Teaching Boys.......

[Janet]

Good advice Judy!!! Also...if they don't behave...they don't get a treat or whatever it is you give them. There is also the corner they can stand in when misbehaving.

[gja1000]

I know nothing about teaching young boys - but I have always heard they are more immature than girls of the same age. That may be true or not. It sounds like they have lots of unchanneled energy! I'd consult a teacher of the grade they are in to see how she handles these sorts of problems. It's like they don't respect you evidenced by not listening. So how to handle that??? - maybe a lesson from the bible on respect or something like that. Maybe an activity where they have to demonstrate respect (don't have a clue what that might be???) I'm just guessing, as I don't really know much about young kids.

[Blueyes]

Maybe the preacher needs to stop by for a little visit. Kinda like talking to the principal

My sons and grandsons don't (didn't) behave like that. They really don't Are these kids usually there or are they there so their parents can have a night off??

[DianaB]

Sorry, I did leave out their ages. They are kindergarten and first grades. Glen cut out 2nd grade in order to make my class smaller and easier to handle. Ha!!

The boys are bused in so there's usually not a parent involved. There is a guy at church that I can call and he'll take the boy into the adult church. That might work. I think that he also gives the boy a talk as well. A lot of parents send their kids to just get them out of their hair for awhile. Usually the ones that cause the most trouble have the saddest home life. Thanks for all of the ideas!!!

[Marilyn]

Oh, Diana, I can sooooo relate. I've been teaching off and on, but most of the time since I was in college. I've taught pre-school thru junior high girls. Never really had a much of a problem until last fall. I was teaching 1st - 3rd grade, a class I'd been teaching for 4 years, and really enjoyed. It was like I'd found my niche. Anyway, three boys were promoted into the class. One, Parker, has emotional problems. They thought he was autistic when he was a baby, but he has improved immensly since then. He interacts well, but has a short attention span. You have to keep getting his attention or he'll drift off. He really liked me and we got along well. Another, Kirk, is a sweet little boy, but he likes everything to be in a pattern. You have to do the same things at the same time during the class, or he gets frustrated. If he doesn't have time to finish something, he'll cry if we don't stop the class and give him time to finish. Then there is Manny. Even though I know his mother is a strong disciplinarian, he acts like he has no discipline. If he doesn't want to do something, he'll turn into silly putty and slink to the floor. He says unkind things to Kirk and Parker when he doesn't like something they do or say. Overall, he's a very very disruptive factor in the classroom. You put the three together and it can be overwhelming. I tried having Rex in the classroom with me, and it didn't help much. I tired having Manny's mother in the classroom, and he is better when she is there, but she needs to be in her own class.

I taught this class for two quarters and finally had to tell the deacon over the youth education that I couldn't do it any longer. I've never had to give up on anything like this before, but they were reducing me to tears. I had to admit that I'm just not the person for the job. They found another lady who is like a drill sargent and she seems to like the class and is very firm with them. More power to her.

I'm now teaching 4 & 5 year olds. There are three girls in the class, and we are having a blast. One of the girls is Kirk's little sister, and I see some of the same traits in her, but they are a dream compared to the boys. Sometimes we just have to admit that we aren't the right one for the job and let someone else take the reigns. In my case, this all worked out for the best.

Diana, so hope that things work out for you. I do feel your pain and frustration. Hugs!!

[DianaB]

I knew that you'd understand, Marilyn, since you also teach in church. I also teach a Sunday School class that's about the same age, but mostly they are kids raised in church with parents that are there. I was running about 6 to 8 kids until we had promotions and now I have any where from 1 to 3. It's a really nice class now and I'm not fustrated with so few.

It doesn't help that the boys are allowed to run willy-nilly all over everywhere right before class on Wednesday. I'll try a few more times and see how it goes. I've never really wanted to teach boys but Glen needed the help and I'm feeling pretty good with the new meds that I'm on so I thought that I could tackle teaching them. I was so excited about some ideas that I had but last Wednesday night has really taken some of the excitement out of me. We'll see what happens.......

[judy]

Sadly, Diana, children from not so great homes tend to respond to the drill sergeant type of teacher Marilyn gave her kids over to. They need a lot of structure, and they are used to adults being harsh with them. They sometimes just don't know how to react to kindness, so they ignore you.

You really don't seem like you have that drill sergeant in you!