Isaac’s First Grade Experience
Tomorrow is the last day of school for Isaac. He has had a mixed experience with first grade.
In Knoxville he had a kind and nurturing teacher and I was able to go into his class several times and volunteer. I think he did well and I don’t remember him ever getting into trouble.
His teacher for the second part of the year couldn’t have been more different. She is an older Asian lady with a strong accent. I have had a hard time communicating with her at times, so I can imagine that Isaac has trouble communicating with her sometimes as well. I often come out of a conversation with her not knowing 
exactly what she said or meant by something. Once I even called the office back after speaking with her to ask them if she had wanted me to pick Isaac up because I wasn’t sure what she had said.
It was really hard for Isaac to move into her class in the middle of the year. She seems to have really high expectations and she didn’t seem to have compassion for the learning curve presented to a new student entering her class. He got in trouble frequently right away. She wanted him to jump right in and start writing paragraphs in a journal for 30 to 45 minutes a day and he just hadn’t had much practice at composing. When I went in to talk to her she showed me how the rest of the class could fill a page in that time, but Isaac had only written a line or two. She seemed to blame it on behavior. She kept him in from Gym class, gave everyone in the class a treat except him, and sent him to the Principal’s office.
We met with her and with the principal, but I don’t know if his situation ever really improved. I know he’s progressed and learned much this year. He has even gotten 
much better at writing which was his main academic issue.
Based on things Isaac says, it sounds like she uses a lot of negative reinforcement, labeling and threats. He says that his teacher calls him “a talker†and said something about her thinking he was “the baddest kid in the class.†Last week he came home distraught and told me he was worried that he wouldn’t be able to go to the second grade. He said that his teacher said he wasn’t passing or that she wouldn’t let him go to second grade. Another day, he said that she gave the rest of the class “the best treat of the year†(an ice cream sandwich and juice), but he wasn’t allowed to have one because he was in trouble.
I went to an awards ceremony at his school this morning and had a conversation with another mother. She said that her daughter had started off in Isaac’s teacher’s class, but her daughter started refusing to get up in the morning because she didn’t want to go to school. As soon as she changed classes, her daughter woke up willingly, even sometimes extra early because she was excited to go to school again.
I really hope that he gets a good second grade teacher next year. He is a good kid who loves to learn.
If he doesn’t get a good teacher, insist on them changing him. Looking back I should have switched Brenden’s kindergarten teacher when I realized how bad she was – but I thought it was too late (Valentine’s Day). I really think the bad teacher and his personality set him up for the trouble he had later in school – with EVERY teacher. That’s one of the reasons he’s homeschooled. I hope you guys have a great summer break!!!
I would be so mad. Isaac seems like a very smart kid who loves learning, school should be fun for him. I hope Josh gets good teachers. Isolating a kid like that is just so mean. I’m about ready to come up there & teach that woman a lesson. kid-teacher relationships can have a lot of effect on how much effort kids put into their learning. Ooooh man. I could go on, but I probably shouldn’t. in any case- Isaac is awesome, and he totally deserves awesome teachers.
Oh this breaks my heart. Isaac is such a good kid, and there is no better way to squelch learning than a bad teacher who is too critical. How sad! I’m so sorry. Luckily this year is over. I will pray he gets a better teacher this year!