3:15 pm. The middle of office hours. I brought computers today, and said that when they're done with their homework, they could go online.
This morning I had 4 periods where we did independent work and I demanded complete silence in the room while we did it. It was really hard for me to get silence, and by the time I got it quiet, it was already time for the bell to ring.
But I really don't believe in quiet. Or, I believe in quiet, but not absolute silence. Right now they are all talking quietly, playing on the computer, and doing homework. They're working so well together that I don't want the bell to ring, and it isn't quiet. I'm happy for the first time all day, I can see they're working really well because they're being quiet, and I wonder why this needs to be different from a class period where I ask for silence. Maybe I have to know that I can have them be quiet, so I have to have them be quiet for the first 6 weeks so they can learn, but I want to build them until they can do it all by themselves, until they can feel safe and structured not in perfect silence, and until I can get a good tone going.
8D, by the way, is my favorite class. They're the ones that all have special needs, where I have in-class support, and where no one believes they can do anything. I expect them to be able to learn independently by the end of the year. No one believes that they can. But I am sure they can, and they can do it well.
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