>I am a brand new teacher, four months of the job at this point. I like all first year teachers am still trying to figure things out and won’t fully do that for a few years. I did a four year undergraduate degree in which I spent time in a classroom since my sophmore year, and spent my entire senior year in an elementary school setting.
Tragedies like this have happened in my life time that I can remember, but Friday was a completely different feeling now that I have a class of 20 third graders. It has been on my mind since I have heard about it.
To attack teachers or call children assets is absurd at any time, but especially at a time like this.
These corporate reformers say they care about kids, but do they really?
I happened to be at a district PD, in which our presenter happened to spend time doing DRA training in Sandy Hook. I sat in a room with parents and teachers of all experience levels when we heard the news. Tears came from all of us. Our PD ended early and I thankfully forgot something at school.
I could have waited till I go in on Sundays to get it, but I just wanted to see my students and make sure they were ok. So I went back I quickly checked in with the sub and got a few hugs from my kiddos.
Mine were ok. I wish I could say the same thing about those from Newton.
I work in a title I building and so many of our kids do not get the services they need, we must do something about this as a society. We are better than this as a country.
I tell my kids frequently that they are safe in our classroom. Monday morning I will tell them that I care about them and love coming to school to teach them everyday, but its going to be hard to honestly say you are safe when they all live in a neighborhood with frequent shootings.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Diane, these wonderful testimonies, plus your comments, should be a book.
dear Brand New Teacher. What you can say is tht you safer here than most other places in the world. Sad but true.
This whole weekend, between grieving and seeking out updates, I have been pondering what Monday morning will be like. What do we say tomorrow? How do we greet the children? Do we assume they all know or don’t? Do we know how much is enough or how little is not enough? Do we bring it up? Do we act like everything is normal? Our superintendent sent us a letter with guidelines that made sense:
Maintain normal routine, reassure children they are safe, validate feelings, keep explanations brief and appropriate, seek help from the guidance department, etc.
I will have a slew of fifth graders in my music classroom for first period after they’ve been whisked out of homeroom. In essence, mine will be the first class period where they might open up. I don’t see these students every day, but I have a relationship with them from previous years. I feel as if the best thing to do is to greet them with the same love and respect they always need and to let them lead the way if they choose to open up. Will we be able to accomplish our learning and behavioral objectives and goals as outlined in my original plans? Well, would it matter if we don’t? In the scheme of things…no. What matters is that they know they are valued and cared for. The rest will follow.
We live in the richest nation in the world but at the same time the poorest. We live in the poorest nation in the world when profits supersede the welfare of others. The following are musings and I’m not sure if they are tied to this horrific event.
Our government officials are bought and fellow human beings are being treated like garbage because they don’t believe a certain way. Corporations sell video games that award points for killing/raping others. Profiteers complain about public education costing too much (about $10k/year) but never speak bad about us spending $30,000/year in keeping someone in a corporate prison. The inequality gap is the widest its ever been.