Millo at Large

A new week had started; it was Monday, and the students had enjoyed a nice day off. I walked into school ready for what the week had in store for me. When I first entered the room, something felt different; it was quieter. It seems that when the students get a day off, they settle down.

After thinking I had jinxed it, they immediately erupted, but thank goodness the teacher has his methods! That morning, students were taking a reading comprehension test, a story that follows two birds. They get separated, and one bird becomes a robber while the other becomes a very kind bird. The students handed in their tests, and I was so happy. It meant it was time to grade!

I sat in the staff room, AirPods in, legs crossed, eyes locked onto the papers, and red pen in hand. The answers were (in order, which I still remember writing this three days later): a big storm, near the Rishi’s ashram, false for all three true or false questions, and the rest were free responses. The free response questions were my favorite because they gave me a look into the students’ minds and how they think.

I graded 52 papers in an hour and a half, not too bad! I walked back to the classroom with much pride to give them to the teacher. I sat down, feeling very calm, as if I had just finished meditating.

During the extra class, I was given a group of six students and was in charge of making sure they understood the topic of rounding numbers. I made sure to sit the students who did not know the concept next to me and those who did together, but still close enough for me to help. I am proud to say that only two of the students did not fully understand the concept, but I found it was the two kids who were too afraid to ask questions. So next time, I know to ask them the questions instead of waiting for them to ask.