Setting the Classroom Climate

    I’m sure you’ve had your fair share of bad days. Have you ever had a bad week? A bad month? A bad year? 2012 was a tough and challenging year for me, for many reasons I won’t mention here. My goal is to make you smile and feel happy, not to bum you out. Anyways, the classroom was my happy place. It was the one place where I felt relaxed and “just right”. I thought I was doing a great job at masking all the other stresses in my life, but it was starting to seep through and make an appearance. I guess I had a day where I just wasn’t myself and as hard as I tried to mask it, my bad mood was taking over. I have never once, ever yelled or lost my temper with a student or a class. Sure, I use a stern voice if I’m displeased, but I never expose a bad temper. That’s just not who I am. I don’t really get mad. My associate teacher, Melissa, who happened to naturally take on a second role as my “therapist”, sensed that I was having a tough day. She gave me a hug and a piece of paper. This is what it said:

    It really opened my eyes to the fact that children pick up on their teacher’s moods. I knew I had the right to feel the way I was feeling; you’re not supposed to be happy and perky all the time. Life has its ups and downs and I was battling the down. “Leave your problems on the other side of the door” is something I had heard over and over again in all sorts of situations. It’s not always as easy as it seems. From that day on, I really focused on leaving the stress behind and just enjoying myself and the kids in the one place where I am in my element. Some people shop, some people sleep, and others exercise to rid their lives of stress. For the stresses I can’t get rid of, I turn to teaching--planning, marking, creating--to enter a place of harmony. A bad mood can be infectious. Don’t let it spread to and taint the beautiful happiness of a child. Make sure their classroom is a place of happiness and comfort as much as it is yours.