Midnight Train to Georgia

Today I was back at Cheers Elementary with the kids I did my student teaching with. If I could use one word to describe the day it would be CRAZY!!!!! It is obvious that it is the end of the year and that the kids are done-zo. I have never seen my kids act this way. They were so rude to each other and it took several times for me to say something before they would listen. I found myself getting frustrated with them and becoming the mean teacher who makes kids sit in silence. When I found my brow frowing I would take a deep breath and try to lighten the situation. I mean it is the end of the year, everything that we needed to do was done. It was time to let down our hair and enjoy the last few days of school. So when I started to get mad at them I would just simply start singing "Midnight Train to Georgia". I got the kids attention quickly and made us all smile and laugh. We did have a sit down talk at the end of the day. I apologized for getting frustrated with them and I explained how when they didn't listen or were rude to each other it really made me sad. All the kids were quiet and attentive during my speech. I ended with tomorrow is a new day, so lets make it a good day. We all agreed just in time for the dismissal bell to ring. I thought 3 year olds were tough, boy was I wrong. 4th graders on the last days of school were equally as hard to manage. I thought it was just me but I talked with the other teachers and they were all having the same issues as me. I am with them tomorrow so let's see if my speech has an impact. Fingers crossed!