May Madness. In a school the madness doesn't come in March as it does the rest of the country. It comes in May. May is the month of sunshine, trees budding, flowers blooming, bees buzzing, and complete and utter chaos in most classrooms in the North East. O' The May Madness.
Quickly after Spring Vacation, teachers continue the game of state testing. The prep, or the fight to not prep, smacks every teacher in the face (repeatedly). The redesigning of the classroom (because all posters that could pertain to any information that may or may not appear on the test need to be removed from the walls, ceilings, floor, etc.), faculty meetings with devotion to testing administration, along with frequent emails fill your mornings. Tightening of the chest, and midnight wake ups, associated with testing spread throughout the region. O' The May Madness.
Once NYS testing has concluded, it is our job to remind student that teaching and learning is still important. It is important to impress on them that "Yes, we STILL have curriculum to teach before I send you on to the next grade." Trying to explain to the students why they are learning material AFTER the state assessments, that was ON the state assessments, is always a difficult task. And somewhere in our mental filing cabinet we try to store the fact of which topic was tested that wasn't yet taught. O' The May Madness.
You begin to say things like, "Next years teachers...." or "The Junior High School...." or "There is one of your future teacher - show them your greatness." The idle threats are always meant with good intentions: Maybe they will appreciate how good they have it right now? Maybe they'll walk a bit straighter, or a bit quieter, in the hallway? Maybe they'll stop swearing at each other the minute I walk away? Maybe they'll step it up, FINALLY? But in the mean time, we end up TERRIFYING the kids that are ready for the next step, and the ones who aren't ready are not listening, anyway. O' The May Madness.
It is in the month of May that life at recess begins to fall apart. I often wonder if it is because of the seemingly endless winter - did they just FORGET how to play, NICELY, together? Is it because they are big fish in a small pond at this point, and just beat up on each other? (Much like siblings.) These are the moments, each day, that every teacher hopes that when the principal wanders down the hall, that he is NOT stopping into his/her room to report the newest "incident". Our shoulders, literally, slump over, heads dropped, and deep breaths are taken. Not only because this generally means more work - finding work for the students to cover during in-school suspension or detention, phone calls to be made home, etc... But mostly, it is because each time a student has a problem like this, it is a reminder that they may not be ready to leave us, and still have so much left to learn. It is a feeling of inadequacy - like if I had done my job better, this wouldn't have happened. O' The May Madness.
The countdown begins - for teachers and kids - until summer vacation. Student effort, generally, begins to decline and the occasional students says "that seemed too hard, so I didn't bother trying." Despite the beautifully enticing weather, recess and lunch detention is on the incline. Panic sets in for teachers- we still have 2 more math units, graduation rehearsal to prepare for, awards assemblies, student speeches to be given, graduation speeches to be written, future class lists, faculty meetings, SLO tests (which change the whole schedule), finals, the Bronx Zoo, track meet, and Spring Fling... How is it possible that the year is coming to a close so very quickly? Assemblies are squeezed into the schedule, fire drills (which always seem to happen in the 30 minute pee-break you get a day), and scheduling meetings to prepare for the following year. Yet, my mind hasn't wrapped itself around this one. O' The May Madness.
The hugs get tighter - because teachers and students don't want to let go. The laughter gets louder, and lasts longer, because you start to appreciate each other in a manner that is different than before. The concern grows deeper, because your time to teach them all that they need to learn for next year, and in life, has significantly reduced. And the tears brim a bit more often, because no matter how many times I wanted to bang my head on the wall, I do love each of you and preparing to say goodbye often takes my breath away. O' The May Madness.
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