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[yamahuh]

I HAVE a second degree black belt in Karate.
I haven't needed to use it yet while teaching and if I'm ever in a spot where I need it in the classroom you can be sure that the incident will be closely followed by my resignation.

[Gorak]

yamahuh,

I would think your expertise in self-defense would give you the confidence to teach in a public high school in the Bronx (New York) and many other similar public high schools. Students would certainly not want to mess with you.

I have never assaulted anybody in my Life. However, my confidence, from playing competitive team sports, has helped me in hostile environments that I have encountered in teaching.

[yamahuh]

I have never assaulted anybody either but some of these kids can really push my buttons sometimes. I'm pretty easy-going for the most part, I'll put up with a rowdy class as long as they quiet down when I want to explain something, I'll even put up with kids sleeping at their desks if they want to do it.
BUT one thing I will NOT tolerate is disrespect. For a while I tried to shrug it off but now I'm showing them that it is NOT acceptable behaviour.
One good thing about studying Karate for so many years is that I have a whole arsenal of 'exercises' that separate the kids from their egos.
Back against the wall, hips and knees at 90 degree angles arms out straight is a good one.
Push up position on your knuckles with your arms bent at 90 degrees is another.
Once in a while I even do them alongside the kids to show them the skinny old man isn't as much of a pushover as they might think.
It entertains the class for a few minutes too.
Today I threw a kid out of class who not only refused to make an effort at answering a couple of easy questions but then also refused to do the exercises. While I was chastising him in the hallway he was staring at his feet and smirking so I lifted his chin with my hand and looked him square in the eyes while I was telling him how much I disapproved of his behaviour.
His grin disappeared pretty quick once we made eye contact.

I hate pulling that kinda crap but once in a while you have to show them that YOU are the boss. If nothing else it tells them where they stand & besides most of these kids are bigger than me; I'm just a little guy...

[kev7161]

I love to relive old memories:

Last school year was very hot/cold for me. My Senior 3 classes were a breeze. Two different groups, once a week and I had taught them the previous year. We all loved each other and the classes generally went smoothly.

Senior Two: 3 different classes with a mish-mash of types. I too had taugh them the year before, so the respect and genrally feeling of love was there from most of the students. There were problems with attendance and such, but not as bad as it could have been. One small class of about 20 or so had 8 boys who disappeared after the first class. That was fine with me. They were troublemakers last year and I didn't need that headache. The dozen that did come received great lessons and they all seemed interested and engaged. That didn't last long as the missing were forced to come back to class after a couple of months (why it took a couple months for TPTB to send them back is beyond me). I told them if they didn't want to participate, they could read or sleep or work on other homework, BUT NO TALKING PLEASE! Ha! That's all they did was talk and purposely cause disruptions during class. So, sadly for the others, this turned into a film appreciation class and we just watched videos every time we met. The 2nd semester I only had to meet with them once a week!

Senior One: Except for one class, these six classes were a total nightmare! I won't go on and on, but suffice to say, it was the worst teaching experience I've EVER had. And little to no help from head teachers, admin., vice-principals, etc. I was called a "bad teacher" because I didn't know how to handle them. Maybe they were right.

Moving on . . . this past Friday, I decided to let my first graders watch a movie during the last two periods. Keep in mind these are 8 and 9 year old first graders. I gave them a choice: "The March of the Emporer" (that penquin movie) or "Jumanji" (scary yet humorous fun). A majority voted for the penguins. I told the others they were welcome to draw quietyly at their desks or read a book if they wanted to. About 30 minutes into the movie, I noticed almost all were drawing or reading. Obviously, this movie wasn't keeping their interest so I decided to change to "Jumanji". Well, you'd think some of these kids were going to die of fright, from just the first ten minutes! In the states, this movie is quite appropriate for 8 to 10 year olds. But I guess the maturity levels are much lower here. So, we never did finish a movie, but they got to draw and visit the rest of the period.