scores I received and the comments she made at the end. I know that I was acting in a professional manner and was not doing anything different than I have in any other time spent in a classroom, but I did not feel as welcomed by this teacher. (Today there was a speaker. She told me like 4 minutes before we left. My urban teacher would have told me on Monday. Sometimes I feel like a high school student in there.) It causes me to wonder about what messages the students are receiving from her. If I, as an adult, feel as if she is not fond of me, when later she tells me that she really is and WANTS me to come back, what are the children feeling? How are these mixed messages affecting their education and in turn their life? I have enjoyed my time here at the local school. It was most definitely a completely different experience than my urban immersion. I still believe that urban is where I would like to end up teaching. I guess we will have to wait and see!! It is about the children -- their educations, their futures, and their lives -- not me and what I want.
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