Some days I forget that I work with 7th graders. These past few days were some of those days. I created a quiz that was much too hard. It's hard to accept defeat when you've tried so hard otherwise. We practiced. We used guided notes. We acted things out. We practiced with a study guide. We created "cheat sheets" to use while taking the quiz.
But they failed miserably. As a teacher, that means that I fail, too. Damn, that is not something you want to admit to. I mean, who wants to admit that they were ineffectual? And as a teacher, who can waste 5 days when there are only 180?
At first I was stunned. Then upset. Disgusted by myself. I couldn't sleep last night. How could I have failed them? How could they have failed? (And the read-between-the-lines question: How could they fail me?) Today my esteem returned a bit. My support teachers reassured me. I tried my best to right wrongs. We went over the quiz as a class. I'm providing them the opportunity to retake the quiz. Things are getting better.
But I still feel embarrassed. How could I have been so naive?
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