Categories: uncategorized
Date: 10 November 2004 19:59:13
If he had a brain, he'd be lethal. Two hours it took him and me to do his overdue Art homework - the project he's apparently had about three weeks (including the holidays) to work on and told me (mug that I am) was voluntary. Turns out that not only is it NOT voluntary, but he'll get a detention if he doesn't get it done tonight. Two hours of research finding pictures and descriptions of shoes through the ages - and because of his literacy weaknesses which make him take half an hour reading a sentence because he daren't risk reading a word in case he gets it wrong.... I end up reading all the text, he summarises it in a sentence, then he comes to type it up and has totally forgotten the sentence he came up with, I tell him the sentence to type, he hovers over the letters for half an hour wondering which one to hit (OK, so my keyboard having no letters on it doesn't help, but he does know how to touch-type... in theory) and I end up spelling the words out for him. Hmmm... ever had the feeling it'd be easier to give in and do the homework yourself??? Still, he is a love and he did make me a rather delicious cup of coffee and give me a rather endearing cuddle and kiss and told me he loved me, so what more can you want in a son?
He reminded me somewhat of the Year Eight class I taught this morning. I had a really good morning all in all. Amazing - all of Year Five and Year Six are successfully learning to tell the time (and the absence of one difficult child and the exclusion - mid lesson - of two more made my year six lesson an absolute delight). Year seven are progressing great guns at converting between decimals, fractions and percentages and definitely ready to tackle working out a percentage of a number. Year eight? Well, I reckon I'd have got more reaction from the fruit and vegetable counter at Sainsbury's. Decimals? Oooooh, too hard, too hard.
I really wonder sometimes what's making these kids so unstable. I have children who will throw a tantrum at the smallest possible setback - children who cannot be spoken to (or even be in the room when I speak to someone else) without answering back - an impossible number of children who cannot be in the same room as particular other children without attacking them - and kids who behave as though they are totally insane: making strange noises, screaming, muttering to themselves, wandering round the room, rocking, and being totally irrational - "I can't sit and do my tables because I am flying round the room". Well, I'm sorry kid, but you're going to come in to land and sit and do your tables because otherwise I will be flying off the handle! One of the staff summed it up. We were talking about the TV programme Monkey World and she said that she'd always wanted to be a monkey keeper. Then she suddenly realised what she'd said and we all burst out laughing.
No aquafit tonight, partly because the ear really is getting on my nerves and, if the drum is perforated, I mustn't risk getting water in it and partly because I have lost my babysitter. How on earth do you find a good babysitter? I can't afford to pay much - it becomes a ridiculously expensive keep fit session if I have to pay more than £5 for the evening - but because of my how my boys are it needs to be a responsible and firm adult... and one who understands that when I say they need to be in bed by 7, doesn't think that seems a little harsh and keeps them up a bit longer as a treat. Anyone free on a Wednesday evening?