How to Open a Milk Carton

How does a person open a milk carton? Here is a "how-to" guide for those of you who may assume it to be common sense.

How To Open a Milk Carton:
1. Find the arrow.
2. Put both of your thumbs into the triangular cavity below the arrow.
3. Pull the sides of the carton apart and don't stop until the arrows touch another piece of cardboard.
4. Squeeze the 2 sides together using your thumb and pointer finger.
If your hands aren't big enough, use your thumb and pointer finger from both hands.

Trouble shooting:
If you run into trouble, try the following:
1. Are you SURE you opened the side with the arrow?
2. Are you SURE you pulled the arrows ALL the way back as far as they can go?
3. Jam your finger into the tiny hole that you made in the center (if there is one) and pull.
4. Ask a neighbor for help.
5. If NONE of the above steps work, ask your teacher for help.

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If you have never analyzed this process, your students must be older than 6!

Who Am I?

As you may have guessed, I am a first year teacher. I am teaching Primary and Grade 1 and have decided to blog about it because I suspect there are millions of others out there who are dealing with the same sudden, overwhelming feeling of incompetency that I am.

I started teaching in January 2008 but this is my first time in primary and my first time planning the entire year. I am known as an extremely confident person who is up for anything. I have traveled alone, been promoted in previous jobs, and taken on leadership roles in everything I have tried until this point. Then suddenly, I was thrown to the bottom of the heap.

The first few weeks were great. I managed to pull my classroom together in a weekend and my kids seemed like little angels. Then they became more comfortable. It started with a few little things: punching, knocking things over, tossing the crayons around. For a few students, their true colours emerged after about a month. How can a 5-year-old behave like such a little monster?

I am going to rate myself from 1 to 5 in what I consider to be the major aspects of teaching. 1 being "I can't believe they haven't fired me yet" and 5 being "This is a problem for some teachers?"

Planning :: 3
Parent Communication :: 4
Administration Communication :: 4
Getting Along with the Students :: 5
Behaviour Management :: 1
Being Accepted by my Fellow-Teachers :: 1
Self-Esteem :: 1

Basically: I assume that all other staff members think I am the most incompetent person to walk into the school but the kids and parents trust that I know what I am doing.

Let's face it though: our jobs are entertaining. I am sure you will all be able to relate to my stories and I encourage you to add your own. This blog isn't really for you...it's more of a therapy for me!