"You'll toughen up."

Today was actually a pretty good day!

I was pretty excited because my lovely friend Katie came and volunteered. I can't tell you how wonderful it is to have volunteers in my classroom! There are so many students that need one-on-one help, so the more people I have in my classroom helping, the smoother things go.

During the passing period between Plus/Intervention and my 4th period, I went out into the hall and found three boys who had just been in my classroom, wrestling in the hall! They were pushing each other and ended up on the floor!
Awesome.

I didn't quite know what to do because there were no other teachers around, but clearly that was unacceptable behavior. Yes, they were laughing and just having fun, but seriously?
One of our school rules is keep hands, feet, and objects to yourself, so obviously action had to be taken.

I demanded that the three boys come over to me, where I explained that their behavior was inappropriate and I had no choice but to give them all lunch detention. Oh my goodness. The protests that exploded out of them almost crushed me! I was determined to follow through though, so I went back to my desk and started filling out the lunch detention slips. They followed me and and I was impaled with excuses as to why I should not give lunch detention,

"MS. DAMRON! I have football practice! I can't get another lunch detention."
"Ms. Damron - NO! I can't get another lunch detention or I'll have ISS!"
"I just pushed him once. Why do I need a lunch detention?"

Oh my goodness I was flustered. My heart truly broke because I had to give a lunch detention. I didn't know what else to do though. I couldn't just tell them that wrestling was wrong and please don't do it again. Plus, once you give a consequence, you can't back down.
I was freaking out the entire 4th period. Two of the students who I gave a lunch detention were in my 4th period and they were MAD. They just glared at me the whole time and refused to do work. I finally sat down with one student and helped him do his work and I think he was in a better mood by the end of the period. The student who had football practice after school was not in a forgiving mood though. When one of the paraeducators took him aside to help him with his science homework, I heard him say, "It isn't fair. So and so didn't get a lunch detention..." Yikes. When the period ended, he wouldn't play battleship to earn a piece of candy and he wouldn't make eye contact!

Needless to say, I went to lunch and told some other faculty members that I had given out my first lunch detentions and I was freaking out about it! I told them that I felt awful, but I didn't know what else to do! They said that I did the right thing. One of them said I was nicer than she would have been. She said she would have marched them right down to the principal's office. At the end of lunch though, one of the teachers told me, "You'll toughen up. Nothing phases me anymore."

I guess we'll have to see how I "toughen up" over the years!

(And lets hope that my dear students don't hold grudges...)

-Ms. Damron-