The day I met Tom was my first day of practicum. I was nervous, excited and didn’t know what to expect. I was told there was a boy with ADHD in the classroom but I did not know who he was or what he looked like. Not knowing what he looked like soon changed upon meeting him that Monday morning.
8:55, walking in late, Tom walked in and yelled “Hello”. He was soon told that it was silent reading and he needed to respect the other students in the classroom. This calmed him down rather quickly. He read silently a book about lego but quickly changed to a book about dogs. This was interesting to see because I thought to myself “he is calm I don’t know what everyone is talking about”. Little did I know this boy could not sit for longer than ten minutes without having to get up from his seat, disrupt the class, and in some occasions go running out the door to the hallways.
I could not believe it this boy could not be controlled. He had a mind of his own and I, as a new student teacher, had no idea what to do if this happened during my lesson. Then I thought to myself “why don’t I ask him what he needs”.
The time then came that I had to teach the class for the very first time. Nerves were rushing through my body because of having to teach an intermediate class, let alone a boy who could go running out the door. I had asked the class to put their hands on their heads when they were done reading an example. I then went into a question without asking the students to transition. Tom became very upset very quickly. I calmed him down and asked him what was wrong, “you didn’t ask us to take our hands off our heads, so I couldn’t ask a question”. I had tipped him off by not wording my phrases properly. I could not believe that something I felt was a small detail was a large detail in his mind.
This experience on day one of meeting Tom was interesting and allowed me to grow as a teacher. Although it was a small growth I now know that it is important to phrase my teaching in a way that all students can succeed with. I am looking forward to working more with Tom and hopefully helping him with his learning.
Please keep in mind I have altered names for the security and privacy of all members involved.
