So, over the summer while I try to figure out my life, I'm teaching at the museum of nature and science. It's a great place to work-- I have week-long classes, a different teaching partner every week, and fantastic volunteering teens who help out. Love the teens. But then there are the kids.
When I'm given 4-6th graders (for a dissecting class, for example), I am in teacher-heaven. So much help, extra pairs of eyes, and super engaging material PLUS kids whose brains I understand. They generally sign up for the classes, so are excited by the prospect of cutting open a starfish/dogfish shark/giant pair of sheep lungs and so on. 4-6th graders? I can rock that.
But, give me 2-3rd graders and I stare at them like they are aliens. My persona must completely change. My management strategies must completely change. They are so wiggly and I don't understand....... So I must channel my best friend, and constantly chant to myself, "What would Shannon say? What would Shannon do? How would Shannon manipulate this child into goodness?" Why are they lying about EVERYTHING? Why are they making strange random noises as loud as they can while marching? Why must they touch me every. damn. second? And then I wonder about my capacity to ever be a mother.
This week, I have kindergarteners. 24 of them. Holy crap. They are not humans. Yep, they're pretty cute, and they loooove to learn, and they get infatuated by the funniest things. But, they are also little lamprey eels. The little suckers cling to you.
And I'm pretty sure somebody pooped today.
There was the ripe, putrid stench of poo coming from one table and I couldn't figure out which kid it was coming from. But there was definitely poopy pants in one quadrant. So, there we were, all together, in one small classroom, all day long, with Sir or Miss Poopypants.
This is not something you have to deal with in middle school. Yeah, kids have thrown up in a drunken fit, and have given me a lot of hell over the years. I can deal with someone giving me figurative shit. But literal shit?
I am so not cut out for this....
