A Fight Breaks Out

Today was my first day “flying solo,” and it was a day of many highs and some lows.

My lead teachers does a TON of the prep work to make me look great such as having reminders about the concert up on the board. He also helped me to realize that tomorrow, Thursday, the majority of my classes will be half the members of the band due to activities, so we plan to show movies.  He had work for the TAs, which I was wondering if I would have to come up with something. He had music playing for them to listen to. Yes, he was there first thing int he morning, but he and 4 of our best players left just after 8pm to go to NNU for a rehearsal in an elite group of players that have a concert tomorrow night.

First period is used to me directing rehearsal, so it went without much of a hitch. Infact, he was there at the beginning and then just slipped out about half way.  This beginning Middle School band is preparing for a concert on December 8th, and progressing faster now than a few weeks ago.  We had originally planned two sheet music pieces, but the band was struggling with the first one we gave them, Carol of the Bells, so we will perform two other simplier pieces from their books.

Second Period is the Middle School percussion class that is also used to me directing them. I cracked the wipe a couple times, so at the end I made a point that I enjoy working with them and I enjoy being at the school and I like them, and that I am fortunate enough to be here int he Spring and be with the school all year long. They are preparing ensemble pieces and two group pieces for a concert on December 6th. there’s still so much work to do. Many have lost sheets of music and are sloppily borrowing frmo each other, so today I made a point that they must all get copies of the music with them to class by Monday, November 28th due to break starting this week.

Third period is prep, and I found myself grading work for economics and trying to shoot out some emails, and it went TOO FAST. Because I didn’t get all the grading done, I spent lunch in the band room all by myself grading instead of going to lunch with the other teachers. The room was very quiet, and I got a feeling for how a teacher works solo. The shared student-teaching experience is VERY different from being by myself in the classroom.

Fourth period is our 5th graders who have a concert on Thursday. YES, THIS THURSDAY! They are nervous. Probably because they are still nto ready. I spent time answering questions, which gave me a chance to memorize a couple more names. Seeing the 5th graders every other day and having ALL the fifth graders has made it more difficult for me to learn their names. I still stumble ona couple names in teh other classes, but the 5th graders are still half known to me. I’m working hard on claling them by name even if I must refer to the sitting chart.  One of these 5th graders came up to me and told me that he’ll be missing Thursday because his uncle passed and the funeral is planned for Thursday. My heart ached for him.

Advisory went without much of a hitch. This is a class of 12 Sophmores that meet with an Advisory teacher to work on college prep skills, portfolios, preparing for student lead conferences, and learn team building skills. Mondays are generally grade checks while one student presents a current event. Tuesdays are 30 second questions. Wednesday is etiquette training. Thursday has been book reading by my lead teacher, but this month was to be “Thankful Thursdays” Fridays we often play games to build teamwork. Anyway, today we discussed the question “Do others know your locker combination? why? and do you feel safe?” The responses ranged from “No one knows my locker combination because I only dial the first number and then leave so on my return I dial the last two. I do this because last year I watched others open their locker while pretending to talk to someone else so I could get in.” to “I leave nothing in my locker because so many people know my combination.”

Fifth hour challenged me. They are the higher performing Middle School Band. I remember middle school, so I did the wisest thing I could have done by running the rehearsal yesterday. My lead teacher was in the room. I conducted the band. I knew what their routine was. I knew who played what instrument. I knew what to expect. If I hadn’t have, they would have run me to the ground like a regular sub. They tried. I had a group wanting to go in the other room to rehearse a quartet piece. Nope. They had huge amounts of energy before and after songs with boestrous comments and hollering. Then I started getting questions. “Mr. Bradshaw, what the marking that looks like its a mouth eating somethign?” “Mr. Bradshaw, what is this….(runs up to show me the music and pionts to a crescendo.” ETC.  I answered the questions to the point that it got ridiculous which was the point when one of the ones that wanted to go into the other room to rehearse asked me why I conducted a fermetta straight through, and it was a forte marking. I then said somethign to the effect, “You wanted to go into the other room when I have to be teaching what a forte marking is?” She than replies, “You hurt my feelings.” I sat down (on the stool at the podium), and I began, “speaking of hurt feelings. I’m hurt that you are treating me this way. (almost silence in the room). I came in here yesterday and I ran the rehearsal, and we didnt’ have any of this…(I summarized the requests and questions).I want to help you learn, and I want to answer questiosn, but if you are asking questiosn yo uknow answers to you are like the boy that called ‘WOLF!’ You think you are being funny by treating me like a regular sub, but you are just hurting yourselves. You have a concert in less than 3 weeks, and you need to get ready for it. every minute you take from rehearsal to ask me questions you know answers to is a waste of your time and will only reflect on YOU! Now, let’s get serious and rehearse.” After that, I didn’t have a problem, and I am SO GLAD I came in yesterday!! It was right after lunch, and I imagine that they made a pact right before class to give me a bad time. The Middle School mentality is fascinating, so why do I want to teach it?!?  It’s exhilarating!

Sixth period asked for a “Jam Day” but we have a performance on November 28th, so we had to rehearse. We did. Jazz band is the top rehearsing band, and the rehearsal ran almost normal.

Those still reading, you’ve finally made it to the end of my day and the final class that had the fight. Background: In Wind Ensemble, we have a percussion section that has a lot of pride. One student has been through the thick and thin of band and played for many years. He is an excellent musician, and has many other talents with technology. School is easy for him. He has an opinion, and he shares it strongly with the others. The rest of the percussion section do not like being bossed around by him. The sophmore who incidentally stated in Advisory that he observed people’s combos to get into their lockers, stated to the more experienced senior, “You’re not the teacher.”  Entering conversation from stage left we have one of the most humble of percussion players that asks both of them to “just stop.”  An altercation begins between the experienced player and the sophmore begins with the third person trying to call them down but getting the point of also arguing.  In the end, the most experienced player and the humble student appear to me to nearly be at blows, but the experienced player was acutally coming between the humble player and the sophmore. The humble player leaves in tears, and I’m left with a classroom of silence.

What does a teacher do in this moment?!?  “We all want our band to be better. We all have ideas on how that looks and sounds. What we want can’t be more important than friendship. We must remember respect and kindness before fighting with each other. We must find a way to unite and not fight. We need to solve this discord in the percussion. I think the solution is a section leader, but we’ll discuss that with Mr. Vaughn.”  I choose to let the percussion player get a break, and we played the piece I had asked to play. when it was over, I sent one of his friends out after him to let him know we care about him and miss him and would like him back. He returned, and rehearsal continued.  After class, I had two of the three come and talk to me. Now, I need to have a discussion with the third (our locker combo stealer.)

Sitting at the end of my day, I am satisfied at how things did come together. There are a thousand other details of the day such as having a class member run an errand for me in the middle of the day and playing Julie Andrews and someone guessing it was Justan Bieber. Many Highs and Many Lows, and the one that learned the most was probably me!

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