Darn my procrastination!

What an incredibly valuable reading! Had I only read it right when we got it, before leading the home schoolers in the What's Buggin You program! I really struggled to keep those kids focused on what we were supposed to be doing. It wasn't so much that they were rebelling against me on purpose, they were just so interested in EVERYTHING, that it was very difficult to actually teach them about insects or get the students to look for them. It was definitely a humbling experience after I had been feeling so good coming off my first day of Farmcraft with those wonderfully behaved Topekans. However, after reading this selection on "Behavior Management Techniques," I see numerous things I could have done differently that would have made the program better for me and the students.

This is frustrating because I missed an opportunity to both give the home schoolers an excellent program on insects, and practice using the skills outlined in the article. Maybe I am being too hard on myself; it is very early in the practicum season as well as my teaching career. Hopefully I can just remember what Palmer taught us last week (to horribly paraphrase): we are a work in progress, and to expect perfection is to guarantee failure. Let's just help each other to remember that.