My Boys!

Tonight I stayed after school with some of my 6th graders. I had one with a detention, so he was stuck with me for 20 minutes, but then his cousin stayed after school too, to work on homework. Then another of my "sons" came and asked if he could call his dad and see if he could stay after school to finish a science Pace.

How can I say "no" when they come to me and say "Miss, you will stay?" If they would only work during the day at school...but this is the same group I spent many hours with after school last year working on homework.

The goal this year is to have the kids on target by the mid-way point, rather than it being the last partial of the year and we are pushing pushing pushing trying to get them to finish their year.

I have told the 6th graders that for every one of them who is on track and caught up by the end of second partial, I will take them to Pizza Hut! At first many of them responded with "well only Dassia and Bessy will get to go." But I have been encouraging them that they can ALL do it if they will work! Tonight the boys were asking me about it, would I really take them to Pizza Hut? Was I really going to buy them all Pizza? YES YES YES!

I have a few who have just now completed the Paces they had from 5th grade...and I still have a couple of girls who are trying to finish up 5th grade math. I stay with them for an hour on Monday nights for a math tutoring class. We have all made a notebook of math vocabulary and rules that will help them in all their Paces to come.

I love watching them working on their math and I see one of them open their notebook to refer back to what we have talked about...what is a prime number...how to find the least common denominator...

So tonight we got a Math Pace turned in and a Science Pace. So happy when they complete one of their Paces! Then I took them both home and I finally got home at 6:00 tonight. I love these kids so much! I think they know I love them....even though I give them detentions, some of them daily! But I also cheer them on when they are finishing up a Pace or passing a test or like David who has gone 7 days in a row of completing his Homework and I constantly brag on him!

How can I have my heart so love these kids? Only God can make it happen! Some days they are far from lovable....but even in my frustration I love them and would fight for them!

Maybe tomorrow I will remember to take some pictures....I carry my camera every day and never have a change to take a pic!